The 20 Best Swoon-Worthy Romance Series to Stream Right Now

Like most things aimed primarily at women, the romance genre, no matter the medium, has traditionally been overlooked, dismissed as inferior, or even unfairly mocked as being a horny housewife’s guilty pleasure. Romance is a massive and extremely profitable industry, so it’s a shame mainstream audiences have been so quick to judge and slow to accept it. Luckily, that view has begun to change over the last few years. With the warm embrace of Netflix’s cozy Virgin River and the overwhelming success of Bridgerton and its prequel Queen Charlotte, we’re seeing more romance TV series than ever as streaming services are cluing into romance’s sizable and largely untapped viewing audience.

This is a triumph for several reasons, but first and foremost, it means that fans hungry for heartwarming declarations of love and swoon-worthy moments of passion like those in heady, heart-thumping romantic series have more viewing options than ever before. So if you’ve found yourself yearning for a sweeping romance or a light-hearted rom-com, these are the best and most romantic TV shows right now (and for those looking for something a little different, the best romance anime series).

One Day

We must warn you that if you binge-watch this 14-episode romance based on the popular David Nicholls book of the same name (and it’s very easy to binge), you’re willingly signing up to have your heart ripped out. Having said that, we highly recommend having your heart ripped out by Dex (Leo Woodall) and Emma (Ambika Mod), two soulmates who meet at their graduation ball on the last day of university. The unique framing of the series means each episode follows the two on the same day of each year, detailing a complicated history of friendship and love that spans two decades. This arguably makes for an emotional roller coaster, but it’s worth it to experience their love story.

Bridgerton

Based on Julia Quinn’s novels, this series hails from Shondaland alum Chris Van Dusen and is best described as Jane Austen by way of Gossip Girl. Set during the Regency era in England, the favored period of many a historical romance, the luxurious series—which features a number of steamy sex scenes (don’t watch this with your mom!)—follows the Bridgerton siblings as they search for true love and attempt to remain in the good graces of Lady Whistledown, an anonymous gossip writer voiced by Julie Andrews who spills the secrets and scandals of the aristocratic Bridgertons and the rest of London’s high society in her regular column. Each season (there have been three so far) follows a different Bridgerton’s love story. Phoebe Dynevor’s Daphne is the heroine of Season 1, Jonathan Bailey’s Anthony is the leading man of Season 2, and Luke Newton’s Colin is at the heart of Season 3 (though it should be noted Hannah Dodd’s Francesca enters society in Season 3 as well). Bridgerton isn’t perfect, but it’s a candy-colored, gloriously anachronistic romp that brings a new vivacity to bonnet dramas (leaving most of the bonnets aside, for one), and is great fun.

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

Netflix isn’t one to let a good thing simply thrive on its own—it’s going to figure out how to squeeze as much from it as possible. Enter Queen Charlotte, a limited series created and written by Shonda Rhimes that serves as a prequel series to the service’s wildly popular historical romance Bridgerton. The show, which was directed by Rhimes’ longtime collaborator Tom Verica, follows Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifio as a young woman, Golda Rosheuvel as an adult) at the beginning of her marriage to King George III (Corey Mylchreest), who at first shields himself from her because of a mental illness that few know about. As the series progresses, the two soon find common ground and begin falling in love, forever changing the course of British high society. Running parallel to this—and in direct contrast to it—is the story of Charlotte’s lady-in-waiting Lady Danbury (Arsema Thomas as a young woman, Adjoa Andoh as an adult) and her own husband, whom she detests. The show, which also tackles matters of race and features a queer love story, is a delight. Its only fault is that it is just six episodes.

Normal People

A faithful adaptation of Sally Rooney’s best-selling novel of the same name, Normal People tells the tender but complicated love story of Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell (Paul Mescal), two Irish teens from different backgrounds drawn together by their inherent loneliness. Beginning at the end of high school and carrying on through college, the series is a surprisingly honest and heartbreaking depiction of love and friendship, with a central relationship that is defined by periods of emotional and sexual intimacy that give way to long stretches of little to no communication, as fluctuating power dynamics threaten to destroy the deep bonds that connect them. This might not be your typical romance, but you’ll fall in love with it all the same.

Poldark

If you’re looking for a swoon-worthy historical romance to transport you to another time and place, look no further than Poldark, the five-season British drama based on the books of Winston Graham and starring Aidan Turner as the handsome former soldier Ross Poldark. Returning home to Cornwall after the American Revolutionary War, Ross finds that his father has died and his estate is in ruins. And if that is not bad enough, his first love, Elizabeth (Heida Reed), has become engaged to his cousin. Luckily for Ross (and for the audience), he finds true love where he was least expecting it: with his scullery maid, Demelza (Eleanor Tomlinson). Although their relationship initially shocks their friends and neighbors, the couple’s love and devotion to one another is guaranteed to sweep viewers right off their feet and into the beautiful sunsets of the Cornwall coast.

