In this piece · 10 sections+
If you want the fast answer: the best comedy on television right now is The Studio, Seth Rogen's Hollywood-eating-itself satire on Apple TV+, which just swept the Emmys with a record 13 wins including Outstanding Comedy Series — and season two lands later this year. If you want something dropping new episodes this week, Rick and Morty season 9 is airing right now on HBO Max, and Ted Lasso came back for season four today. Everything below is sorted into tiers so you can see at a glance what's on the air in 2026, what just ended, and which classics are worth a rewatch — each with the episode to start on, who'll bounce, and whether the thing is still going or already over.
One note, because an earlier version of this page needed it: this used to be a list of great sitcoms that mostly ended a decade ago, filed under a headline that says "right now." Malcolm in the Middle is wonderful. It is not new. So the current stuff that's actually airing — The Studio, Abbott Elementary, Ted Lasso, The Bear — now sits at the top where a person Googling "what's funny right now" can find it, and the rewatch canon is clearly labeled as rewatch canon at the bottom.
A quick note on what "comedy" means here
TMDb tags half of television as "comedy" because a character once made a joke, so I've cut the dramas wearing a clown nose and the cartoons made for actual children. What's left is twenty shows that will make a room of adults laugh, ranked and tiered and labeled with their real status, because nothing is worse than being told a show is essential and finding out it was cancelled on a cliffhanger in 2019.
The Tiers
On the air right now — drop everything: The Studio, Ted Lasso, Abbott Elementary, Rick and Morty Still in production — worth your time: The Bear, Only Murders in the Building, South Park, Nobody Wants This, A Man on the Inside, SPY x FAMILY Recently ended, still essential: Hacks, What We Do in the Shadows, The Righteous Gemstones, Curb Your Enthusiasm Modern classics to stream — the rewatch canon: The Office, Malcolm in the Middle, The Simpsons, Shameless, Friends, Family Guy
On the Air Right Now — Drop Everything
1. The Studio (2025, Apple TV+)
Premise: A newly promoted studio head slowly destroys every movie he touches. Starter: The pilot, "The Promotion," and then episode 2, "The Oner," which is a single unbroken 30-minute panic attack about failing to shoot a single unbroken shot. Who'll love it: Anyone who works a job where the boss keeps making it worse, fans of Veep, anyone who's ever watched a good idea die in a meeting. Who'll bounce: People who need a likable protagonist, people who don't find showbiz eating itself funny. Time: Season 1 is 10 episodes, ~30 min each. A weekend. Status: Ongoing. It won Outstanding Comedy Series at the 2025 Emmys and set the record for most Emmy wins by a comedy in a single year, and season 2 has already wrapped for release later in 2026. Why this one: It's the best-reviewed, most-awarded comedy currently running, and it's a genuine miracle that a $200-million industry funded a show whose entire thesis is that everyone in that industry is a coward. Start here.
🏆 DROP EVERYTHING
2. Ted Lasso (2020, Apple TV+)
Premise: Relentlessly kind American coaches an English soccer team he doesn't understand. Starter: The pilot. If Jason Sudeikis's mustache and the "biscuits with the boss" bit don't get you in 20 minutes, this show isn't yours. Who'll love it: Anyone burned out on antiheroes, people who want to feel better after watching TV instead of worse, Parks and Rec fans. Who'll bounce: Cynics who gag at sincerity, viewers who need a body count. Time: Three seasons of 10–12 episodes, plus season 4 rolling out now. Status: Ongoing again. Season 4 premiered today, August 5, 2026, with 10 episodes airing weekly through October 7 — Ted's back in Richmond coaching a women's team, and it's reportedly the first of a new three-season run. Why this one: It's the rare feel-good comedy that earned its warmth instead of manufacturing it, and the timing is on your side: a brand-new season is dropping as you read this.
