15 of the very best Danish TV shows on Netflix

Netflix probably has a large selection of shows in your native language, but watching programs in others is sometimes more fun. If you’re looking for Danish TV shows on Netflix, you will find a wide selection.

Denmark is a small country, but it has produced several shows that have become popular in other parts of the world. You’ll probably have heard of Borgen, and The Bridge — while largely Swedish — has also made significant moves globally.

When watching Danish TV shows on Netflix, you will notice that many actors feature in a wide selection of programs; the only big difference is that they alter their roles. This can feel a little amusing, but it’s all part of the fun.

This article will identify the best Danish TV shows on Netflix. You’ll learn more about how you can watch them if you don’t live in Denmark, plus what kinds of genres you’ll find and more.

Are there any Danish shows on Netflix?

The selection of Danish Netflix series isn’t as big as neighboring Sweden, and it’s smaller than what you’ll find in many other countries. But this isn’t surprising; Denmark is tiny when you look at it on a map.

Still, you’ll find dozens of TV programs from Denmark on Netflix. Most of them are in Danish, but you will sometimes hear other languages — especially English and a bit of Swedish.

Danish TV shows on Netflix come in multiple categories. Of course, since this is the Nordic region, you’ll find a couple of Nordic Noir series. But that’s not all; political dramas are also common. On top of that, you will find programs in the comedy category.

When looking for Danish Netflix shows, you’ll find a selection of children’s programs. You might find these a little easier to follow if you’re in the early stages of learning the language.

While most of the programs on our list are in Danish, you will usually have the option to watch with English subtitles.

What should I watch on Netflix Denmark?

We can’t really answer this question for you; it depends on what you like and what you’re in the mood for. Borgen and The Bridge are great starting points if you’re looking for internationally-acclaimed titles.

The Bridge is also an excellent option for watching a good crime drama. But since only parts of it are in Danish, you might prefer watching Dicte — which is largely in said language.

You’ll find various other categories if you don’t like crime or political dramas. Danish shows on Netflix have varying lengths, too, so you’ll need to figure out whether you’d like a full-day Netflix binge or something you can watch over a longer period.

How can I watch Danish shows on Netflix?

If you’re based in Denmark, you will have no problem watching Danish TV shows on Netflix and other streaming services. All of the titles we’ve mentioned are available in the country; you only need to sign up for a subscription or a free trial.

When living in another Nordic country, you will similarly have good access to Danish Netflix shows. The company operates in Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Finland — and the shows you’ll find on each version of Netflix are very similar.

If you’re based outside the Nordic region, the Danish programs you have access to will vary. Many big hitters are available on Netflix in various countries, including the US and the UK. But in some instances, you will struggle to find some of the lesser-known versions.

The best starting point is checking Netflix in your country and typing “Danish” into the search bar. Once you’ve done that, you’ll better understand your options. If a program on our list takes your fancy, but you can’t find it on your country’s Netflix, not all hope is lost.

For instance, when content is blocked in your jurisdiction, you can use a virtual private network (VPN) to access Netflix in that country. Once you’ve signed up for your preferred option, you can connect to a Danish server.

After that, sign into your Netflix account and start streaming the show you want to watch.

What Danish TV shows on Netflix can I watch?

Having read to this point, you should better understand how big Denmark’s Netflix offering is. On top of that, you’ll have more of an idea about the types of programs you can watch. With all of that covered, let’s move on and look specifically at the best Danish TV shows on Netflix.

Below, you’ll find 15 options to choose from. These aren’t in any particular order, so you can pick whatever stands out most.

Borgen

Plot twists aplenty await here; Borgen stakes a huge claim for being the best-ever Danish TV series, let alone the best program on Netflix. The show has achieved recognition in several countries around the globe, including the UK.

This political drama, which first aired in 2010, is a show that you could easily watch more than once.

Birgitte Nyborg, who is played by Sidse Babett Knudsen, is the main character in the series. In the program, Nyborg is the first female Prime Minister of Denmark. Nyborg unexpectedly becomes the Danish Prime Minister, which throws a host of challenges in her direction.

Besides having to lead her country, she also struggles to balance her new responsibilities within her family life.

Borgen highlights Nyborg’s life in charge of Denmark with a coalition government, and we also see the perspective of opposing parties and their leaders. On top of that, the program follows various journalists — offering an insight into their personal and professional lives.

Besides Nyborg, various characters play significant roles in the series. Political journalist Katrine Fønsmark is one of those individuals. We also see a lot of Kasper Juul, who works for the Prime Minister at Christiansborg Palace.

He also works as a journalist in other parts.

At the time of writing, Borgen has four seasons on Netflix. Three are under the original title, and we’ll discuss the fourth one later in this article.

Rita

Once you’ve watched Borgen, you should have Rita very high on your list of must-watch Danish TV shows on Netflix. The series first aired in 2012 and is named after the fictional leading character Rita Madsen, played by the Danish actress Mille Dinesen.

