Pluto TV’s best shows of all time just got a major update
Pluto TV’s best shows of all time just got a major update
The updated list now includes ‘The X-Files,’ ‘Battlestar Galactica,’ ‘The 100,’ and more free shows worth streaming.
Pluto TV can still be great for background watching, but the free on-demand library is way stronger than that gives it credit for. Right now, you can find everything from old-school procedurals and cult sci-fi to prestige drama, strange mysteries, and a seriously underrated Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy. The lineup changes, so the list does too, but the rule here is simple: if it’s streaming free on Pluto TV right now, it’s fair game. Here’s an updated look at the top 10 best TV shows of all time streaming on Pluto TV right now:
Top 10 all-time best TV shows streaming on Pluto TV:
No. 10: ‘Blue Bloods’ (2010) | Police procedural drama
“Blue Bloods” is the kind of show that quickly reminds you why it ran forever. It’s a police procedural, sure, but the Reagan family is what gives it all that extra juice. One family has detectives, a prosecutor, and the NYPD commissioner sitting around the same dinner table, so every case gets filtered through a bunch of different jobs, opinions, and moral lines. Tom Selleck holds the whole thing down as Frank Reagan, the guy trying to lead the department without losing the family part of his life.
And yeah, this show knows exactly what lane it’s in. It gives you clean cases, tough choices, family arguments, and those Sunday dinners that somehow became the emotional center of the whole thing. It’s not out here trying to blow up the format or get weird for the sake of it. It’s steady, old-school TV in the best way, and sometimes that’s exactly what you want from a free Pluto TV watch.
Blue Bloods
A drama about a multi-generational family of cops dedicated to New York City law enforcement. Frank Reagan is the New York Police Commissioner and heads both the police force and the Reagan brood. He runs his department as diplomatically as he runs his family, even when dealing with the politics that plagued his unapologetically bold father, Henry, during his stint as Chief.
No. 9: ‘Rizzoli & Isles’ (2010) | Crime drama
“Rizzoli & Isles” works because the leads are just fun to watch together. Angie Harmon plays Jane Rizzoli, a Boston detective who likes to trust her gut and charge straight at the problem. Sasha Alexander plays Maura Isles, the medical examiner who’d rather explain the science behind everything before anyone makes a move. They’re total opposites, which is exactly why the show clicks.
Yes, there are murders to solve, and the cases keep things moving, but the friendship is the real reason to keep watching. Jane and Maura tease each other, balance each other out, and make the whole thing feel lighter than your average crime drama. It’s fast, funny, familiar, and really easy to settle into. If “Bones” or “Castle” are your kind of shows, this one sits in that same lane: murder cases, strong chemistry, and a vibe that doesn’t make you feel like you need to brace yourself before every episode.
Rizzoli & Isles
Perhaps their strikingly different personalities make the relationship between detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles so effective. Jane, the only female cop in Boston’s homicide division, is tough, relentless and rarely lets her guard down, while the impeccably dressed Maura displays a sometimes icy temperament — she is, after all, more comfortable among the dead than the living. Together, the best friends have forged a quirky and supportive relationship; they drop the protective shield in each other’s company, and combine their expertise to solve Boston’s most complex cases.
No. 8: ‘The 100’ (2014) | Sci-fi drama
“The 100” starts with a very CW-sounding premise and then pretty quickly turns into something much bigger. Nearly 100 years after a nuclear disaster wipes out most of life on Earth, the remaining humans are living in space on a giant station called the Ark. The problem? They’re running out of resources. So the adults send 100 teenage prisoners down to Earth to see if the planet is survivable again.
What makes “The 100” belong on an all-time Pluto TV list is how much it grows beyond that setup. It begins as a survival drama about kids trying not to die in the woods, then turns into a story about leadership, war, loyalty, faith, sacrifice, and the awful choices people make when every option is bad. It’s pulpy, dramatic, violent, messy, and honestly way more ambitious than it first looks. Not every swing lands, but the show keeps swinging, and that’s why it still stands out. If you want free sci-fi with scale, stakes, and seven seasons of chaos, this one earns its spot.
The 100
100 years in the future, when the Earth has been abandoned due to radioactivity, the last surviving humans live on an ark orbiting the planet — but the ark won’t last forever. So the repressive regime picks 100 expendable juvenile delinquents to send down to Earth to see if the planet is still habitable.
No. 7: ‘Battlestar Galactica’ (2004) | Sci-fi drama
“Battlestar Galactica” is one of those sci-fi shows that built a massive cult following for a reason. Some older space shows can feel a little stiff when you go back to them, but this one moves. It’s got ships, battles, and Cylons, sure, but the real hook is that it’s basically a survival drama about a bunch of terrified people trying not to fall apart after the end of the world.
If you don’t know much about the show, basically, humanity creates the Cylons, the Cylons nearly wipe everyone out, and the few survivors left have to run across space looking for a new home. Commander William Adama and President Laura Roslin are trying to keep the fleet together, but everyone’s scared, exhausted, paranoid, and very much not making perfect decisions. It’s political, tense, spiritual, messy, and full of big questions about power, faith, survival, and what actually makes someone human. Pretty great stuff to stumble into for free on Pluto TV.
Battlestar Galactica
When an old enemy, the Cylons, resurface and obliterate the 12 colonies, the crew of the aged Galactica protect a small civilian fleet - the last of humanity - as they journey toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth.
No. 6: ‘Twin Peaks’ (1990) | Mystery drama
“Twin Peaks” is one of the strangest shows I’ve ever watched because it makes up its own rules. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper arrives in Twin Peaks to investigate the death of Laura Palmer, and at first, it feels like a dark crime story set in a foggy little town. Then the dreams start. Then the town gets weirder. Then suddenly you’re wondering why this show feels funny, creepy, sad, and completely bizarre all at the same time.
That’s the whole magic of “Twin Peaks.” David Lynch and Mark Frost take a murder investigation and turn it into something way stranger, full of oddball characters, surreal images, secrets, and moments that feel like they’re operating on dream logic. It’s not a show that neatly explains itself, and honestly, that’s part of why it still feels so alive. If you want something free on Pluto TV that doesn’t feel like anything else on this list, this is the one. Just accept that you’re going to be confused sometimes — I sure was!
Twin Peaks
The body of Laura Palmer is washed up on a beach near the small Washington state town of Twin Peaks. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate her strange demise only to uncover a web of mystery that ultimately leads him deep into the heart of the surrounding woodland and his very own soul.
No. 5: ‘The X-Files’ (1993) | Sci-fi mystery drama
“The X-Files” was a big show in my house growing up, mostly because my sister loved it, so Mulder and Scully were on my radar pretty early. And this show still works. David Duchovny plays Fox Mulder, the FBI agent who wants to believe every unexplained case is pointing toward something much bigger, while Gillian Anderson’s Dana Scully is the doctor and scientist sent to bring logic, skepticism, and actual evidence into the room. That tension is the whole engine of the show.
The best part is that “The X-Files” can be a creepy little case-of-the-week thriller one episode, then pull you right back into the bigger conspiracy the next. You get monsters, strange disappearances, government cover-ups, secret experiments, alien questions, and that constant feeling that nobody in power is telling the whole truth. It’s spooky, paranoid, weirdly funny sometimes, and still super easy to fall into on Pluto TV. Plus, Mulder and Scully’s chemistry is basically the reason this kind of skeptic-versus-believer TV pairing became the template. The truth is still out there, and it’s worth watching.
The X-Files
The exploits of FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully who investigate X-Files: marginalized, unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena. Mulder believes in the existence of aliens and the paranormal while Scully, a skeptic, is assigned to make scientific analyses of Mulder’s discoveries that debunk Mulder’s work and thus return him to mainstream cases.
