The young adult genre is bursting with endless options for books and movies, so it is a good time to be a tween or teen. Netflix has begun producing multiple shows for this age group, which can sometimes be hard to make. It is a fine line between being age-appropriate while also creating interesting content. Tweens have finally reached the end of middle school and are looking forward to high school as well as more mature entertainment to consume. Netflix has been able to create compelling content for tweens that even the whole family can enjoy for a night in.
Netflix has created tween stories filled with drama and characters that are extremely relatable no matter which genre they are in. These Netflix originals are truly at their best when they address what it is like to be that age no matter if they are in a normal high school or a magic school set in some other universe. These characters are able to show what it’s like to not be a kid anymore, but not quite a grown up either. The stories Netflix has created are adventurous, epic tales, and soapy genres for the whole family to enjoy. Here are the best TV shows for tweens on Netflix.
10 Cobra Kai
Kids of the '80s were kicking around and working on their waxing skills with The Karate Kid trilogy. Now the series has a reboot with Cobra Kai, where it follows Johnny and Daniel as adults. They both have started training the next generation of karate students while still keeping up with their old rivalry. The sixth and final season was set to premiere later in 2023, but has now been pushed to 2024 due to the writers strike.
9 On My Block
In a fictional neighborhood in Los Angeles, four friends begin high school. In On My Block, these four don't only have to deal with drama in their school hallways, but they also have to deal with their tough neighborhood and gangs. There's hooking up and violence with flushed out and relatable characters. The show premiered its final season that Entertainment Weekly says aired in October 2021.
8 The Greenhouse Academy
The Umbrella Academy might be too much for a tween audience, but The Greenhouse Academy is the perfect fill in show. A brother and a sister are recruited to join an elite boarding school that is shrouded in mystery and suspense. The siblings are both placed in separate houses in the school making them instant rivals upon their arrival. They also learn that the school may have a connection to the death of their mother.
7 Anne With an E
In Anne with an E, an orphan girl with high spirits and big passions finds an unlikely home with a spinster and her brother. In the late-1890s, Anne is mistakenly sent to live with the Cuthbert siblings.The show is based on the novel Anne of Green Gables. The young girl runs into some tough situations throughout the series, but fans of the books will love to watch the retelling of their favorite orphan girl, even if the series itself has been canceled.
6 Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Three orphaned children go through a series of unfortunate events in the Netflix original aptly titled Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Based on the book series of the same name, audiences will have a hard time not getting pulled into this show. The siblings get sucked into a strange event in each episode that is created by Count Olaf played by Neil Patrick Harris. It's up to the kids to foil his plans if they want to figure out the clues left behind by their parents.
5 Shadow and Bone
Alina Starkov is a mapmaker in the war against the Darkness in the fantasy show Shadow and Bone. While she decides to dive into the Fold, Alina learns that she has the power to summon light. Her powers might just be enough to defeat the darkness which also makes her a target to many different powerful people who want to use her abilities for themselves. The show was adapted from the books of the same name by Leigh Bardugo.
4 Alexa & Katie
Alexa & Katie centers around two best friends who received news that one of them has cancer. Seventeen says their friendship and support of one another is the focal point of the show. Both families learn how to deal with this news and the effects that it has on both of the girls. The show mixes heaviness with some tween soap drama and antics allowing viewers to enjoy light heartedness with serious topics.
3 Dive Club
The Australian teen drama, Dive Club, follows a group of girls on the shores of Cape Mercy who have formed their very own dive club. When one of their friends mysteriously disappears, the teen divers decide to take the investigation into their own hands. Their search leads them to secrets of the town and signs that someone close to them may be involved in their friend's disappearance.
2 Stranger Things
Stranger Things became a worldwide phenomenon after it first premiered on Netflix. The show has a group of kids who look for their friend Will after he disappears, and a girl named Eleven appears. The kids of Hawkins, Indiana learn that their friend is trapped in the Upside-Down which is full of monsters that scientists are trying to control. Stranger Things season five will be the final season of the show with plans to release in the summer of 2025, which is plenty of time to catch up on the current seasons.
1 The Baby-Sitters Club
The Netflix original, The Baby-Sitters Club, is a reboot of the '90s TV series of the same name. Though the show only lasted for two seasons, tweens will enjoy watching these friends take on the babysitting world. Just like in the book series, a group of middle schoolers start their own babysitting business to make their own money and support one another through this crazy endeavor. They also help one another in their personal lives no matter what is going on with them.