Where to Stream The Next Generation

All seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation and its four films, mapped market by market, with a short path in for first-time viewers.

By Jeff Cameron November 1, 2026 5 min read

Photo: Paramount+ / CBS Studios

Patrick Stewart’s death on 28 October sent a great many people looking for the same thing: the bridge of the Enterprise-D, and a way back onto it. Star Trek: The Next Generation is the work that made him a household name, and 32 years after it signed off it is still easier to find in some countries than others.

This guide is about the show itself: what it is, how it is put together, and where it streams in Canada, the US, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. For the wider career, from Shakespeare to Professor X, see our career tribute, our guide to where to start with Patrick Stewart and his people page.

The series at a glance

The Next Generation ran for seven seasons and 178 episodes, from 1987 to 1994. Set nearly a century after the original Star Trek, it follows Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of a new U.S.S. Enterprise: William Riker, Data, Geordi La Forge, Deanna Troi, Worf and Beverly Crusher.

Patrick Stewart as Picard with Brent Spiner as Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation — In pictures 1

Season by season, in broadcast years:

Season one (1987 to 1988): 26 episodes, including the two-hour premiere, “Encounter at Farpoint.”
Season two (1988 to 1989): 22 episodes, the shortest season, with “The Measure of a Man.”
Season three (1989 to 1990): 26 episodes, ending on the cliffhanger “The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1.”
Season four (1990 to 1991): 26 episodes, opening with Part 2.
Season five (1991 to 1992): 26 episodes, with “Darmok” and “The Inner Light.”
Season six (1992 to 1993): 26 episodes, with “Chain of Command” and “Tapestry.”
Season seven (1993 to 1994): 26 episodes, ending with the two-hour finale “All Good Things…,” which aired on 23 May 1994.

One practical note: Paramount+ lists the premiere and the finale as single entries, so its episode count for the series reads 176 rather than 178. Nothing is missing.

The four films

The crew moved to the big screen the year the series ended.

Star Trek Generations (1994). Kirk and Picard meet inside the Nexus, a phenomenon outside the normal flow of time, and team up to stop the destruction of a planet. The handover film.
Star Trek: First Contact (1996). Picard takes the Enterprise back in time in pursuit of the Borg, to protect the Phoenix, humanity’s first faster-than-light ship. If you watch only one, make it this.
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998). Picard turns against a Starfleet admiral who is helping to move a native population off a world prized for its resources.
Star Trek Nemesis (2002). A Romulan-made clone of Picard sets out for revenge with a weapon capable of destroying the Federation. The last of the four.

Our guide to every Star Trek film in order places these four inside the full run of the franchise.

Where it streams, by market

Canada. Paramount+ has been the Canadian home of the franchise since August 2023, when StarTrek.com confirmed all seven seasons of The Next Generation arriving on the service on 8 August, alongside all the Star Trek feature films.

United States. Paramount+ carries all seven seasons and lists all four Next Generation films.

United Kingdom. Paramount+ UK lists Star Trek: Insurrection. We could not confirm the series or the other three films on an official UK page, so check local listings.

Australia and New Zealand. No official page we could reach confirms where the series or films stream in either market. Check local listings, starting with Paramount+.

Where to start

Seven seasons is a lot of television. A short path in, all our picks:

“The Measure of a Man” (season two, 1989). A hearing to decide whether Data is a person or Starfleet property, with Picard as his advocate. An early statement of what the series was about.
“The Best of Both Worlds,” Parts 1 and 2 (seasons three and four, 1990). The Borg take Picard. StarTrek.com calls Part 1 the franchise’s first cliffhanger, and it left viewers waiting all summer.
“Darmok” (season five, 1991). Picard is stranded on a planet with an alien captain who speaks only in metaphor. A story about language that plays almost as a two-hander.
“The Inner Light” (season five, 1992). A probe gives Picard a lifetime on a dying world in the space of minutes. Watch it without reading anything first.
“All Good Things…” (season seven, 1994). The finale, with Picard moving between three points in his life. Best saved for last, but it works as a bookend.

Then go to First Contact. From there, our guide to every Star Trek series in order maps where Picard’s story continues.

Where to watch

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987 to 1994): Paramount+ · CA, US. UK, AU, NZ: check local listings.
Star Trek Generations (1994), First Contact (1996), Nemesis (2002): Paramount+ · CA, US. UK, AU, NZ: check local listings.
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998): Paramount+ · CA, US, UK. AU, NZ: check local listings.