Breaking Bad is the highest-positioned title in this snapshot of IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart. The 35 entries also include nature documentaries, historical mini-series, anime, animation, comedy, and international television. Because IMDb’s ratings and positions change, this should be read as a dated user-rating snapshot rather than a permanent judgment on television quality.
IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart currently places Breaking Bad at No. 1, followed by Planet Earth II, Planet Earth, Band of Brothers, and Chernobyl. The full 35-title snapshot below includes scripted dramas, documentaries, animation, comedy, and international television. It is best understood as a dated ranking of IMDb user activity—not a permanent or objective verdict on the quality of every television show.
![Breaking Bad - The Complete Series [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41TxcIkw+AL._SL160_.jpg)
![Breaking Bad: The Complete Series (6-Pack Bundle) [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/615PfFAqA-L._SL160_.jpg)
The chart combines television series and mini-series, which is why a six-part historical documentary can appear beside a multi-season drama. The list also demonstrates how strongly documentary and educational programming performs with IMDb voters: nature, science, history, and sports documentaries account for 13 of these 35 positions.
Editorial note: This ranking reflects the supplied research snapshot. IMDb positions, ratings, and vote totals change, so the live chart should be checked immediately before publication and the article’s snapshot date updated.
#1 Best Overall
The 35 highest-rated TV shows on IMDb
| Rank | Title | Year | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Breaking Bad | 2008 | TV series |
| 2 | Planet Earth II | 2016 | TV mini-series |
| 3 | Planet Earth | 2006 | TV mini-series |
| 4 | Band of Brothers | 2001 | TV mini-series |
| 5 | Chernobyl | 2019 | TV mini-series |
| 6 | The Wire | 2002 | TV series |
| 7 | Avatar: The Last Airbender | 2005 | TV series |
| 8 | The Sopranos | 1999 | TV series |
| 9 | Blue Planet II | 2017 | TV mini-series |
| 10 | Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey | 2014 | TV series |
| 11 | Cosmos | 1980 | TV series |
| 12 | Our Planet | 2019 | TV mini-series |
| 13 | Game of Thrones | 2011 | TV series |
| 14 | Bluey | 2018 | TV series |
| 15 | The World at War | 1973 | TV mini-series |
| 16 | Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood | 2009 | TV series |
| 17 | Attack on Titan | 2013 | TV series |
| 18 | Life | 2009 | TV mini-series |
| 19 | The Last Dance | 2020 | TV mini-series |
| 20 | The Twilight Zone | 1959 | TV series |
| 21 | Rick and Morty | 2013 | TV series |
| 22 | The Vietnam War | 2017 | TV mini-series |
| 23 | Sherlock | 2010 | TV series |
| 24 | Batman: The Animated Series | 1992 | TV series |
| 25 | Better Call Saul | 2015 | TV series |
| 26 | Arcane | 2021 | TV series |
| 27 | The Office | 2005 | TV series |
| 28 | The Blue Planet | 2001 | TV mini-series |
| 29 | Clarkson’s Farm | 2021 | TV series |
| 30 | Dexter: Resurrection | 2025 | TV series |
| 31 | Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story | 2020 | TV mini-series |
| 32 | Hunter x Hunter | 2011 | TV series |
| 33 | Frozen Planet | 2011 | TV mini-series |
| 34 | Human Planet | 2011 | TV mini-series |
| 35 | Only Fools and Horses | 1981 | TV series |
1. Breaking Bad
Vince Gilligan’s crime drama remains the highest-positioned title in this snapshot. It follows Walter White, a chemistry teacher whose decision to manufacture methamphetamine sends him through a sustained moral and personal collapse. Its placement reflects more than a high visible score: IMDb’s chart uses a weighted calculation that also considers the number of ratings and ratings from regular IMDb voters.
Want to own IMDb’s top-ranked TV show?
Physical-media availability changes by seller, edition, price, stock, and region. Check those details at click time before buying the Breaking Bad: The Complete Series on Blu-ray.
Disclosure: DocumentaryTube may earn a commission from qualifying purchases, subject to applicable affiliate-program terms.
2–5: Nature, war, and nuclear catastrophe
2. Planet Earth II
The first of several major natural-history productions in the ranking, Planet Earth II uses modern filming techniques to examine habitats and animal behavior across the planet. It is a mini-series rather than a continuing scripted show.
3. Planet Earth
The 2006 predecessor remains one of television’s defining wildlife documentaries. Its position alongside Planet Earth II shows the unusual strength of the BBC-style natural-history documentary on IMDb’s user-driven chart.
4. Band of Brothers
This acclaimed World War II mini-series dramatizes the experiences of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, from training through the final months of the war. Its limited format gives the story a beginning, middle, and end rather than an indefinitely expanding run.
5. Chernobyl
HBO’s five-part historical drama reconstructs the 1986 nuclear disaster and the institutional failures surrounding it. It is a mini-series, and its strong showing illustrates that a short, tightly bounded production can compete with long-running television series in IMDb’s chart.
