My Favorite Nordic Noir Series

I love sharing My Favorite Nordic Noir Series! Moody and atmospheric, these stories feature small town intrigue, remote settings, spectacular scenery, and protagonists who have often left their big city jobs as detectives and reporters to delve into the dark past of their claustrophobic small towns. Here’s a list of my Favorite Scandi Noir and Nordic Noir Series on Netflix and Amazon Prime, updated for 2025! Includes lists of Nordic Noir shows by streamer and by country!

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My Favorite Nordic Noir Series

What’s in this post (use the links to get what you need!)

NEW Nordic Noir Series to watch in 2025 (see the details below)

• The Åre Murders (2025): a gripping procedural (Netflix)
• The Breakthrough (2025): genetic genealogy solves a crime (Netflix)
• The Glass Dome (2025): dark and chilling serial killer story (Netflix)
• The Secrets We Keep (Reservatet) (May 2025): a nanny vanishes in a Copenhagen suburb (Netflix)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

My Top Picks for Nordic Noir Series (immediately below)

Top Nordic Noir Picks by Streaming Platform

Nordic Noir Series by Country:

• Top Nordic Noir Shows Set In Denmark
• Top Nordic Noir Shows Set in Finland
• Top Nordic Noir Shows Set in Iceland
• Top Nordic Noir Shows Set in Norway
• Top Nordic Noir Shows Set in Sweden

Alphabetical List of Nordic Noir Series

I’ve updated as of May 2025, but if any of this has become inaccurate, please let me know in the comments!

As some of these shows are no longer streamable, I’d also check your local library or thrift/charity shop for DVDs (if you still have a DVD player!)

Jen’s Top 2025 Picks for Nordic and Scandi Noir Streaming Series

• Best Female Protagonists: Deadwind (Netflix); Rebecka Martinsson (Amazon for pay) The Åre Murders (Netflix), The Glass Dome (Netflix) 
• Scandinavian with a side of family drama: The Chestnut Man, A Nearly Normal Family (both Netflix)
• Best Scandi-American showdown: The Wisting (AMC)
• Best American Version of a Nordic Noir series: True Detective Season 4
• For the True Crime fans: Breakthrough (Netflix)

Best Nordic Noir Series by Streaming Platform

Netflix

• The Åre Murders (2025): a gripping procedural
• The Breakthrough (2025): genetic genealogy solves a crime
• The Glass Dome (2025): dark and chilling serial killer story
• Gangs of Oslo (2024): gritty American style drama
• A Nearly Normal Family (2023): family drama/courtroom thriller
• The Chestnut Man (2022) : creepy suspense story
• The Lørenskog Disappearance (2023): missing person/domestic suspense
• Bordertown Mural Murders (2021)
• Equinox (2020): Nordic Veronica Mars with supernatural elements
• Quicksand (2019): teen drama
• Deadwind (2018): angry female protagonist
• Young Wallender (2022) Wallender prequel

Amazon Prime (free)

• Darkness: Those Who Kill (2019)
• The Bridge (2011)
• Arctic Circle

Amazon Prime for Purchase

• Frobrydelson: Danish inspiration for the popular American show The Killing
• Rebecka Martinsson: (2017) strong female protagonist
• Beck (1998) an oldie and maybe a goodie (?)
• Trapped (2016) claustrophobic Icelandic pick

Nordic Noir: Danish Crime Series

The Secrets We Keep (2025, Denmark, Netflix)

This is also being called The Reserve (as the Danish title is Reservatet) but it seems that Netflix is going with The Secrets We Keep.

Cecile, a woman in an upscale Copenhagen neighborhood is alarmed when her neighbor’s au pair vanishes without a a trace. With the help of Angel, her own nanny, Cecile starts to look into the disappearance.

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The Chestnut Man (Kastanjemanden) (2022; Denmark, Netflix)

Based on the book of the same name by Søren Sveistrup.

This crime series is set in Denmark and features a female detective paired with an Europol agent investigating a series of murders that seems to have a creepy connection to the abduction of a female politician’s daughter.

If you liked this one, you can also try Borgen on Netflix. It’s not really a thriller, but a gripping political drama about a female politician navigating Danish politics. It helped me understand a parliamentary democracy a lot better. The show’s first season dates to 2010, and a new season was just released.

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Forbrydelson/The Killing (2007; Denmark; Amazon Prime for purchase)

I have only watched the American version (which you can watch on Netflix) but highly recommend that if you haven’t seen it.

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Darkness: Those Who Kill (2019; Denmark; Amazon Prime free)

Serial killer on the loose in Denmark.

