The 10 Best Sitcoms Released Since 1990, Ranked

Published Oct 4, 2026, 6:59 AM EDT

Christine is a freelance writer for Collider with two decades of experience covering all types of TV shows and movies spanning every genre. With a particular affinity for dramas, true crime, sitcoms, and thrillers, if it's a top TV show, Christine has likely watched it and is eager to share her thoughts. When she's not furiously writing away, you can find her enjoying the next binge obsession with a glass of wine in front of the TV.

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Watching sitcoms can be a great way to unwind after a long day. Relax in front of the TV at night with an episode that will make you laugh and lift your spirits. We've relied on them for decades, since the advent of television. But the genre really hit a stride in the 1990s. And since then, sitcoms have only gotten better.

Most sitcoms are ones you can watch with the whole family. They have wonderful ensemble casts, witty writing, running jokes, and characters you want to root for. It's tough to nail down the best ones because everyone has a favorite, but a few have been reflective of their time and stand out for different reasons.

10 'Home Improvement' (1991–1999)

Image via ABC

Kicking off the decade, Home Improvement centers around the Taylor family led by father Tim (Tim Allen) and mother Jill (Patricia Richardson) along with their three kids, Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and Mark (Taran Noah Smith). Each episode follows their everyday doings, including Tim's job as host of a home improvement show.

There are fun antics, as you'd expect with three boys, especially since Tim is often like another goofy kid himself. But when it comes down to it, the show is about the family dynamic and getting through challenging times together. A highlight is Tim's conversations with his neighbor Wilson (Earl Hindman), whose full face is never seen behind the high backyard fence. Wilson always has great advice, adding softer moments to the otherwise fun sitcom.

9 'Malcolm in the Middle' (2000–2006)

Image via FOX

Defining a generation, Malcolm in the Middle portrayed an average lower-middle-class family dealing with conflicting personalities. There's the high-strung but hard-working mom Lois (Jane Kaczmarek), the goofy, childlike dad Hal (Bryan Cranston), and their three sons, eventually four at home (the eldest already off to military school in the first season). Serving as narrator and often breaking the fourth wall to address viewers is Malcolm (Frankie Muniz), the genius child who doesn't quite fit in.

Every episode is more hilarious than the next, a sitcom that's a banger from start to finish. It's something I have come to appreciate more in rewatching the entire series today with my teenage son. The sitcom covers the difficulties of raising three rowdy kids on a modest income, and dives into goofy territory, too. In the end, it's about a dysfunctional family that loves one another despite driving one another crazy, too. The show was so beloved that it returned for a miniseries follow-up in 2026 called Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair.

8 'Frasier' (1993–2004)

Image via NBC

A spinoff of Cheers, Frasier grew to become one of the most successful sitcom spinoffs ever. The story follows Dr. Fraser Crane (Kelsey Grammer), a frequent patron of the bar on the original show. Now divorced, he has moved back to Seattle, where he hosts a psychiatry radio show. Each day, we see his interactions with his producer Roz (Peri Gilpin), his brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce), elderly father Martin (John Mahoney), and Martin's caregiver Daphne (Jane Leeves).

It's witty and smart, the story of a man starting over later in life while having to balance singledom with caring for his retired police detective dad. The series follows Niles, too, and the relationship between the two brothers often results in some of the funniest conversations. The intellectual nature of the show and Frasier and Niles' refined tastes are a departure from the usual sitcom, but it worked for a successful 11 seasons.

7 'Modern Family' (2009–2020)

Image via ABC

Modern Family took the mockumentary style we saw in so many other shows and used it to shine the spotlight on an unconventional, well, modern family. While Claire (Julie Bowen) has the standard husband and three kids, her father Jay (Ed O'Neill) has married a much younger woman and had a child later in life. Brother/son Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) is married to Cam (Eric Stonestreet), and they have adopted a Vietnamese baby. The family members couldn't be more different from one another, yet they come together in the best way.

Modern Family is one of the most cleverly written and most perfect sitcoms of the 2000s. Filled with double entendres, you can't help but laugh hysterically at every episode. The cast is perfection, and their chemistry is off the charts. More importantly, Modern Family is a sitcom with a unique premise that, for the first time in a long time, didn't feel like a copy of a show that has been done before.

