Where is Netflix’s ‘The Circle’ filmed?

Dozens of contestants have moved into an apartment building to compete in Netflix’s The Circle. And if viewers had caught any episode of the American version’s six seasons, they would’ve seen aerial shots of a complex. But, where exactly is it located?

The Circle began as a reality competition show in the United Kingdom in 2018. Since then, the United States, France, and Brazil have come out with their own iterations of the franchise.

Tim Harcourt, the franchise’s creator, was interviewed by Vulture in 2020 and revealed that all four series had been filmed at the same location across the pond. The building is in Salford, a city in Greater Manchester in northern England. He said that every series has its own look inside the apartment to represent the different cultures and tastes of the four countries.

Harcourt explained that although filming took place in the U.K. building, they used shots of U.S. cities to Americanize The Circle US — that was done with other series as well.

We wanted the building to be in a nonspecific location for the U.S. version — the feeling that it could be anywhere. However, it didn’t make sense to add shots of the U.K. and its cities — in fact, it was confusing — so we added U.S. cityscapes to give it an American feel for the majority of the audience who assume it is somewhere in the U.S.

To produce a show that observes players day in and day out, the franchise’s executives need a suitable control room. Harcourt said explained that there’s a college campus beside the apartment complex that’s no longer being used. So, they took it over and used it to produce the four international series.

However, the US version hasn’t been solely filmed in England. The social media experiment’s sixth season was released on Netflix in 2024, and in it, a new apartment complex was featured. According to House Beautiful, season 6 was shot at the Sonder Midtown South, a building in Atlanta, Georgia.

Production rented several apartments in the building and outfitted them with the classic technology look intending to depict “DIY, Pinterest-y, Instagram vibes,” showrunner and executive producer Susan House told the outlet.

Deadline reports that the Salford building has recently changed back to normal apartments, so Netflix has had to switch up its filming spot. According to the outlet, Netflix landed on Sonder Midtown South, which is “understood to be larger, allowing producers to make full use of the apartment building.”

Studio Lambert’s reality show has also shot a seventh season of The Circle US, which was produced in the same Georgian complex. A release date for season 7 has yet to be announced.