The Best Animated Shows for Kids Streaming in 2025

The golden age of children’s animation is happening right now on streaming platforms. Shows aimed at kids have never been more visually inventive, narratively ambitious, or emotionally sophisticated. The best ones respect their young audiences enough to tackle real themes while keeping parents genuinely entertained. Here are the animated shows that families should prioritize.

How We Selected: We measured options using full-season viewing, critical analysis, and production quality assessment. We considered narrative quality, acting performances, pacing consistency, thematic depth. No manufacturer or developer paid for or influenced any recommendation.

Bluey (Disney Plus)

The Australian animated series about a six-year-old Blue Heeler puppy and her family has become a genuine cultural phenomenon, beloved by children and adults in equal measure. Creator Joe Brumm captures the specific rhythms of family life with astonishing precision: the games children invent, the patience parents summon, and the moments of connection that happen in between. Episodes are only seven minutes long but frequently contain more emotional truth than hour-long dramas. “Sleepytime” and “Camping” are episodes that will make adults cry. Bluey is arguably the best show about parenting on television, animated or otherwise.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix / Paramount Plus)

The original animated series remains one of the greatest children’s shows ever made. Aang, the last surviving member of the Air Nomads, must master all four elements to defeat the Fire Nation and restore balance to the world. The show’s worldbuilding draws richly from Asian cultures, the character development across three seasons is remarkably deep, and the storytelling respects its young audience enough to explore war, genocide, loss, and redemption. Zuko’s redemption arc is one of television’s finest character journeys in any genre. The sequel series The Legend of Korra is also available and expands the world in ambitious directions.

Gravity Falls (Disney Plus)

Alex Hirsch’s mystery-adventure series about twin siblings Dipper and Mabel spending summer with their eccentric great-uncle in the supernatural town of Gravity Falls, Oregon is a masterwork of serialized storytelling for young audiences. The show builds a complex mythology across two seasons while maintaining episodic fun, and the humor works for every age group. The emotional depth of the sibling relationship and the show’s willingness to go dark when the story demands it set a standard that subsequent animated series have aspired to reach.

The Owl House (Disney Plus)

Dana Terrace’s fantasy series follows Luz Noceda, a human teenager who stumbles into a magical world called the Boiling Isles. The show features Disney’s first bisexual lead character and handles queer representation with casual normalcy that feels revolutionary for children’s television. Beyond the representation, the show delivers compelling worldbuilding, a genuinely threatening villain, and character relationships that develop with satisfying complexity. The show’s early cancellation forced a compressed final season, but the creative team made every remaining episode count.

Hilda (Netflix)

Based on Luke Pearson’s graphic novels, Hilda follows a fearless blue-haired girl who moves from the wilderness to the city of Trolberg, where she encounters trolls, elves, spirits, and magical creatures while navigating the challenges of urban life. The show’s Scandinavian-inspired art style is gorgeous, the storytelling is gentle but never boring, and Hilda’s adventurous spirit makes her an inspiring protagonist for young viewers. The show treats its magical creatures with ecological respect, teaching environmental consciousness without lecturing.

Phineas and Ferb (Disney Plus)

Dan Povenmire and Jeff Marsh created the definitive children’s comedy with this series about two stepbrothers who build impossible inventions every day of summer while their sister tries to get them caught. The show’s formula, the same basic structure every episode with wildly creative variations, is brilliantly designed for repeat viewing. The musical numbers are genuinely catchy, Dr. Doofenshmirtz is one of animation’s greatest comic villains, and the show’s internal logic is surprisingly rigorous for a cartoon about kids building rollercoasters in their backyard.

Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Netflix)

This post-apocalyptic adventure series follows Kipo, a teenage girl navigating a surface world overrun by mutant animals after humanity retreated underground. The show’s visual style is vibrant and original, the diverse cast of characters each brings distinct personality and depth, and the central theme of building bridges between communities rather than fighting them is delivered with genuine conviction. The series runs three seasons with a complete story arc, making it an ideal binge watch for families.

Adventure Time (Max)

Pendleton Ward’s surreal fantasy series about a human boy and his shape-shifting dog in the post-apocalyptic Land of Ooo redefined what children’s animation could be. Beneath the absurdist humor and candy-colored visuals lies surprisingly deep mythology about nuclear war, loneliness, and the passage of time. The show influenced an entire generation of animation and proved that shows aimed at children could be genuinely experimental in their storytelling and visual approach.

Choosing Shows by Age

For preschoolers, Bluey is the undisputed champion. For ages six to ten, Hilda, Kipo, and Phineas and Ferb provide different flavors of adventure and comedy. For preteens and up, Avatar, Gravity Falls, and The Owl House deliver serialized storytelling with genuine dramatic weight. Adventure Time rewards viewers of all ages who appreciate weirdness and heart in equal measure.

For more family content, check out our guides to the best family movies streaming and the best family shows on every platform.