Funniest ’90s Television Sitcoms, Ranked

Funniest 90s Television Sitcoms, Ranked

There are some who consider the ’90s as the best era for television sitcoms. It was the best of these ‘90s sitcoms that changed how audiences viewed family, friends, and their relationships. The idea of exploring these types of relationships began in the mid-70s, began to improve in the ‘80s, and really hit its stride during the decade of the ‘90s.

There is no doubt that the ‘90s hold a nostalgic appeal for many as it pertains to sitcoms. More and more, characters became relatable while filling the small screen with laughs and the eventual tug of the heartstrings. It was a golden age that has been hard to replicate.

We have found 9 of the best ’90s sitcoms. Some began a bit before 1990, while others started in the ‘90s and ran on through to the next decade. The one thing they do have in common, though, is that they made sitting in front of the boob tube in the ‘90s much more enjoyable.

9. Will & Grace (1998-2006, 2017-2020)

It’s not that we haven’t or hadn’t seen sitcoms with gay characters (Hello, Soap!) but Will & Grace was a groundbreaking ’90s sitcom in that it featured gay characters as the leads. The series focused on the friendship between interior designer Grace Adler (Debra Messing) and her best friend, gay lawyer Will Truman (Eric McCormack), who end up being roommates. Their love lives are a mess as are their friends. Joining Will and Grace is “Just Jack,” played with gusto by Sean Hayes and Grace’s office “help,” Karen Walker (Megan Mullally). As the series went on, the focus shifted a bit from telling stories about just Will and Grace to incorporating Jack and Karen more, with hilarious results.

8. Martin (1992-1997)

Martin is a classic ‘90s sitcom starring comedian Martin Lawrence (Bad Boys) as Martin Payne, a disc jockey living with his girlfriend, Gina Waters (Tisha Campbell). Throughout the series’ five-year run, fans got to see Lawrence showcase his comedic talents by portraying other hilarious characters such as Sheneneh Jenkins, Edna Payne, Jerome, Ol’ Otis, Roscoe, Dragonfly Jones, and King Beef.

7. Frasier (1993-2004)

Frasier comes from another classic sitcom, Cheers, and turns the focus from a bar to a psychiatrist. Kelsey Grammer is Dr. Frasier Crane, the pompous psychiatrist from Cheers, and follows him as he moves home to Seattle to become a radio host. Upon his return, Frasier reconnects with his younger brother, Niles (David Hyde Pierce), and their father, Martin (John Mahoney). The series introduced Peri Gilpin as Roz Doyle and Jane Leeves as Daphne Moon.

6. The Simpsons (1989-present)

As one of the longest-running sitcoms on television, The Simpsons has entertained audiences for 34 seasons, including an exception run through the decade of the ‘90s. This Matt Groening animated sitcom has become a cultural phenomenon pretty much since it first aired as it took a hilarious look at American family life and ideals through the dysfunctional adventures of the Simpson family.

5. Boy Meets World (1993-2000)

This coming-of-age ‘90s sitcom stars Ben Savage as Cory Matthews as he slowly ventures his way from childhood to adulthood. Along the way, we also get to see the growth of Cory’s friends and family as they all deal with the everyday life of school, its challenges, and the relationships they forge. William Daniels, Betsy Randle, Will Friedle, and Shawn Hunter also star.

4. Home Improvement (1991-1999)

Tim Allen stars as Tim “The Toolman” Taylor in this ‘90s family sitcom, Home Improvement. The series followed Tim, who is a handyman with a popular television show, and the exploits of his family that include his wife Jill Taylor (Patricia Richardson), and their three young sons, Mark, Randy, and Brad. The series also featured Al Borland (Richard Karn) who was Tim’s co-host on Tool Time. The series-long running joke was Tim’s neighbor, Wilson, whose face was never seen. Early on he’d always be seen standing and hidden on the opposite side of their fence and in later episodes, they found creative ways to feature Wilson by hiding him behind other objects.

3. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-1996)

Say what you want about the Will Smith of today (and we have), but the Will Smith of the ‘90s sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, was a completely different person. Fresh Prince had Will Smith as a street-smart teenager from Philadelphia whose troublemaking forces a move to live with his wealthy relatives in Bel-Air.  The culture clashes seen in the series often ended in hilarious results. James Avery played Will’s Uncle Phillip and this is where the clashes began and ended.

2. Seinfeld (1989-1998)

It is a show about nothing, really. And for a show about nothing, it sure was groundbreaking, even though there were major doubts Seinfeld would last beyond its first season, which consisted of only 5 episodes. The series stars Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Michael Richards as four self-absorbed friends whose daily lives are hilariously showcased. Seinfeld explores relationships won and lost, friendships won and lost, and just about any other life observation that could be made. A true classic in every sense of the word.

1. Friends (1994-2004)

Talk about a classic ‘90s sitcom. Friends is iconic and definitely is not a show about nothing. This sitcom follows a group of six friends living in New York City, exploring their relationships as friends, couples, and eventual partners for life. Their humorous misadventures are put on full display in classic and memorable fashion. Friends made superstars out of Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, and Matt LeBlanc.