Cable started to impact the TV landscape in the ’80s and really made a dent in the ’90s, but the 2000s is when the decades-old TV hierarchy finally shattered. Scripted programming on the three major networks (and Fox) was still able to draw audiences in the tens of millions in the ’90s, but as cable channels ballooned into the hundreds in the ’00s, DVRs made time-shifting as easy as a press of a button, and YouTube and other streaming sites ate away at TV’s future audience, the big three (okay, four) lost their dominance and prestige. They were still the clear leaders in sitcoms, though, even if less people than ever were watching them; most of the shows below aired on the traditional networks or their little siblings like the WB and UPN. None of them were the all-pervasive ratings juggernauts that comedies like Cheers, All in the Family, and Seinfeld had been in the past, and in fact a show like The Office (U.S.), which had a long run on NBC and has gone on to be a perennially popular show on streaming, wouldn’t have made it past a single season if it drew the same ratings in the ’80s or ’90s as it did in the ’00s. Still, quality doesn’t always equal popularity, and in fact the highest rated sitcom of the ’00s (the final four seasons of Friends) doesn’t even make this list. The best sitcoms of the ’00s were shows that either took advantage of the new freedoms afforded by cable (It’s Always Sunny, Party Down) or tried to innovate within the network system while still paying tribute to its past (The Office (U.S.), 30 Rock). And then Netflix and Hulu kicked off the streaming era near the end of the decade and blew the whole damn thing up again. Before we descend into the chaos of the 2010s, let’s look back at the 20 best sitcoms of the 2000s, from beloved classics to gone-too-soon hidden gems. And make sure you also check out our lists of the best sitcoms of the ’70s, the best sitcoms of the ’80s, and the best sitcoms of the ’90s.
Again: we’re solely talking the DECADE known as the 2000s. Like, the years 2000 through 2009 (or 2001 to 2010, if you’re one of those types).
(Oh, and quick housekeeping note: we only factored in seasons that actually aired in the ’00s. So Frasier isn’t as high as it was in the ’90s list or as it would be in a best overall sitcoms list, Parks & Rec doesn’t make the cut because it only aired a few episodes in the ’00s, and shows with subsequent returns, like Will & Grace, Arrested Development, and Party Down, aren’t considering the revival seasons.)
20. Undeclared
Years: 2001-2002
Creator: Judd Apatow
Stars: Jay Baruchel, Carla Gallo, Charlie Hunnam, Seth Rogen, Monica Keena, Timm Sharp, Loudon Wainwright
Network: Fox
Judd Apatow’s college sitcom couldn’t recreate the slice-of-life realness of Freaks and Geeks, and, like many Fox shows of the era, constant preemptions and timeslot changes kept it from ever developing anything resembling a rhythm. Still, it was a very funny show with smartly drawn characters, a great cast, and a more realistic depiction of late ’90s / early ’00s college life than typically seen on TV at the time. Those expecting Freaks and Geeks: The College Years might be slightly disappointed, but Undeclared is still a good show in its own right, and would be probably be higher on this list if it lasted longer than part of one season.—Garrett Martin
19. Girlfriends
Years: 2000-2008
Creator: Mara Brock Akil
Stars: Tracee Ross Ellis, Golden Brooks, Persia White, Jill Marie Jones, Reggie Hayes, Keesha Sharp, Cee Cee Michaela, Khalil Kain, Flex Alexander
Network: UPN, The CW
Girlfriends reigned as that divine creation that explored life, love, careers and a blossoming sisterhood among women. The show, often compared to Sex and The City, was a witty, intelligent and sexy exploration of the many facets of black womanhood through the lens of four very different women. There was Joan (lawyer and “den mother”), Toni (selfish and popular real estate agent), Maya (sassy law assistant) and Lynn (free-spirited Bohemian). During its eight-year run, Girlfriends was one of the highest-rated scripted shows among black viewers aged 18-34 and tackled an endless number of issues, including colorism, AIDS and class issues. —Ashley Terrell
18. Will & Grace
Years: 1998-2006, 2017-2020
Created by: David Kohan, Max Mutchnick
Stars: Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Megan Mullally, Sean Hayes
Original Network: NBC
Will & Grace remains a pivotal show for gay culture and the representation of gay characters on a sitcom. It received an absurd 83 Emmy nominations throughout its original run—the series returned for a ninth season in the fall of 2017—and each of the four regulars, Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally, won an individual Emmy, making it one of only three sitcoms ever to achieve that feat. The stories, revolving around life and love in New York City, may have been sitcom boilerplate, but the subject matter (gay/Jewish identity), the rat-a-tat one-liners, the blockbuster guest stars, and the main cast’s chemistry were anything but: Will & Grace isn’t just a landmark TV series, it’s a rollicking good time. —Jim Vorel and Matt Brennan
