Stranger Things is one of the biggest TV hits of the last decade. After arriving without much fanfare in the summer of 2016 it has gone on to become perhaps Netflix’s signature show.
The fifth and final season is set to be rolled out in three batches between Thanksgiving (late November) and the New Year. It means there will be brand new Stranger Things at Christmas time this year.
Since it first debuted more than nine years ago, a lot has changed. Not least including the age of the actors - who have grown from children to adults.
Ahead of the return of Stranger Things later in the year, we decided to take a look at a few of the things that didn’t exist when the show originally premiered on July 15, 2016. See how different life was back then.
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1. Nintendo Switch
It might be quite unbelievable but the Nintendo Switch had not even been announced - let alone released - when Stranger Things first released in July 2016. The Switch was publicly revealed in October 2016, three months later. It has since had a full 8 year life-span and a follow-up console, in the time it has taken for Stranger Things to complete its full run on Netflix. | FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images
2. Fortnite
Can you imagine a world without Fortnite? The video game is utterly inescapable even now in 2025 - but when Stranger Things first premiered in July 2016, the only fortnight you would have heard of would have been the one that means two weeks. The original version of the game was released a year after Stranger Things in July 2017 and the Battle Royale mode arrived in September of that year. | Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Hamleys Photo: Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Hamleys
3. Disney Plus
When you think of streaming services in 2025, your mind probably goes to Netflix and Disney+ first and foremost. But when Stranger Things first arrived in July 2016, the words Disney Plus would have meant nothing to you. It didn’t launch in America until late 2019 and didn’t come to the UK until March 2020. | PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images Photo: PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
4. TikTok
Another ubiquitous part of our modern day life, TikTok had not been launched when Stranger Things first started. The app would debut in September 2016, a couple of months after viewers were first introduced to Eleven, Mike and co. Can you even remember a time before TikTok? | SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP via Getty Images Photo: SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP via Getty Images
5. Ads on Netflix
Back when Stranger Things first landed on Netflix, you could still share your password with family and friends at no extra cost. The streaming service also didn’t include a lowest tier that is ad-supported - that wouldn’t arrive until November 2022, after the fourth season of Stranger Things had been released. | Brandon Bell/Getty Images Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images
6. Donald Trump as US President
Life in 2016 was very different from our current world, not least of all when it came to world leaders. Donald Trump had yet to be elected as President of the United States (not once, but twice) back when Stranger Things season one was released. The American election would not take place until November of that year. | Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images