In Season 2, Noah (played by Adam Brody) and Joanne (played by Kristen Bell) become serious in Netflix’s popular romantic comedy “Nobody Wants This.”
Sports fans will be under pressure to add one or two more services in October, during an otherwise slow month for streaming.
This is because, in addition to certain games that are only available on ESPN, Peacock and Amazon Prime Video will now broadcast NBA games nationally each week. Fans are increasingly left wondering where to watch their favorite team’s games on any given night and whether it’s worth paying extra each month to catch every game. This is just another seismic shift in the constantly changing sports broadcasting environment. (Hint: It’s not.)
The main streaming services, however, have only a few high-profile releases left following a hectic September, including Netflix’s “Nobody Wants This” and “Monster: The Ed Gein Story,” HBO Max’s “It: Welcome to Derry,” and Apple’s “Loot.”
Oh, and starting on October 21, Disney will once more raise the costs of the majority of its streaming options.
To watch the best of the best while keeping your monthly streaming expenditure under $50, you’ll need to do some strategic churning, which involves subscribing and removing services on a monthly basis. Remember that a billing cycle doesn’t always begin at the beginning of the month; it can begin when you join up. It’s always worthwhile to keep an eye out for offers that expire soon and bundles that save money.
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 provide in October 2025 and what makes the monthly subscription fee worthwhile:
Netflix ($7.99 for standard with advertisements, $17.99 for standard without advertisements, and $24.99 for premium without advertisements)
With Netflix’s most recent busy month, where do I begin? Producer Ryan Murphy’s most recent film, “Monster: The Ed Gein Story” (October 3), which stars Charlie Hunnam (“Sons of Anarchy”) as the mid-century serial killer/grave robber whose horrifying real-life exploits inspired innumerable horror films—and nightmares—is likely to generate the greatest excitement. It appears very eerie.
On the plus side, Season 2 of the incredibly adorable romantic comedy “Nobody Wants This” (which premieres on October 23) has Kristen Bell and Adam Brody as an opposites-attract couple who overcome their honeymoon phase and face the difficulties of a true relationship. It’s a winner, thanks in large part to Timothy Simons’ (“Veep”) and Justine Lupe’s (“Succession”) hilarious supporting parts. The third season of the lighthearted but captivating political drama “The Diplomat” premieres on October 16 and stars Keri Russell as a bewildered American ambassador to Britain who must cope with a cunning vice president (Allison Janney) and her equally cunning husband (Rufus Sewell). Additionally, production on Season 4 is already underway.
In addition, Netflix (NFLX) has a new season of the dating show “Love Is Blind” (October 1); the dramedy series “Boots” (October 9), which is about a young, gay recruit in Marine boot camp; the true-crime documentary “The Perfect Neighbor” (October 17), which is compiled from police body-cam footage; a new season of the real-estate reality show “Selling Sunset” (October 29); and Season 4 of the fantasy epic “The Witcher” (October 30), in which Liam Hemsworth replaces Henry Cavil as the main character.
Other films include “Steve” (October 3), which follows Cillian Murphy as a dedicated boarding school teacher over the course of a single, stressful day; the baking special “Is It Cake? Halloween” (October 8); “The Woman in Cabin 10” (October 10), a murder-mystery film starring Keira Knightley and Guy Pearce; Season 2 of the NBA documentary series “Starting 5” (October 16); the baseball documentary “Who Killed the Montreal Expos?” (October 21); the stand-up comedy special “Mo Amer: Wild World” (October 28); and “A House of Dynamite” (October 24), a thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow (“Zero Dark Thirty”) that resembles a “Fail-Safe”-style film in which a single ICBM has been fired at the United States, sparking a mad scramble to determine who is responsible and how to react without a nuclear apocalypse. Greta Lee, Anthony Ramos, Rebecca Ferguson, and Idris Elba are among the excellent ensemble cast members.
Seasons 1 and 2 of the Hallmark Channel’s popular time-travel romantic drama “The Way Home” (October 1), with Season 3 arriving in February and a fourth season reportedly coming in late 2026; all seven seasons of Showtime’s “Nurse Jackie” (October 7); Season 3 of AMC’s superb Navajo cop thriller “Dark Winds” (October 27); and both seasons of Paramount+’s sci-fi action series “Halo” (October 1) are also being added to Netflix.