17. The Game
Years: 2006-2015, 2021-2023
Creator: Mara Brock Akil
Stars: Tia Mowry, Brittany Daniel, Hosea Chanchez, Coby Bell, Pooch Hall, Wendy Raquel Robinson
Brandy
Networks: The CW, BET, Paramount+
The Game is the perfect example of how, sometimes, the particular premise of a TV show doesn’t ultimately matter—it’s all about strong writing and believable, complicated characters. A series about professional football players and the women who love them may not sound especially exciting to some of us, but thanks to Mara Brock Akil (the brilliant mind responsible for Girlfriends and one of the most engaging dramas in recent years, Being Mary Jane), we were presented with a hilarious, nuanced tale that was soapy enough to be addictive, but so well-written that it was easy to forget you were watching a show, technically, centered on a bunch of rich and arrogant athletes. The Game presupposed that the women on the sidelines often had more to do with the outcome of a game than the men on the fields, and as a result a complex feminist narrative informed the three women who were initially at the center of the show. Melanie Barnett (Tia Mowry-Hardrict), Tasha Mack (the phenomenal Wendy Raquel Robinson) and Kelly Pitts (Brittany Daniel )were funny, compulsively watchable characters joined by Derwin Davis (Pooch Hall), Malik Wright (Hosea Chanchez) and Jason Pitts (Coby Bell). Melanie and Derwin would go on to have an intense, but also completely relatable romance, which made the series difficult to enjoy after the departures of Mowry and Hall at the end of Season Five (two season after the show’s revival on BET, following its cancellation on the CW). Although it was never quite the same, The Game would continue to deliver much of the same comedy, fantastic music, amazing guest stars and biting social commentary that made us fall in love with it in those early days. It returned for a 10th season in 2021. —Shannon M. Houston
16. How I Met Your Mother
Years: 2005-2014
Creators: Carter Bays, Craig Thomas
Stars: Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan, Cristin Milioti
Original Network: CBS
Kids, back in 2005 television was very different. Netflix was still the company that sent you DVDs in the mail. Amazon delivered books and toilet paper to your house. And you had to wait a whole week for a new episode to premiere. The TV schedule still ran on a September to May cycle, and as a nascent TV critic, I would spend my summer months consuming all the pilots broadcast TV had to offer. So for a show to stand out amid a plethora of new shows meant something. How I Met Your Mother stood out immediately. It flipped the cliché of the woman being the one who always wanting to get married and gave us Ted, a man who wanted nothing more than to settle down with the love of his life—he just hadn’t met her yet. Ted and friends Marshall (Jason Segel), Lily (Alyson Hannigan), Robin (Cobie Smulders) and Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) became my new Friends, which had just ended the year before. The comedy also did something usually only seen in dramas, and set up a mystery that bounced back and forth through time. The pilot showed viewers how Ted met Robin across a crowded bar, they had a great first date, he stole a blue French horn for her (long story) and we all thought okay this is how he met “the Mother” until the pilot ended with the zinger of “that kids is how I met your Aunt Robin.” It was an excellent twist and one that would play out, often frustratingly so, over nine seasons. There were hints of the mother all the time—a yellow umbrella was a recurring motif that weaved in and out of the seasons. And while the series finale still stings in a major way (hand salute: Major Way), my fondness for the show remains. To quote Ted, “sometimes even if you know how something’s gonna end, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the ride.” —Amy Amatangelo
15. Malcolm in the Middle
Years: 2000-2005
Creator: Linwood Boomer
Stars: Jane Kaczmarek, Bryan Cranston, Christopher Masterson, Justin Berfield, Erik Per Sullivan, Frankie Muniz
Network: Fox
Motherhood changes you: your body, your priorities, your relationship with your significant other. And not all of them are drastic or even negative. But in Lois’ case, after raising five particularly unruly, rambunctious boys, her personality has adapted to her parental struggles. Once a happy-go-lucky, free-spirited mother after the birth of her first child, Francis, she grows into the dark, paranoid, tough, sometimes cruel disciplinarian she is at the premiere of the show. Her loving relationship with her husband, seems, curiously enough, largely untouched. Their marriage has survived the changes parenthood has brought because they’re a pretty solid team, with an us-against-the-boys mentality. While Lois’ intentions are usually good, there’s also an odd side of her that does relish in punishing her children, and it’s the same side of her that allows her to be pretty successful after all in the raising of her children.—Anita George
