If you're a Netflix subscriber who has yet to dip your toe into the world of South Korean entertainment, you are in a small minority. According to the streaming giant, "over 80% of Netflix members around the world watch K-content" with Korean-language TV shows and movies joining Spanish and Japanese content as the most popular among U.S. audiences. Netflix's 2024 Korean slate gave us dozens of K-dramas and Korean reality shows, with shows like Queen of Tears, Parasyte: the Grey, Physical: 100 season 2, and Culinary Class Wars dominating the streamer.
Somehow, Netflix Korea went even bigger in 2025, with epic new stories starring Hallyu's biggest stars, and the return of several hit reality competitions. From When Life Gives You Tangerines to Physical: Asia to the final season of Squid Game, global fans had plenty to fill their watchlists. Below, we've rounded up the best K-dramas and reality shows that landed on Netflix in 2025.
The Best Historical Netflix K-Dramas of 2025
'When Life Gives You Tangerines'
Release date: March 7
Warning: You will need a lot of tissues when you watch this gorgeous drama from My Mister director Kim Won-seok. This weekly drama takes place on Jeju Island and "chronicles the adventures of Ae-sun (IU and Moon So-ri), 'the remarkable rebel,' and Gwan-sik, (Park Bo-gum and Park Hae-joon), the 'unyielding iron,' including Gwan-sik’s long-standing crush on Ae-sun since they were young."
'Dear Hongrang'
Release date: May 16
This historical K-drama, adapted from Jang Da-hye's novel Hong Rang: Swallowing Gold, chronicles the bond between step-siblings Hong-rang (Alchemy of Souls' Lee Jae-wook) and Jae-yi (Destined With You's Jo Bo-ah). Over a decade after Hong-rang disappeared at the age of eight, he returns home with no memory, and Jae-yi becomes "torn between doubt and love for her enigmatic step-brother," per Netflix.
'Aema'
Release date: August 22
In 1982, the movie Madame Aema made history as one of the box-office hits of that year, and as the most erotic Korean film of its time. This dramedy set in Chungmuro, the heart of the Korean film industry in 1980s Seoul, depicts the fictionalized process of creating the film. Among the characters involved are Jeong Hui-ran (Lee Ha-nee), the acclaimed diva who's removed from the lead role due to studio disputes; Shin Joo-ae (Bong Hyo-rin), a nightclub dancer who's suddenly cast as the film's new star; and Kwak In-woo (Cho Hyun-chul), the timid rookie director about to make his directorial debut.
'Bon Appetit, Your Majesty'
Release date: August 23
This smash-hit K-drama starring Lim Yoo-na and Lee Chae-min had fans drawing comparisons to Mr. Queen (the highest of compliments). Inspired by the real-life tyrant Yeonsangun, this historical-fantasy series follows Ji-young (Lim), an acclaimed chef who's suddenly transported back to 16th-century Joseon. She's quickly captured by the temperamental King Yi Heon (Lee Chae-min), who will keep her alive as long as she keeps making him excellent meals. (Because this is a K-drama, they eventually fall in love.)
'Typhoon Family'
Release date: October 11
Like the beloved romance Twenty Five Twenty One, Typhoon Family is a historical drama set amid the 1997 Financial Crisis. Kang Tae-poong (King the Land's Lee Jun-ho) is a wealthy playboy, but when his father dies amid the crisis, he steps up to save the family business, Typhoon Trading. His determination inspires Oh Mi-seon (Pachinko's Kim Min-ha), who works as a bookkeeper at Typhoon. As the pair navigate several crises, they slowly fall in love.
The Best Netflix Korean Reality Shows of 2025
'Single's Inferno' season 4
Release date: January 14
The fourth season of Single's Inferno marked a big moment for Netflix Korea's unscripted shows, as the first one to be renewed for four seasons. Season 4 featured a new cast, including standout members like Lee Si-an and Jang Theo, who roughed it out on an abandoned island dubbed Inferno, flirting and competing in challenges in hopes of winning a Paradise date in a luxury hotel.
