For customers who want to reduce their streaming expenditures, June ought to be a fantastic month.
With only a few major series coming up (such as new seasons of Netflix’s “Squid Game” and Hulu’s “The Bear”), now is a good time to take stock, reassess your streaming priorities, and reduce the amount of content you don’t need as summer approaches. Additionally, there aren’t many must-see sights in June.
You can view the greatest content while keeping your monthly streaming expenditure under $50 if you do a little bit of smart churning, which involves adding and removing services on a regular basis. Remember that a billing cycle doesn’t always begin at the beginning of the month; it can begin when you join up. Additionally, it’s always worthwhile to keep an eye out for sales and package discounts.
This column, which rates the major streaming services as “play,” “pause,” or “stop,” according to the conventional ratings of buy, hold, and sell given by investment analysts, provides advice on how to optimize your streaming experience and budget each month. It also selects the top shows to assist you in making monthly decisions.
Here’s what the different streaming services will offer in June 2025 and what makes the monthly subscription fee worthwhile:
Hulu ($9.99 with advertisements or $18.99 without)
One of TV’s most popular programs, “The Bear” (June 25), is back for its fourth season. Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) were at odds last season over the kitchen’s constant chaos and turmoil in the intense restaurant comedy (which isn’t really a comedy). However, there are hints that they’ll find the calm eye of the storm this season amid a desperate race against time before their restaurant runs out of money. Because so many things were left unresolved, Season 3 faltered a little. However, Season 4 should bring more closure; in fact, there have been rumors that this will be the last season. A multiple Emmy winner, “The Bear” is still one of the greatest shows on television and is well worth binge-watching, especially because all ten episodes will be released simultaneously once more.
Hulu’s June lineup is somewhat thin overall. The animated anthology film “Predator: Killer of Killers” (released on June 6) features the recognizable extraterrestrial creature that hunts WWII pilots, Vikings, and ninjas while bouncing about time and space. A two-part documentary series about podcast presenter Alex Cooper (“Call Her Daddy”), “Call Her Alex” (June 10), the career-spanning documentary “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything” (June 23), and Atsuko Okatsuka’s stand-up comedy special “Father” (June 13) are also to be seen.
In addition, Hulu is bringing in all of the other “Predator” films (June 1) and the zombie film “28 Weeks Later” (June 1) on advance of the sequel’s June 1 theatrical release, “28 Years Later.”
Weekly episodes of the soccer documentary series “Welcome to Wrexham” (season finale June 26), the psychological thriller “Nine Perfect Strangers” (season finale July 2), the Korean murder mystery “Nine Puzzles” (season finale June 4), and the Gen Z hangout comedy “Adults,” which premiered on May 29, are also worth seeing.
Stop, pause, or play? Have fun. Almost all of it is due to “The Bear.” Catching up on recent series like “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Deli Boys,” “Shoresy,” “Paradise,” or “Dying for Sex,” could justify a subscription even though there isn’t much else that’s fresh.
Netflix ($7.99 for ad-supported standard, $17.99 for ad-free standard, and $24.99 for ad-free premium)
After an unsatisfactory second season last winter, in which Gi-hun (Lee June-jae) led an abortive insurrection against his masked captors, the final season of the South Korean smash-hit thriller “Squid Game” (June 27) marks the show’s finale. Season 3 will center on the concept of preserving humanity in the face of capitalism, creator Hwang Dong-hyuk recently told Entertainment Weekly. However, Season 2 felt cliched and uninspired, and unless there was a dramatic change, it seems likely that the violent and bloody series would have been better off terminating after its first season.
On a more positive note, host and seasoned sitcom writer Phil Rosenthal explores Amsterdam, Manila, Basque country, Boston, and other places to see the sights and eat as much as he can in the delightful food-and-travel series “Somebody Feed Phil” (June 18), which returns for its eighth season. When you need a little mental sorbet to clear your head, this show is a great watch because it is driven by pure joy and kindness.
