Shark Week backdrop
Documentary

The Best Episodes of Shark Week

Every episode of Shark Week ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Shark Week!

Binge this in 9d 10h•Peaking at 8.3/10

The Discovery Channel's Shark Week, first broadcast on July 17, 1987, is a weeklong series of feature television programs dedicated to sharks. Held annually, normally in July or August, Shark Week was originally developed to

Airs on

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Click to reveal
    Shark Week Season 17 Episode 6 - Bull Shark: World's Deadliest Shark
    8.3/10(14 votes)
    S17:E6

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  2. Shark Week Season 37 Episode 7 - Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood
    8.3/10(7 votes)
    S37:E7

    After two fatal Great White shark attacks occurred off a small Mexican fishing village - including one in which a victim was decapitated - shark attack survivor Paul De Gelder joins shark investigator Brandon McMillan and local biologist Gador Mutaner to launch a plan to ID the killers and keep the villagers in the Sea of Cortez safe.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  3. Shark Week Season 14 Episode 1 - Air Jaws: Sharks of South Africa
    8.2/10(79 votes)
    S14:E1

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  4. Shark Week Season 15 Episode 1 - Great White Attack: A True Story
    8.1/10(42 votes)
    S15:E1

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  5. Shark Week Season 38 Episode 5 - Jaws vs Mega Croc
    8.0/10(7 votes)
    S38:E5

    Using data gathered in new experiments, Tristan Guttridge, Rosie Moore and Dr. Sora Kim construct a CGI fight to the death between two of the biggest and baddest apex predators in the water -- the great white shark and Nile crocodile.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  6. Shark Week Season 38 Episode 16 - Great White Reign of Terror
    8.0/10(5 votes)
    S38:E16

    After nine great white attacks off South Africa's "wild coast" leaves locals reeling, scientists Ryan Johnson, Gibbs Kuguru and Andy Casagrande race to uncover the cause before there's another fatality.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 WORST Episodes of Shark Week

    READ
  8. Shark Week Season 16 Episode 6 - Sharks Under Glass
    7.8/10(9 votes)
    S16:E6

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  9. Shark Week Season 19 Episode 3 - Perfect Shark
    7.8/10(8 votes)
    S19:E3

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  10. Shark Week Season 23 Episode 3 - Shark Attack Survival Guide
    7.8/10(20 votes)
    S23:E3

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  11. Shark Week Season 37 Episode 16 - Great White Danger Zone
    7.8/10(13 votes)
    S37:E16

    Alison Towner and her team investigate a new Great White hotspot off the coast of South Africa. Equipped with cutting-edge fin cameras, tracking tags, and underwater surveillance, researchers unveil unusual behavior in these massive apex predators.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  12. Shark Week Season 23 Episode 1 - Ultimate Air Jaws
    7.7/10(31 votes)
    S23:E1

    Off the coast of South Africa, massive great white sharks blast from the water, pulling a sneak attack on their seal prey. Shark expert Chris Fallows and filmmaker Jeff Kurr arrive on the scene to investigate the aerial attacks using state-of-the-art technology including an HD camera that shoots in super slow motion - 2,000 frames per second. This enables the team to slow down a breaching shark from one second of real time to almost a minute - and in so much detail you can literally count every tooth in the shark's mouth! Fallows and Kurr also employ a submarine and remotely-operated helicopter to capture this incredible footage.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  13. Shark Week Season 26 Episode 4 - Voodoo Sharks
    7.7/10(14 votes)
    S26:E4

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  14. Shark Week Season 38 Episode 6 - In the Eye of the Storm: Shark Storm
    7.7/10(7 votes)
    S38:E6

    In the summer of 2024, dozens of cameras captured a rare outbreak of shark attacks along America's Gulf Coast. Told exclusively through first-hand accounts of victims and eyewitnesses, nobody has seen all these perspectives unfold in real time until now.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  15. Shark Week Season 20 Episode 5 - Perfect Predators
    7.6/10(15 votes)
    S20:E5

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  16. Shark Week Season 25 Episode 6 - Adrift: 47 Days With Sharks
    7.6/10(52 votes)
    S25:E6

