Which Streaming Platform has the Most and Best Original Content?

Trevor Wheelwright

Updated 17 July 2020

Netflix has the most original content with 461 out of 726 total original titles (or 63.5%) across all streaming platforms. In fact, Netflix has 1.7 times more original content than the other paid streaming services combined.

Coming in second place with 91 original titles is Amazon Prime Video, followed by Hulu (55 titles) and newcomer Peacock from NBC Universal (34 titles). HBO Max came in last with only 14 original shows in their library.

Original Content by Genre

Comedy shows account for the largest portion of original content across streaming platforms, followed closely by docuseries. Dramas make up only 12% of the original content produced by streaming services, compared to the ~20% of comedies and docuseries.

We also calculated how many original shows each streaming platform had made in each genre, and then took the genre with the highest percentage for the platform.

From this, it’s easy to see how the different platforms specialize in certain genres when it comes to original content. Peacock and Hulu are making mostly original comedies, while Amazon and Disney+ are focusing more on original docuseries.

Who Has the Best Original Content?

Disney+ has the highest-rated original content based on median Rotten Tomato critic scores, and is the only service to have a score above 90—although Hulu’s isn’t far behind.

HBO Max, Netflix, AppleTV+, and Amazon Prime Video all had similar scores in the 80s. CBS All Access has the lowest score of 71, though that shouldn’t deter diehard fans who want to see the expansions of their favorite series like Young Sheldon or Star Trek’s Discovery or Picard.

Despite boasting the most original content by far, Netflix ranks fourth when it comes to critical acclaim. With 461 original titles, you may have to dig through a lot of trash before you get to the treasure. Amazon Prime Video has a similar problem, as it has the second-highest title count but the second-lowest critic ratings. If you’re a “quality over quantity” person, you may want to sign up for Disney+, Hulu, or HBO Max.

Conclusion

Netflix may have the most original titles, but Disney+ has the highest ratings. And when it comes to genres, it’s comedies that reign supreme across all platforms, making up the highest percentage of total original show content.

Methodology

We sourced original tv show and series content from each brand’s Wikipedia pages, being sure to check it with each brand’s website. We included TV shows for English-speaking audiences, and we excluded co-productions, continuations, and “non-English scripted” foreign shows. We gathered critic scores from Rotten Tomatoes’ “Tomatometer.”

Sources

List of Netflix original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of Amazon Prime Video original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of Hulu original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of Peacock original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of CBS All Access original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of Disney+ original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of HBO Max original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
List of Apple TV+ original programming, Accessed 07/09/2020.
RottenTomatoes.com, Accessed 07/09/2020.

Trevor Wheelwright

Trevor is a Contributing Data Journalist at WhistleOut, whose work has been featured in major publications such as Forbes, CNN, MSN, and Business Insider. His expertise lies in sifting through the complex data of the mobile and internet tech industries and telling the stories that affect your everyday life.

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