6 'Everybody Loves Raymond' (1996–2005)

Image via CBS

As the title goes in Everybody Loves Raymond, everyone in the family seems to dote on Raymond Barone (Ray Romano), who can seemingly do no wrong. None so much as his mother Marie (Doris Roberts), who treats him like a child. It doesn't help that she and her husband live across the street from Ray and his family, and Marie loves to deliver passive-aggressive insults to her daughter-in-law Debra (Patricia Heaton). Meanwhile, older son Robert (Brad Garrett) feels invisible, and surly dad Frank (Peter Boyle) just wants to be left alone, annoyed by everyone.

That's Everybody Loves Raymond in a nutshell, a hilarious sitcom about the day-to-day life of Italian American Ray and his family. It's frustrating at times to see Ray fade to the background whenever there's conflict, but the other dueling personalities more than make up for it. His constant joking and sarcasm are in stark contrast to Debra's anger and high stress. But you can't help but feel her pain at times, making her one of the more relatable characters on the classic show.

Collider Exclusive · Universe Personality Quiz Which Iconic Universe Do You Belong in the Most? Star Wars · Lord of the Rings · Harry Potter · Game of Thrones · Star Trek

Five legendary universes. Five completely different visions of what the world could be — or already was. One of them is the world your instincts, your values, and your particular way of existing were built for. Eight questions will tell you which one.

🚀Star Wars

💍Lord of the Rings

🧙Harry Potter

👑Game of Thrones

🖖Star Trek

FIND YOUR UNIVERSE →

01

What gives your life its deepest sense of meaning? Every universe is built around a different answer to this question.

ABeing part of something larger than myself — a cause, a rebellion, a fight for freedom that outlasts me. BThe journey itself — the places I'll go, the companions beside me, the world I'll discover on the way. CLearning — unlocking what I'm capable of, understanding the world's hidden mechanics, growing into something more. DLegacy — the name I leave behind, the power I build, the mark I make before the world moves on without me. EUnderstanding — exploring what exists beyond the horizon and asking what it means to be alive in a universe this vast.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

Which kind of world do you most want to inhabit? The environment shapes who you become. Choose carefully.

AA galaxy of planets, each with its own culture — connected by conflict, trade, and the Force. BAncient lands of breathtaking beauty, deep history, and a creeping darkness at the edges. CA world hidden inside our own — full of wonder, community, and magic waiting to be learned. DA brutal, beautiful continent where power is everything and every alliance is a calculation. EA future where humanity has reached the stars — and must decide what kind of species it wants to be.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

How do you prefer your conflicts resolved? The shape of a world's conflicts tells you everything about its soul.

AThrough sacrifice and courage — someone has to make the impossible choice so others don't have to. BThrough fellowship — the impossible becomes possible when the right people walk the same road. CThrough growth — confronting what you fear, understanding what you lack, and becoming equal to the challenge. DThrough strategy — outthinking, outmaneuvering, positioning yourself so the outcome was never in doubt. EThrough dialogue — finding the third option, the peaceful resolution, the answer that doesn't require a body count.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

Who do you want beside you when things get difficult? Your ideal companions reveal the world you were made for.

AA small crew — a pilot, a rogue, a warrior — each broken in their own way, unbeatable together. BA fellowship of different kinds of people, bound by purpose and deepened by the long road. CFriends who grew up alongside me — who knew me before I knew myself, and stayed anyway. DAllies whose loyalty I've earned — and tested — and whose ambitions align with mine, for now. EA crew of brilliant, curious, principled people from every corner of known space.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

What is your relationship with power? How you seek, wield, or resist power is the map of who you are.

AI want to use it to protect — and I'm terrified of what I might become if I'm not careful. BI distrust it. The most important power in this story is the courage to give it up. CI want to earn it — through knowledge, through effort, through becoming someone worthy of it. DI want to wield it. Preferably before someone else decides to wield it against me. EI want to understand it — its structures, its limits, its ethical dimensions. Power without accountability is the real threat.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

How does your universe treat good and evil? A world's moral architecture tells you more about it than any map.