Jane the Virgin

A virgin perfectionist with a heart of gold probably shouldn’t be this watchable, and yet Jane the Virgin, which is based on a Venezuelan telenovela and serves as a loving homage to the genre, is one of the best series of this century. Add a pinch of the ol’ impregnated-by-artificial-insemination storyline, mixed in with the possible threat of a grandmother’s deportation, all while the protagonist is trying to rock a writing career, motherhood, and a love triangle for the ages, and you’ve got one of TV’s most fascinating characters. What’s great about Jane Villanueva (Gina Rodriguez) is that she handles everything with an impressive sensibility, and you can’t help but fall for her optimistic outlook on life. If there’s a will, there’s a way, and Jane takes the cards she’s dealt in life while never forgetting or forsaking the deep goodness Abuela instilled within her. That she has two great loves along the way is kind of just an added bonus. —Iris A. Barreto and Kaitlin Thomas

Virgin River

A little bit soapy and a lot romantic, Virgin River is a story about second chances. Based on a series of novels by Robyn Carr, the heartwarming medical romance follows Melinda “Mel” Monroe (Alexandra Breckenridge), a skilled nurse practitioner and midwife who packs up her life in L.A. to move to a remote mountain town in Northern California to start over after a series of traumatic heartbreaks. With a cranky new boss (Tim Matheson) who wants nothing to do with her, and a dumpy cabin that fits the definition of an Airbnb scam, Mel questions whether she made the wrong choice to give up her life in L.A. But a warm friendship with Jack (Martin Henderson), a former Marine and the owner of the only restaurant in town, helps Mel put the traumas of her past in the rearview mirror. As their friendship quickly turns romantic, it allows Mel to turn the page and begin a new chapter.

Heartstopper

From a Tumblr webcomic to a graphic novel to a TV show, Alice Oseman’s uplifting queer tale has gathered a dedicated fanbase that has only grown with the arrival of the Netflix adaptation. The sweet romance between Charlie (Joe Locke) and Nick (Kit Connor) is wonderfully realized in this heartfelt and earnest teen coming-of-age drama directed by Euros Lyn and written by Oseman. Much of Oseman’s original spark carries over into the moving frames that are complemented with a fantastic soundtrack, perfectly detailed production design of teenage bedrooms, and an all-around talented cast.

As Nick and Charlie grow closer and their feelings become impossible to ignore, they have a whole host of supportive friends to confide in. The group includes caring Elle (Yasmin Finney), eccentric Tao (Will Gao), quiet Issac (Tobie Donovan), and two girlfriends: bubbly Darcy (Kizzy Edgell) and thoughtful Tara (Corinna Brown). Heartstopper updates stale cliches of the teen coming-of-age genre to deliver a thoughtful and earnest reflection of youthful self-acceptance, exploring what it is to be part of the LGBTQ+ community today. —Emily Maskell

Victoria

Nothing pairs quite like romance and royalty, and Victoria is clear proof of that. An enchanting historical drama filled with old-fashioned romance, the ITV series chronicles the early years of Queen Victoria (Jenna Coleman). Because she is young and unwed at the beginning of her reign, she is pressured by many to marry. This naturally makes her unwilling to do so, until she meets and falls in love with Prince Albert (Tom Hughes), a development that leads to a beautiful and heartwarming proposal fairly early in the show’s run. Because the series doesn’t waste time throwing unnecessary roadblocks in the way of Victoria and Albert’s happiness, viewers are treated to an all-encompassing love story and one of the most unabashedly romantic dramas on TV.

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Don’t let the name keep you from tuning into this one—creator and star Rachel Bloom addresses it before the theme song’s even over, responding to choruses of “she’s the crazy ex-girlfriend” with lines like “that’s a sexist term” and “the situation’s more nuanced than that.” And it is: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is a clever musical-comedy (think Flight of the Conchords, if they leaned more heavily on musical theater) that upends the hallmarks of the romantic comedy genre to tell a unique story about life, love, and relationships. The series follows Rebecca Bunch (Bloom), a lawyer who turns down a partnership at her New York firm to follow her ex-boyfriend Josh to West Covina, California, and try to win him back. But it’s more complicated than that: Along the way, Rebecca learns to address some of the neuroses she’s been carrying around since childhood and gets sidetracked (depending on how you look at it) by a sort of Sam and Diane “will they/won’t they” thing with Josh’s friend Greg. Her “crazy” is sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always presented smartly and sensitively—never what you might expect from a show called Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. —Bonnie Stiernberg and Kaitlin Thomas

A Discovery of Witches

Television is all in on vampires again, so if you’re still drawn to supernatural romances full of forbidden love, A Discovery of Witches will be right up your alley. Based on the All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkness, this romantic fantasy series stars Teresa Palmer as Diana Bishop, a historian and reluctant witch who discovers a long-lost manuscript during her research that is said to contain the origin stories of witches, vampires, and daemons. To protect herself from those who seek the book and wish to do her harm, Diana rethinks her stance on magic and begins to embrace her powers with the aid of a sexy and powerful vampire known as Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode). A steamy romance soon blossoms between the two, but because an ancient covenant meant to protect supernatural beings from humans states they cannot fraternize outside of their kind, Diana and Matthew’s desperate love is a forbidden affair, which only serves to make things hotter.