    During a routine search and rescue mission over the Pacific in WWII, an American plane crashed into shark-infested waters. This is the inspiring true story of two war heroes — one an Olympian, one a pastor's son — who managed to survive a record-breaking 47 days at sea in a life raft. They subsisted on only the food they were able to catch from the ocean and the water they were able to collect from the rain, all while fighting off a gang of sharks that were their constant companions. But when they finally did reach land, it was only the beginning of their troubles. What happened to these men is one of the greatest tests of faith, will and endurance of our time.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  17. Shark Week Season 33 Episode 9 - Great White Serial Killer Extinction
    7.6/10(16 votes)
    S33:E9

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  18. Shark Week Season 37 Episode 4 - Sydney Harbor Shark Invasion
    7.6/10(11 votes)
    S37:E4

    Returning to the site of his own 2009 shark attack for the first time, Paul de Gelder joins Madison Stewart to investigate a recent Great White Shark attack that occurred near Sydney Harbor, Australia - the first fatal incident in the region in almost 60 years. The dramatic encounter, which was captured on camera, was the sixth attack to occur in as many weeks. Within this aquatic arena, Great Whites contend with Bull Sharks, Tiger Sharks, and even humans in a colossal battle for supremacy. The unfolding saga raises the compelling question of who will emerge victorious in this intense struggle for dominance.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  19. Shark Week Season 24 Episode 2 - Jaws Comes Home
    7.5/10(23 votes)
    S24:E2

    Jaws Comes Home tells the story of passionate shark expert and U.S. Fisheries scientist, Greg Skomal, as he documents six remarkable months following five great whites with names like Curly and Ruthless. His mission: to understand more about their recently discovered, 1,200-mile journey up and down the eastern seaboard and to reveal all he can about these much-maligned hunters.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  20. Shark Week Season 24 Episode 5 - Killer Sharks: The Attacks of Black December
    7.5/10(17 votes)
    S24:E5

    December 1957: the height of tourist season in South Africa. Merry vacationers from around the globe descend on an idyllic resort town along the sunny coast to enjoy the summer. It's not long until the white sands are clogged with dead bodies and the sapphire waters are red with blood. The culprit? The authorities suspected a single, massive rogue shark with a taste for human flesh.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  21. Shark Week Season 29 Episode 10 - Sharks vs. Dolphins: Face Off
    7.5/10(15 votes)
    S29:E10

    Sharks and dolphins have shared the ocean for ages, but only recently, scientists have begun to understand the true nature of the relationship between these two masters of the sea. It's hostile, and dangerous, mainly for dolphins. Dolphins would rather eat fish and swim with humans; sharks would rather eat dolphins and anything they can sink their teeth into. Dr. Mike Heithaus and his team bring new research that may solve why sharks attack dolphins far more than we ever knew.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  22. Shark Week Season 37 Episode 12 - Expedition Unknown: Sharks vs. Nazis in Paradise
    7.5/10(17 votes)
    S37:E12

    Global adventurer Josh Gates and shark biologist Tristan Guttridge team up with nature's deadliest predator to search for a lost wreck sunk by a Nazi U-Boat during World War II.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  23. Shark Week Season 37 Episode 15 - Caught! When Sharks Attack
    7.5/10(15 votes)
    S37:E15

    For the first time, shark attacks are being caught on video thanks to smartphones. Experts analyze these shark encounters to reveal surprising new insights into their behavior and dangerous warning signs. While some shark attacks may result from foolish behavior—such as someone sticking their hand inside a live shark—the reality is we swim beside sharks every day without even realizing it.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  24. Shark Week Season 16 Episode 4 - Smart Sharks: Swimming with Roboshark
    7.4/10(7 votes)
    S16:E4

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  25. Shark Week Season 26 Episode 11 - Great White Gauntlet
    7.4/10(14 votes)
    S26:E11

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  26. Shark Week Season 35 Episode 10 - Island of the Walking Sharks
    7.4/10(11 votes)
    S35:E10

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

Best Episodes Summary

"Bull Shark: World's Deadliest Shark" is the best rated episode of "Shark Week". It scored 8.3/10 based on 14 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 12/12/2004. This episode scored 0.0 points higher than the second highest rated, "Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood".