Best Sci-Fi Series of All Time, Ranked

Science fiction has been a popular genre in novels and pulp magazines since the turn of the 20th century and a part of movies as early as 1902’s A Trip to the Moon. With the introduction of radio and television, the science fiction genre is most prominently exemplified by long-standing series like Star Trek and Doctor Who. While some appear not to understand or have an interest, longtime fans of the genre can see the potential and entertainment in telling a very human story under the guise of an adventurous space opera.

For this reason, there are a considerable number of good sci-fi TV shows available. For a sci-fi show to be considered the best, it has to tap into core science-fiction elements, like artificial intelligence and extraterrestrial life, and explore them in an interesting manner. However, like any other show, it has to be consistently good, too, with compelling characters and interesting stories to tell with them. The very best combine it all into something special. Not all of them last (some only make it a single season or two) but all of them leave a deep impression on the genre when they go.

Updated on September 11, 2024, by Robert Vaux: Science fiction TV has been mesmerizing viewers for generations, and the best of the best in sci-fi TV includes so many unforgettable series. This list has been updated to include even more of the best sci-fi TV series, as well as adhering to CBR’s most recent formatting standards.

24 HBO’s Westworld Got Off to a Great Start but Overcomplicated Itself

The first season of the HBO series Westworld is some of the best science fiction television ever created. A common aspect of the genre is the role of artificial intelligence, popular in movies ranging from Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and the Wachowski’s The Matrix. The idea of man-created life is at the center of the themes in Westworld. At a Wild West-themed vacation amusement park run by androids, wealthy guests can indulge in their wildest fantasies.

Accompanied by fantastic performances, the series was created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy. The basic premise was taken from the 1973 movie Westworld, written and directed by Michael Crichton, and its 1976 sequel, Futureworld. After 36 episodes and four seasons, HBO canceled the show, which a lot of fans started to feel had lost its way. That first season, however, is unparalleled, and that alone is enough to earn a spot in the rankings, albeit at the bottom of the list.

23 V Brought Epic Space Opera to the Small Screen

Science fiction dominated the early 1980s thanks to the massive influence of the original Star Wars trilogy. The genre often struggled on television, however, which couldn’t sustain the expensive demands of visual effects for long periods of time. Even Star Trek had largely abandoned television in favor of big-screen movies at that point. The original V served as a resounding rebuke to the trend.

It centers on the idea of a bloodless conquest, patterned after the Nazi occupation of Europe during World War II. Aliens, dubbed “Visitors,” arrive on Earth promising friendship and solidarity. As humanity relaxes its guard, they integrate into government, the media, and other sources of power: effectively colonizing the planet without firing a shot. A human resistance forms, consisting of journalists, scientists, criminals, and ordinary people dedicated to taking their world back from its new owners. The formula worked brilliantly for a pair of miniseries, and while the resulting series didn’t last, it silenced the notion that only movies could properly deliver interesting science fiction on an epic scale.

22 The Six Million Dollar Man Helped Revitalize Science Fiction

The 1970s were something of a dry era for science fiction, at least until the arrival of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope which ushered in a tsunami of new content. Before then, science fiction was considered expensive and of limited appeal, especially on television. The Six Million Dollar Man was a big exception to the rule: premiering in 1973 to huge ratings and holding the pop-culture line until George Lucas’s galaxy far, far away could arrive.

Lee Majors became a star as Steve Austin, an astronaut injured when his capsule crashes only to be rebuilt with cybernetic components. He then spends five very successful seasons as a secret agent stopping threats to the U.S. government. The series remains very much of its time, but it holds up as nostalgic entertainment, as does its equally enjoyable spin-off, The Bionic Woman.

21 12 Monkeys Expands on the Terry Gilliam Classic

1995’s 12 Monkeys is a masterpiece of science fiction and one of the highlights of director Terry Gilliam’s career. It’s also the last film anyone would think makes good material for an expanded television adaptation. 12 Monkeys‘ storyline is self-closing by design, embodying a cause/effect paradox: a criminal is sent back in time to gather clues about a devastating pandemic only to be convinced that he’s merely suffering from delusions.

Showrunners Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett spin that into a sprawling story of paradox and alternate history, as time-traveling agents try to stop the Army of the 12 Monkeys from releasing their genocidal virus. Darker and more meditative than the Gilliam film, it gains steam as it progresses, and its intact four-season storyline develops its own identity distinct from both its big-screen predecessor and the short film La Jetee that started it all.

