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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchThe best comic strips are the ones that do more than deliver a punchline: they create memorable characters, distinctive visual worlds, or stories that capture their era. This is an editorial selection, not a measured popularity ranking. It favors historical influence, recognizable characters, inventive storytelling, cultural reach, and variety—from adventure and political satire to family life and absurdist humor.
How to read this list
“Best” depends on what you want from a strip. Some readers prize a daily gag; others prefer serialized adventure, political commentary, family stories, or unusual visual invention. The 25 selections below are grouped by what they offer, not ranked from first to last. They reflect the breadth of the form described by the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian, whose accounts encompass humor, adventure, domestic life, political caricature, and other storytelling modes.
Early innovators and visual pioneers
1. Hogan’s Alley / The Yellow Kid
Richard Outcault’s Hogan’s Alley, associated with the Yellow Kid, is a revealing starting point for the newspaper comic strip’s early history. It appeared in the New York World in 1895, amid intense competition among newspapers. Its place in the form’s development makes it important to readers interested in how comic art found a home on the newspaper page. The Library of Congress traces Outcault’s work and the early strip era.
2. The Katzenjammer Kids
An early popular newspaper comic, The Katzenjammer Kids belongs on a historical tour of the medium. The Library of Congress’s history guide documents it among the strips that helped establish the form’s early readership. See the Library of Congress history guide.
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3. Mutt and Jeff
Mutt and Jeff is another early, long-running newspaper strip recorded in the Library of Congress chronology. Its enduring place in that history makes it a useful companion to the earliest newspaper experiments. The Library of Congress chronology situates it among the form’s landmark titles.
4. Little Nemo in Slumberland
For readers drawn to comics as visual storytelling, Winsor McCay’s Little Nemo in Slumberland is essential. The Library of Congress describes it as a famous example of a dream world: a premise that invites elaborate settings and imaginative page design rather than relying only on a final gag. The Library of Congress exhibition account places the strip within the medium’s wider storytelling possibilities.
5. Krazy Kat
Krazy Kat is a historically important work included in the Library of Congress’s survey of comic strips. It rewards readers who are curious about a distinctive, artist-driven approach rather than a conventional domestic or adventure formula. The Library of Congress’s century survey provides historical context.
6. Buster Brown
Also connected to Richard Outcault’s early work, Buster Brown offers another window into the developing newspaper comic and its memorable central characters. It is a useful choice for readers following the form’s roots rather than looking only for contemporary-style gag strips. The Library of Congress account of Outcault’s work discusses the strip’s historical context.
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7. Little Orphan Annie
Little Orphan Annie is a long-recognized title represented in the Library of Congress’s survey of the medium. It belongs to a tradition that made the newspaper page a venue for continuing stories as well as jokes. The Library of Congress survey places it within the history of the form.
8. Dick Tracy
Crime and adventure give Dick Tracy a different reading rhythm from a self-contained daily gag. The strip appears in Library of Congress exhibitions and Smithsonian comic-art collections, making it a strong pick for readers who want suspense and a durable central character. Library of Congress exhibition; Smithsonian comic art collection.
9. Terry and the Pirates
Terry and the Pirates is an adventure strip included in the Library of Congress’s exhibition history. It represents the serialized, story-led side of newspaper comics—an appealing option for readers who want to follow events rather than encounter only a fresh situation each day. The Library of Congress exhibition documents its place in that tradition.
10. Mandrake the Magician
Magic and adventure distinguish Mandrake the Magician from more everyday comic settings. The Library of Congress names it in its historical exhibition, making it a worthwhile stop for readers interested in the genre range of the newspaper strip. The Library of Congress exhibition account includes the title.
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11. Tarzan
Tarzan is notable as an example of a character moving from other media into the comic-strip form. Its inclusion in the Library of Congress exhibition illustrates how newspaper comics could adapt stories and characters with lives beyond the page. The Library of Congress exhibition places it among the form’s varied examples.
Family life, everyday characters, and durable comedy
12. Bringing Up Father
Bringing Up Father is a classic domestic comic drama represented in the Library of Congress exhibition. It shows how family and social life can supply ongoing comic material, creating a different appeal from fantasy or crime adventure. The Library of Congress exhibition account includes the strip.
13. Blondie
Blondie is a long-lived domestic and social comedy with a history documented by both the Library of Congress and the National Postal Museum. Readers looking for familiar character comedy and changing social settings will find it a natural choice. Library of Congress exhibition; National Postal Museum on Blondie.
14. Peanuts
Charles Schulz’s Peanuts pairs a spare visual style with characters whose anxieties, friendships, and small defeats became widely recognizable. The strip ran from 1950 to 2000. At its peak, it appeared in more than 2,600 newspapers worldwide, according to the Library of Congress; that figure describes Peanuts, not a comparison with other strips. The Library of Congress discusses the strip’s reach and history.
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15. Dennis the Menace
Dennis the Menace is a familiar child-centered comic included in the Library of Congress’s discussion of comic-strip themes. It suits readers who enjoy humor built around a child’s perspective and the friction between youthful impulses and adult expectations. The Library of Congress survey includes the title.
16. Nancy
Nancy is another child-focused strip named in the Library of Congress exhibition account. Its presence in a century-spanning survey underscores the variety of comic characters and styles that have found an audience on the newspaper page. The Library of Congress exhibition discusses the strip.
17. Beetle Bailey
Beetle Bailey is a character comedy represented in the Library of Congress’s history of the form. It adds a different setting and comic cast to a list otherwise rich in family, school-age, and domestic characters. The Library of Congress survey records the title.
18. For Better or For Worse
Lynn Johnston’s For Better or For Worse is a family-centered strip represented in materials from both the Library of Congress and the Cartoon Art Museum. Its focus makes it a good choice for readers who want family relationships at the center of the comic’s appeal. Library of Congress exhibition; Cartoon Art Museum collection materials.
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Jim Davis’s Garfield is a character comedy documented in examples from both the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress. Readers looking for a recognizable central character and everyday comic situations may find it an easy entry point. Smithsonian comic art collection; Library of Congress survey.
20. Calvin and Hobbes
Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes combines a child’s imaginative view of the world with expressive, visually inventive cartooning. The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum dates the strip’s run to 1985–1995. It is a strong choice for readers who want humor that can shift between everyday childhood and flights of fantasy. The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum documents the strip’s dates.
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21. Li’l Abner
Li’l Abner is a broad social comedy represented in the Library of Congress exhibition. Its place here reflects the strip’s ability to use a cast and setting for more than a single recurring joke. The Library of Congress exhibition includes the title.
22. Pogo
Pogo is associated in the Library of Congress account with political caricature and commentary. Choose it if you are interested in comics that use humor to engage with public life as well as character and setting. The Library of Congress exhibition describes its place in the form.
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23. Doonesbury
Garry Trudeau’s Doonesbury is a politically engaged strip highlighted by the Library of Congress and its exhibition account. It represents a tradition in which current affairs and social observation are central to the comic’s subject matter. The Library of Congress exhibition discusses the title.
24. The Far Side
Gary Larson’s The Far Side stands out for its distinctive humor and unusual premises. The Library of Congress includes it in its later-century survey, making it a good recommendation for readers drawn to standalone, offbeat comic ideas. The Library of Congress survey includes the strip.
25. Cathy
Cathy, by Cathy Guisewite, is named in the Cartoon Art Museum’s survey of creators. Its inclusion adds a later strip to a selection spanning the medium’s early newspaper history through late-century humor and commentary. The Cartoon Art Museum collection materials provide institutional context.
Which comic strip should you try first?
Use the kind of reading experience you want as your guide. These comparisons are practical suggestions, not a scoring system published by the museums and archives cited above.
- For early newspaper history: start with Hogan’s Alley / The Yellow Kid, The Katzenjammer Kids, or Mutt and Jeff.
- For elaborate visual imagination: try Little Nemo in Slumberland; for a later mix of expressive art and childhood fantasy, try Calvin and Hobbes.
- For adventure and continuing stories: explore Dick Tracy, Terry and the Pirates, Mandrake the Magician, or Tarzan.
- For domestic or character comedy: consider Blondie, Peanuts, For Better or For Worse, or Garfield.
- For politics and social observation: look at Pogo, Doonesbury, or Li’l Abner.
- For surreal or offbeat humor: sample Krazy Kat or The Far Side.
Collected editions can be a convenient way to sample a strip beyond a handful of daily panels. Check the specific volume and current availability before choosing one; a collection is most useful when it lets you see the strip’s rhythm, characters, and visual style over time.
Why these 25 are not a popularity ranking
Institutional histories and museum collections establish the historical presence and cultural importance of many strips, but they do not create a universal top-25 list. A defensible popularity ranking would need a defined audience, geography, time period, and comparable readership or circulation figures. The Library of Congress figure for Peanuts is a documented peak reach, not a standardized benchmark against every title here.
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