'Kian’s Bizarre B&B'
Release date: April 8
Webtoon (or manhwa) writer and TV personality Kian84 leads this variety show, where he "sets up and runs an extraordinary guesthouse on the island of Ulleungdo called KIAN Bizarre B&B, which offers a unique experience for young visitors." According to the description, "the guesthouse operates in a realm between healing and hilarity," as Kian welcomes a diverse selection of guests, with the help of his part-timers, BTS member Jin and actress Ji Ye-eun.
'The Devil's Plan: Death Room'
Release date: May 6
For viewers more interested in games of mental wit than physical strength, The Devil's Plan returned for a second season. The exciting first installment brought together contestants from various fields to solve sophisticated mental games for the chance at a 250 million won (approximately $173,000) prize. Season 2's cast included Single's Inferno host Kyuhyun, EXchange/Transit Love alum Jung Hyun-gyu, legendary Go player Lee Se Dol, K-pop soloist Chuu, and Beef and The Umbrella Academy star Justin H. Min.
'Better Late than Single'
Release date: July 8
Following the success of Single's Inferno, this reality dating show helps "eternal singles" find their chance at love. The makeover show follows a group of adults who've never been in a relationship, as they "undergo an intensive inside-out transformation, [from] personal style and grooming to mindset and communication" while living together and going on dates.
'The Echoes of Survivors: Inside Korea's Tragedies'
Release date: August 15
In March 2023, the true-crime docuseries In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal examined the disturbing stories of four Korean cult leaders. In December, one of the doc's subjects, Christian Gospel Mission (also known as JMS) leader Jeong Myeong-seok, was sentenced to 23 years in prison for sexual violence. This upcoming follow-up docuseries is the "second story" of In the Name of God, and "will feature the final story of JMS and the vivid voices of survivors from painful, tragic events in Korea.”
'Crime Scene Zero'
Release date: September 23
Following original series like Busted! and Agents of Mystery, Netflix picked up the fifth season of the popular variety show Crime Scene. Follow a cast of celebrities playing different roles in a murder scene as they investigate one another to determine the criminal among them. This new season's cast includes fan-favorites from previous seasons: director Jang Jin, announcer Park Ji-yoon, comedian Jang Dong-min, Flower of Evil's Kim Ji-hoon, and IVE's An Yu-jin. Joining them are guest stars like Culinary Class Wars winner Ha Seok-jin.
'Physical: Asia'
Release date: October 28
This spinoff of the intense strength competition Physical: 100 expands its scope beyond Korea, recruiting athletes throughout Asia in the franchise's latest "search for the perfect physique." The elite athletes in this Olympics-esque tournament include Physical: 100 alums, the winner of Final Draft, and champion boxer and former Philippines senator Manny Pacquiao.
'Culinary Class Wars'
Release date: December 16
After its smash-hit debut, Culinary Class Wars will return for a second season, featuring beloved judges Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae. The cutthroat cooking competition pits 100 chefs against each other through intense and creative challenges, with the acclaimed "White Spoon" chefs going up against the underdog "Black Spoons." Per Netflix, season 2 features "even bigger showdowns, bolder tastes, and unrelenting tension."
'Physical: Welcome to Mongolia'
Release date: December 24
To celebrate the global success of Physical: Asia, PD Jang Ho-gi brings viewers a travelogue spinoff reuniting members of Team Korea and Team Mongolia. The four-part series will follow Amotti and Kim Dong-hyun as Mongolian fan-favorites Orkhonbayar Bayarsaikhan and Lkhagva-Ochir Erdene-Ochir lead them on a locals' tour of the country's capital, Ulaanbaatar.
The Best Netflix Romance K-Dramas of 2025
'When the Stars Gossip'
Release date: January 4
This rom-com K-drama has a straightforward plot description: "An astronaut and a tourist meet and fall in love at a space station." Hallyu superstar Lee Min-ho plays the space tourist Gong Ryong, an OB/GYN dating the heir to Korea's richest corporation.When the Camellia Blooms's Gong Hyo-jin plays Eve Kim, the perfectionist commander who has to keep Gong alive.