AThere is a dark side and a light side — and the choice between them is always present, always personal. BEvil is real and ancient and patient — and goodness, however small, is the only thing that can undo it. CGood and evil are real, but they live inside people — and people are complicated, always capable of both. DGood and evil are mostly a matter of perspective and proximity. Power is the only honest currency. EEvil is usually the result of ignorance, fear, or broken systems — and understanding it is the first step to solving it.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

What role would you naturally fall into? Every universe has archetypes. Which one fits you without trying?

AThe reluctant hero — ordinary origins, extraordinary moment, changed forever by the choice to act. BThe unlikely carrier — the one nobody expected to matter most, quietly bearing the weight of everything. CThe student — not yet who I'll become, learning through every mistake, growing into something the world needs. DThe player — sharp enough to see the game for what it is, ambitious enough to try to win it. EThe explorer — drawn to the unknown, driven by curiosity, most alive when standing somewhere no one has stood before.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

What do you ultimately believe about the future? The answer to this is the clearest window into which universe already lives inside you.

AThat hope is real — that even in the darkest galaxy, a new hope is always possible. CThat even the smallest person can change the course of the future, if they have the courage to try. CThat love and friendship and doing what's right will matter in the end, even when everything says otherwise. DThat the wheel keeps turning — that power shifts, winters end, and what endures is those willing to fight for it. EThat humanity — or whatever we become — is capable of extraordinary things, if we choose to be.

REVEAL MY UNIVERSE →

Your Universe Has Been Chosen You Belong In…

Your answers point to the iconic universe your values, your instincts, and your particular way of seeing the world were built for. This is where you would find your people — and your purpose.

Star Wars

You believe in the cause — in the idea that freedom is worth fighting for even when the odds are impossible and the empire is vast.

• You are drawn to the moral clarity of a universe where hope itself is a form of resistance.
• You'd find your people in the Rebellion — a ragtag coalition of true believers held together by conviction more than resources.
• Star Wars is fundamentally a story about ordinary people choosing to matter in an extraordinary conflict — and that is exactly your kind of story.
• The Force may or may not be with you. But the will to use it for something larger than yourself certainly is.

Lord of the Rings

You understand, in the deepest part of yourself, that the journey matters as much as the destination — and that the world's beauty is worth protecting even at great cost.

• Middle-earth is a world of ancient wonder, deep friendship, and a darkness that only retreats when enough small acts of courage accumulate.
• You would thrive here because you value the fellowship more than the glory — the road more than the arrival.
• Tolkien's universe rewards patience, loyalty, and the willingness to carry something heavy across a very long distance.
• Those are not burdens to you. They are simply how you move through the world.

Harry Potter

You believe that love, loyalty, and doing what's right are not naive sentiments — they are the most powerful forces in any world, magical or otherwise.

• The Wizarding World is a place of wonder hidden in plain sight, where learning is transformative and the bonds you form at school follow you into every battle.
• You would flourish here because you take both the magic and the friendships seriously — and you understand that one without the other is incomplete.
• Harry Potter's universe ultimately rewards those who choose to stand for something even when standing is terrifying.
• That choice — made quietly, without guarantee — is something you understand completely.

Game of Thrones

You see the world clearly — its power structures, its hypocrisies, its brutal arithmetic — and you are not paralysed by that clarity. You use it.

• Westeros is a world that rewards intelligence, adaptability, and the willingness to understand that every alliance is also a negotiation.
• You would survive here — possibly thrive here — because you don't confuse the world as it is with the world as you'd like it to be.
• Game of Thrones is a story about what happens when the idealists and the realists collide. You are sharp enough to know which one lasts longer.
• Winter always comes. You are already prepared.

Star Trek

You believe the future is worth building — that curiosity, cooperation, and the expansion of understanding are not just ideals but the most practical path forward for any civilisation.

