What have been the biggest Netflix TV hits of 2022? We seek to answer that by looking at raw top 10 data, which gives us an idea of the most popular shows on Netflix in 2022.
This list is powered by raw top 10 data compiled by FlixPatrol who assigns a point value to each title in their respective daily top 10 lists. This method has advantages and disadvantages but often shows which were the biggest and stickiest shows for long periods of time.
We’ve also done separate most popular lists for different formats including the most popular documentaries on Netflix in 2022 and the most popular Korean content too.
In our opinion, it also compares better to Netflix’s own top 10 hourly data and isn’t reliant on third-party data, but in reality, no method is perfect.
1. Stranger Things
Points in Top 10s: 43,702
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 1.5 billion hours for Season 4 alone between May 22nd and July 17th
Picture: Netflix
The show of the summer and Netflix’s flagship English language title delivered the goods for Netflix in more ways than one.
Season 4 manages to up the stakes on previous seasons juggling a growing cast perfectly while also hitting the nostalgia beats it’s expertly done in the past.
It beat out rivals like The Boys and Obi-wan Kenobi from rival streamers and cements the show as one of Netflix’s biggest shows of all time.
The show now is the number 1 show listed on Netflix’s top 10 site for hours watched in the first 28 days, Stranger Things season 4 has recorded 1.3B hours watched globally, only beaten by Squid Game which did 1.6B in the same time period.
2. Inventing Anna
Points in Top 10s: 33,706
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 654,560,000 hours between February 6th and April 17th, 2022.
Picture: Shondaland / Netflix
This limited series dropped on Netflix globally in February 2022 and is the second major title to come out of Shonda Rhimes big pact with Netflix and it seemingly hit the mark with viewers around the globe.
The series focused on a journalist chasing down leads on a fake German heiress who conned her way through New York’s elite.
Bridgerton may still end up pipping Inventing Anna by the end of the year (it still features in many top 10s around the globe) and Inventing Anna’s success in the top 10s could be down to the fact that releases were much quieter when it first drop but either way, Shonda Rhimes produced another banger for Netflix.
3. Bridgerton
Points in Top 10s: 29,995
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 775,240,000 hours between March 20th and June 5th, 2022
Picture: Shondaland / Netflix
Bridgerton season 1 broke Netflix’s records when it first released in December 2020 and season 2 managed to 1-up the first season.
- Bridgerton season 1 was watched for 625.49 million hours in its first 28 days
- Bridgerton season 2 was watched for 656.25 million hours in its first 28 days.
Bridgerton survived for 11 weeks in the Netflix’s global hourly top 10s following its release dropping out in June in 2022.
4. All Of Us Are Dead
Points in Top 10s: 33,706
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 659,510,000 hours between January 23rd to April 10th, 2022.
Korean shows on Netflix have boomed in popularity in recent years with the likes of Squid Game seemingly taking over the world. All Of Us Are Dead is the biggest Korean show of 2022, with the zombie adaptation of a webtoon clearly striking a chord with many around the globe.
The show’s performance didn’t go unnoticed, leading to a season 2 announcement at Netflix’s Geeked Week. All of Us Are Dead season 2 will begin filming later this year.
5. Café con aroma de mujer
Points in Top 10s: 33,706
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 733,530,000 hours between January 2nd and July 17th, 2022.
We now come onto what I believe is the most impressive title on this list. It’s impressive because of the limited number of regions the show is available in. According to Unogs, is only available in six regions, including Latin America, Spain, and Portugal. Given this, it’s impressive its been in the global top 10 hourly lists for 22 weeks straight, beating out titles that are available globally.
Of course, a high episode count helps keep engagement up for this series with 88 episodes being bingeable in its first season.
6. Ozark
Points in Top 10s: 23,767
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: See below.
Picture: Netflix
Ozark concluded its run on Netflix with the fourth season in 2022 with its final season split up into two volumes. Splitting up its season this way no doubt assisted Ozark climbing this chart as it has done with Stranger Things.
The hourly data is a little confusing for Ozark’s fourth season, given that it did get split up differently by Netflix, so let’s run through it:
- Between January 16th and March 6th, 2022, the first part of Ozark season 4 was watched for 282.71 million hours globally
- Between April 24th and June 5th, 2022, Ozark (which had released volume 2 at this point) season 4 recorded 299.22 million hours.
7. Yo soy Betty la fea
Points in Top 10s: 20,904
Top 10 Global Hours Watched:
Another Spanish language telenoval series that was available in select regions but a constant fixture in the top 10s throughout most of 2022 was Yo Soy Betty, La Fea which no doubt would continue to be had it not been removed from Netflix globally in mid-July after streaming on the service for numerous years.
The show has been a constantly high performer in some regions of Netflix. In some countries, the show was in the TV top 10s for over 2 years straight.
As with Café con aroma de Mujer, this show is undoubtedly helped by the huge number of episodes available. In fact, season 1 consists of 234 episodes in total.
8. Business Proposal
Points in Top 10s: 20,089
Top 10 Global Hours Watched:
The second Korean-language series to feature in this list is the romantic TV comedy, Business Proposal starring Ahn Hyo-seop, Kim Min-gue, and Kim Se-jeong.
Here’s what you can expect from the 12-episode first season if you’ve yet to watch:
“In disguise as her friend, Ha-ri shows up to a blind date to scare him away. But plans go awry when he turns out to be her CEO — and makes a proposal.”
Most regions of Netflix around the world got to watch Business Proposal weekly and top 10s demonstrate a bump in popularity every time a new episode did arrive each week.
9. The Lincoln Lawyer
Points in Top 10s: 19,521
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 305,270,000 hours between May 8th and June 19th, 2022.
Picture: A+E Studios
The Lincoln Lawyer is the legal drama Netflix snatched away from CBS. It adapts the Michael Connelly books on the lawyer best known for working in the back of his Lincoln.
The show was a big performer for Netflix, thus getting a second season order just a month after it debuted on the platform.
The Lincoln Lawyer is a particularly interesting case study because the series didn’t have a global reach like some of the titles listed above, skewing more popular in regions like Australia, the UK, and the US while not making an impact in Asia.
10. Manifest
Points in Top 10s: 18,233
Top 10 Global Hours Watched: 374,930,000 hours between June 27th, 2021 and July 17th, 2022.
Picture: Warner Bros. Television
As you may know, Manifest and Netflix has an interesting story. Netflix licensed the series in two regions last summer ahead of the show getting the chop at NBC. After the show outperformed Netflix’s expectations, Netflix committed to a fourth season of the show (due later in 2022) and acquired the rights to the first three seasons globally.
Most regions of Netflix have only got access to the first few seasons of Manifest in 2022. Select regions got all three seasons back in January, some regions receive them in June and others still yet to receive any of the previous seasons.
This staggered rollout and plentiful episodes all at once means the show can pick up plenty of points in the top 10s.
Let’s now take a look at the remaining titles that round out the top 25:
11. The Umbrella Academy
12. The Marked Heart
13. Vikings: Valhalla
14. Pasión de gavilanes
15. Pablo Escobar, The Drug Lord
16. Peaky Blinders
17. The Witcher
18. The Queen of Flow
19. Pieces of Her
20. Anatomy of a Scandal
21. Pedro El Escamoso
22. Bienvendios a Eden
23. Stay Close
24. Emily In Paris
25. Twenty Five Twenty One
What’s been your favorite new show on Netflix in 2022? Let us know in the comments.