'Melo Movie'
Release date: February 14
We spent Valentine's Day 2025 with this romance K-drama's all-star cast. Five years ago, movie buffs Ko Gyeom (Choi Woo-shik) and Kim Mu-bee (Park Bo-young) fell for each other before Gyeom disappeared. Five years later, the pair reunite as movie critic Gyeon interviews director Mu-bee about her new film...and becomes her next-door neighbor. Lee Jun-young and Jeon So-nee costar as exes who also reunite to work on a new movie.
'The Potato Lab'
Release date: March 1
Korean rom-coms love a theme: This lighthearted drama follows a spud-crazy romance. The synopsis: "In The Potato Lab, Mi-kyung’s (Lee Sun-bin) potato-centric life is upended by Baek-ho (Extraordinary Attorney Woo's Kang Tae-oh), a cold pragmatist. A whirlwind healing romantic comedy unfolds, as twisty as a tornado potato."
'Heavenly Ever After'
Release date: April 19
This rom-com puts a new spin on one of Korea's most popular fantasy concepts: the afterlife. Octogenarian Lee Hae-sook (Kim Hye-ja) is a kind-hearted loan shark whose husband Ko Nak-jun died a year ago. When it's Hae-sook's time to go, she discovers she can choose to live with a specific person and be her desired age for all eternity. Deciding to remain her current age after a dying Nak-jun said she's never been more beautiful, Hae-sook arrives in Heaven to find her devoted husband...who's now in his 30s (played by Son Suk-ku). Come for the extreme age-gap romance, and stay for the scenes of deceased pets reuniting with their loved ones as humans.
'Tastefully Yours'
Release date: May 12
Squid Game's Kang Ha-neul and Sweet Home's Go Min-si lead this rom-com that follows an unlikely romance set among the culinary world. Per the description, "In an attempt to inherit a food corporation, Han Beom-woo (Kang), a chaebol heir turned 'recipe hunter,' meets Mo Yeon-joo (Go), a stubborn chef who runs a one-table restaurant in the small city of Jeonju, South Korea. Their fierce kitchen encounters unfold into a shimmering romance."
'Genie, Make a Wish'
Release date: October 3
Eight years after they first played love interests in Uncontrollably Fond, Bae Suzy and Kim Woo-bin reunite in this highly anticipated fantasy rom-com from The Glory screenwriter Kim Eun-sook. The fantasy drama (previously known as Everything Will Come True) chronicles the adventures of Jinn (Kim), a genie who's awakened from his centuries-long sleep, and Ga-young (Bae), who's granted three wishes.
'Dynamite Kiss'
Release date: November 12
2025 may have been a rough year for classic rom-coms, but this hilarious series from SBS TV has K-drama fans swooning. During a trip to Jeju Island, striving "Cinderella" Go Da-rim (Ahn Eun-jin) finds her chaebol "Prince Charming" in Gong Ji-hyeok (Jang Ki-yong), but she ghosts him when she's called away for a family emergency. Weeks later, desperate for a job, Da-rim lies that she's married with a child to get a temp job at a baby products company. But guess who happens to be her new boss? Such begins the twisting, delightfully trope-y romance.
The Best Netflix Slice-of-Life K-Dramas of 2025
'Our Unwritten Seoul'
Release date: May 24
Korean superstar Park Bo-young does double-duty in this slice-of-life K-drama, starring as two identical twins: perfectionist office-worker Mi-rae, and carefree former athlete Mi-ji. "After a complicated twist of fate, they swap identities, each sister navigating unfamiliar challenges to discover love and their true selves," per the description. GOT 7's Park Jin-young also stars as Ho-su, a childhood friend who reunites with the twins.