20 Fringe Took The X-Files Concept in Bold Directions

The X-Files influenced science fiction television for decades, but it never had a proper heir apparent until Fringe premiered 15 years later in 2008. It adopts a similar concept, with a group of eccentric FBI agents investigating cases involving the strange and paranormal. While it started as a case-of-the-week series, it soon evolved into an intriguing meta-plot concerning the discovery of a parallel universe.

The show thrived by finding its own rhythm and succeeded admirably in the Friday nighttime slot once occupied by its vaunted predecessor. It overcame a rough first season to become a must-see viewing for sci-fans, boosted by its engaging cast and willingness to take its out-there concepts seriously. It also included the final onscreen appearance of the late Leonard Nimoy, who retired from acting shortly after his turn on Fringe.

19 The Outer Limits Gave The Twilight Zone a Run for Its Money

The success of The Twilight Zone on CBS in the 1960s prompted rival ABC to develop its own science fiction anthology series. The Outer Limits wasn’t as successful as its predecessor, lasting just two seasons and embracing simpler storylines than The Twilight Zone’s more heady plots. It made an impact, however, and also featured an opening and closing narration, along with a haunting opening monologue that retains its pop culture impact.

It made an especially strong mark with its plots, including scripts by the likes of Harlan Ellison and Robert Towne, and adaptations of influential sci-fi stories like Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot. It also trended dark, with more downbeat endings and a cynical view of the universe that Rod Serling’s parables lacked. While it could be hit-and-miss, the best episodes can stand alongside anything The Twilight Zone has to offer.

18 Loki Has Become the Gold Standard of MCU Series

The Marvel Cinematic Universe jumped into streaming series with a splash, starting with 2021’s WandaVision and its

unique meta-commentary on television history. Most subsequent entries, however, were more or less by the book; they were essentially extended versions of the movies, focusing on individual characters who lacked significant screen time in the likes of Avengers: Endgame.

Loki promptly threw out the book, as a variant of Tom Hiddleston’s Asgardian god gets a peek at “the man behind the curtain” of the Time Variance Authority. It expertly delivers a beautiful arc for its central character, while including such key events as the creation of the Multiverse and the rise of Kang the Conqueror. It’s easily the most important MCU project since Endgame, and if the saga recovers from its dreadful 2023, it will have the God of Mischief to thank for seeing it through.

17 Warehouse 13 Is a Light-Hearted Riff on The X-Files

Despite drawing heavy influence from The X-Files, Warehouse 13 finds its own lane by sticking to lightweight adventures rather than grim conspiracies. The premise provides a bottomless well of easy inspiration. The titular warehouse serves as a repository of all manner of cursed historical artifacts, which absorbed some of their owners’ essence and can now wreak supernatural havoc in the modern world. A pair of agents are dispatched to track them down one by one, backed up by a quirky team of misfits and a rotating series of entertaining cameos.

While it often feels a little too familiar, those qualities also make it exceptionally good TV comfort food. The tone stays upbeat, the action is brisk, and while there’s an overarching metaplot, it stays relatively simple and avoids getting tangled into knots like The X-Files did. Between that and an endlessly charming cast, it makes a terrific option for binging or single-episode viewing alike.

16 Futurama’s Sci-Fi Satire Is Built to Last

From the creators of The Simpsons comes the best science fiction sitcom ever created. When pizza delivery boy Fry is accidentally cryogenically frozen for 1,000 years, he awakes on the eve of 3000. The series first aired in 1999 and has had eight seasons with 150 episodes and counting. New seasons are currently planned through 2026.

Futurama is the grandchild of The Twilight Zone in a sense because of the way it conveys social commentary in a futuristic setting. However, where The Twilight Zone pulls the viewer in with bewilderment, Futurama maintains its fans over the years through various forms of satire. Thanks to science fiction’s enduring popularity as a genre, it never runs out of targets for satire. Along the way, its oddball collection of characters has become as endearing as those in its sister series, The Simpsons.

15 Legion Broke New Ground for Superhero Stories

One of the coolest science fiction series comes in the form of a superhero psychological thriller. Legion is about David Haller, a man who grew up believing the voices in his head were the result of schizophrenia, who discovers he is actually a mutant with telepathic abilities.

The exciting twist of the show is the finding that David is actually both a mutant and suffers from schizophrenia. Inspired by characters from X-Men comics and taking place in an alternate history to the movies, Noah Hawley created Legion, giving it a three-season run with 27 episodes and a complete beginning, middle, and end. In the process, he showed what superhero stories were capable of, and opened the door for the likes of WandaVision and The Boys.

14 The Prisoner Was a Daringly Different Sci-Fi Concept

British science fiction television has a small presence compared to U.S. television but has still delivered its share of inspiring series. The Prisoner stands among the very best, despite running just a single season of 17 episodes in 1967. Patrick McGoohan plays a British intelligence officer who resigns from his post, only to find himself trapped in a surreal “Village” whose residents cannot leave.