🏆 DROP EVERYTHING
3. Abbott Elementary (2021, ABC / next-day on Hulu)
Premise: Underpaid teachers keep a broke Philadelphia public school running on duct tape and spite. Starter: The pilot. Quinta Brunson built a perfect network sitcom and the first episode proves it. Who'll love it: Parks and Rec and Office fans, teachers (who say it's the only show that gets the job right), anyone who misses the 22-minute network comedy. Who'll bounce: People allergic to the mockumentary talking-head format, viewers who want edge over heart. Time: 22 min episodes, four seasons deep, easy to drop into. Status: Ongoing and thriving. Season 5 is airing on ABC now, streaming the next day on Hulu, and ABC already renewed it through season 6. Why this one: It's the best broadcast comedy on television and the proof that the traditional sitcom isn't dead — it just needed someone who actually knows how to write one.
✅ WORTH IT
4. Rick and Morty (2013, HBO Max / Hulu)
Premise: An alcoholic genius drags his grandson across dimensions and ruins them both. Starter: Season 1, Episode 6 ("Rick Potion #9"). If that one doesn't hook you, nothing will, and you've saved 80 hours. Who'll love it: People who wanted Futurama but meaner, sci-fi readers, anyone who's argued about the multiverse at a bar. Who'll bounce: Anyone allergic to burping, nihilism, or characters being openly horrible to each other. Time: ~22 min episodes across nine seasons; about a month at a normal pace. Status: Ongoing and airing right now. Season 9 premiered June 15, 2026 on HBO Max and Hulu with new episodes weekly through August 17, and it's renewed through season 12. The post-Justin-Roiland replacement voices are still fine and you forget inside two episodes. Why this one: Most comedies right now have a writers' room whiteboard full of Post-its that say "MILLENNIAL BURNOUT." This one has ideas.
✅ WORTH IT
Still in Production — Worth Your Time
5. The Bear (2022, Hulu)
Premise: A fine-dining chef inherits his dead brother's chaotic Chicago sandwich shop. Starter: The pilot, then brace for season 1, episode 7 ("Review"), a real-time kitchen meltdown shot in one take that will spike your blood pressure. Who'll love it: People who can take their comedy stress-forward, restaurant workers, anyone who liked the panic of Uncut Gems. Who'll bounce: Anyone who wants to actually relax. Also anyone insisting a show that makes you clench isn't a comedy — take it up with the Emmys, which keep filing it there. Time: Five seasons, ~30–40 min episodes. Status: The fifth and final season dropped in full on Hulu on June 25, 2026. It's finished, which means you can watch the whole thing without waiting. Why this one: It's "comedy" only in the awards-category sense, but it's some of the sharpest half-hour television of the decade, and now it's a complete story you can watch end to end.
✅ WORTH IT
6. Only Murders in the Building (2021, Hulu)
Premise: Three lonely New Yorkers start a true-crime podcast about a death in their building. Starter: The pilot. The chemistry between Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez is the whole pitch and it's there immediately. Who'll love it: Cozy-mystery readers, podcast people, anyone who wants a whodunit that's actually funny. Who'll bounce: Viewers who find the twists too tidy, people who want their comedy mean. Time: ~30 min episodes, four seasons done and a fifth on the way. Status: Ongoing. Season 5 takes the trio to London and arrives on Hulu in 2026; it's already renewed for season 6. Why this one: It's the most purely pleasant show on this list — a comfort watch with a real mystery engine underneath, and Martin and Short are still a two-man vaudeville act 50 years in.
✅ WORTH IT
7. South Park (1997, Paramount+)
Premise: Four foul-mouthed kids mock whatever the country did this week. Starter: Season 5 onward, or just watch the most recent episode — the show still turns current events around in near real time. Who'll love it: People who think comedy should punch in every direction, news junkies, anyone who liked The Onion before it got bought. Who'll bounce: Anyone who uses the phrase "punching down," anyone who gets their politics from TikTok. Time: ~26 min episodes plus feature-length specials. Cherry-pick. Status: Ongoing. Seasons 27 and 28 (five episodes each) hit Paramount+ across 2025, with at least ten more episodes due in 2026 under the $1.5-billion deal that pulled the whole library off HBO Max. Why this one: Trey Parker and Matt Stone have written about every major cultural moment of the last 28 years close to live. Nobody else has replicated that, and at this point nobody's going to.
