Picture Credit: Warner Bros. Television
After a mass exodus that saw one of the most popular sitcoms of all time leave Netflix in almost every region, Friends has just officially made its way back to the service in dozens of international territories in addition to those countries that saw it re-added earlier this year.
As you may recall, Friends was once the undisputed crown jewel of Netflix’s acquired library. However, as Warner Bros. Discovery began rolling out its own streaming service (HBO Max, then Max, and now HBO Max again) globally over the last few years, the Central Perk crew slowly vanished from Netflix country by country.
Friends, a staple of Netflix’s library throughout nearly all of the 2010s around the world, was pulled from Netflix across multiple waves, depending on where you lived. The United States was naturally the first to lose the show back in 2020, with almost all other regions losing it in the years to come, with the last stragglers, such as the UK, losing it in late 2025 as HBO Max was prepping to launch there.
It’s no secret that Friends gobbled up a lot of viewing time for Netflix despite not being available in most regions over the past few years. According to Netflix Engagement Report data, the series still managed to pick up 2.22 billion viewing hours worldwide between 2023 and 2025, equating to 244.5M views.
Picture: Warner Bros. Television
Where is Friends returning to Netflix?
We can confirm that Friends has now returned in all international markets outside of five major exceptions: Canada, the UK, Germany, Italy, and of course, the United States.
The vast majority of these regions saw the series land on Netflix today (July 2nd, 2026). However, a few lucky regions actually picked the show up earlier this year, with India, South Africa and Japan grabbing it at the end of March 2026.
If you are in the UK, Canada, Germany, or Italy, the series will be exclusive to HBO Max for the foreseeable future, although there are other options with WBD often partnering up with local distribution, such as NowTV in the UK, to provide access to Friends.
Of course, many Warner Bros. Television shows have hit Netflix in the United States and other regions over the past year as licensing has ramped back up, particularly during Netflix’s attempt to acquire the company.
Are you glad to see Friends finally pivot back to Netflix in your region? Let us know in the comments down below!
