90s The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked  

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List Rules Only TV series that aired between 1990 and 1999

In the 1990s, television was one of the fastest growing mediums. More TV shows were popping up than ever before, and ratings were at all-time highs. Viewers tended to be interested in laugh-out-loud moments, which is why sitcoms like Friends, Roseanne, and Seinfeld were the biggest hit TV shows of the decade. While comedies were extremely popular in the '90s, procedural dramas also reigned, with shows like The Practice, JAG, and NYPD Blue becoming popular with large audiences.

Many of the most popular shows of the '90s were long-running shows. ER, for instance, ran 15 seasons, starting in 1994, while shows like Will & Grace, which began in 1998, lasted 8 years. The reality show genre was just popping up in the '90s, especially after the massive ratings and critical success of MTV's The Real World. Children’s programming was also popular, with hit shows like Boy Meets World and Dinosaurs.

What are your favorite programs from the 1990s? Which '90s shows do you have the fondest memories of? This list includes many of the biggest shows from that magical decade.

list ordered by
1
2,995 1,795
Friends is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1994-2004
Friends is an American television sitcom, created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which originally aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004. It lasted ten seasons and is now in ...more
2
2,158 1,896
Seinfeld is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1989-1998
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally ran for nine seasons on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as ...more
3
3,045 921
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1990-1996
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The show stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of ...more
4
2,320 925
The Simpsons is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
CB Ladnier added 1989-present
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
5
2,262 1,101
Home Improvement is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1991-1999
Home Improvement is an American television sitcom starring Tim Allen, that aired from September 17, 1991 to May 25, 1999. The show was created by Matt Williams, Carmen Finestra and David ...more
6
2,271 1,108
Full House is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1987-1995
Full House is an American sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for ABC. The show chronicles a widowed father, who enlists his best friend and his brother-in-law to help raise his three daughters. It ...more
7
2,141 1,029
Boy Meets World is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1993-2000
Boy Meets World is an American television sitcom that chronicles the coming of age events and everyday life-lessons of Cornelius "Cory" Matthews. The show follows Cory and his friends ...more
8
1,257 1,376
Law & Order is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1990-2010
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It originally aired on NBC and, in ...more
9
2,038 983
Saved by the Bell is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1989-1993
Saved by the Bell is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from 1989 to 1993. A retool of the Disney Channel series Good Morning, Miss Bliss, the show follows a group of friends and ...more
10
1,440 1,242
The X-Files is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1993-2002
The X-Files is an American science fiction horror drama television series created by Chris Carter. The program originally aired from September 10, 1993 to May 19, 2002 on Fox, spanning nine ...more
11
1,851 994
Married... with Children is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1987-1997
Married... with Children is an American sitcom that aired for 11 seasons. It featured a dysfunctional family living in a fictional Chicago suburb. The series, notable for being the first ...more
12
1,227 1,298
Frasier is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1993-2004
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, premiering on September 16, 1993, and concluding on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David ...more
13
1,927 948
That '70s Show is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1998-2006
That '70s Show is an American television period sitcom that originally aired on Fox from August 23, 1998, to May 18, 2006. The series focused on the lives of a group of teenage friends living in ...more
14
1,358 1,022
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
mvasilas added 1988-1998
Whose Line Is It Anyway? (The CW, 1998) is an American improvisational comedy show adapted from the British show. Hosted by Aisha Tyler, the show features Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles, Wayne ...more
15
1,429 1,195
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1997-2003
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an American television series which aired from March 10, 1997 until May 20, 2003. The series was created in 1997 by writer-director Joss Whedon under his production ...more
16
1,404 1,011
Roseanne is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1988-1997
Roseanne is an American sitcom that was broadcast on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997. Starring Roseanne Barr, the show revolved around the Conners, an Illinois working-class family. ...more
17
1,329 1,072
Everybody Loves Raymond is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1996-2005
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom starring Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Doris Roberts, Peter Boyle, Brad Garrett, and Monica Horan. It originally ran on CBS from September ...more
18
1,004 1,122
ER is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1994-2009
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994, to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and ...more
19
1,489 826
Family Matters is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
birdiejay23 added 1989-1998
Family Matters is an American sitcom which originated on ABC network from September 22, 1989 to May 9, 1997 and then aired on CBS network from September 19, 1997, to July 17, 1998. A spin-off of ...more
20
1,200 828
Cheers is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1982-1993
Cheers is an American sitcom that ran for eleven seasons between 1982 and 1993. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association with Paramount Network Television for ...more
21
1,016 991
3rd Rock from the Sun is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1996-2001
3rd Rock from the Sun is an American sitcom that aired from 1996 to 2001 on NBC. The show is about four extraterrestrials who are on an expedition to Earth, which they consider to be a very ...more
22
1,043 1,055
King of the Hill is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1997-2010
King of the Hill is an American adult animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels that ran from January 12, 1997, to May 6, 2010 on Fox. It centers on the Hills, a middle-class ...more
23
938 818
In Living Color is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
muzziac added 1990-1994
In Living Color is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990, to May 19, 1994. Brothers Keenen and Damon Wayans created, wrote and starred in the ...more
24
1,225 958
South Park is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1997-present
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
25
722 1,112
Mad About You is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Greatest Shows of the 1990s, Ranked
1992-1999
Mad About You is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 23, 1992, to May 24, 1999. The show starred Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a newly married couple in New York City.