The Best TV Shows on HBO

Every HBO Show Ranked From Best To Worst

Boasting a rich catalog, HBO features more than 20 shows, with broadcasting dates ranging from 1969 to 2023. Leading the pack on HBO are Sesame Street and Tales from the Crypt, with their initial broadcasts in 1969 and 1989. Discover the best of HBO with our list of over 20 series, meticulously updated for May 2025.

  • The Sopranos
    The Sopranos (1999)8.7

    The story of New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. Those difficulties are often highlighted through his ongoing professional relationship with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. The show features Tony's family members and Mafia associates in prominent roles and story arcs, most notably his wife Carmela and his cousin and protégé Christopher Moltisanti.

  • The Wire
    The Wire (2002)8.6

    Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated.

  • The Last of Us
    The Last of Us (2023)8.6

    Twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed, Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse the United States and depend on each other for survival.

  • Game of Thrones
    Game of Thrones (2011)8.5

    Seven noble families fight for control of the mythical land of Westeros. Friction between the houses leads to full-scale war. All while a very ancient evil awakens in the farthest north. Amidst the war, a neglected military order of misfits, the Night's Watch, is all that stands between the realms of men and icy horrors beyond.

  • True Detective
    True Detective (2014)8.3

    An American anthology police detective series utilizing multiple timelines in which investigations seem to unearth personal and professional secrets of those involved, both within or outside the law.

  • Succession
    Succession (2018)8.3

    Follow the lives of the Roy family as they contemplate their future once their aging father begins to step back from the media and entertainment conglomerate they control.

  • Euphoria
    Euphoria (2019)8.3

    A group of high school students navigate love and friendships in a world of drugs, sex, trauma, and social media.

  • House of the Dragon
    House of the Dragon (2022)8.3

    The Targaryen dynasty is at the absolute apex of its power, with more than 15 dragons under their yoke. Most empires crumble from such heights. In the case of the Targaryens, their slow fall begins when King Viserys breaks with a century of tradition by naming his daughter Rhaenyra heir to the Iron Throne. But when Viserys later fathers a son, the court is shocked when Rhaenyra retains her status as his heir, and seeds of division sow friction across the realm.

  • Tales from the Crypt
    Tales from the Crypt (1989)8.0

    Cadaverous scream legend the Crypt Keeper is your macabre host for these forays of fright and fun based on the classic E.C. Comics tales from back in the day. So shamble up to the bar and pick your poison. Will it be an insane Santa on a personal slay ride? Honeymooners out to fulfill the "til death do we part" vow ASAP?

  • Curb Your Enthusiasm
    Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000)8.0

    The off-kilter, unscripted comic vision of Larry David, who plays himself in a parallel universe in which he can't seem to do anything right, and, by his standards, neither can anyone else.

  • Westworld
    Westworld (2016)8.0

    A dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the evolution of sin. Set at the intersection of the near future and the reimagined past, it explores a world in which every human appetite, no matter how noble or depraved, can be indulged.

  • Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
    Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (2014)7.9

    A half-hour satirical look at the week in news, politics and current events.

  • The White Lotus
    The White Lotus (2021)7.6

    Follow the exploits of various guests and employees at an exclusive tropical resort over the span of a week as with each passing day, a darker complexity emerges in these picture-perfect travelers, the hotel’s cheerful employees and the idyllic locale itself.

  • Sex and the City
    Sex and the City (1998)7.4

    Based on the bestselling book by Candace Bushnell, Sex and the City tells the story of four best friends, all single and in their late thirties, as they pursue their careers and talk about their sex lives, all while trying to survive the New York social scene. 

  • The Righteous Gemstones
    The Righteous Gemstones (2019)7.4

    The story of a world-famous televangelist family with a history of deviance, greed and, yes, charitable work, all in the name of Jesus.

  • Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel
    Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (1995)7.3

    A monthly sports newsmagazine which was "spawned by the fact that sports have changed dramatically, that it's no longer just fun and games, and that what happens off the field, beyond the scores, is worthy of some serious reporting," according to Bryant Gumbel, the host.

  • Entourage
    Entourage (2004)7.3

    Film star Vince Chase navigates the vapid terrain of Los Angeles with a close circle of friends and his trusty agent.

  • Sesame Street
    Sesame Street (1969)7.1

    On a special inner city street, the inhabitants—human and muppet—teach preschoolers basic educational and social concepts using comedy, cartoons, games, and songs.

  • VICE News Tonight
    VICE News Tonight (2016)6.6

    VICE News' half-hour nightly newscast. We now interrupt your regularly scheduled worldview.

  • Real Time with Bill Maher
    Real Time with Bill Maher (2003)6.0

    Each week Bill Maher surrounds himself with a panel of guests which include politicians, actors, comedians, musicians and the like to discuss what's going on in the world.