NoBadPicks

Shows Like Better Things

If you loved Better Things's Comedy and Drama storytelling, these series deliver a similar experience — chosen for tone, narrative quality, and viewer satisfaction. Each includes where to stream it now.

Top Picks

Louie
7.8

Louie

2010

Louis C.K. stars as a fictionalized version of himself; a comedian and newly divorced father raising his two daughters in New York City.

One Day at a Time
6.8

One Day at a Time

1975

The misadventures of a divorced mother, two teenage daughters, and new building superintendent in Indianapolis.

Mom
7.3

Mom

2013

Aan irreverent and outrageous take on true family love‐and dysfunction. Newly sober single mom Christy struggles to raise two children in a world full of temptations and pitfalls. Testing her sobriety is her formerly estranged mother, now back in Christy's life and eager to share passive-aggressive insights into her daughter's many mistakes.

8 Simple Rules
6.8

8 Simple Rules

2002

Paul and Cate are raising their three children -- Bridget, Kerry and Rory -- which is no easy task. Oldest daughter Bridget is traversing the dating scene. Kerry is cute and smart, but she has a hard time getting in touch with her true feelings because of her lack of self-confidence. The youngest of the three children, and only boy, Rory is beginning to discover one of life's greatest mysteries -- girls.

Gary Unmarried
5.9

Gary Unmarried

2008

A recently divorced couple shares custody of their two children while starting new relationships.

Motherland
7.2

Motherland

2017

Sitcom about navigating the trials and traumas of middle-class motherhood, looking at the competitive and unromantic side of parenting.

Up All Night
6.0

Up All Night

2011

An irreverent look at parenthood through the point of view of an acerbic working mother, along with her stay-at-home husband and opinionated parents.

My Three Sons
6.5

My Three Sons

1960

A widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas raises three sons with the help of his father-in-law, and later the boys' great-uncle. An adopted son, a stepdaughter, wives, and another generation of sons join the loving family in later seasons.

More Shows Like Better Things

One Day at a Time
7.8

One Day at a Time

2017

In a reimagining of the TV classic, a newly single Latina mother raises her teen daughter and tween son with the "help" of her old-school mom.

Younger
6.8

Younger

2015

Liza Miller, a suddenly single stay-at-home mother, tries to get back into the working world, only to find it’s nearly impossible to start at the bottom at 40-year old. When a chance encounter convinces her she looks younger than she is, Liza tries to pass herself off as 26 and lands a job as an assistant at Empirical Press. Now she just has to make sure no one finds out the secret only she and her best friend Maggie share.

Suburgatory
6.7

Suburgatory

2011

Single father George Altman is doing his best to raise his sixteen-year-old daughter Tessa in the big city. When he discovers a box of condoms in her bedroom, though, he decides the time has come to move her to a more wholesome and nurturing environment: the suburbs. But behind the beautiful homes and perfect lawns lurk the Franken-moms, spray tans, nose jobs, and Red Bull-guzzling teens who have nothing in common with Tessa. It’s a whole new world, one that makes George wonder if they haven’t jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.

SMILF
5.9

SMILF

2017

A raw and honest comedic look at a single, 20-something from Southie whose desires for relationships, sex, and a career collide with the realities of young, single motherhood.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne
7.5

Tyler Perry's House of Payne

2007

The show revolved around a multi-generational family living under one roof in Atlanta led by patriarch Curtis Payne and his wife Ella.

Breeders
6.9

Breeders

2020

Exposing the parental-paradox that it is possible, in the very same moment, to love your child to the horizon of the universe, while being apoplectically angry enough to want to send them there.

Shameless
8.2

Shameless

2011

Chicagoan Frank Gallagher is the proud single dad of six smart, industrious, independent kids, who without him would be... perhaps better off. When Frank's not at the bar spending what little money they have, he's passed out on the floor. But the kids have found ways to grow up in spite of him. They may not be like any family you know, but they make no apologies for being exactly who they are.

Blossom
6.1

Blossom

1990

Blossom Russo is a highly intelligent and spunky teenager. The youngest of three, she lives with her divorced musician father, Nick, eldest brother and recovering substance abuser Anthony, and decidedly not-so-bright middle brother Joey. Along for the ride is Blossom's ditzy best friend, Six, who sometimes shows flashes of great perception.

Workin' Moms
7.5

Workin' Moms

2017

Four women juggle love, careers, and parenthood. They support, challenge, and try not to judge each other as life throws them curveballs. Whether it is an identity crisis, a huge job opportunity, postpartum depression, or an unplanned pregnancy – they face both the good and bad with grace and humour.

Duckman
7.1

Duckman

1994

Together with Cornfed, his portly, porcine partner in crime solving, this defective detective amazingly manages to solve crimes and be a single parent to his hilariously dysfunctional sons at the same time.

Mama's Family
7.6

Mama's Family

1983

Thelma Harper and her spinster sister Fran open their home to Thelma's recently divorced son Vinton and his teenage son and daughter. It's quite an adjustment for everyone, especially the cranky, argumentative Thelma.

Reba
6.5

Reba

2001

After her dentist husband of 20 years leaves her for his dental hygienist, Reba Hart's seemingly perfect world is turned upside down.​

Why These Shows Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Better Things (2016): Comedy and Drama themes, similar pacing, and comparable production quality. NoBadPicks uses TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface series most likely to resonate with fans of Better Things.

See full details for Better Things (2016)

People Also Search For