No. 4: ‘The New Adventures of Old Christine’ (2006) | Family comedy
“The New Adventures of Old Christine” is such a good reminder that Julia Louis-Dreyfus has basically been operating at an elite level forever. This one lands in that sweet spot between “Seinfeld” and “Veep,” with her playing Christine, a divorced mom trying to juggle parenting, dating, work, and her own terrible instincts. Then her ex starts dating a younger woman who is also named Christine, which is exactly the kind of nightmare social situation this show knows how to squeeze for every possible laugh.
The comedy is all awkward conversations, petty spirals, jealousy, bad choices, and people trying very hard to act normal when they absolutely are not acting normal. Christine is messy, insecure, funny, sharp, and constantly making things harder for herself, which is why she’s such a great sitcom character. If this one passed you by when it first aired, Pluto TV is a very good excuse to fix that.
The New Adventures of Old Christine
Single working mom Christine Campbell has just learned that her ex is dating a much younger woman with the same first name. To avoid any confusion, the new girlfriend is dubbed New Christine, which leaves her with the unfortunate nickname Old Christine.
No. 3: ‘Criminal Minds’ (2005) | Crime procedural
“Criminal Minds” has a very specific rhythm, and once you’re back in it, you’re back in it. The show follows the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, a team of profilers who are less interested in just collecting clues and more interested in figuring out how dangerous people think. So yeah, it gets darker than your average case-of-the-week show, but that darker edge is a huge part of why it became such a reliable watch.
The cases are intense, the team is the anchor, and the whole thing has that binge appeal that long-running procedurals need. Right now, Pluto TV has Seasons 8-15 streaming, which is a pretty great chunk of the show because the characters are already established and the machine is running smoothly. If you want something familiar but still tense enough to keep your attention, this is one of the strongest free options on Pluto TV.
Criminal Minds
An elite team of FBI profilers analyze the country’s most twisted criminal minds, anticipating their next moves before they strike again. The Behavioral Analysis Unit’s most experienced agent is David Rossi, a founding member of the BAU who returns to help the team solve new cases.
No. 2: ‘Mad Men’ (2007) | Period drama
“Mad Men” drops you right into 1960s Madison Avenue, where everyone looks incredible, smokes constantly, drinks all day, and is quietly coming apart inside. Jon Hamm plays Don Draper, an ad man who seems like he has the whole world figured out until you realize the polished surface is basically the whole trick. The advertising world is the hook, but the show is really interested in what people hide from everyone else, and sometimes from themselves.
That’s why it still belongs this high on a list like this. “Mad Men” is about ambition, identity, marriage, work, power, reinvention, and all the little choices that stack up into a life. The writing is sharp, the performances are ridiculous, and the period detail is great without turning the whole thing into a museum tour. Pluto TV only has Season 1 streaming right now, but that’s not a bad thing. Season 1 is the foundation, and once it pulls you into Don Draper’s world, it’s very hard not to keep going.
Mad Men
Set in 1960-1970 New York, this sexy, stylized and provocative drama follows the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue advertising.
No. 1: ‘The Closer’ (2005) | Crime procedural
“The Closer” is the kind of procedural that reminds you how good the format can be when the lead character is this strong. Kyra Sedgwick plays Brenda Leigh Johnson, a CIA-trained interrogator brought in to run the LAPD’s Priority Murder Squad, and she’s the whole reason the show works as well as it does. Brenda can seem sweet, polite, and almost harmless at first, but once she gets a suspect in the room, she knows exactly how to push until the truth comes out.
The cases are solid, the office politics are messy, and Brenda’s way of getting confessions gives the show its own identity. But the real reason it works so well for Pluto TV is simple: all seven seasons are streaming. You can start at the beginning and just settle in. The characters deepen, the stakes grow, and the show builds a ton of momentum as it goes. It was a huge hit for a reason, won Sedgwick an Emmy and a Golden Globe, and even spun off “Major Crimes.” For a free procedural you can really commit to, this is an easy No. 1.
The Closer
Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson transfers from Atlanta to LA to head up a special unit of the LAPD that handles sensitive, high-profile murder cases. Johnson’s quirky personality and hard-nosed approach often rubs her colleagues the wrong way, but her reputation as one of the world’s best interrogator eventually wins over even her toughest critics.