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My favorite way to not spend money is Netflix + Chill.
Many a night have my husband and I weighed the option of going outside or staying in and watching TV. We’ve never paid for cable in our marriage so our options are limited to the Netflix account we share with our friend Jessica. Hi Jessica!
Paying off debt is more than working side jobs and saving money, it includes what we do for fun too, because you can’t (and shouldn’t) turn that part of yourself off for 2+ years.
Netflix isn’t the most productive use of your time but it is one of the most important. Netflix is as Millennial as avocado toast and beards. But you shouldn’t waste precious chill time deciding what show to watch. That’s where we come in.
You can trust us when we give you series recommendations because we’ve paid off over $66K in debt, that’s a lot of Netflix + Chill. If it wasn’t sunny 248 days out of the year in St. Pete, I would have a serious Vitamin D deficiency.
1. The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Kimmy Schmidt is all of us. She’s just a 90’s girl trying to function in an adult world.
The premise sounds a little boring, girl gets saved from a doomsday cult bunker then moves to New York City to start over. But the cast really makes this one a watcher.
Watch if you like: The New Girl & 30 Rock
2. Stranger Things
This show is so goooood! You’ve probably heard about it by now but if you haven’t watched it, get to it before season 2 comes out this fall.
This show makes all your favorite 70’s and 80’s movie references. A rag tag group of boys find a girl with super powers and a friggin scary monster kidnaps their friend.
Watch if you like: The Goonies & Alien
3. Sherlock
The BBC version of Sherlock is hands down the best you can feast your eyes on. Sometimes you hate Sherlock and sometimes you love him but you always think he’s the best.
Each season has 3 episodes that are about an hour and a half each. You’ll breeze through this one then get depressed when you have to wait two years for the next season, just like the rest of us.
Watch if you like: Dr. Who & Psych
4. Daredevil
Matt Murdock is a blind lawyer vigilante with some sick fighting moves. In addition to fight scenes, it has a great storyline too.
Watch if you like: Law & Order & Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
5. Arrow
I will never get over this dark and brooding anti-hero. He’s got a heart of gold that’s just misguided enough to make this show an on-the-edge-of-your-seater. And you might think this show is about Oliver Queen, but trust me, it’s really about Felicity Smoak.
Watch if you like: Lost & Gotham
6. The Flash
You have to watch Arrow and The Flash together, they’re part of the “Arrowverse.” The Flash starts after season 2 of Arrow and interchange characters throughout. It’s kinda fun to have multiple plotlines intertwining.
But The Flash stands on its own in terms of quality. The stories are sweet, intense, and weird all at the same time.
Watch if you like: Smallville & Heroes
7. Jane The Virgin
I did not watch this of my own volition. We lived with a guy who’s girlfriend loved it and every time it was on we’d get sucked into it. It’s over-the-top in all the right ways.
A virgin getting artificially inseminated sounds pretty cheesy, and it’s supposed to be at times, but the overall story is really compelling.
Watch if you like: Telenovelas & Modern Family
8. Parks & Recreation
Y’all should know about this show by now but just in case you’ve missed any episode ever, go back and just re-watch the whole thing.
This series includes the funniest people in comedy and none of them disappoint. I go back and watch an episode whenever I need a pick-me-up.
Watch if you like: The Office & Scrubs
9. House of Cards
I feel like House of Cards might be a documentary of our current political climate. But people say it’s just a TV show.
If you’re into all things slimy and political then this one’s for you, but don’t read too much into it.
Watch if you like: The West Wing & Scandal
10. Orange is the New Black
This show is funny, awkward, and dark. If that’s what you’re into you’re going to love OITNB.
Good girl Piper is sentenced to a year and a half behind bars for smuggling drugs for an old girlfriend. Need I say more?
Watch if you like: Weeds & That 70’s Show
11. Quantico
Quanico is definitely a show you have to pay attention to. It’s not something you can watch in the background. In season one, the main character, Alex, is framed for treason and she has to work to save her name before time runs out.
Watch if you like: Any crime suspense dramas like Blacklist and Criminal Minds
12. Bridgerton
This is like old school Gossip Girl soap opera. It’s set back in the day of London’s High Society. It has a lot of twists and turns just like any good soap opera. This is the perfect show to watch and discuss with your girlfriends at girl’s night.
A local “Lady Wistledown” is the town’s local gossip columnist. She’s like the original Gossip Girl. Everyone is trying to figure out who the mystery woman is.
The first season follows the main character Daphne as she is trying to find a husband.
