100 Best Sitcoms of All Time – A Streaming Guide

100 Best Sitcoms of All Time – A Streaming Guide

Ghezal Amiri
Ghezal Amiri

Published on May 27, 2024

Updated on May 27, 2024

Sitcoms have been a mainstay in television for generations. Beginning with the first ever TV sitcom, Mary Kay and Johnny, leading up to modern classics like The Office and Parks and Recreation, there will always be at least one title every TV watcher can proudly proclaim to be the greatest sitcom of all time. In this streaming guide, you'll find the best TV sitcoms and where to watch them on popular streaming services like Netflix, Prime Video, Max and Disney+. We'll also let you know if there are any options to stream a sitcom online for free.

When discussing timeless sitcoms, one standout remains a fixture in television history: the iconic I Love Lucy. which aired from 1951 until 1957. Its enduring legacy, spearheaded by the performance of the titular Lucille Ball, continues to inspire serialized comedy and modern day sitcoms.

Throughout the 1950s and '60s, families eagerly awaited the latest episode of hit sitcoms like Leave It to Beaver, The Honeymooners and Gilligan’s Island. By the 1970s, TV shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, M*A*S*H, The Jeffersons and Happy Days featured memorable casts that kept viewers entertained season after season.

In the 1980s and ‘90s, there are several examples of sitcoms that showcase the daily challenges of American families and their familial bonds. Some of the best examples include Family Ties, Diff'rent Strokes, The Cosby Show, Full House, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Cheers, The Golden Girls, Seinfeld, Friends and Frasier. The 2000s saw an increase in popular workplace comedies, utilizing mockumentary-style filmmaking and uncomfortable cringe comedy. TV shows like The Office and Parks and Recreation are considered sitcom masterpieces, depicting hysterically awkward situations and occasionally warring (yet endearing) coworkers. Other great shows with a similar comedic style include Abbott Elementary, Modern Family and Arrested Development. For more adult comedy, sitcoms such as Curb Your Enthusiasm, Peep Show and It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia never fail to deliver gut-busting laughs with their unique approaches to the sitcom genre.

Where can I watch the best sitcoms?

If you're looking for the best sitcom movies to add to your watchlist, you'll find plenty of amazing shows with this streaming guide. Here are the best 100 sitcoms of all time and where to watch them on streaming services in the United States.

01

I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy

I Love Lucy

1951

Cuban Bandleader Ricky Ricardo would be happy if his wife Lucy would just be a housewife. Instead she tries constantly to perform at the Tropicana where he works, and make life comically frantic in the apartment building they share with landlords Fred and Ethel Mertz, who also happen to be their best friends.

02

The Office
The Office

The Office

2005

A mockumentary on a group of typical office workers, where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, tedium and romance.
The off-kilter, unscripted comic vision of Larry David, who plays himself in a parallel universe in which he can't seem to do anything right, and, by his standards, neither can anyone else.
In an attempt to beautify her town — and advance her career — Leslie Knope, a mid-level bureaucrat in the Parks and Recreation Department of Pawnee, Indiana, takes on bureaucrats, cranky neighbors, and single-issue fanatics whose weapons are lawsuits, the jumble of city codes, and the democratic process she loves so much.

05

Frasier
Frasier

Frasier

1993

After many years spent at the “Cheers” bar, Frasier moves back home to Seattle to work as a radio psychiatrist after his policeman father gets shot in the hip on duty.

06

Seinfeld
Seinfeld

Seinfeld

1989

A stand-up comedian and his three offbeat friends weather the pitfalls and payoffs of life in New York City in the '90s. It's a show about nothing.

07

M*A*S*H
M*A*S*H

M*A*S*H

1972

The 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital is stuck in the middle of the Korean war. With little help from the circumstances they find themselves in, they are forced to make their own fun. Fond of practical jokes and revenge, the doctors, nurses, administrators, and soldiers often find ways of making wartime life bearable.
30-year-old single Mary Richards moves to Minneapolis to start a new life after a romantic break-up. There she reacquaints with Phyllis who rents her a room, and meets her upstairs neighbor and new best friend Rhoda. Mary unexpectedly lands a job as associate producer at the TV station WJM, where she works alongside her bristly boss, Lou; the comical newswriter, Murray; and the newscast's often-incompetent anchor, Ted.

09

Happy Days
Happy Days

Happy Days

1974

In Milwaukee Wisconsin, hardware store owner Howard Cunningham, his wife Marion, and their children Richard and Joanie live through the 1950s with help and guidance from lovable and almost superhuman greaser Fonzie.

10

The Golden Girls
Four Southern Florida seniors share a house, their dreams, and a whole lot of cheesecake. Bright, promiscuous, clueless and hilarious, these lovely, mismatched ladies form the perfect circle of friends.

About this list

Titles

100

Total Watch Cost

$1,495.83

Total Watch Time

6693h 6min

Genres

Comedy, Drama, Kids & Family

Where can I watch this list online?

Find out which streaming services have the most titles from this list below.

There are 100 titles in this list and you can watch 36 of them on Hulu. 62 other streaming services also have titles available to stream today.

  1. 36 titles Hulu
  2. 35 titles Disney Plus
  3. 26 titles Philo
  4. 25 titles Peacock Premium
  5. 25 titles Peacock Premium Plus