What are the best Friends episodes? Friends has been an iconic TV staple since 1994. The sitcom revolving around six, well, friends in New York City continues to delight new generations, even though it ended decades years ago. The show lasted ten seasons, and people still watch religiously.
Whether you’re a neurotic Ross, a competitive Monica, a funny Chandler, a flirty Joey, a spoiled Rachel, or a free-spirited Phoebe (thank you, Buzzfeed quizzes), Friends has been keeping us company throughout our lives — after all, the group has been through countless mishaps in one of the best comedy series.
Now we have the difficult task of picking out the top episodes from what many comfort seekers feel is one of the best TV series of all time. From weddings and soap operas to beaches and holiday armadillos, there are oodles of stories and emotional journeys. So, which episodes stand out Here are the best Friends episodes!
The best Friends episodes:
- The One at the Beach
- The Last One: Part 2
- The One Where Joey Moves Out
- The One with the Morning After
- The One Hundredth
- The One Where Ross Got High
- The One Where Everybody Finds Out
- The One With All the Resolutions
- The One With the Routine
- The One With Ross’ Wedding: Part 2
- The One With the Proposal: Part 2
- The One Where Ross is Fine
12. The One at the Beach
Often remembered more for the bald Bonnie and Rachel/Ross antics, The One at the Beach has a softer Phoebe subplot we just adored. When she meets a ‘family friend’ with links to her past, she discovers more about her roots and questions the woman about her father.
Pheobe is such a lovable character that any episode that explored the more dramatic side of her is a standout, and this episode does just that — with a memorable location, ridiculous subplots, and hilarious guest stars to boot.
11. The Last One: Part 2
Season 10, Episode 18, otherwise known as ‘The One That Makes Us Cry’. This is the series finale and a monumental moment in pop culture. For fans in the younger camp, it’s probably hard to imagine what it was like for devotees in the early 2000s to sit around together to watch the very last episode of the sitcom that defined TV for their generation.
There are lots of popular shows with underwhelming finales, but Friends went out with a bang that ties up all its threads. Ross and Rachel are back together after Phoebe tries to force Rachel off of her Paris flight, claiming there is something wrong with the plane’s “left phalange” over the phone, Chandler and Monia pack up and say goodbye to the iconic apartment, and we watch the group lay their keys on the counter and walk out its door for the last time. A tearjerker, but also characteristically chaotic, funny, and heartfelt, it’s a great goodbye.
10. The One Where Joey Moves Out
There is no greater friendship on the show than that of an actor and a (transponster?) data analyst. In Season 2, that relationship is tested when Joey chooses to move uptown, following a series of arguments. There are emotional moments from their petty fights and Chandler’s despondence when Joey packs up.
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If you’ve ever lived with a best friend who then decided to move on, this episode is certainly for you. Plus, Rachel gets a tattoo, and the Geller parents find out that their daughter Monica is dating their friend Richard.
9. The One the Morning After
Some of the greatest episodes of Friends don’t deal with humor. Instead, they tackle the heft of adult life. Rachel and Ross have been on a roller-coaster of emotions throughout the show, but this episode is their most difficult after, following an argument, Ross sleeps with the copy girl.
When Rachel finds out he technically cheated on her, a night-long emotional argument ensues. It is balanced against the other four trapped in Monica’s room, unwillingly listening in and eating wax.
8. The One Hundredth
Phoebe is a constant source of hilarity and is played almost effortlessly by Lisa Kudrow. The hundredth episode highlights a more emotional turn for Phoebe. After agreeing to be a surrogate for her brother, Phoebe struggles to let go of the triplets she has been carrying, and her goodbye to them is the show’s most bittersweet moment.
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This episode also has Joey’s kidney stone debacle and a doctor who really, really loves the Fonz, in addition to this, Chandler grows closer to Monica.
7. The One Where Ross Got High
Thanksgiving episodes became a cornerstone in Friends. There are a plethora of calamitous holiday episodes including the brilliant Christina Applegate as Rachel’s sister Jill and Brad Pitt as an old high school friend of Ross’. However, The One Where Ross Got High is the best.
After inviting Monica’s parents for dinner, Ross and Monica argue so much that suddenly there are a series of quick revelations from everyone in the room. Judy Geller, played perfectly by Christina Pickles, responds with a pitch-perfect delivery. It can only be topped by the most mismatched trifle you’ll ever see.
6. The One Where Everybody Finds Out
Monica and Chandler try to keep their relationship a secret for such a long time. Bit by bit the gang all start to figure out that they are having an affair, which ends in one of the most outrageous episodes of the show.
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After seeing them through the window, Phoebe decides to play a game on the pair and flirts heavily with Chandler to try and get them to confess. It culminates in Chandler professing his love for Monica in a sweet but funny moment. You’ll also never forget Ross’ joyous spring and scream into Rachel and Phoebe’s arms.
5. The One With All the Resolutions
Ross Geller is at his very best when he is on the edge of a nervous breakdown. Who can forget the wrath following a mishap with his sandwich? The best moment, however, is following his second divorce, Ross decides the new year is going to be his and buys leather pants.
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That image alone is hilarious, but when he takes them off to cool down… Big mistake. The struggle to put them back on, plus all the lotions and powders he puts on to help, is just a delight to watch. At least, in the end, his son looks like a cowboy.
4. The One With the Routine
How many people have tried ‘the routine’? Or at least, know it and awkwardly try to throw the shapes? Monica and Ross are the biggest dorks on Friends and as the seasons progress, the examples just pile up.
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The pair try to get on Dick Clarke’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve program. Eager to be on camera, the siblings magnificently bring to the stage their childhood dance and it is an absolute riot.
3. The One With Ross’ Wedding: Part 2
This was definitely the episode that pushed Friends further into the cultural zeitgeist. I remember this being in the news! The show sees our jolly good chums fly off to London for Ross’s wedding to Emily. However, Rachel jets over to tell Ross she loves him.
But when she can’t go through it, we’re all shocked when Ross says her name instead of Emily’s during the vows. If that’s not enough, Chandler and Monica hook up for the first time. The episode even has Jennifer Saunders and Hugh Laurie! What more could you ask for?
2. The One With the Proposal: Part 2
When Monica and Chandler were introduced as a couple back in the aforementioned London episode, there was a lot of uproar. Yet the episodes that followed really showed that it was writing genius. Monica and Chandler became the series’s best couple and watching them grow together was brilliant.
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Whilst we all love to see the show’s best couple finally tying the knot, as well as drunk Gary Oldman, the proposal wins it. After all, it is filled with so much love and double bluffs. As Chandler tries to throw Monica off the scent and Richard comes back into their lives. Their candlelit proposal is sweet, emotional, and wonderful.
1. The One Where Ross is Fine
Right, I am just going to say it, Ross is the funniest character in the show. Well, at least, he grows into the funniest character. Sure, he is toxic and intensely neurotic but that lends itself to the insane predicaments he winds up in.
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David Schwimmer is truly fantastic here as Ross gets drunk following finding out that Rachel and Joey are together. Though Ross insists he is fine, repeatedly, he is truly struggling with the revelation. The situation lends itself to some of the most amusing quotes, including his poem about love, his consumption of margaritas, and the fact that he is cooking fajitas!
For more sitcom fun, here is our list of the best ‘best 90s TV shows of all time, or if you prefer the dramatic, we have a list of the best drama series. Or, look ahead to a sitcom getting a new lease of life with our guide to the Frasier reboot release date. And for more episode lists, we have the best Succession episodes ranked.
If you’re ready to move on to bigger things, check out all of the new movies coming soon.