10 Best Netflix Shows to Learn French

Top French Netflix Series for Language Learners

When you’re bored of grammar exercises and can’t bear to pick up another textbook, why not turn to French Netflix shows to get your language learning in. Not only will you get to see the French language in action in real-life situations—or as real-life as Netflix gets—but in many of these series, you’ll get a hit of wanderlust too, with scenes from France and elsewhere across the French-speaking world.

Netflix is a great way to get some language practice in. You’ll learn new vocabulary, hear real French accents, and discover useful slang. All from the comfort of your couch.  

If you’re just starting out, start by watching French Netflix shows with the English subtitles turned on. That way, you’ll be able to follow along and understand the plot while listening to it all in French. As you learn more, try a few episodes with French subtitles, so you can still read if you find the speaking too fast but your language skills are really tested.  

Popcorn Ready? Here Are Our Favorite French Series On Netflix Right Now To Get You Started.  

1. The Hook Up Plan  

Genre: Romantic comedy  

For a light-hearted feel-good French series turn to The Hook Up Plan. We follow main character Elsa, a loveable clumsy girl who’s hung up on her ex, and her two trouble-making friends who hatch a plan to get her back out there. But when do plans ever go to plan? Follow the trio through Paris on their adventures in friendship, dating, and heartbreak.

Plus, there are two seasons to binge-watch.

2. Chef’s Table France

Genre: Docuseries  

You may have heard of the Chef’s Table series. If you’re a fan—or a lover of food and travel in general—try out Chef’s Table France. This docuseries follows experimental chefs who run buzzing restaurants across France. From opening restaurants in unlikely destinations to using unusual ingredients and new techniques, these chefs are reinventing French cuisine.

You’ll brush up on food lingo while working up an appetite.  

3. Into the Night

Genre: Drama

Into the Night is for lovers of drama and mystery. This Belgian series starts when an armed soldier storms a plane and forces it to take off immediately, with most of the passengers yet to get onboard.

During the first episode, we slowly discover why he was so keen to take off: a mysterious phenomenon that means they need to keep flying west—no matter what. Through flashbacks and dramatic scenes, we start to find out exactly what’s happening.  

4. Le Bazar de la Charité

Genre: Period drama

Based on a true story, Le Bazar de la Charité is a period drama filled with grand balls, feuding socialites, and glimpses of 1800s Paris.

After a devastating fire breaks out at a charity ball, and people’s true colors are revealed, the series follows three women as they uncover dark secrets and betrayals in their once glamorous world.  

5. Family Business

Genre: Comedy

For an easy-going French Netflix show, try Family Business. An ambitious son does everything he can to not join the family business. But when his plans fail, he decides to change the family business slightly, from butchers to cannabis growers.

Follow along as everyone gets involved—from Grandma to the police—as the Hazan family attempts to get the new business set up before marijuana legalization is announced in France.

6. Osmosis

Genre: Sci-Fi  

Perfect for those who love psychological thrillers and anything sci-fi. Step into the future where artificial intelligence is used to help you find your soulmate.

A group of beta testers looking for love come together to try a new implant promising to help them do just that. But, of course, as with everything experimental, things could always go wrong. And in this series, they do.

7. Call My Agent  

Genre: Comedy  

With three seasons to binge watch, Call My Agent will keep you entertained for a while. Follow along the glamorous lives of French talent agents who, when they’re not visiting movie sets or dining with the stars, are dealing with their own hilarious drama. We get to see plenty of Paris with some trips out of the city, too. The vocabulary is fairly simple so it’s a great French Netflix series for beginners.  

8. C’est du Gâteau  

Genre: Reality cooking  

For fans of reality competition shows, there’s C’est du Gâteau. Just like the American, Spanish and German versions, which are called Nailed It, the French version of this cooking show sees contestants battle it out to make the best cake. Things get interesting when the cakes they’re trying to replicate are difficult and complex masterpieces and the contestants are home bakers who are helpless in the kitchen.  

9. La Mante

Genre: Thriller  

La Mante is perfect for horror and thriller lovers; it’s full of crime and suspense as well as plenty of gruesome surprises. The series follows a detective as he tries to catch a serial killer before they strike again. The twist? The killer is copying murders committed years before by someone the detective knows all too well: his own mother.  

10. A Very Secret Service  

Genre: Comedy  

Dive into 1960s Paris with this light-hearted and, at times, downright silly comedy. A Very Secret Service follows André as he’s hired by the French secret service and starts his career as a jet-setting spy. There’s just one problem: he has no idea what he’s doing. But, as he soon finds out, no one seems to care.  

Want To Brush Up On Your French Before Diving Into These Series?  

Pick up some new French slang words or study up on French food lingo.  

Download a  free week of the Pimsleur app to start listening, speaking, and practicing your French and you’ll be watching—and understanding—these shows en français in no time.