Mystery Series on Amazon Prime: 12 Binge-Worthy Whodunits

Mystery is one of the most classic genres, and with good reason: Whodunits are endlessly compelling, keeping us on the edge of our seats with their many twists and turns. Mysteries can also take on many different forms, from detective stories to period pieces to shows with spooky elements of sci-fi or horror. If you’re looking for your next show to binge, you’ll find there are many great mystery series on Amazon Prime. Here’s a ranking of our 12 favorites, all of which are guaranteed to keep you guessing.

Best mystery series streaming on Amazon Prime, ranked

12. Absentia (2017 — 2020)

If you’re a fan of the TV series Castle and Stana Katic, then you’re going to love seeing her as FBI agent Emily Byrne in the Amazon original series Absentia. Agent Byrne is missing and then declared dead for six years, but here’s the catch — she’s actually alive!

Now, the agent is struggling to remember what happened to her six years ago and processing the traumatic events that took place while being held in captivity. In flashbacks, Byrne catches glimpses of what went down as she was hunting for a notorious serial killer. In the present day, her family has moved on without her.

This stellar mystery turns into a heart-pumping thriller as Byrne pieces together her time in detention and hunts down her abductor, all the while being a prime suspect in a series of murders.

Watch Absentia now.

11. Unforgotten (2015 — 2018)

Unforgotten is a British mystery centered on investigators trying to unravel years of lies and cover-ups of cold cases. Nicola Walker (who also stars in another great mystery series, Annika) faces the challenges of seeing how much those being investigated have changed over time and learning what they’re willing to risk for telling the truth now — sometimes 40 years after the crime was committed.

Watch Unforgotten now.

10. Magpie Murders (2022)

Based on a novel by British author Anthony Horowitz, Magpie Murders follows editor Susan Ryeland (Lesley Manville) as she gets drawn into a web of intrigue and murder after she receives an unfinished manuscript of a mystery book by a successful author who died under suspicious circumstances.

Taking place in a bucolic English village, the show follows two major mysteries: What is the missing last chapter of the aforementioned book, exactly? And how will the editor deal with the complex situations around the publication of the novel and the author’s death?

Watch Magpie Murders now.

9. Endeavour (2012 — 2023)

Set in the mid ’60s and early ’70s, Endeavour follows a young Endeavour Morse (played by Shaun Evans — and yes, Endeavour is the character’s actual first name! ), who has left Oxford University to become a detective constable.

Working alongside his senior partner, Detective Inspector Fred Thursday (Roger Allam), Morse takes on a number of captivating investigations around Oxford. Each episode of the mystery series runs 90 minutes, meaning you can really lose yourself in its twisty period plots.

Watch Endeavour now.

8. The Brokenwood Mysteries (2014 — Present)

This mystery series on Amazon Prime takes place in the fictional New Zealand town of Brokenwood in the North Island. Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd (Neill Rea) is sent from big-city Auckland to small-town Brokenwood where golfing, hunting and wine-drinking abound, to investigate a local police officer and a possible murder.

When the investigation wraps up, Shepherd decides to stay on indefinitely and use his unconventional approach to police work in this small town that’s filled with secrets.

Watch The Brokenwood Mysteries now.

7. Harlan Coben’s Shelter (2023)

As you might’ve guessed from its title, Harlan Coben’s Shelter is adapted from a novel by best-selling author Harlan Coben. The protagonist, high school junior Mickey Bolitar (Jaden Michael), has a chaotic life — his mom is in rehab, his dad is dead and he lives with an annoying aunt while attending a new school in New Jersey.

When a strange old woman who lives in a creepy old house tells Mickey that his father isn’t actually dead, he thinks he’s losing his mind. But with the help of two nerdy friends, Mickey begins to unravel the mystery.

Watch Harlan Coben’s Shelter now.

6. Wayward Pines (2015 — 2016)

Wayward Pines may not have lasted that long on network TV, but it’s well worth watching. Starring the always-handsome Matt Dillon as Secret Service agent Ethan Burke, the series brings in sci-fi elements like aliens as Burke investigates the disappearance of two other agents in the strange, cult-like small town of Wayward Pines.

When Burke awakens from a car accident unable to reach anyone in the outside world and unable to leave Wayward Pines, he soon finds out that the residents of the idyllic town are also trapped there by an electrified fence and a strictly enforced set of rules, making for very spooky viewing.

Watch Wayward Pines now.

5. The ABC Murders (2018)

It’s 1933 and retired detective Hercule Poirot is receiving threatening letters from a mysterious killer, signed “ABC.” Based on Agatha Christie’s novel of the same name, this three-part mystery series stars the great John Malkovich as the beloved super-sleuth, Poirot.

Anyone who loves a Christie mystery is familiar with the iconic character of Poirot, and The ABC Murders is one of the best Poirot adaptations out there.

Watch The ABC Murders now.

John Malcovich in ABC murders mystery series on Amazon Prime — MoviestillsDB/Mammoth Screen Agatha Christie Productions

4. Monk (2002 — 2009)

A comedy within a mystery, Monk is perfect for those looking for a quirky watch. The genius Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) is an obsessive-compulsive, multi-phobic former San Francisco police detective who suffered a nervous breakdown, and is therefore unable to function in the job any longer.

With the help of a private nurse, Monk begins to bring his mystery-solving genius back to the police department, though his 312 phobias (no more, no less!) prevent him from performing many tasks, from looking through garbage for clues to going down into a subway tunnel to even riding an elevator.

Watch Monk now.

3. Fringe (2008 — 2013)

If you were a Lost devotee, then you’ll love this mystery series created by J. J. Abrams. A blend of sci-fi and mystery, Fringe follows a formerly institutionalized scientist, Walter Bishop (John Noble) his son, Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) and FBI agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv).

The brilliant but troubled team uses both fringe science and traditional FBI investigative techniques to look into unexplained occurrences, which turn out to be related a mysterious parallel universe.

Watch Fringe now.

2. Bosch (2014 — 2021)

This gripping procedural series, based on the book series by Michael Connelly, begins with Harry Bosch (played superbly by Titus Welliver) under investigation for shooting a suspect two years earlier. Bosch has a lot of personal baggage to overcome — he’s also the son of a murdered sex worker and a veteran of the war in Afghanistan — and his past comes to play in fascinating ways as the series progresses.

Bosch has been popular for years, and the title character of this beloved mystery series on Amazon Prime recently became the longest-running character in streaming history, so far!

Watch Bosch now.

1. Psych (2006 — 2014)

Like Monk, this mystery series on Amazon Prime follows a mystery each week with a hefty serving of comedy mixed in. Shawn Spencer (James Roday) is an amateur sleuth who tricks the Santa Barbara, California police department into thinking he’s a psychic, while in reality, he just has a photographic memory and superb observational skills.

Together with his reluctant friend, Gus (Dule Hill), he establishes Psych, a detective agency to help police solve crimes and close cases. Each episode has a fresh mystery and different psychic clues, making for a truly addictive watch.

Watch Psych now.