Comfort TV can mean something different to everyone. Maybe it's a show so familiar you can recite it word for word. Maybe it's a guilty pleasure. Maybe it's a new show people have been recommending for years and you finally commit to watching the entire series! Whatever it means to you, comfort shows give you a welcome escape and an opportunity to get cozy on the couch. If you’re staying home right now and looking for a show to start/revisit/watch for the millionth time, here are some of our favorite comfort shows to binge-watch - let us know in the comments what shows you're watching!
Our Favorite Comfort Shows Streaming on Hulu, Netflix, and HBO NOW.
Happy Endings on Hulu
Credit: Amazon
Recommended by: Liz, Founder of MSA
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: I rewatch this comedy series (3 seasons) every year or two. It is silly, hilarious, and easy to binge. You have the comfort of a constant group of 6 friends - the status quo pretty much resets every episode, and yet there are so many jokes crammed into each episode, that I still find myself laughing out loud even rewatching. While I think it deserves your full attention (at least on the first viewing), it’s also easy to have on in the background if you’re multitasking, too
Community on Hulu
Credit: Hulu
Recommended by: Eric, Co-Founder of MSA
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: Great one-liners, tons of memorable themed episodes, and Chang.
Fruits Basket on Hulu
Credit: Hulu
Recommended by: Savannah, Editor & Review Coordinator
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: I fell in love with this wildly whimsical anime in high school and I still watch it from start to finish every year. The series covers the story of Tohru Honda, a high school student who finds herself living with a mysterious family who is cursed by the animals of the Chinese zodiac. There are hijinks, emotional depth, and more heartwarming moments than I can handle!
Veronica Mars on Hulu
Credit: Hulu
Recommended by: Marne, Content Specialist
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: I feel so grateful that my friend Becca recommended this teen noir series to me years ago and lent me her DVDs. Now I can enjoy Rob Thomas’ masterpiece on Hulu and even got a bonus season from Kristen Bell and the rest of the amazing cast last year due to the cult following. This show has comedy, mystery, and a slew of cameos that make me constantly check IMDb. It’s so well written and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling. Yep, I’m a big ol’ Marshmallow.
Catfish on Hulu
Credit: MTV
Recommended by: Megan, Content Specialist
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: This is truly a guilty pleasure. Basically, this reality show follows people who have fallen in love online with strangers who may or may not be who they say they are. The whole thing is kind of a total disaster, but in the best way. And there are 7 whole seasons to binge on Hulu!
The Office on Netflix
Photo by NBC-TV
Recommended by: Andy, Photography Director
Streaming on: Netflix - Sign up for Netflix here starting at $8.99/month.
Why they love it: I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve watched The Office. It’s like putting on a comfortable sweater every time I start it up. I know the jokes that are coming, I know the storylines, and it’s still perfectly entertaining every go-round.
Parenthood on Hulu
Credit: NBC-TV
Recommended by: Sara, Brand Partnership Coordinator
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: I mean, what’s not to love about this gem of an ensemble cast? It’s like they’re actually family! I was addicted to the '80s movie of the same title, so it’s a no-brainer that I can enjoy watching this feel-good series over and over. It also doesn’t hurt that there are about a million episodes (ok, 103), so it’s extremely binge-friendly!
Star Trek on Netflix
Credit: IMDB
Recommended by: Lacey, Product Manager
Streaming on: Netflix - Sign up for Netflix here starting at $8.99/month.
Why they love it: I think any good comfort TV is something you can have it on in the background, watching just a few minutes here and there without feeling like you’re missing out on everything. I often come back to Star Trek, and while I’m not an expert on every single episode and franchise, I often find myself putting it on when I’m not sure what else to watch. I’m a fan of the original series when I just want to relax and fall asleep on the couch, Enterprise when I’m feeling nostalgic, and Deep Space 9 when I need something just a little meatier to distract me.
Frasier and Younger on Hulu
Credit: Hulu
Credit: Hulu
Recommended by: Salina, Content Creator
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: Frasier is just such a classic. I love the intro song; the voices are familiar. It’s like having family over that’s dysfunctional and entertaining and yet not yours. I am obsessed with Younger as a new show. I’m in love with the character and the storyline of someone in her 40s playing a millennial and starting her career since no one would give her an actual chance. Even though her life is not enviable, somehow you still want to be her in the show.
Gilmore Girls on Netflix
Credit: WB
Recommended by: Sarah, Content Manager
Streaming on: Netflix - Sign up for Netflix here starting at $8.99/month.
Why I love it: Gilmore Girls has been one of my favorite comfort shows for years. I have a lot of nostalgia wrapped up in this because I always watched it with my mom when I was in high school. We loved the small town, wacky characters, and mother-daughter relationship at the core of the story. It was so fun to revisit the show together when 'Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life' premiered on Netflix in 2016. The music, cozy visuals, and familiar characters make this one of my favorite shows to put on when I want to veg out in front of the TV.
High Maintenance on HBO NOW
Credit: HBO
Recommended by: Rachel, HR Specialist & Office Support
Streaming on: HBO Go/HBO NOW - Sign up for HBO NOW here starting at $14.99/month.
Why they love it: I love the glimpses into the lives of others which remind me how different, yet similar we all are as humans. Plus, "The Guy" is so chill and loving with everyone he encounters. Everything about the show just makes my heart feel gooey.
Seinfeld on Hulu
Credit: Sony Pictures
Recommended by: Christen, Copywriter & Editor
Streaming on: Hulu - Sign up for Hulu here starting at $5.99/month.
Why they love it: A total staple for me. Elaine is such an icon! Jerry can’t keep a straight face when delivering his own jokes! Newman is the irritating yet oddly acceptable neighbor we’ve all had! It is dated in the best of ways, yet never gets old for me.
Bonus: Amazon Prime Video also has some of our favorite shows for tough times:
Catastrophe
Rob Delaney and Sharon Horgan write and star in this R-rated comedy about a one-week stand between a Boston ad exec and a London schoolteacher that leads to an accidental pregnancy. When Rob moves to the UK to help figure things out, cultures clash and hormones flare as these two realize they don’t know the first thing about each other.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
In 1958 New York, Midge Maisel’s life is on track- husband, kids, and elegant Yom Kippur dinners in their Upper West Side apartment. But when her life takes a surprise turn, she has to quickly decide what else she’s good at - and going from housewife to stand-up comic is a wild choice to everyone but her. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is written and directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls).
Modern Love
An unlikely friendship. A lost love resurfaced. A marriage at its turning point. A date that might not have been a date. An unconventional new family. These are unique stories about the joys and tribulations of love, each inspired by a real-life personal essay from the beloved New York Times column “Modern Love.”
Fleabag
Fleabag is a hilarious and poignant window into the mind of a dry-witted, sexual, angry, grief-riddled woman, as she hurls herself at modern living in London. Award-winning playwright Phoebe Waller-Bridge writes and stars as Fleabag, an unfiltered woman trying to heal, while rejecting anyone who tries to help her and keeping up her bravado all along.
Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan
When CIA analyst Jack Ryan stumbles upon a suspicious series of bank transfers his search for answers pulls him from the safety of his desk job and catapults him into a deadly game of cat and mouse throughout Europe and the Middle East, with a rising terrorist figurehead preparing for a massive attack against the US and its allies.
Amazon Prime Video is included with your Amazon Prime membership:
An Amazon Prime Membership is $119 per year or $12.99 per month. A Student Prime Membership is $59 per year or $6.49 per month. You can also subscribe to Prime Video for $8.99 per month if you don’t want a full Prime Membership.
What comfort shows do you love to stream? Do you second any of our team's picks? Let us know in the comments!
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