Espionage shows were very big when The Prisoner was released (James Bond was the undisputed king of the pop-culture cage at the time) but nothing looked or felt quite like it. It became equal parts paranoid thriller, social satire, and sci-fi meditation on the nature of free will. It probably couldn’t have lasted much longer than it did, but what it delivered is still affecting the genre today.

13 Firefly Has Survived Its Creator’s Disgrace

The best science fiction series to receive its flowers way too late was the Joss Whedon-created TV show Firefly. After a civil war in the future, the show followed the lives of a crew of smugglers aboard a spaceship and their dealings with the “winning” side, an intergalactic superpower known as the Alliance. A common aspect of science fiction and a recurring theme throughout the show is that although technological advancements will improve life in some ways, society will always suffer the same problems.

This short-lived series is the best version of science fiction meets the Wild West, with charming characters and thrilling action. Unfortunately, because of poor marketing and subsequent poor ratings, the show was canceled after one season. However, because of its later success, fans received some closure to the series in the form of the 2005 movie Serenity, but for years they have been demanding a continuation of the much-beloved show. Chances are, they won’t get what they’re asking for (credible allegations of abuse against Whedon have all but guaranteed it) but the fact that fans are still asking after it is a testament to its place among the best sci-fi shows of all time.

12 Max Headroom Was Too Innovative to Last

Like The Prisoner, Max Headroom is a show resolutely ahead of its time, and similarly was canceled after just a single 14-episode season. Its title character was created as the fictional host of a music video series in the mid-1980s. A short made-for-TV movie was filmed establishing his origin story as an AI created by accident in a dystopic future controlled by large television corporations. Max proved a sensation, and a regular series followed.

The show depicted Max partnering with his human “template” — a crusading journalist named Edison Carter — and his allies as they attempt to expose the truth and corruption of their world. It proved a brilliant catalyst for the growing cyberpunk sub-genre, and in its fourth-wall-breaking hero found an ideal way to make it fun as well as thought-provoking. Decades on, a disquieting number of its predictions about the future have come true.

11 Mystery Science Theater 3000 Is a Love Letter to Sci-Fi

It can be hard to classify Mystery Science Theater 3000 as a sci-fi series in and of itself, since the central point is humorous meta-commentary on some of the worst movies ever made. The creative forces behind the show have continued with efforts like Rifftrax — which drops the overarching premise and just delivers the gags — and no attendant loss of creativity. That said, the idea was never stronger than it was with the framing device, in which a pair of mad scientists trap a hapless human guinea pig in outer space and force him to watch terrible movies.

Early in the series’ run, the show kept it pretty loose, though later they added more elaborate plots as a way of enhancing the sketches. They gave Mystery Science Theater 3000 a distinctive identity separate from earlier creature features, and without getting in the way of the primary purpose of a guy and his robots razzing terrible movies. They also helped the series become an institution, and produce a thriving cottage industry of like-minded efforts.

10 Stargate SG-1 Went Far Beyond The Original Movie

The original big-screen movie Stargate was a grand bit of mid-’90s popcorn, with clear potential to expand beyond just a single story. The TV adaptation — ostensibly a sequel, albeit with different actors in several of the key roles — harnesses that potential in a huge way. It depicts teams of scientists and soldiers traveling through the titular alien artifact, which connects to a vast network of alien worlds. Many are occupied by humans, the descendants of slaves abducted from Earth centuries ago. The sinister Goa’uld are alien parasites who served as the source of myths about ancient Earth deities. They control a stellar empire, with “free” Terran humans a most unwelcome intrusion.

Stargate SG-1 thrives on the clever and organic way it develops its universe, one very different from other science fiction series at the time. It developed multiple successful spin-offs during its run, and while it can’t match Star Trek for sheer pop-culture impact, it demonstrated that smart, well-written science fiction would always attract a loyal audience.

9 Babylon 5 Saw Both Light and Darkness in the Future

Babylon 5 arrived in the wake of the extraordinary success of Star Trek: The Next Generation, with showrunner J. Michael Straczynski determined to tell a very different kind of story. He conceived of Babylon 5 as a space opera that told a centralized story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. Set aboard a space station created as “the last, best hope for peace” between various alien races, it proved so compelling that Paramount may have put Star Trek: Deep Space Nine into development solely to counter the competition it would provide. (The two series premiered within a few weeks of each other in 1993.)