In the show, Rita is an opinionated teacher working for a school with several challenging individuals.

Besides the challenges that form a significant part of her job, Rita must also contend with a difficult private life. She has a challenging relationship with her children, who are all at different stages of their lives. The show also gives us an insight into Rita’s love life, which — again — is complex.

While Rita is the main character in the series, we also see various other people take center stage throughout the show. Her children, Jeppe, Ricco, and Molly, all feature heavily — and we get a strong insight into each of their personal lives.

Other characters we see a lot of include Rasmus and Hjørdis, both of which are teachers at the same school as Rita. The pair also play a significant role in Rita’s personal life.

All five seasons of Rita are on Netflix; the show ran from 2012 until 2020. Plenty of twists take place throughout each season

The Bridge

A mix of bleak backdrops await you for this one; you’ll go hard-pressed to find a better Scandinavian crime series on Netflix than The Bridge, known as Broen in Danish and Bron in Swedish.

Besides being one of the most popular programs in this genre, it also inspired many similar programs in countries beyond Northern Europe.

The Bridge follows the main character, Saga Norén, on a journey through the Øresund Region’s criminal underworld. Norén is Swedish, but she and Malmö’s police force must work closely with the Danish authorities on several occasions.

Among those that she regularly cooperates with is the Danish detective Martin Rohde.

We start The Bridge on, as you might have guessed, the Øresund Bridge connecting the city of Copenhagen and Malmö. During the first episode, a dead body is found in the middle of the bridge, prompting an investigation into where Sweden and Denmark must cooperate. 

As the initial investigation progresses, things become more and more complex — and multiple brutal crimes occur. That dead body on the Øresund Bridge is only the beginning point, and several leading characters find themselves in challenging situations after that.

The Bridge has four seasons on Netflix. Most of the series was filmed in Malmö, but chunks also take place in the Danish capital. It’s an interesting insight into how Danes can communicate with people from Skåne, with both speaking their mother tongues. Beyond that, it’s just very entertaining.

The Rain

The Rain is another Danish series on Netflix that has received significant recognition in other countries. It first aired in 2018, originally appearing on Netflix. The program follows a group of survivors who are some of the only people left in Scandinavia following a deadly rainstorm.

What’s the twist, we hear you say? This particular rain carries a deadly virus — hence the show’s name.

Two of the main characters are Simone and Rasmus — two siblings who have to quarantine for multiple years after the virus. Their search begins with the duo looking for their father before others join them along the way.

But while they meet new companions on their trip, the group must also face all kinds of dangers.

The Rain falls into the post-apocalyptic category. It ran for three seasons, with the final one going on Netflix in August 2020.

Borgen – Power and Glory

Borgen season four on Netflix is known as Borgen – Power and Glory. It was released as an individual new series in 2022, and like the original series, Birgitte Nyborg is the program’s focal point. This time, she has huge challenges to contend with outside of the Danish mainland.

Unlike Borgen, however, Nyborg is the Danish Foreign Minister — rather than the Prime Minister.

In real life, Greenland forms part of the Kingdom of Denmark. And in this series, the world’s largest island plays a big part. Borgen – Power, and Glory follows the discovery of oil in Greenland, resulting in a major dispute between Denmark’s territories.

While Greenland is officially under the Danish crown, the island is autonomous.

Over the series, Nyborg must deal with several challenges — all of which are a completely different ballgame from what she was required to deal with throughout Borgen. The fictional character Signe Kragh is the Prime Minister in this series.

Borgen – Power and Glory lasts for one season and spans eight episodes. Political intrigue is aplenty with this latest installment of the famous Danish political drama series.

Dicte

If you’re looking for a slightly lesser-known Danish crime series than The Bridge, Dicte is one of the Best Danish TV series on Netflix. Unlike many of the programs we’ve mentioned so far, this particular show isn’t set anywhere near the Copenhagen area.

Instead, it’s based in Aarhus — Denmark’s second-largest city.

The series follows the main character, Dicte, who is played by the actress Iben Hjejle. In the program, Dicte is a crime reporter for one of Aarhus’ media outlets; she moves back to the city after enduring a divorce.

Throughout the program, she must work closely with Aarhus’ police force to gather information on multiple criminal cases that take place.

In addition to Dicte, we also see an insight into her children’s personal lives. Rose, her daughter, is at a stage of her life where she’s getting more responsibilities — and she has to figure out how to deal with these.

If you watched Borgen before tuning into Dicte, you might recognize the police officer John Wagner. He’s played by Lars Brygmann, who features as Troels Höxenhaven in Borgen.

Dicte is based on a book series.

Greyzone

Greyzone is, like The Bridge, a co-production between Sweden and Denmark. It’s known as Gråzon in both languages and falls into the thriller drama genre. Outside of Scandinavia, Greyzone was also shown in the UK on Channel 4.