Stop, pause, or play? Have fun. There’s just so much on Netflix. Fortunately, a large portion of it is positive. The Australian workplace comedy “Fisk,” Stephen Knight’s Irish beer-dynasty drama “House of Guinness,” the unconventional animated family comedy “Long Story Short,” and the sequence of poor choices thriller “Black Rabbit” are recent entries to that category.
Hulu ($11.99 with advertisements or $18.99 without)
Hulu is no longer quite the deal it was after three price increases in three years. However, users still get a lot for a reasonable price, despite the fact that most plans now cost $2 to $3 more each month.
Season 2 of the black comedy “Obituary” premieres this month on October 14. Siobhan Cullen plays an obituary writer for a small Irish town’s newspaper who is paid by the tale, which makes her realize she can make money by removing the town’s alleged miscreants. Dark, twisted, and cleverly written, Season 1 was a shocker. If you enjoyed Apple’s “Bad Sisters,” you should see this one.
Additionally, Hulu features the standup comedy special “Frankie Quinones: Damn, That’s Crazy” (October 10), the sixth and final season of the animated alien comedy “Solar Opposites” (October 13), and “Murdaugh: Death in the Family” (October 14), which stars Patricia Arquette and Jason Clarke in the true-crime drama series based on the dramatic South Carolina murder case that has given rise to its own streaming industry.
A number of ABC and Fox series are returning for the fall season, including “Abbott Elementary” and “Shifting Gears” (both October 2), as well as “9-1-1- Nashville” and “Grey’s Anatomy” (both October 10). Additionally, there is a reboot of the 1990s domestic thriller “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle” (October 22), starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Maika Monroe.
With weekly episodes of the still-cozy mystery series “Only Murders in the Building” (season finale October 28), “The Lowdown” (see below), and the flat football comedy “Chad Powers” (season finale October 28), Hulu’s returning series are the true lure.
Take a look: One of the best series of the year is already Sterlin Harjo’s most recent creation, “The Lowdown” (season finale Nov. 4). Ethan Hawke plays a dirtbag gonzo journalist who uncovers a massive conspiracy in this gritty, noir-ish thriller. It feels like a combination of “The Big Lebowski” and “The Long Goodbye” that has been left out in the Tulsa heat next to an ashtray. It is a lot of fun, so do yourself a favor and watch. Though it’s more erratic, the newly finished “Alien: Earth” is also worth seeing. It’s unfortunate that the season concluded with three of the eight episodes that weren’t very good, but four of them were excellent.
Stop, pause, or play? Have fun. “Only Murders in the Building” and “The Lowdown” alone make it worthwhile, not to mention “Obituary.” The bargain should be sealed with a strong network lineup and a comprehensive library.
Apple TV+ costs $12.99.
The thriller “The Lost Bus,” which tells the story of a terrifying real-life escape from the flames of the 2018 wildfire that destroyed the town of Paradise, California, opened in cinemas in September and will be available for streaming on October 3. Directed by Paul Greengrass (“The Bourne Supremacy”) and starring Matthew McConaughey and America Ferrera, it has received generally positive reviews and should be a solid source of nightmare fuel.
In the meantime, Maya Rudolph, the ex-wife of a millionaire who is now committed to donating her wealth, makes a comeback for Season 3 of the comedy “Loot” on October 15. Despite its flaws and lack of humor, it’s nonetheless entertaining to watch. Also, there’s “The Last Frontier” (October 10), a thriller series that stars Jason Clarke as a U.S. marshal assigned to track down dangerous fugitives whose prison transport plane crashed in the Alaskan wilderness, and “Down Cemetery Road” (October 29), a mystery series based on the novels of Mick Herron (“Slow Horses”), which stars Ruth Wilson as a suburban woman who, following an explosion, begins an obsessive search for her missing neighbor girl, and Emma Thompson as a private investigator who assists her in uncovering a government conspiracy. Its immediate watchability is a result of those three names.
Also, Apple (AAPL) has “Mr. Scorsese” (Oct. 17), a documentary series about renowned filmmaker Martin Scorsese; “Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost” (Oct. 24), which is about the legendary comedy couple Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara and is directed by their son Ben Stiller; and “Knife’s Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars” (Oct. 10), which is about chefs who strive to achieve the highest standards of fine dining.
