best TV The Best Shows Currently on the Air  

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List Rules Only shows on TV right now - including series that are on hiatus or seasonal breaks.

What are the best shows currently on the air? Some of the entries on this list are without question among the greatest TV shows of all time. Fortunately for us, they haven't been canceled, and they're still thrilling us with great drama, hilarious comedy, and outstanding storylines. However, some of these great shows are ending in 2018. Which TV show that's airing right now is the best? That's for you to decide, with your votes. Be sure to add any of your current favorite TV shows that aren't listed, too. You can also re-rank this list any way you like!

If you had to choose just a few top shows airing today, which currently airing TV programs do you believe are the best? Several outstanding premium cable original programs are among the most popular shows on this list, including HBO's Game of Thrones, Showtime's Homeland, and AMC's The Walking Dead. Netflix is also home to some of these titles, including House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black. Many of these are also the highest rated tv shows according to critics and audience polls. 

Hopefully, all of these great shows, from old favorites like Modern Family to newer hits like Better Call Saul, will remain on the air for years to come. But even if some shows end too soon, the greats will till be remembered as some of the best TV shows of recent memory, don't you think?

list ordered by

1
14,107 7,175
Game of Thrones is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Game of Thrones HBO Game of Thrones (HBO, 2011) is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, based on the series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin. Nine noble ...more

2
10,537 8,697
The Walking Dead is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Walking Dead AMC The Walking Dead (A&E, 2010) is an American post-apocalyptic horror television series developed by Frank Darabont, based on the comic book series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie ...more

3
7,977 5,990
Sherlock is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Sherlock British Broadcasting Corporation Sherlock is a British television crime drama that presents a contemporary adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective stories. Created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, it ...more

4
8,979 8,635
The Big Bang Theory is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Big Bang Theory CBS The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show along with Steven Molaro. All three also serve as head ...more

5
6,913 7,244
Modern Family is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Modern Family American Broadcasting Company Modern Family is an American television sitcom that premiered on ABC on September 23, 2009, which follows the lives of Jay Pritchett and his family, all of whom live in suburban Los Angeles. ...more

6
3,424 1,378
Stranger Things is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Stranger Things Netflix Stranger Things (Netflix, 2016) is an American science fiction-horror web television series created by The Duffer Brothers. When a young boy (Noah Schnapp) disappears, his mother (Winona Ryder), ...more

7
8,850 5,772
Outlander is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
MarciaComoletti added Outlander Starz Outlander is a British-American television drama series based on the historical time travel Outlander series of novels by Diana Gabaldon. Created by Ronald D. Moore and produced by Left Bank ...more

8
6,168 6,542
The Simpsons is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Simpsons Fox Broadcasting Company The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by the ...more

9
6,021 6,128
Supernatural is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Supernatural The WB Television Network, The CW Television Network Supernatural (The CW, 2005) is an American fantasy horror television series created by Eric Kripke. Two brothers, Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles), follow their father's ...more

10
6,074 6,482
South Park is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
South Park Comedy Central South Park (Comedy Central, 1997) is an American adult animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. In the small town of South Park, four boys get caught up in all sorts of bizarre ...more

11
4,493 5,473
Doctor Who is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Doctor Who British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC America, BBC One Doctor Who (BBC, 2005) is a British science-fiction television show created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber, and Donald Wilson. The further adventures in time and space of the alien adventurer ...more

12
4,502 3,496
Vikings is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
TammyLRogers added Vikings History Vikings (History, 2013) is a historical drama television series created by Michael Hirst. A farmer (Travis Fimmel) rises to fame by successful raids into England, and eventually becomes a ...more

Child Actors Who Tragically Died Young

13
4,532 4,408
House of Cards is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
CalebStevens added House of Cards Netflix House of Cards is an American political drama television series developed and produced by Beau Willimon. It is an adaptation of the BBC's mini-series of the same name and is based on the novel ...more

14
3,715 3,395
Better Call Saul is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
MattSchwarck added Better Call Saul Better Call Saul (A&E, 2015) is an American television crime drama series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, and a spinoff prequel of Breaking Bad. The trials and tribulations of ...more