Season 3 of the mother-daughter drama “Ginny & Georgia” (June 5), which picks up after Georgia was arrested for murder at her own wedding last season; Season 2 of Shane Gillis’ auto-shop sitcom “Tires” (June 5); “Titan: The Oceangate Disaster” (June 11), a documentary about the 2023 submersible disaster near the Titanic wreckage; Season 2 of “Fubar” (June 12), an action-comedy starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Monica Barbaro as a father-daughter CIA team; and “The Waterfront” (June 19), a new family drama from Kevin Williamson (“Dawson’s Creek”) about a North Carolina fishing dynasty struggling to maintain their empire. Additionally, all seven seasons of the 2012–18 political thriller “Scandal” (June 17) and the most recent season of “Grey’s Anatomy” (June 14) will be available on Netflix.
Stop, pause, or play? Have fun. Netflix offers a plethora of content to catch up on, including “Sirens,” “Big Mouth,” “The Four Seasons,” “North of North,” “Dept. Q,” “The Residence,” “Mo,” and “Asura,” even though there aren’t many remarkable new releases.
Apple TV+ (monthly price: $9.99)
“Stick” (June 4), a 10-episode sports comedy series that stars Owen Wilson as a washed-up veteran golfer who finds new purpose in tutoring a teenage phenom (Peter Dager), is undoubtedly an attempt by Apple to recreate that “Ted Lasso” magic. In addition to cameos from other professional golfers and pundits, the remarkable cast include Marc Maron, Judy Greer, and Timothy Olyphant. Depending on how sweet it is, “Stick” seems to fall anywhere between “Tin Cup” and “Ted Lasso,” with its upbeat, motivational feelings.
In the meantime, the second season of the period drama “The Buccaneers” (June 18) about a group of American young women looking for husbands in London in the 1870s is back. For a season that promises more melodrama, extravagant outfits, and love triangles, Leighton Meester (“Gossip Girl”) joins the cast. Fans of HBO’s “The Gilded Age” and Netflix’s “Bridgerton” should definitely see it.
Additionally, Apple (AAPL) features the crime drama series “Smoke” (June 27), which was created by Dennis Lehane and stars Taron Egerton and Jurnee Smollett as investigators who reluctantly team up to pursue a pair of serial arsonists; the scam documentary “Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story” (June 23); and the thriller film “Echo Valley” (June 13), which stars Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney as a mother and daughter who share a dark secret.
Major League Baseball every Friday night and the sci-fi comedy “Murderbot” have new episodes every week. (Pro tip: If you dislike Apple’s boring play-by-play, you can change the audio feed to local radio broadcasts.)
Not to be overlooked is Apple’s summer blockbuster “F1,” which stars Brad Pitt as an experienced race car driver looking for a final chance at glory. It opens in theaters on June 27 but probably won’t be available on streaming services until the fall.
Quick hits: Due in large part to outstanding guest performances by Zoe Kravitz and Bryan Cranston in the screwball two-part season finale, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s recently finished inside-Hollywood comedy “The Studio” exceeded expectations and ended up being the funniest show of the year thus far. Though not as cruel, the frantic farce evoked the heyday of “Veep.” We can’t wait for Season 2. Despite a few persistent issues, the first season of the One-Percenter dramedy “Your Friends and Neighbors,” which just ended, was mostly entertaining. Despite being about ruthless characters doing awful things (similar to last year’s Apple summer blockbuster “Presumed Innocent”), the program manages to be a generally enjoyable watch, and there are some excellent performances from appealing performers (Jon Hamm and Amanda Peet sizzle when onscreen together). The show alternates between a murder mystery, a self-reflective family drama, and a social satire, but the plot veers a little too far. Select a lane. For Season 2, which has already been approved, the foundation for an even greater show is in place; it only needs a little tweaking—the vote here is to lean further toward dark comedy.
Stop, pause, or play? Take a moment to consider it. There are some promising shows this month, but nothing that is a must-see. At least, not yet. Alternatively, catch up on shows like “Your Friends and Neighbors,” “The Studio,” “Severance,” “Mythic Quest,” “Carême,” or “Berlin ER.”
Maximum ($9.99 with advertisements, $16.99 without, or $20.99 ‘Ultimate’ without)
The ambitious, nouveau-riche Russell family, headed by Bertha (Carrie Coon) and George (Morgan Spector), is poised to ascend to the top echelon of New York’s high society amid family rivalries, robber-baron business dealings, and a potentially scandalous divorce in Julian Fellowes’ lavish period drama “The Gilded Age” (June 22), which returns for its third season.