'The Winning Try'
Release date: August 15
In this heartwarming sports drama, Yoon Kye-sang stars as Ju Ga-ram, a disgraced rugby player who gets the opportunity to coach his high school team. Though Hanyang High School is the weakest team in the league, the players and Ga-ram himself begin their quest for redemption.
'You and Everything Else'
Release date: September 12
This K-drama tearjerker (also known as Two Women or Eun Jung and Sang Yeon) will follow "the journey of two friends who have an enduring, complicated love-hate relationship," per Netflix. Former childhood besties Ryu Eun-jung (Goblin's Kim Go-eun) and Cheon Sang-yeon (Reborn Rich's Park Ji-hyun) reunite at 42-years-old as they face a profound challenge: Sang-yeon's battle with cancer. The Glory's Kim Gun-woo also stars.
'The Dream Life of Mr. Kim'
Release date: October 11
In the same month that Park Chan-wook's No Other Choice hit theaters, this slice-of-life K-drama offered a different perspective on the midlife crisis. Kim Nak-su (played by Moving and Chicken Nugget's Ryu Seung-ryong) is a corporate manager who is unexpectedly demoted after 25 years of working. As he takes a series of odd jobs to keep himself, his wife (Myung Se-bin), and his college-aged son (Cha Kang-yoon) afloat, Mr. Kim must learn to find happiness outside of monetary success.
The Best Thriller Netflix K-Dramas of 2025
'Trauma Code: Heroes on Call'
Release date: January 24
Netflix's first original medical K-drama is an adaptation of the webcomic Severe Trauma Center: Golden Hour, produced by WEBTOON Entertainment’s Studio N. The comedy-thriller centers on an ensemble cast led by Kingdom's Ju Ji-hoon and rising star Choo Young-woo. The show's description reads, "Genius surgeon Baek Kang-hyuk transforms a university hospital's budget-draining trauma team into a trauma center that saves lives."
'Karma'
Release date: April 4
Squid Game season 1 star Park Hae-soo and Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha's Shin Min-a lead this crime thriller K-drama based on the Kakao webtoon of the same name. Per the description, the show follows "six people caught in an unbreakable karmic loop, each bound by reckless choices that spiral out of control." The main cast is rounded out by A Killer Paradox's Lee Hee-joon, D.P.'s Kim Sung-kyun, Running Man alum Lee Kwang-soo, and The First Responders' Gong Seung-yeon.
'Friendly Rivalry'
Release date: April 6
After its domestic premiere earlier this year, Netflix brought this acclaimed high-school thriller to the platform. Woo Seul-gi (Chung Su-bin) is a studious orphan who moves from her provincial hometown to Seoul to attend the elite Chaehwa High School. She quickly befriends Yoo Je-yi (Reply 1988's Lee Hye-ri), Chaehwa's most popular student, to the surprise of everyone...including Seul-gi herself. The series unfurls the duo's complicated relationship, as well as the journeys of Je-yi's lackeys Ye-ri (Kang Hye-won) and Kyung (Oh Woo-ri).
'Weak Hero Class 2'
Release date: April 25
Weak Hero Class 1 was one of the best thriller dramas of 2022, following high school student Yeon Si-eun (Park Ji-hoon) as he struggled against brutal school violence. Now, Netflix has taken the reins for the show's second season, in which Si-eun challenges a new set of lethal bullies after he's transferred to a new school. Weak Hero Class 2's cast also includes Twinkling Watermelon's Ryeoun, XO Kitty's Choi Min-young, and Crash Course in Romance's Lee Min-jae.
'Mercy for None'
Release date: June 6
So Ji-sub stars in this highly anticipated noir crime thriller as a former gangster who re-emerges seeking vengeance. 11 years ago, Gi-jun (So) "severed his own Achilles tendon to leave the world of organized crime." He now lives a peaceful life, while his younger brother Gi-seok (Lee Jun-hyuk) stayed in the game and became a kingpin. Now, Gi-jun returns to "investigate and avenge" Gi-seok's mysterious death. Also starring in the show's ensemble cast are Huh Joon-ho, An Kil-kang, Tiger Lee, Gong Myoung, Choo Young-woo, and more.
