Streaming Services Netflix and HBO Max Claim Top Spots
Ranker, known as the world’s leading publisher for fan-powered rankings on just about everything with over one billion votes, has announced its top TV shows for 2020. The voting by fans everywhere provides deep, entertaining dives and niche perspectives into the many different genres of TV.
From new dramas to musical comedies and thrilling sci-fi, the best 2020 TV shows feature some of the most highly anticipated and most watched series in recent memory. Ranker harnesses the wisdom of the crowd and the opinions of millions of super fans to be far more relevant and predictive than the opinion of one blogger or critic.
“We saw popularity for shows across the usual suspects, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu, but this year HBO Max, Showtime and The CW all claimed top spots on nearly 8,500 TV poll lists,” said Christine Fleming, Ranker’s Senior Vice President of Marketing. “With so many people at home for so long with the quarantine, there’s a lot more time for discovery on other services.”
Here’s what voters on Ranker said about TV shows in 2020. Note: These are the rankings at the time of this release and are subject to change with continued voting.
Even though Stranger Things did not air a single episode in 2020, it didn’t stop the hit Netflix series from rising to the top spot on the Best Shows Currently On the Air. After spending the last two years hovering around the Top 10, the show finally reached the #1 ranking this September.
Top 5 shows currently on the air:
- Stranger Things (Netflix)
- Westworld (HBO Max)
- Vikings (History Channel)
- The Flash (The CW)
- Outlander (Starz)

Because of the pandemic, many of the best series make up the list of All The TV Shows Ending in 2020. While some popular shows, like Netflix originals GLOW and 13 Reasons Why, just didn’t make it past that tricky second-to-fourth season mark, other long-running series, like Modern Family (ABC), Arrow (The CW), and Homeland (Showtime), announced their final seasons beforehand.
- Top 3 TV shows ending in 2020
- Supernatural (The WB, The CW)
- The Good Place (NBC)
- Criminal Minds (A&E, CBS)