✅ WORTH IT
8. Nobody Wants This (2024, Netflix)
Premise: An agnostic sex-podcast host falls for a rabbi, to everyone's inconvenience. Starter: The pilot. Kristen Bell and Adam Brody have the kind of chemistry you can't fake or focus-group. Who'll love it: Rom-com fans, people who liked You've Got Mail energy with modern dialogue, anyone who wants a relationship comedy that's actually about the relationship. Who'll bounce: Viewers who find the will-they-won't-they format exhausting, cynics. Time: 10 half-hour episodes a season. One evening, easily. Status: Ongoing. Season 2 hit Netflix in October 2025, went No. 1 on the global chart for two straight weeks, and season 3 is coming in 2026. Why this one: It's the best straight-ahead romantic comedy the streamers have made in years, which is a low bar that it clears anyway by a mile.
✅ WORTH IT
9. A Man on the Inside (2024, Netflix)
Premise: A widowed retiree goes undercover as a mole inside a retirement community. Starter: The pilot. Ted Danson doing gentle detective work is the entire appeal and it lands fast. Who'll love it: Ted Lasso and Parks and Rec fans (same creator, Michael Schur), anyone who wants a comedy that's kind without being toothless, people who'll cry a little and not mind. Who'll bounce: Viewers who need high stakes, anyone who thinks a show about old people can't be for them (it can). Time: 8 half-hour episodes a season. Status: Ongoing. Season 2 premiered on Netflix in November 2025 with Danson undercover on a college campus, and it's already renewed for season 3. Why this one: It's the warmest comedy currently running that isn't Ted Lasso, and Danson at this stage of his career is a national resource.
✅ WORTH IT
10. SPY x FAMILY (2022, Hulu / Crunchyroll)
Premise: A spy, an assassin, and a telepath kid fake being a family for a mission. Starter: Episode 1. The whole premise is in the pilot and it's great. Who'll love it: Anime-curious viewers who don't know where to start, people who liked The Americans but wanted it adorable, anyone who thinks a four-year-old doing espionage is funny (it is). Who'll bounce: People who won't read subtitles, people allergic to cute. Time: ~25 min episodes across three seasons, plus a movie. Status: Ongoing. Season 3 aired in late 2025; the English dub reached Hulu in February 2026, and Crunchyroll carries the subtitled version. Why this one: It's one of two or three anime that work for people who otherwise don't watch anime, and Anya the telepath kid has done more for the medium's Western audience than any marketing team ever has.
✅ WORTH IT
Recently Ended — Still Essential
11. Hacks (2021, HBO Max)
Premise: A legendary Vegas comic and the young writer she despises make each other better. Starter: The pilot. Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder's mutual contempt is the engine and it's running from minute one. Who'll love it: Comedy nerds, anyone who liked the showbiz bite of The Larry Sanders Show, people who want two great performances in tension. Who'll bounce: Viewers who need a lot of plot, anyone who wants everyone to be nice. Time: Five seasons, ~30–40 min episodes. A very bingeable ~50 episodes total. Status: Ended, cleanly. The fifth and final season ran April to May 2026 on HBO Max, wrapping the way the creators always planned instead of getting yanked. Why this one: It's a complete, Emmy-hoarding two-hander that never overstayed, and Smart gives one of the great late-career TV performances. Now you can watch the whole arc knowing it sticks the landing.
✅ WORTH IT
12. What We Do in the Shadows (2019, Hulu)
Premise: Four ancient vampires share a Staten Island house and accomplish nothing. Starter: Season 1, Episode 1, then "Werewolf Feud" (S1E5) if you want proof of how dumb-brilliant it gets. Who'll love it: Flight of the Conchords fans (same DNA), horror-comedy people, anyone who likes a joke rate this relentless. Who'll bounce: Anyone who needs stakes, people over the mockumentary format. Time: Six seasons, ~30 min episodes. Status: Ended. The series finale aired December 2024 after six seasons, all streaming on Hulu, and it went out on top instead of limping. Why this one: It's the funniest joke-per-minute comedy of the last decade and it's now a finished set — six tight seasons, no filler, no decline.