Has a content warning for graphic violence so I’m skipping it! If you’ve seen it, let me know in the comments!

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Nordic Noir: Swedish Crime Series

The Glass Dome (2025, Sweden, Netflix)

Written by famous Swedish crime author Camilla Läckberg (you might know her from the Patrik Hedström series, the Fjällbacka series, or the standalone book The Golden Cage, which I reviewed).

Just a heads up: The Glass Dome is not for the faint of heart. It is CHILLING and dark, with a graphic scene of serious self harm and some disturbing abduction scenes.

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The Breakthrough (2025, Sweden, Netflix)

Sixteen years after a shocking double murder, a frustrated cold cast investigator sneakily enlists a genetic genealogist, who finally makes a huge breakthrough in the case.

Based on the book Genom-Brottet by journalist Anna Bodin and genealogist Peter Sjölund. It does not look like this book has been translated, but if you speak Swedish, you are lucky and can read it!

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The Åre Murders (2025, Sweden Åremorden, Netflix) 

Based on a book by Viveca Sten, this gripping drama set in a small ski town follows the case of a missing teenager. Hanna, a Stockholm police officer who has been suspended from her job, is at her sister’s ski cabin and helps the shorthanded local police with the investigation.

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Synden (2025, Sweden, Netflix)

 Dani, an odd (but highly intelligent) investigator and her new colleague Malik are looking into the death of Silas, a teenage. Their investigation uncovers a dark generational family feud in the countryside.

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A Nearly Normal Family (2023; Sweden, Netflix)

Based on a 2019 Swedish domestic thriller/legal drama, this multi-part series follows a family of three: priest father, lawyer mother, and troubled daughter.

In this post, I go over the differences between the book A Nearly Normal Family and the movie, which were interesting to me. I think each of them have their own strengths.

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Quicksand (2019; Sweden; Netflix)

Based on the 2016 novel by Marin Person Giolito, which won the Best Swedish Crime novel in 2016 and the Glass Key in 2017.

Follows the trial of a teenage girl arrested for a shooting at her Stockholm school. This has a high Rotten Tomatoes rating and I want to watch it in 2024!

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Rebecka Martinsson (2017, Swedish; Amazon Prime for purchase)

Based on Åsa Larsson’s crime novels.

After a family emergency, a Swedish lawyer leaves her glam life in the city (and her lawyer fiancé) to head to the small town where she grew up and investigate a murder. I really enjoyed this one. Lots of vodka!

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The Bridge (2011; Sweden; free on Amazon Prime Video)

I watched the 2021 British-French version of this and wasn’t a huge fan. The Øresund Bridge connects Copenhagen, Denmark and Malmö, Sweden and a body is found on the bridge, one half in each nation. If you’ve watched the Swedish version, let me know your thoughts!

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Wallander (Swedish version 2005-10; British version 2008-16; paid streaming of he BBC version available on many sites)

Based on Henning Mankell’s Kurt Wallander novels

BBC Wallander 2008-16

This British, English language adaptation of Wallander starred Kenneth Branagh. The films were adapted from the novels Sidetracked, Firewall and One Step Behind. 

Swedish Wallander (2005-10)

One episode of the first season was taken directly from one of Mankell’s novels and the remainder with new storylines suggested by Mankell. The stories are set in Ystad, Skåne near the southern tip of Sweden.

Young Wallender (2020; Netflix)

Recent police academy graduate Kurt Wallender takes on his first cases.

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Beck (1998; Sweden; Amazon Prime for pay; Google Play) 

Based on the Martin Beck novels by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, this is a long running series with many episodes.

Nordic Noir: Icelandic Crime Series

The Valhalla Murders (2019; Iceland; Netflix)

Based on a true story from the 1940s.

After a series of seemingly unrelated murders around the country, a detective returns home from his post in Oslo to help investigate. What happens next takes him from Reykjavik to the harbor to the wilderness along the Ring Road, and is based (loosely) on real events that occurred in rural Iceland in the 1940s. (It’s a child abuse plot FYI).

Trapped (2016; Iceland; for purchase on Amazon Prime Video)

After a body is found in a remote fishing town, it becomes clear that this murder is not an isolated incident. I haven’t yet tried this one. If you have, please give us your thoughts in the comments!

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Nordic Noir: Finnish Crime Series

Deadwind/ Karppi (2018; Finland ; Netflix)

Sofia Karppi, a widowed mom (and stepmother) returns back to work as a detective after her husband’s accidental death.

I really liked this one a lot. It’s a mystery but the characters are also really interesting and well developed.

