The best German TV series of all time
The top 3 according to 46 votes from people: Heimat · 4 Blocks · jerks.. (Updated Jul 13, 2026.)
German series with the best critic and audience ratings (Filmstarts, Moviepilot, IMDb), from TV classics like Monaco Franze to streaming hits like Dark.
Automatically translated (original in Deutsch). See the original
Top 20
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1
Heimat
ARD, 1984. Edgar Reitz tells 60 years in the Hunsrück village of Schabbach.
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2
4 Blocks
TNT Serie, 2017–2019. An Arab clan in Berlin's Neukölln; Grimme Award.
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3
jerks.
ProSieben/Joyn, 2017–2023. Christian Ulmen and Fahri Yardım play exaggerated versions of themselves.
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4
Babylon Berlin
Sky/ARD, 2017–. Inspector Gereon Rath in 1929 Berlin; the most expensive non-English series of its time.
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5
Deutschland 83
RTL/Amazon, 2015–2020. A young East German soldier is sent west as a spy; International Emmy.
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6
Weissensee
ARD, 2010–2018. Two families in East Berlin between the Stasi and love.
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7
Stromberg
ProSieben, 2004–2012. Christoph Maria Herbst as an insurance office manager; Germany's answer to The Office.
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8
The Crime Scene Cleaner
NDR, 2011–2018. Bjarne Mädel cleans crime scenes and has philosophical conversations.
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9
Dark
Netflix, 2017–2020. Time travel and four families in Winden; voted the best Netflix series in a Rotten Tomatoes poll.
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10
Dear Child
Netflix, 2023. A woman escapes captivity, or does she? Based on Romy Hausmann's best-seller.
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11
Turkish for Beginners
ARD, 2006–2008. A German-Turkish blended family in Berlin.
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12
Kir Royal
ARD, 1986. Franz Xaver Kroetz as gossip reporter Baby Schimmerlos in Munich high society.
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13
Unorthodox
Netflix, 2020. A young woman flees an ultra-Orthodox community in Brooklyn for Berlin; Emmy for directing.
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14
Berlin Alexanderplatz
ARD, 1980. Rainer Werner Fassbinder's 15-hour adaptation of Döblin's novel.
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15
Die Discounter
Prime Video, 2021–. A mockumentary about the staff of a Hamburg discount supermarket.
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16
Monaco Franze
ARD, 1983. Helmut Fischer as a charming Munich ladies' man; a cult far beyond Bavaria.
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17
Club der roten Bänder
VOX, 2015–2017. Teenagers on a hospital ward; based on the Catalan series Polseres vermelles.
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18
Ein Herz und eine Seele
WDR, 1973–1976. 'Ekel Alfred' Tetzlaff, the grumpy family man from the Ruhr.
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19
How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)
Netflix, 2019–2025. A schoolboy starts an online drug shop from his bedroom; loosely based on a real case.
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20
Das Boot (1985)
ARD, 1985. The extended series version of Wolfgang Petersen's U-boat film.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
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Comments (3)
Dark auf Platz eins, absolut. Beste deutsche Serie aller Zeiten.
Babylon Berlin ist für mich die beste deutsche Serie, noch vor Dark.
Stromberg ist besser als The Office, ich sag's nur 😄