Watch if you like: Any crime suspense dramas like Gossip Girl or other soap operas
13. Sweet Magnolias
Sweet Magnolias is about three lifelong friends all grown up. It’s based in a small southern town where everyone knows everyone.
If follows the three friends all grown up through their ups and downs. The three main characters are so different, but are a close-knit group of friends that meet weekly for girls night for their weekly self-care session & margaritas.
Watch if you like: Virgin River or Hart of Dixie
14. Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is a binge worthy FBI drama. It is centered around the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI as they profile and track down serial killers. It’s a fan favorite and has plenty of seasons for long weekends at home.
Watch if you like: Quantico & NCIS
15. Virgin River
Virgin River is a romantic drama based on a book series. It’s based on a nurse practitioner who moves to a remote small town in California.
She leaves her former life to escape her pain and soon gets involved in the twisted town drama webs.
Watch if you like: Sweet Magnolia and Bridgerton
16. How to Get Away with Murder
How to Get Away with Murder is a Neflix crime thriller. It is centered around Annalise Keating, a law professor, and her college class. The class is really called Criminal Law 101, but Mrs. Keating refers to it as How to Get Away with Murder.
The students and professor get tangled in a murder plot that will keep you on the edge of your seats.
Watch if you like: Scandal & Quantico
17. Scandal
Scandal is about Olivia Pope. She is an appolicial advisor to the president. The show follows her through the twists and turns of working for the president. There will be lies, manipulation, deceit, murder, cheating, and more to keep you on the edge of your seats through each episode.
Watch if you like: How to Get Away with Murder & House of Cards
18. Blacklist
Blacklist is another FBI crime drama that is centered around a new FBI agent, Elizabeth Keen, and a man on the top of the FBI’s most wanted, Raymond Reddington “Red”.
Red show up to FBI headquarters on Elizabeth’s first day and demands to work with her in exchange for turning over the world’s most deadly people.
Each episode they work through the FBI’s most wanted list to capture the criminals.
Watch if you like: How to Get Away with Murder & Quantico
18. Downton Abbey
Downton Abbey is a British historical drama following the Crawley family and their staff. The show follows the family and everyone they know through all of the soap opera type drama they face.
Watch if you like: Bridgerton & Hart of Dixie
19. Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls is a comedy-drama centered around the Gilmore women, Lorelai and Rory. Lorelai is a single mom in her thirties. Her daughter Rory goes through high school and college in the show.
Since Lorelai is a teen mom, she and Rory have grown up together. The series follows them through their many romantic relationships and even their sometimes estranged relationship with Lorelai’s parents, the Gilmores.
Watch if you like: One Tree Hill & Jane the Virgin
20. Smallville
Smallville is a show based off young Clark Kent (Superman). He is getting acquainted with his superpowers and trying to hide them from his friends. To make matters worse, he has to stay away from the Kryptonite that’s all over town.
Watch if you like: The Flash & Heroes
21. Grey’s Anatomy
Grey’s Anatomy appeals to a wide audience and is definitely bingworthy! It’s a medical drama infused with a little romance. It follows a young Dr. Meredith Grey through life after medical school.
You’ll meet all of her friends and romantic interests from the hospital as they navigate through pushing boundaries, saving patients, having children, betrayal, losing loved ones, and more. It will keep you on the edge of your seat week after week.
Watch if you like: New Amsterdam and Private Practice
22. Private Practice
This Grey’s Anatomy spinoff follows Dr. Addison Shepherd. She leaves Seattle’s Sloan Memorial Hospital for a slower life in Los Angeles to join a private practice owned by her best friend and her husband.
She will have to learn to wind down from the busy fast-paced life of the hospital for the slower life in the small practice.
Watch if you like: New Amsterdam and Grey’s Anatomy
23. Ozark
In Ozark, Jason Bateman’s character is forced to move to Ozark to start a new life after his falls to pieces. In Ozark, he decides to start a money laundering business to pay the bills. He then learns his business partner has another partner… the Mexican drug cartel.
Watch if you like: The Sopranos and Breaking Bad
Netflix shows are a great way to save a ton of money while paying off debt. With the cheap subscription under $10, it’s a cheaper alternative to cable and offers plenty of variety of shows to watch to keep you busy when you feel like heading off to the movies and spending an arm and a leg.
I really love Netflix. They offer a wide range of shows for everyone and are constantly adding new shows and diversifying their lineup. What are your go-to series to watch on Netflix? Let me know in the comments!
Jen Smith is a personal finance expert, founder of Modern Frugality and co-host of the Frugal Friends Podcast. Her work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Lifehacker, Money Magazine, U.S. News and World Report, Business Insider, and more. She’s passionate about helping people gain control of their spending.