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Equinox (2020; Finland; Netflix)

A supernatural thriller featuring a woman investigating her sister’s disappearance back in the 1990s. Astrid was only nine when her sister, along with a group of students, vanished. Now graduating herself, she finds herself having nightmares and wants to discover the truth.

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Bordertown (2016; Finland; Google Play and Netflix)

The main character is a detective with unusual techniques who moves to take a new job in a small town after his wife recovers from a brain tumor. Not my favorite.

There’s a 2021 Bordertown series on Netflix called Bordertown Mural Murders.

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All the Sins (2019; Finland; Google TV)

A detective returns to his remote hometown from Helsinki to investigate a murder case — and he uncovers secrets he wishes he hadn’t. Sounds like a familiar plot but maybe I’ll try it.

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Arctic Circle (2018; Finland; Available on Prime Video with a free trial)  

An attempted murder in a remote wilderness cabin, the crime linked to a deadly new virus. Too soon?

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Nordic Noir: Norwegian Crime Shows

Gangs of Oslo (2024; Norway; Netflix)

A police officer infiltrates a gang in Norway. If you like more of an American-style plot about undercover work, this new in 2024 Netflix show is for you!

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Mammon (2014; Norway; Unavailable on Prime Video as of 2024)

This is more a political thriller with religious elements about a reporter investigating some suspicious suicides. I liked this one at first, but then the plot got a bit convoluted for me.

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Borderliner (2017, Norway; left Netflix in 2023)

A detective returns to his small hometown from the big city only to realize the crime he’s investigating needs to be covered up to protect his family.

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Wisting (2019; Norway; Amazon Prime for purchase OR if you have paid cable with AMC, you might be able to find it on demand)

The first season is based on two Jørn Lier Horst novels from the Cold Case Quartet.

Wisting is about a Norwegian homicide detective trying to apprehend a serial killer with the help of the female FBI agent who has been tracking him for years. I watched this and loved the showdown between the mostly Norwegian law enforcement with the Americans butting in. This series is very well-reviewed and features Carrie-Ann Moss of the Matrix. Love her!

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The Lørenskog Disappearance (2022, Norway, Netflix)

Based on a real missing persons case, the most famous in Norway. Anne-Elisabeth Hagen, age 69, vanished from from her Oslo home in 2018. Eventually, suspicion fell on her wealthy husband in a plot that involved cryptocurrency, a weird ransom letter, and more.

The Rotten Tomatoes score for this is only 39%, so I’m passing on it, but if you watched and enjoyed it, let me know!

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Fortitude (2015; Norway; Google Play)

This British horror/psych thriller series was set in Norway and features a series of strange deaths on the Norwegian island of Fortitude.

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Alphabetical List of Nordic Noir Series

All the Sins (2019; Finland; Google Play)

The Åre Murders (2025, Sweden Åremorden, Netflix) 

Arctic Circle (2018; Finland; Available on Prime Video with a free trial)

The Åre Murders (2025; Sweden; on Netflix)

Beck (1998; Sweden; Amazon Prime for pay; Google Play) 

Borderliner (2017, Norway; left Netflix in 2023)

Bordertown (2016; Finland; Google Play and Netflix)

The Breakthrough (2025, Sweden, Netflix)

The Bridge (2011; Sweden; Amazon Prime Video)

The Chestnut Man (Kastanjemanden) (2022; Denmark, Netflix)

Darkness: Those Who Kill (2019; Denmark; Amazon Prime free)

Deadwind/ Karppi (2018; Finland ; Netflix)

Equinox (2020; Finland; Netflix)

Forbrydelson/The Killing (2007; Denmark; Amazon Prime for purchase)

Fortitude (2015; Norway; Google Play)

Gangs of Oslo (2024; Norway; Netflix)

The Glass Dome (2025, Sweden, Netflix)

The Lørenskog Disappearance (2022, Norway, Netflix)

Mammon (2014; Norway; Unavailable on Prime Video as of 2024)

A Nearly Normal Family (2023; Sweden, Netflix)

Quicksand (2019; Sweden; Netflix)

Rebecka Martinsson (2017, Swedish; Amazon Prime for purchase, 2017)

Synden (2025; Swedish; on Netflix)

Trapped (2016; Iceland; for purchase on Amazon Prime Video)

True Detective Season 4 (2023; Alaska; HBO) No, it’s not really Nordic but has that feel!

The Valhalla Murders (2019; Iceland; Netflix)

Wallander (Swedish version 2005-10; British version 2008-16; paid streaming of the BBC version available on many sites)

Wisting (2019; Norway; Amazon Prime for purchase)

Young Wallander (2020; Sweden; Netflix)

Do you have opinions on these? Please tell me in comments!