'Squid Game' season 3
Release date: June 27
Squid Game's final episodes arrived on the streamer this year, bringing the story of Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun) to a devastating conclusion. Though Netflix's most-watched show of all time concluded its original story, creator Hwang Dong-hyuk's sadistic game will live on, via spinoffs like Squid Game: The Challenge and the rumored Squid Game: USA.
'Trigger'
Release date: July 25
Korea is known for its strict gun regulation, but this thriller K-drama follows "two men [who] pick up their guns for different reasons" amid a fictional surge in illegal firearms. Lee Do (Kim Nam-gil) is "a military sniper turned police detective, investigating a series of incidents to hunt down the source behind these illegal firearms." Meanwhile, Moon Baek (Kim Young-kwang), "a methodical strategist behind his carefree manner, is the center of the arms broker business."
'As You Stood By'
Release date: November 7
Parasyte: The Grey's Jeon So-nee and Squid Game's Lee Yoo-mi star in this K-drama adaptation of Hideo Okuda’s novel Naomi to Kanako. Longtime friends Eun-su (Jeon) and Hui-su (Lee) suffered traumatic childhoods and grew up to be unhappy in their adult lives. One day, they decide to finally change their lives...by killing Hui-su's abusive husband (played by Jang Seung-Jo).
'The Price of Confession'
Release date: December 5
This mystery-thriller K-drama boasts an all-star cast, including Kill Boksoon's Jeon Do-yeon, Goblin's Kim Go-eun, Squid Game's Park Hae-soo, and Extreme Job's Jin Seon-kyu. Jeon plays Ahn Yoon-soo, a woman accused of her husband’s murder, who encounters a mysterious prison inmate (Kim) and "strikes a dangerous deal," according to the show's description.
'Cashero'
Release date: December 26
Based on the webtoon of the same name, this action K-drama takes place in a world where superpowers are tied to special circumstances. Average man Kang Sang-ung (Typhoon Family's Lee Jun-ho) discovers that he has superpowers connected to the amount of money he possesses. With the help of his math-whiz girlfriend Kim Min-sook (A Shop for Killers' Kim Hye-jun), Sang-ung joins the Korean Coalition of Superheroes. Co-starring are Kim Byung-chul, who plays a lawyer who can only access his powers when he's drunk, and Kim Hyang-gi, whose telekinesis is powered by calories.
The Best Workplace Netflix K-Dramas of 2025
'Resident Playbook'
Release date: April 12
Three years after Hospital Playlist's final episode, the long-awaited spinoff Resident Playbook finally arrived. Per the description, the new medical drama "follows the lives and friendships of OB-GYN residents at Jongno Yulje Medical Center, a branch of the iconic Yulje Hospital." Moving's Go Youn-jung leads the cast, which includes Shin Shi-ah, Han Ye-ji, Kang You-seok, and Jung Jun-won.
'Beyond the Bar'
Release date: August 2
Netflix's first entry in this year's courtroom dramas boom, Beyond the Bar follows brilliant rookie lawyer Kang Hyo-min (Jung Chae-yeon) as she begins her first job at the prestigious Yulim law firm's litigation department, led by Yoon Seok-hoon (Lee Jin-wook). Though the show eventually falls prey to the problematic age gap, the surprisingly heartwarming cases had fans loving this procedural.
'Pro Bono'
Release date: December 6
This legal drama stars Crash Course on Romance's Jung Kyung-ho as Kang Da-wit, a famous judge whose dreams of joining the Supreme Court are dashed by scandal. After he's forced to resign, Da-wit's ex Oh Jung-in (Lee Yoo-young) recruits him to work for her modest pro bono practice. The pair makes a deal: If Da-wit wins over 70 percent of his cases in the next year, Jung-in will help him secure a Supreme Court nomination.