15
5,182 5,077
Orange Is the New Black is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Orange Is the New Black Orange Is the New Black is an American comedy-drama series created by Jenji Kohan and first released on Netflix on July 11, 2013. The series, produced by Tilted Productions in association with ...more

16
5,149 5,431
American Horror Story is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
American Horror Story FX American Horror Story (FX, 2011) is an American anthology horror television series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. An anthology series centering on different characters and locations, ...more

17
5,058 5,606
Family Guy is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Family Guy Fox Broadcasting Company Family Guy is an American adult animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; ...more

The Best Superhero TV Shows Since 2015

18
4,227 5,666
Once Upon a Time is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Once Upon a Time American Broadcasting Company Once Upon a Time is an American fairy tale drama series that premiered on October 23, 2011, on ABC. The show takes place in the fictional seaside town of Storybrooke, Maine, whose residents are ...more

19
4,490 5,066
Arrow is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Arrow CW Arrow (The CW, 2012) is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg, based on the DC Comics character. Five years after being ...more

20
2,694 1,892
Daredevil is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
edward-donner added Daredevil Netflix Daredevil (Netflix, 2015) is an American web television series created for Netflix by Drew Goddard, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Blind lawyer Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) ...more

21
4,313 4,361
Criminal Minds is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Criminal Minds A&E, CBS Criminal Minds is an American police-procedural television program that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based ...more

22
4,030 3,148
The Flash is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Flash The CW The Flash (The CW, 2014) is an American superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Geoff Johns, based on the DC Comics character. Crime scene investigator ...more

The Best Teen TV Shows Since 2015

23
4,598 5,022
NCIS is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
NCIS CBS NCIS is an American police procedural drama television series, revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which conducts criminal ...more

24
1,712 1,028
Westworld is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Westworld Westworld (HBO, 2016) is an American science fiction western thriller television series created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, and based on the 1973 film. In a technologically advanced Wild ...more

25
3,051 4,801
Homeland is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Homeland Showtime Homeland is an American political thriller television series developed by Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa based on the Israeli series Hatufim, which was created by Gideon Raff. The series stars ...more

26
3,177 3,168
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is listed (or ranked) 26 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
udontneedtoknowmyname added Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., or simply Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., is an American television series created for ABC by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen, based on the Marvel ...more

27
3,350 3,101
Gotham is listed (or ranked) 27 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Gotham FOX Gotham (Fox, 2014) is an American crime drama television series developed by Bruno Heller, based on the DC Comics characters from the Batman franchise. The story behind Detective James Gordon's ...more

The Best TV Shows Based on Movies

28
3,421 3,473
The Blacklist is listed (or ranked) 28 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
dennis-sedgwick added The Blacklist NBC The Blacklist is an American crime drama television series that premiered on NBC on September 23, 2013. Raymond "Red" Reddington, a former U.S Navy officer turned high-profile ...more

29
3,252 4,199
Archer is listed (or ranked) 29 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Archer FX Archer (FXX, 2009) is an American adult animated black spy sitcom created by Adam Reed. The adventures and mishaps of secret agent Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin) and his colleagues, who are ...more

30
3,371 4,152
It's Always Sunny in Philadelp... is listed (or ranked) 30 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia FX It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FXX, 2005) is an American television sitcom created by Rob McElhenney. The series follows "The Gang", a group of five depraved underachievers: twins ...more

31
2,929 3,189
Law & Order: Special Victims U... is listed (or ranked) 31 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit NBC Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural, legal, crime drama television series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced. In the style of the ...more

32
2,660 3,989
Elementary is listed (or ranked) 32 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Elementary CBS Elementary is an American crime drama series that presents a contemporary update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's character Sherlock Holmes. The series was created by Robert Doherty and stars Jonny ...more

Movie And TV Casts That Got Tattoos Together

33
3,253 4,898
New Girl is listed (or ranked) 33 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
New Girl Fox Broadcasting Company New Girl is an American sitcom television series that premiered on Fox on September 20, 2011. Developed by Elizabeth Meriwether under the working title Chicks & Dicks, the series revolves ...more

34
1,793 1,516
Jessica Jones is listed (or ranked) 34 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
MarylyleMcCue added Jessica Jones Jessica Jones (Netflix, 2015) is an American web television series created by Melissa Rosenberg, based on the Marvel Comics character. Following the tragic end of her brief superhero career, ...more