Whatever competitiveness emerged between the two series made both of them better by default. Babylon 5 boasted a strong stable of writers, including the likes of Neil Gaiman and Harlan Ellison, as well as Star Trek alums D.C. Fontana and David Gerrold. It embraced the same commitment to high-minded ideals as Star Trek and — like Deep Space Nine — it wasn’t afraid to explore the darker side of the future. It depicts a galaxy that has advanced, but still remains divided and warlike, with no sign of the utopia Star Trek always promised. Boosted by Straczynski’s early embrace of the internet, it became a key part of the genre’s big 1990s resurgence.

8 Farscape Looked Like Nothing That Had Come Before

Both Star Wars and Star Trek were thriving in 1999, with the former just launching its hotly awaited prequel trilogy, and the latter during its post-Next Generation renaissance. That made it exceedingly difficult to carve out any original space in the genre, and while the late 90s were full of notable sci-fi TV series, only a handful really distinguished themselves from the Big Two. Farscape was perhaps the biggest exception as the brainchild of Brian Henson, who hoped to make good on his father Jim’s belief that puppets weren’t just for children.

The results are one of the most gleefully unhinged space operas ever created, as American astronaut John Crichton is shot through a wormhole of his own creation into a galaxy rife with turmoil. Morality is a subjective thing in this universe, with Crichton and his friends (fugitives one and all) weaving a dangerous path between equally oppressive galactic empires. The show was canceled after a fourth-season cliffhanger, but Henson pulled a final rabbit out of his hat with The Peacekeeper Wars miniseries: bringing closure to the story and cementing one of the most unique sci-fi shows in memory. James Gunn has publicly cited the series as a major inspiration for the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, and Farscape star Ben Browder has a role in the second Guardians movie.

7 Quantum Leap Is One of the Genre’s Biggest Cult Classics

Like a lot of science-fiction shows, Quantum Leap had to fight harder than necessary for its audience. It featured a unique premise about a scientist leapfrogging through time and occupying a rotating series of people in the process. He believes that by changing past events, he can fix the future and return home, aided only by his best friend Al, who appears in the past with him as a hologram.

The network wasn’t confident and bumped the show around on its programming schedule. Despite that, it generated a fiercely loyal following over five seasons, bolstered by the singular premise and the onscreen chemistry of stars Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell. A short-lived sequel series ended its two-season run in 2024, but the original remains as beloved among its fan base as ever.

6 Battlestar Galactica Reimagined a 1970s Science Fiction Classic In Spectacular Fashion

The Eight Cylon Prototypes Created by the Final Five

After the Cylons attack the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, humanity’s survivors found themselves on the run through uncharted space and on the hunt for a new world to call home. With a large population of survivors being military, the series followed the Battlestar Galactica, a ship on the verge of retirement alongside its commander, William Adama. Society’s collapse saw the inexperienced Secretary of Education, Laura Roslin, next in line to become President of the Colonies. As she and Adama clash early on about what humanity needs to survive, the small fleet of survivors finds themselves constantly on the run from pursuing Cylons. Little do they know, the Cylons have evolved. Indistinguishable from humans, the crew is in an ongoing state of panic and distrust, questioning the nature of everyone around them.

Inspired by Glen Larsen’s 1977 series of the same name, one of the most iconic aspects of BSG was the hard line it drew between man and machine. Exploring one of science fiction’s most prominent questions (i.e., do machines have souls?), Battlestar Galactic left a lasting impression on sci-fi TV that fans of the genre won’t soon forget. The series was so well-received, that it landed two spin-off prequels, Caprica, which explored the origins of the Cylons, and Blood and Chrome, which followed the early adventures of young Bill Adama. Multiple made-for-TV movies also tied into and expanded events in the series.

5 The X-Files Was an Iconic Contributor to Science Fiction Television

A successor to The Twilight Zone in science fiction TV is a series that includes other genres, too. The X-Files combined elements of a police procedural with the tropes of science fantasy stories, drawing inspiration from the recent success of The Silence of the Lambs, with a paranormal twist. The show follows FBI Agents Fox Mulder, a believer played by David Duchovny, and Dana Scully, a skeptic played by Gillian Anderson, as they discover and investigate unexplained phenomena.

Between 1993 and 2018, The X-Files, created by Chris Carter, released 11 seasons with 216 episodes and two spin-off movies. The winning combination of pairing a nonbeliever with a die-hard conspiracy theorist is a character dynamic that has since grown popular on TV, echoing in series like the first season of True Detective. Some of sci-fi’s greatest shows of all time struggle to age well with the changing times because much like science itself, the rules are always changing. While The X-Files is certainly still a worthy sci-fi TV show, there are parts of the series that just didn’t age well, and that alone lands it mid-list in the rankings.