It's time. After five seasons, 41 episodes, and 10 years on our screens, Stranger Things is preparing to bow out. The beloved Netflix series is nothing short of iconic and it has taken the world by storm every single time that it has released new episodes - that includes its first season, which became a sleeper hit for the streaming service and surprised audiences worldwide, allowing it to kickstart this global domination.
Now, it's preparing to showcase its grand finale. The series finale - also the season 5 finale - is titled "The Rightside Up", which is an appropriate title for a show that spent much of its time in the Upside Down. Last week saw Netflix set the stage for its release with Volume 2 offering up three more adventures from our fan-favorite Hawkins regulars. And now, here we are at the third volume - the two hour series finale.
With that in mind, here's when the finale will arrive in your area.
Stranger Things season 5 finale release time on Netflix
Stranger Things season 5 episode 8, titled "The Rightside Up", will arrive on Netflix in the US at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT on Wednesday, December 31 2025. Yes, the series finale will indeed arrive on New Year's Eve, meaning that fans Stateside can watch the episode ahead of the new year. Speaking of US fans, it can also be watched on the silver screen in select theaters, with kickoff timed to its Netflix premiere. For international fans, however, it will be Netflix-only, and it will likely be getting watched in the first few hours of 2026.
Yes, Netflix's primetime release schedule for Stranger Things 5 has created some confusion among longtime viewers. With that in mind, here are the exact global release times for Stranger Things season 5's finale, detailing the new timeslots you can expect to watch the premiere in your time zone:
- Hawaii: 3:00 p.m. HST on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- Alaska: 4:00 p.m. AKDT on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- West Coast of the US: 5:00 p.m. PT on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- Mountain Time: 6:00 a.m. MT on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- Midwest of the US: 7:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- East Coast of the US: 8:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- Brazil: 10:00 p.m. BRT on Wednesday, December 31 2025
- UK: 1:00 a.m. GMT on Thursday, January 1 2026
- France: 2:00 a.m. CET on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Germany: 2:00 a.m. CET on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Italy: 2:00 a.m. CET on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Spain: 2:00 a.m. CET on Thursday, January 1 2026
- South Africa: 3:00 a.m. SAST on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Israel: 3:00 a.m. IST on Thursday, January 1 2026
- India: 5:30 a.m. IST on Thursday, January 1 2026
- South Korea: 10:00 a.m. KST on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Japan: 10:00 a.m. JST on Thursday, January 1 2026
- Sydney, Australia: 12:00 p.m. AEDT on Thursday, January 1 2026
The finale has a runtime of 2 hours and 8 minutes, so it's going to be a long watch. But, as Stranger Things has showcased on many occasions, it's always worth it when it comes to adventures from Hawkins!
What to expect from the Stranger Things series finale
There is so much to think about when it comes to Stranger Things 5's finale, because it also serves as the last episode of the overall series. That means it's audiences' last chance to spend some time with Eleven, Will, Mike, Joyce, Hopper, Max, Robin, Steve, Dustin, Lucas, Murray, Erica, Nancy, Jonathan, Karen, Ted, Vickie, Kali, Mr. Clarke, Dr. Kay, and everyone else Hawkins has introduced us to over the years (seriously, did I miss anyone?!). To say that it's going to be a major, impactful, emotional, and probably bittersweet finale, would still be an understatement.
The gang travelled into the Upside Down in the penultimate episode, putting together a plan to defeat Vecna and end his plan to merge the real world with The Abyss. The whole gang ventured in there too, with the military watching them as they did it. But the team has no time to worry about the threat behind them, because the fate of the world literally depends on the threat above them. How will they be able to stop the darkness from the Upside Down and its parallel dimension from spreading into Hawkins (and beyond)?!
Speaking of Vecna, he has served as the show's big bad for the past two seasons, but fans have been wondering about the potential involvement of the Mind Flayer for some time now, with hopes that the seasons 1 - 3 big bad could resurface just in time for the finale. We know that the particles are still out there; they just need to the shadowy spider formation to bring it to life.
Will has agreed to join his friends on their journey into the Upside Down as he is no longer afraid of the terrors that the dark dimensions hold. Having successfully managed to tap into the Hive Mind and overpower Vecna - alongside killing Demogorgons - he will join Eleven and Kali as the three look to stop Vecna once and for all. Can they successfully pull it off, and will there be any casualties along the way?
It goes without saying that the Stranger Things finale is a big deal, and fans aren't ready for their favorite show to end. After all, this series has been a staple of television for the past decade as it has grown and grown into a global phenomenon. You can bet it's going to go out in appropriately larger-than-life fashion.
As much as we don't want Stranger Things to go, we can't wait to see how it all ends.