✅ WORTH IT
13. The Righteous Gemstones (2019, HBO Max)
Premise: A dynasty of corrupt televangelists claws at each other for the family megachurch. Starter: The pilot. Danny McBride's whole style — loud, profane, weirdly soulful — is on display immediately. Who'll love it: Eastbound & Down fans, people who like their comedy operatically vulgar, John Goodman appreciators. Who'll bounce: Anyone who wants subtlety, viewers put off by Southern-fried excess. Time: Four seasons, ~45 min episodes. Status: Ended. The fourth and final season wrapped in May 2025 on HBO Max, closing the story on purpose. Why this one: It's the most underrated comedy of the last five years — huge, filthy, and secretly about family — and it's a complete run you can watch without waiting on anyone.
🏆 DROP EVERYTHING
14. Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000, HBO Max)
Premise: A fictionalized Larry David ruins his own life over social technicalities. Starter: Season 1 is fine, but season 4 onward is the untouchable run. Try "The Carpool Lane" (S4E6). Who'll love it: Seinfeld fans, anyone who's ever been correct and punished for it, people who enjoy cringe as a sport. Who'll bounce: Viewers who can't stand watching a man be relentlessly petty, anyone who needs a plot. Time: Twelve seasons, ~30 min episodes. Dip in anywhere. Status: Ended. Larry David wrapped it for good in 2024 after twelve seasons, all on HBO Max. Why this one: It's the purest distillation of a single comic idea in TV history, and after 24 years it ended on a joke about the Seinfeld finale, which is exactly right.
✅ WORTH IT
Modern Classics to Stream — The Rewatch Canon
15. The Office (2005, Peacock)
Premise: Paper-company coworkers slowly become a family they can't stand. Starter: Season 2, Episode 1 ("The Dundies"). Season 1 is six rough episodes; skip it if you're in a hurry. Who'll love it: Anyone who's ever had a job, anyone who's ever had a bad boss, the three people who somehow missed it. Who'll bounce: People who've already watched it four times and are pretending they haven't. Time: 201 episodes × 22 min. The most rewatchable sitcom of the century. Status: Original run ended 2013. The spinoff The Paper arrived in 2025 and is better than it had any right to be. Seasons 2–5 are the gold; 8 and 9 are a warning about running a show without its lead.
🛋️ BACKGROUND TV
16. Malcolm in the Middle (2000, Hulu / Disney+)
Premise: A gifted kid is trapped in a chaotic, broke, loud family. Starter: The pilot. It's one of the best pilots ever made and tells you everything in 22 minutes. Who'll love it: Anyone who grew up in a loud house, Arrested Development fans, people who knew Bryan Cranston was a genius before Breaking Bad. Who'll bounce: Laugh-track purists (there isn't one — it was ahead of its time), viewers who need every show set in a New York media job. Time: 151 episodes × 22 min, plus a four-episode revival that hit Hulu in 2025 and, against all my instincts about legacy TV, turned out fine. Status: Original run ended 2006; the 2025 revival is a coda, not a reboot. Still the best family sitcom of the last 25 years, and it's not close.
🏆 DROP EVERYTHING
17. The Simpsons (1989, Disney+)
Premise: A yellow family satirizes everything America does wrong. Starter: Season 4, Episode 12 ("Marge vs. the Monorail"). Seasons 4 through 9 are the untouchable run. Who'll love it: Everyone with a pulse, eventually. Who'll bounce: People who judge the show by the last ten years instead of the first ten. Time: 800+ episodes, which is insane. Just watch the good seasons. Status: Ongoing, renewed past season 38, apparently forever. The show stopped being essential around season 11, but seasons 4–9 are still the tightest comedy writing in American television history.
✅ WORTH IT
18. Shameless (2011, Paramount+ with Showtime / Netflix)
Premise: South Side Chicago kids raise themselves around their drunk father. Starter: The pilot. The opening credits alone tell you if this is your show. Who'll love it: People who liked Weeds before it got weird, anyone who grew up broke and thinks TV gets poverty laughably wrong, William H. Macy fans. Who'll bounce: Anyone looking for a clean, tidy sitcom. It gets dark and the comedy lives in uncomfortable places. Time: 134 episodes × 45–60 min. A real commitment; bail around season 7. Status: Ended 2021. The US version streams on Paramount+ with Showtime and on Netflix. The first six seasons are some of the best tragicomedy American TV has made — it earns its laughs by also making you wince.