6–13: Crime dramas, animation, oceans, and science
6. The Wire
David Simon’s Baltimore-set drama examines the city’s drug trade, police department, schools, political institutions, and media. Rather than treating crime as a problem with a single hero or villain, it builds a broader picture of systems and incentives.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
7. Avatar: The Last Airbender
The animated fantasy follows Aang, the last airbender and Avatar, as he attempts to restore balance to a world threatened by the Fire Nation. Its inclusion makes the list relevant to viewers looking beyond live-action prestige drama.
8. The Sopranos
David Chase’s landmark series centers on New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano and the pressures created by family, organized crime, and therapy. It remains one of the chart’s most influential long-form dramas.
9. Blue Planet II
This marine-life mini-series travels from coastal waters to the deep ocean, documenting species and environments that are rarely visible to humans. It is the second ocean-focused production in the upper section of the ranking.
10. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
Neil deGrasse Tyson presents this continuation of Carl Sagan’s science-documentary tradition, covering cosmology, evolution, and the history of scientific discovery.
Recommended Free Tools
11. Cosmos
Carl Sagan’s original 1980 series remains high on the list decades after its debut. Its presence beside Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey is a reminder that IMDb users continue to rate foundational educational television.
12. Our Planet
This nature mini-series surveys habitats around the world while emphasizing the scale and vulnerability of Earth’s ecosystems. It extends the list’s concentration of high-ranking wildlife documentaries.
13. Game of Thrones
HBO’s fantasy epic brings together dynastic conflict, warfare, political alliances, and supernatural threats across Westeros and beyond. It is one of the list’s most prominent examples of a large-scale continuing drama.
14–20: Family television, history, anime, and sport
14. Bluey
The Australian animated series follows Bluey, her sister Bingo, and their parents through imaginative games and everyday family life. Its position demonstrates that IMDb’s highest-rated group is not limited to adult dramas or documentaries.
15. The World at War
This landmark documentary mini-series uses interviews, archival footage, and narration to examine World War II. First broadcast in 1973, it is also the oldest documentary title in the ranking.
16. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
The anime follows brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric as they search for the Philosopher’s Stone after a forbidden attempt to bring their mother back to life goes disastrously wrong.
17. Attack on Titan
Set in a world protected by enormous walls, the series begins with humanity’s struggle against giant Titans and develops into a much wider story of war, identity, and political conflict.
18. Life
This BBC natural-history mini-series examines the behavior and survival strategies of animals and plants. It belongs to the same broad documentary tradition as Planet Earth and Frozen Planet, but has its own focus on the processes of living organisms.
19. The Last Dance
The sports documentary mini-series chronicles Michael Jordan, the Chicago Bulls, and the team’s 1997–98 season while also looking back at the figures and conflicts that shaped the dynasty.
20. The Twilight Zone
Rod Serling’s anthology blends science fiction, horror, fantasy, and social commentary. Because each episode tells a separate story, it differs structurally from nearly every continuing series elsewhere in this ranking.
21–29: Comedy, mystery, superheroes, and more history
21. Rick and Morty
The animated science-fiction comedy follows the reckless inventor Rick Sanchez and his grandson Morty through interdimensional adventures that frequently turn into dark examinations of family, consequence, and nihilism.
Rank #3
- Own both sensational series in one complete bundle!
22. The Vietnam War
Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s documentary mini-series combines archival material with testimony from combatants, civilians, and other participants to examine the Vietnam conflict and its long aftermath.
Outdated Drivers Are Slowing You Down
One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchPC Slower Than It Used to Be?
A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 1123. Sherlock
This modern adaptation places Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson in contemporary London. Its feature-length episodes and concentrated seasons give the detective format a more cinematic shape than a conventional weekly procedural.
24. Batman: The Animated Series
The acclaimed animated interpretation of Batman is known for its noir-influenced visual style, memorable villains, and stories that take the hero’s moral choices seriously.
25. Better Call Saul
The Breaking Bad companion series traces Jimmy McGill’s transformation into criminal lawyer Saul Goodman. Its slower character development and attention to professional compromise make it a distinct drama rather than a simple continuation of its predecessor.
26. Arcane
Set in the League of Legends universe, this animated series follows sisters Vi and Jinx amid conflict between the wealthy city of Piltover and the undercity of Zaun. Its presence reinforces the growing reach of high-end animated television.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →27. The Office
The American workplace comedy observes the employees of the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin through mockumentary cameras, awkward management, office rivalries, and long-running relationships.
28. The Blue Planet
This earlier ocean documentary mini-series explores marine habitats and creatures from shallow coastal environments to the deep sea. It predates Blue Planet II by 16 years.