14. Andy Barker, P.I.
Years: 2007
Creators: Conan O’Brien, Jonathan Groff
Stars: Andy Richter, Clea Lewis, Harve Presnell, Tony Hale, Marshall Manesh
Network: NBC
A top entry in the “brilliant-but-canceled-way-too-soon” category, Andy Barker, P.I. was a hilarious parody of police procedurals and detective shows that barely made a blip on the NBC schedule for a few weeks in 2007. Richter plays a mild-mannered, extremely suburban CPA who becomes an unofficial private investigator through happenstance, and, with the help of retired PI Harve Presnell and fellow strip mall tenants Tony Hale and Marshall Manesh, takes on a case-of-the-week for a grand total of six episodes. Although it has an absurdist edge, Andy Barker is often as bone-dry as the noirs and hard-boiled stories it parodies, and that straight-faced approach is a large part of its charm. On one hand I wish it had lasted longer so we could see how the show grew and developed over time, but on the other it so perfectly nailed what it was going for in its six episodes that it’s one of the rare sitcoms to not really have any blemishes. And if you view it like a British sitcom, having only six episodes isn’t that weird, anyway.—Garrett Martin
13. Everybody Hates Chris
Years: 2005-2009
Creators: Chris Rock, Ali LeRoi
Stars: Tyler James Williams, Terry Crews, Tichina Arnold, Tequan Richmond, Imani Hakim, Vincent Martella
Networks: UPN; The CW
Chris Rock is one of the funniest comedians of all time. This is far from a controversial stance. Upon developing a period sitcom about his Brooklyn childhood for the (now defunct) UPN back in the mid-2000s, however, the question emerged of whether or not his brand of knowing, acerbic comedy could survive the transition to network TV. The answer proved to be both yes and no. From the opening seconds of its pilot, Everybody Hates Chris positions itself as an incisive, utterly confident comedic tour-de-force that is perfectly in line with Rock’s brand. And yet, in the hands of co-creator/showrunner Ali LeRoi, the show aimed to be much more than simply the comedian’s stage work reformatted into TV storylines. The result was a family sitcom that both harkened back to the Norman Lear comedies of old, while still retaining the rapid pace and tight construction of the best single-camera productions. The show was never more successful, however, than when it came to its casting, with Tyler James Williams demonstrating immense charisma and comic timing as a young Chris; meanwhile, Terry Crews and Tichina Arnold would promptly enter the pantheon of great TV couples as Chris’ larger-than-life parental units. And though low ratings and frequent schedule shifts would ultimately snuff the Chris out after four seasons, it quickly sketched out its place as one of the greatest sitcoms of the aughties, and living proof of why we can’t have nice things.—Mark Rozeman
12. The Thick of It
Years: 2005-2012
Created by: Armando Iannucci
Stars: Peter Capaldi, Chris Langham, Rebecca Front, Chris Addison, Joanna Scanlan, James Smith
Networks: BBC Four, BBC Two
If you’re a fan of Veep, and find yourself jonesing for more TV from Armando Iannucci, then The Thick of It is definitely in your wheelhouse. A hilarious take on the British political system, it could be argued that it’s an even more biting take on politics than Veep. The show may have run from 2005 until 2012, but it was a sporadic run, as there are only 24 episodes. However, those 24 episodes are excellent. If you don’t know British politics, you might not fully understand every bit, but chances are you can still understand awful, stupid people saying awful, stupid things. Malcolm Tucker, as played by Peter Capaldi, remains Iannucci’s greatest creation. And if you’ve ever wanted to see the current Doctor saying the c-word a whole bunch, then this is the show for you. —Chris Morgan
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