✅ WORTH IT
19. Friends (1994, HBO Max)
Premise: Six attractive twentysomethings share impossible New York apartments. Starter: Season 2, Episode 7 ("The One Where Ross Finds Out"). Season 1 is slow; skip. Who'll love it: People who want comfort TV, insomniacs, anyone curious how it holds up. Who'll bounce: Anyone looking for edge. It's warm milk, which is sometimes exactly what you want. Time: 236 episodes × 22 min. Status: Ended 2004. The specific New York it depicts was already a fantasy when it aired; now it's archaeology, and that's part of the charm. Most-watched sitcom in the world for a reason.
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20. Family Guy (1999, Hulu)
Premise: A cutaway-joke machine disguised as a family sitcom. Starter: Season 4, Episode 8 ("PTV"). If cutaway gags work for you, you'll know in ten minutes. Who'll love it: People who watched it in college and want to see if it still lands (it mostly does), anyone who likes a rapid-fire joke rate. Who'll bounce: Anyone who wants character development, anyone over the cutaway format. Time: 400+ episodes × 22 min. Never finish; just dip in. Status: Ongoing, will outlive us all, streaming on Hulu. Not the sharpest show here, but the hit rate on individual jokes is high enough to earn the spot — and a Road to episode will remind you these writers can really do something when they want to.
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One short word on the state of the genre
Comedy on TV is in a strange spot. The streamers mostly won't greenlight a pure 22-minute sitcom because they can't measure the return on a laugh, so they keep funding "dramedies" — 45-minute shows that are one-third funny and two-thirds a sad woman walking to indie music. What actually breaks through now splits into three lanes: prestige half-hours the awards shows adopted (The Studio, The Bear, Hacks), the last real network sitcom standing (Abbott Elementary), and animation that's too cheap to cancel over one bad tweet (Rick and Morty, South Park). Notice what's missing from that list — the ordinary, mid-budget, live-action network comedy that used to be the whole genre. It's nearly extinct, and Abbott is carrying the flag mostly alone.
FAQ
What's the funniest show on TV right now?
If you want something with new episodes airing this week, Rick and Morty season 9 (HBO Max) and Ted Lasso season 4 (Apple TV+, premiered today) are both live. If you want the best-reviewed current comedy overall, it's The Studio on Apple TV+, which won more Emmys in one year than any comedy ever has. For pure joke density with nothing else attached, What We Do in the Shadows is a finished six-season set you can start tonight.
What's the best comedy on Netflix right now?
Nobody Wants This (the Kristen Bell / Adam Brody rom-com, season 2 out, season 3 coming) and A Man on the Inside (Ted Danson, from the Parks and Rec creator) are the two current standouts. Both are short-season, easy watches. Netflix also carries older catalog comedies like Shameless, but for something the platform actually made recently, start with those two.
Is The Bear a comedy or a drama?
Technically a comedy — the Emmys file it there and it keeps winning in that category — but it plays like a high-anxiety drama with the occasional laugh. If you want to actually relax, pick something else. If you want the sharpest half-hour on television and don't mind clenching your jaw, it's this. All five seasons are on Hulu and the story is now complete.
Are the new seasons of The Simpsons and Family Guy worth watching?
Not really, no. Both peaked in their first decade. New episodes are professionally made and occasionally very funny, but they're comfort food, not essential viewing — fine if it's on, not worth seeking out. Watch the classic runs instead: Simpsons seasons 4–9, Family Guy seasons 4–8.
I want a current sitcom I can watch with my family. What's safe?
Abbott Elementary (ABC, streaming next-day on Hulu). It's genuinely funny for adults and clean enough for kids, it's airing new episodes right now, and it's already renewed through season 6, so you're not starting something that's about to vanish.
Watch this tonight
If you haven't seen The Studio, start with the pilot on Apple TV+ — you'll finish season 1 this weekend. If you want something airing brand-new, Ted Lasso season 4 just dropped its premiere today, or Rick and Morty season 9 is releasing weekly on HBO Max. And if you just want to laugh with zero homework, Abbott Elementary on Hulu, pilot, right now. That's the whole guide. Go.
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