Discover the best Netflix shows for learning English

Netflix isn’t just for entertainment; it’s a powerful tool to acquire new English language skills.

In fact, around 77% of English learners watch TV shows or movies as one of their core language activities.

Unlike reading a book, watching a TV series improves your active watching and listening skills. You listen to native speakers use their mother tongue, follow some interesting plotlines, and learn a bunch of new vocabulary along the way!

If you already like watching Netflix shows and you want to improve your English, why not combine the two? Talk about a great way to have fun and save time. In this article, you’ll discover the best Netflix shows to improve your language skills, plus tips and tricks to increase the effectiveness of this novel way to learn English!

8 best Netflix shows to learn English

We know there are a whole range of shows you can watch to learn English with Netflix, so you may be wondering which is the best one. To make things easier, we’ve researched the top shows for English language learners by looking at their difficulty, accents, genre, and themes.

We’ve also factored in the trusty IMBD rating system for 2023, so you can make sure you’re watching top-quality content.

The 8 must-watch Netflix shows for learning English are:

Next, we’ll look at each of these shows in more detail.

Friends: Best for slow dialogue

Friends is a popular American sitcom that has already taught many people how to speak English. Dubbed the “Friends effect,” fans of learning English with this Netflix show include baseball player Luis Severino and soccer coach Jürgen Klopp.

Based around the long-term friendships and lives of six New Yorkers (Rachel, Phoebe, Ross, Chandler, Joey, and Monica), Friends has won several Emmys and Golden Globes. The show is light-hearted, and the conversations are easygoing, though there are plenty of colloquialisms and catchphrases to pick up, too.

We recommend this series because the plots aren’t complex, and the dialogue is often slow and easy to follow. It’s also useful for getting acquainted with everyday speech and sentence constructions. Whether you loved watching the series in the 90s or are yet to give it a go, it’s a perfect choice for learning English with Netflix.

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The Great British Bake Off: Best for British accents

If you prefer to focus on British English, give this show a try. Besides being one of the most popular British shows ever produced, it creates a cozy atmosphere that helps you to learn in an easygoing way.

The Great British Bake Off (also known as The Great British Baking Show in the US) is a television baking competition. Each episode includes a mix of educational content about baking, humor, and baking challenges. Unlike American cooking shows, which can often be quite stressful and very fast, this show’s combination of calming music, beautiful British accents, and people supporting each other is excellent for smooth language learning.

The English language used is predominantly simple and evenly paced, with phrases often heard in everyday British communication. Vocabulary mostly revolves around baking, but there are also conversations about the contestants’ personal lives, giving you a glimpse into British culture and some English slang. If you like baking, friendly people, and British accents, this show is perfect for you.

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The Crown: Best for British history

How about watching the most expensive drama series Netflix has ever produced? The Crown is another British hit show on Netflix that follows the life of Queen Elizabeth II. The plot begins in 1947, six years before her coronation. The British royal family show now has 6 seasons, so there are plenty of episodes for you to learn the Queen’s English!

The accents are obviously British (Received Pronunciation), which makes this show a great fit for anybody wanting to learn more about standard British English. It must be noted that the English language used in the show is formal and less commonplace in the UK today. Although based on real events, it is also a historical drama. But that doesn’t take away from the fact it’s still a fantastic way to learn more about Britain’s history and its monarchy.

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The Big Bang Theory: Best for short watching

This popular American comedy follows the story of four socially awkward scientists from California (Leonard, Sheldon, Raj, and Howard) and their neighbor, Penny. The show’s 12 seasons are perfect for learning informal spoken English, everyday expressions, and American cultural references. The episodes are short, which makes rewatching convenient.

A lot of the series – especially in the early seasons – focuses on physics, and the jokes are often science-related, so be prepared to learn some advanced words as well. There are also instances of engineering and scientific vocabulary being used. Since the show has many characters from different cultural backgrounds, you can also hear different English accents.

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Sherlock (TV series): Best for detective stories

Sherlock is a modern adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories about Sherlock Holmes. Knowledge of the original is not necessary but can change your view of the show. It’s a British crime series consisting of 4 seasons with episodes that run for about 90 minutes each.

The series follows consulting detective Holmes, who assists the Metropolitan Police Service and Senior Inspector Greg Lestrade in solving various crimes. He is helped by his roommate, John Watson, who has returned from military service in Afghanistan. Although the series depicts a whole range of different criminals, Holmes’ conflict with his mortal enemy, Jim Moriarty, is a constant feature.

This is a good pick for people who want to practice learning modern British English and who also enjoy a good detective story. Even though there are many Sherlock Holmes adaptation series, this one steals the show with brilliant performances by Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. The language can be complicated at times, though Sherlock’s thinking is always explained clearly.

If you like classic detective stories with a modern twist, this is definitely the best way to learn English with Netflix.

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House of Cards: Best for intermediate English and politics

If you’re a fan of politics on the other side of the pond, House of Cards is a show of sharp political drama. It reveals the world of greed, corruption, unquenchable ambition, and backstage games in modern Washington.

The show predominantly follows the main character of Frank Underwood, an ambitious Democratic politician who, with the help of his wife Claire, wants revenge on the current President so that he can finally get into the presidential seat.

The language is a mix of simple everyday speech and more complicated political jargon. Although the plot and situations the characters find themselves in are fictional, the show offers many examples of using language to get yourself out of harm’s way. The dialogue is pacy and often complex, so it’s a good choice for advanced learners who want to learn intermediate English with Netflix.

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Grey’s Anatomy: Best for medical vocabulary

For medical language learners, Grey’s Anatomy is an excellent choice. The show’s 45-minute episodes provide an insight into the stressful lives of doctors who do everything they can to succeed in the world of medical professionals.It guarantees viewers a wide range of intricate plots relating to increasingly strange medical cases along with all kinds of personal relationships, such as superficial friendships in the workplace and passionate love affairs, all spiced with a great deal of drama.

Due to the show’s unique mix of professional and romantic storylines, it offers an abundance of medical vocabulary as well as phrases for interpersonal communication. We recommend this show for intermediate or more advanced students as it’s often fast-paced and hard to follow if you miss an episode.

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Suits: Best for business English

Another great series to watch is Suits, especially if you want to learn business English vocabulary. The show is a legal drama set in New York City spanning 9 seasons with episodes that are roughly 40 minutes long. The story is focused on a former student who escapes getting arrested during a drug sting. He stumbles on Harvey Specter, the best lawyer in New York, and gets a job at his law firm even though he never went to law school. The plot features a boss who is willing to do anything to get the job done and his employee who would do anything for him.

Suits is great for people pursuing a legal career since it offers a lot of legal vocabulary. It’s probably not a good fit for people learning everyday English, but it is perfect for those studying business English. If you want to improve your language skills for work, give it a try.

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Check out the 10 best Netflix series to learn English below:

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4 ways to learn English with Netflix effectively

Since watching Netflix is entertaining, it is really easy to get yourself to do it on a frequent basis. Follow these tips the next time you watch a Netflix show for maximum learning efficiency.

1. Watch with the subtitles on

The first step is to watch with the English subtitles on. A study by the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) of Barcelona showed that students significantly improved their English comprehension skills by watching English TV shows with subtitles.

Watching shows with subtitles can also help you to learn English vocabulary as you can easily recognize frequently used words and phrases.

English spelling and pronunciation can also be confusing sometimes, which is why subtitles can help beginners a lot as you can look at the spelling and listen to the pronunciation at the same time.

For English learners, watching without subtitles can be difficult, especially when there are different accents in the show you are watching. The people at Preply showed just how difficult it can be to understand the accent and know where the accent is from. Try it yourself:

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How to learn English with Netflix subtitles

Depending on your level of English, try watching an English series on Netflix with the following subtitle options:

• Beginners: Watch English shows with subtitles in your native language
  Start by watching a TV show in English but with subtitles in your native language or another language you understand well. You’ll hear new vocabulary while still understanding the context.
• Intermediate: Combine English audio with English subtitles
  Watching the show with English audio and English subtitles will help improve your comprehension skills and your pronunciation. You can listen to the word and read it at the same time.
• Advanced: Listen without subtitles
  If you’re an advanced English student, watching English shows without subtitles can help mimic listening to real-life conversations.. Preply sought advice from Bob the Canadian, who has 1.67M subscribers on YouTube. He says by turning off the subtitles, you’ll really need to figure out what’s going on! Check out all of Bob’s advice here for tips on learning English through TV.

2. Write down words you don’t recognize

Learning new vocabulary from shows is easy. Just pause the video and write the new word down. Then, look it up in an online dictionary. This makes you more engaged in the learning process and transitions you from a passive to an active role. Additionally, you can use this Google Chrome extension, which helps you compare two subtitle languages and offers a pop-up dictionary that saves even more time on looking up new words.

You can also find an app to help you collect any unfamiliar vocabulary. Preply’s free vocabulary app helps you store new words and even gives you exercises to help you remember them.

3. Rewatch sections you don’t understand

Native speakers of English usually speak very fast. For language learners, this means that there will sometimes be sections of an episode that you don’t understand. A lot of words and phrases depend on context, so once you finish the episode, try rewatching the section you didn’t understand and look for things you might have missed.

Try answering questions like: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? Don’t worry too much if you still don’t understand everything – learning a language is not about perfection but about progress. Once your English skills improve, you will see that your understanding has improved as well.

4. Repeat what you hear out loud

Listening is only one step of the learning process. If you want to improve your English speaking skills, you need to practice speaking as well. Another great thing about Netflix is that you can choose the character you want to sound like and repeat after them. Listen to one sentence, pause the show, and repeat it out loud.

Record yourself and then compare your pronunciation to the original. If it’s similar, great job! If it sounds very different, don’t worry, just try again! Make sure to also use the right intonation. Is the character happy, sad, angry, or excited? Remember, you are not only learning how to pronounce words but learning how to use them in the right context.

How to put new words into practice

Follow these tips to make sure you’re learning English with Netflix effectively:

1. Write down all unfamiliar words while watching, and look them up in an English dictionary afterward.
2. If you still don’t understand the words, make sure you bring them up with your tutor. You should also rewatch the section of the TV show for further context.
3. Record yourself saying new words and cross-check against the pronunciation in the TV show.
4. When you feel confident, use the words in your English classes or in conversation with native English speakers.
5. If you aren’t currently attending classes, try joining forums or subreddits about the show. You can also create social media posts, which can help you practice writing and reading.

Combining Netflix series with private language classes

Although Netflix is great for developing your listening comprehension skills, to really learn a language, you also need to practice speaking with an English teacher. Why not build on your newfound knowledge of English phrases and vocabulary by taking them to the next level? Browse Preply for the perfect tutor for you depending on the type of English you want to learn, and show off what you’ve learned on Netflix.

Working with a tutor one-on-one will significantly decrease the time you need to master English and give you a unique chance to have your progress monitored by a professional tutor who will check your fluency, grammar, pronunciation, and overall communication skills.

Learning with Netflix at home is great, but combining it with speaking practice will catapult you into the world of being fluent in English!