29. Clarkson’s Farm
The unscripted series follows Jeremy Clarkson’s attempt to operate a farm in the English Cotswolds. Weather, machinery, regulation, finances, and livestock turn the project into both a practical experiment and a comedy.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.30–35: Newer entries, international television, anime, and classic comedy
30. Dexter: Resurrection
The 2025 series is the newest title in this supplied snapshot. Because newer shows can move quickly as additional viewers rate them, its position and eligibility should receive especially careful live verification before publication.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →31. Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story
This Indian mini-series dramatizes the rise and fall of stockbroker Harshad Mehta and the securities scandal surrounding him. Its inclusion underscores that the chart is international rather than a U.S.-only ranking.
32. Hunter x Hunter
The anime follows Gon Freecss as he trains to become a Hunter and searches for his absent father. Its adventure structure expands into examinations of friendship, power, and responsibility.
33. Frozen Planet
This nature mini-series examines life in the Arctic and Antarctic, documenting animals and environments shaped by extreme cold, seasonal change, and shifting ice.
34. Human Planet
Rather than focusing primarily on wildlife, this documentary mini-series explores how people live in different environments, from deserts and mountains to oceans and urban settings.
Free tools Windows power users keep installed
One-click scans. No signup required.
35. Only Fools and Horses
The long-running British comedy follows market trader Derek “Del Boy” Trotter and his family as they pursue improbable schemes and questionable business opportunities. It is the list’s lowest-ranked entry in this snapshot, not a statement that it is less important than every title outside the top 35.
How IMDb decides which TV shows qualify
IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart is not simply a sort of every title by the number printed beside its name. According to IMDb’s eligibility information, the chart includes TV series and TV mini-series, excludes individual episodes and TV movies, and requires a title to have at least 10,000 user ratings. A TV series must also have aired at least five episodes. These rules help explain why the chart is a mixture of long-running shows and limited productions.
IMDb records a series rating separately from the ratings of its individual episodes. An especially highly rated episode does not automatically become the rating for the series, and an episode is not itself an additional entry in this list.
Why the order changes
IMDb displays ratings to one decimal place, but that visible figure is not the whole ranking mechanism. IMDb describes its title ratings as weighted averages rather than simple arithmetic averages. The Top 250 calculation also accounts for the number of ratings and ratings from regular IMDb voters, along with other chart considerations.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsIMDb says ratings are updated numerous times per day. A title can therefore move when new users vote, when the balance of votes changes, or when another title moves around it. The ranking above should not be republished indefinitely without a new check of the live chart.
Methodology
- What “highest-rated” means: highest-positioned on IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart in the supplied snapshot.
- What is included: TV series and TV mini-series that meet IMDb’s chart requirements.
- What is excluded: individual episodes and TV movies.
- Minimum qualification: at least 10,000 user ratings; a TV series must also have aired at least five episodes.
- Important limitation: the chart reflects IMDb user behavior and IMDb’s proprietary weighting system, not a critics’ consensus or an objective measurement of television quality.
- Publication control: verify the live rank, displayed rating, vote count, title type, and release year for every entry immediately before publication, and add the exact date and time checked.
What this ranking says about IMDb users
- Documentaries have unusual depth. Nature, science, history, and sports productions occupy positions 2, 3, 4, 5, 9–12, 15, 18, 19, 22, 28, and 33–34.
- Prestige crime drama remains central. Breaking Bad, The Wire, The Sopranos, Better Call Saul, Game of Thrones, Sherlock, and Dexter: Resurrection represent much of the list’s live-action dramatic core.
- Animation is not a niche exception. Avatar: The Last Airbender, Bluey, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Attack on Titan, Rick and Morty, Batman: The Animated Series, Arcane, and Hunter x Hunter all make the top 35.
- The selection is international and cross-generational. British, Australian, Japanese, Indian, and American productions appear alongside programs from multiple decades.
Use the list as a starting point for choosing what to watch, especially if you want to move beyond familiar U.S. dramas. But treat rank as one signal among several. Format, subject, language, length, tone, and availability may matter more to an individual viewer than a small difference in chart position.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart include mini-series?
IMDb’s Top 250 TV chart includes both TV series and TV mini-series. It excludes individual episodes and TV movies. A title needs at least 10,000 user ratings to qualify, and a TV series must have aired at least five episodes.
Are individual TV episodes included in the ranking?
No. IMDb records series ratings separately from individual episode ratings. A highly rated episode does not automatically determine the series’ position on the Top 250 TV chart.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsWhy do IMDb TV rankings change?
The order can change because IMDb updates ratings frequently and uses a weighted calculation that considers more than the displayed one-decimal score, including the number of ratings and ratings from regular IMDb voters.
Is IMDb’s ranking an objective list of the best TV shows?
No. It is a user-rating-based chart with IMDb’s own weighting system. It should not be presented as an objective ranking or as a critics’ consensus.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Breaking Bad leads this IMDb snapshot, but the more revealing result is the variety beneath it: major nature documentaries, historical mini-series, anime, animation, comedy, and international television all rank alongside prestige drama. Check the live IMDb chart before treating any position as current.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