35
2,192 2,521
Fargo is listed (or ranked) 35 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Fargo Fargo (FX, 2014) is an American black comedy–crime drama anthology television series created by Noah Hawley, and inspired by the 1996 film. Various chronicles of deception, intrigue and murder ...more

36
2,426 2,935
Shameless is listed (or ranked) 36 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Shameless Showtime Shameless is an American television comedy-drama which airs on Showtime. This remake of the award-winning British series is set in Chicago's Canaryville neighborhood on the South Side, although ...more

37
2,315 2,900
True Detective is listed (or ranked) 37 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
LanaYoshii added True Detective HBO True Detective (HBO, 2014) is an American anthology crime drama television series created by Nic Pizzolatto. Each season focuses on detectives investigating violent crimes.

Resting Bitch Face: Who Does It Best?

38
2,554 2,914
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is listed (or ranked) 38 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
AbbyHaslem added Brooklyn Nine-Nine Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox, 2013) is an American police television sitcom created by Dan Goor and Michael Schur. Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), an immature but talented NYPD detective in Brooklyn's ...more

39
2,898 3,509
Suits is listed (or ranked) 39 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Suits USA Network Suits is a USA Network legal drama created by Aaron Korsh that stars Patrick J. Adams as Michael "Mike" Ross and Gabriel Macht as Harvey Specter. The first episode debuted on June 23, ...more

40
1,763 1,781
The 100 is listed (or ranked) 40 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
petra-r- added The 100 The 100 (The CW, 2014) is an American post-apocalyptic science fiction drama television series developed by Jason Rothenberg, loosely based on the book by Kass Morgan. 97 years after a nuclear ...more

41
2,855 3,083
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is listed (or ranked) 41 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon NBC Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is an American late-night talk show that aired weeknights at 12:35 am Eastern/11:35 pm Central on NBC in the United States. The hour-long show, which premiered on ...more

42
1,333 1,238
Lucifer is listed (or ranked) 42 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Lucifer Lucifer (Fox, 2016) is an American fantasy police procedural comedy-drama television series. It features a character created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg taken from the comic ...more

The Best Current TV Shows No One Is Watching

43
2,577 4,112
The Daily Show is listed (or ranked) 43 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Daily Show Comedy Central The Daily Show (Comedy Central, 1999) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program. Described as a fake news program, the show draws its comedy and satire from recent news ...more

44
1,422 1,559
Mr. Robot is listed (or ranked) 44 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
petra-r- added Mr. Robot Mr. Robot (USA Network, 2015) is an American drama–thriller television series created by Sam Esmail. Elliot (Rami Malek), a cybersecurity engineer and hacker who suffers from social anxiety ...more

45
1,939 2,185
Last Week Tonight with John Ol... is listed (or ranked) 45 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
surag added Last Week Tonight With John Oliver HBO Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO, 2014) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by comedian John Oliver. The half-hour-long show takes a satirical look at ...more

46
2,300 3,140
Saturday Night Live is listed (or ranked) 46 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
Saturday Night Live NBC Saturday Night Live is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, ...more

47
2,306 2,948
Bob's Burgers is listed (or ranked) 47 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
sebbzor added Bob's Burgers Fox Broadcasting Company Bob's Burgers is an American animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Belchers—parents Bob and Linda, and their children Tina, Gene, ...more

48
1,270 2,087
The Americans is listed (or ranked) 48 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
The Americans FX The Americans (FX, 2013) is an American period drama television series created by Joe Weisberg. Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys) are two Soviet KGB officers posing as ...more

49
1,634 2,410
The Originals is listed (or ranked) 49 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
passionatepragmatist added The Originals The CW Television Network The Originals (The CW, 2013) is an American television series created by Julie Plec, and is a spinoff of The Vampire Diaries. Vampire-werewolf hybrid Klaus Mikaelson (Joseph Morgan) and his ...more

50
2,247 3,222
American Dad! is listed (or ranked) 50 on the list The Best Shows Currently on the Air
American Dad! Fox Broadcasting Company American Dad! is an American adult animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Mike Barker, and Matt Weitzman for the "Animation Domination" lineup on Fox. American Dad! is the first ...more