It premiered in the Nordics in 2018, with the UK broadcasting coming in 2019.

The programme’s main character is Victoria, the actress of which you’ll definitely recognize from Borgen. Victoria is played by Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, who also excellently plays the role of Katrine Fønsmark in Borgen. In this particular series, she’s a single mother to a boy named Oskar.

Greyzone gets its name from the fact that it takes place during the lead-up to a planned terror attack. Victoria finds herself in the hands of those planning to carry out the atrocity; she’s an engineer in the series, and the terrorists require her company’s prowess to fulfill their deed.

After being kidnapped, she has to travel to Sweden and help the group.

Greyzone has one season on Netflix, which lasts for 10 episodes. It all leads to a compelling end, which we will not spoil for you.

The Chestnut Man

The Chestnut Man is known as Kastanjemanden in Danish. Kastanjemanden is a relatively new Danish crime show, having been released on the platform in 2021. It’s another crime series to make our list, and the series is based on a book that is pretty popular in Denmark. 

Kastanjemanden follows the main detective, Naia Thulin, who is played by Danica Curcic. She has to investigate the original crime with Europol’s Mark Hess, who is played by Mikkel Boe Følsgaard.

Følsgaard also appears as one of the main characters in The Rain, so you will probably recognize his face when you watch the series.

The Chestnut Man has one season on Netflix, which spans 10 episodes. In addition to Denmark, it is featured on Netflix in multiple countries throughout the world. So, you should be able to find it even if you live outside of Scandinavia’s southernmost nation.

Baby Fever

If you’re looking for something a little more bizarre, consider watching Baby Fever. The series is a romantic comedy-drama and was released on Netflix in 2022. It follows the main character, Nana, who meets up with an ex-partner.

While drunk, Nana gets herself pregnant by insemination. That sperm, of course, belongs to her ex-partner. And naturally, that causes a huge number of issues throughout the series.

As the series progresses, Nana has to deal with how she goes about explaining what she’s done. It spans one season, and you’ll find six episodes in total. Each one is pretty short, lasting for around 30 minutes — making it an easy one to watch if you’re new to Danish TV series on Netflix.

Warrior

Known as Kriger in Danish, Warrior was released on Netflix in 2018, having originally aired on TV2. The series follows CC, who is a war veteran played by the Danish actor Dal Salim. He regularly cooperates with Louise, whose husband was killed in combat.

Louise is played by Danica Curcic, who — in addition to her role in The Chestnut Man — also features in various Swedish and Norwegian TV series.

During the series, Louise asks for CC’s help as she aims to investigate two rival biker gangs in Denmark’s organized crime scene. CC’s task is to go undercover as an infiltrator. As the show progresses, CC and Louise must both undergo several challenges to get to the bottom of the situation.

Warrior lasts for one season on Netflix, and you can watch six episodes. Each one lasts for just under 50 minutes.

Equinox

If you’re looking for Danish TV shows on Netflix in the thriller category, you can certainly do worse than Equinox. The series first went onto the platform in 2020 and, like Warrior, features Curcic as one of the star actors and actresses.

Equinox follows Curcic, who plays the role of a character named Astrid in the series. She aims to investigate what happened to her sister, who went missing two decades prior and was never found.

Her sister, Ida, was celebrating graduation with her class; various classmates also went missing during the same incident. Astrid decides to look at what happened after a survivor calls her.

The series lasts for one season, with six episodes in total.

Elves

Another mysterious series to make our list of the best Danish TV shows on Netflix is Elves. The series has the same director as The Rain — Stefan Jaworski — and it premiered on Netflix in November 2021. It follows the story of a family going away for Christmas; they go to the fictional island of Aarmand.

While on the island, the family finds out that various elves inhabit the island. All sounds innocent so far, right? Sort of; things get a little bizarre when the elves, who are carnivorous, begin attacking and killing people.

The series has one season on Netflix, which runs for six episodes.

Danish shows on Netflix are in good supply

You will find plenty of Danish TV shows on Netflix in multiple categories, meaning that you never have to worry about being stuck for something to watch. Many of the programs feature almost entirely in Danish, with others having the language in large stints here and there.

Regardless of what you’re interested in, you’ll almost certainly find something that interests you.

The Danish Netflix series mentioned in this article cover multiple genres. You’ll find the crime dramas you’re probably used to seeing, but that’s not all. Danish TV shows on Netflix are dynamic, intriguing, and diverse.

For quite a small country, it’s not doing too badly in terms of output.

Denmark isn’t the only Nordic country with a presence on Netflix. If you’re looking for Swedish shows and movies, you’ll find a wide selection. We’ve written a full guide to Swedish TV series on Netflix to help you get started.

Scandification: Discovering Scandinavia.