• Star Trek is a universe where the questions matter as much as the answers, and where encountering something utterly alien is cause for wonder rather than fear.
• You would belong here because you are fundamentally optimistic about what intelligence and decency can achieve — while being honest about how hard that achievement is.
• The Federation is the universe's most ambitious thought experiment: what if we actually got better?
• You don't just hope that's possible. You think it's the only thing worth working toward.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

5 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' (1990–1996)

Image via NBC

You may know Will Smith as an A-list action movie star, but those who grew up in the '90s know him as a rapper and actor who got his big break in the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He's Will, a teenager sent to live with his aunt and uncle in Bel-Air, his mother hoping this will afford him a better future than getting up to trouble on the streets of Philadelphia. It's a culture clash as soon as he arrives, but the family comes together in sweet and funny ways as each side learns from the other.

Will naturally doesn't fit in with his spoiled, rich cousins or the private school he's sent to, but this is precisely what makes the show so fun to watch. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air will have you in stitches. It also has more serious episodes that tackle important topics like racism, familial neglect, and the class divide. It's one of the only 1990s sitcoms that can be considered a true masterpiece.

4 'How I Met Your Mother' (2005–2014)

Image via CBS

Even if you decide not to watch that awful final season with one of the worst TV show endings of all time, How I Met Your Mother is still one of the most clever, wonderfully written sitcoms centered around a group of single young friends in New York. Like a new generation's Friends, the series is framed by an older Ted Mosby (voiced by Bob Saget) telling his teenage kids in present day how he came to meet their mother. We see young Ted (Josh Radnor) navigate dating, his career, and friends, all while desperate to find "the one." He knows true love exists since his two best friends Marshall (Jason Segel) and Lily (Alyson Hannigan) are the poster people for the perfect couple.

How I Met Your Mother has some elements that might rub people the wrong way, including Barney's (Neil Patrick Harris) womanizing ways and complete disregard for females as anything but personal playthings. But it's all in jest, and Harris pulls it off so well, you can't help but love him. The chemistry among the five leads is what makes this show so good. You often forget about the show's initial purpose since Ted goes off on tangents with his stories and seems to be doing so himself, too.

3 'The Office' (2005–2013)

Image via NBC

When it comes to mockumentary workplace sitcoms, The Office takes the cake. The show has become a cultural phenomenon, its characters and memorable moments living rent-free in our heads. Despite taking place in the boring office of a paper company, the antics of the team led by the goofy Michael Scott (Steve Carell) make every dull moment endearing.

Based on the BBC series of the same name starring Ricky Gervais, it was a big swing to try and make an American version that could even come close to the original. But NBC somehow pulled it off thanks to Carell's amazing TV performance and the entire cast's chemistry. The Office was not only a long-running success — it is also widely considered to be one of the best sitcoms of all time.

2 'The Big Bang Theory' (2007–2019)

Image via Monty Brinton / ©CBS / courtesy Everett Collection

If you were to describe The Big Bang Theory to someone who had never heard of it, it would probably sound absolutely awful to anyone who isn't immersed in "geek culture." A group of science nerd friends hang out every day talking about geeky things like comic books, sci-fi movies, and physics using jargon only a handful of people would actually understand. The only somewhat relatable person is a blonde waitress and aspiring actor who moves in across the hall.

But somehow, The Big Bang Theory became one of the biggest sitcoms on television. The smart (literally) writing, the inside jokes, and the dynamic led by the arrogant and socially awkward Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) make you realize that those kids you made fun of in high school are actually the cool ones. The universe lives on with the second prequel series Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage about Sheldon's older brother, as well as Stuart Fails to Save the Universe following lovable comic bookstore owner Stuart Bloom (Kevin Sussman). But the original remains one of the best sitcoms of the 2000s.

1 'Friends' (1994–2004)

Image via NBC

The sitcom of all sitcoms, Friends defined a generation and is still watched by the new generation today with network airings and streaming. The six friends at the center are all single and navigating life in New York in their 20s and 30s. Their clashing personalities and hilarious antics make every episode a treat to watch, as does the witty dialogue and perfect delivery.

From Chandler's (Matthew Perry) sarcasm to Phoebe's (Lisa Kudrow) hilarious naivete, Ross' (David Schwimmer) constant whining and complaining, and everyone's challenges with dating, careers, and family, it's fun to watch them all come together. Friends has some of the best one-liners of all time, and phrases we still quote to this day, and probably will continue to do so for decades to come.

Friends