If You Miss Schitt's Creek as Much as I Do, Here Are Shows Like It to Watch Next

Schitt’s Creek always surprises us with just how endearing and wholesome each episode can be. So for another show that’s like chicken soup for the soul, Ted Lasso should be your next binge. The show stars Jason Sudeikis as an optimistic American football coach, Ted Lasso, who goes across the pond to whip a professional English football (aka, soccer) team into shape, despite having zero experience coaching the game.

The AFC Richmond team comprises bristly Roy Kent (who also has trademark thick brows like Johnny), sweetheart Sam Obisanya, egotistical star player Jamie Tart, and many more lovable players you’ll grow to love. With his unique and personable coaching style, Ted Lasso teaches the footballers to work as a team and, most importantly, believe in themselves. You’ll also fall in love with the friendship that blossoms between Keely (who’s just as stylish as Alexis Rose) and team owner Rebecca, whose got a soft heart underneath her cold exterior.

Keep an ear out for inspirational Ted Lasso-isms as you watch. My personal favourite: “Taking on a challenge is a lot like riding a horse, isn’t it? If you’re comfortable while you’re doing it, you’re probably doing it wrong.”

If you miss Moira and Jocelyn’s performances with Schitt’s Creek‘s very own Jazzagals, then you’ve got to watch Girls5Eva. In this show, a one-hit-wonder girl group from the ’90s reunites to give their musical careers one more shot after a young rapper samples their hit song. Like Moira, they’re always looking for an opportunity to reclaim their 15 minutes of fame, but this time around, they have to juggle that with marriages, kids, day jobs, and the various pains that come with growing older. Starring Sara Bareilles, Renée Ellis Goldsberry, Paula Pell, and Busy Phillips, this show’s got some bonafide bops and music videos with sharp, witty commentary that challenges the treatment of women pop stars yesteryear.

Schitt’s Creek is all about a family supporting each other when times get tough. Home Economics is a little like that too! In this sitcom, three siblings – Tom, Conner, and Grace – each with families in different socioeconomic statuses come together in ways that can be super uncomfortable but also heartwarming. Think of Connor, who owns a private equity firm and lives in a mansion, as the Roses pre-Schitt’s Creek. Meanwhile, Grace is barely making ends meet and living in a tiny apartment with her wife and two kids, similar to where we find the Roses working their way up from their cramped quarters in the Rosebud Motel. Finally, Tom’s middle-class family is where the Roses end up at the end of the series, with David owning his apothecary store, Alexis moving to New York City as a publicist, Johnny expanding his motels, and Moira getting a second shot at acting in a reboot of her soap opera. Moral of the story: family is more important than the money you make.

Out of necessity, the Roses wind up in Schitt’s Creek, where they initially feel trapped. The same happens to Josh Skinner and Melissa Gimble, a couple played by the multi-talented Keegan Michel Key and SNL star Cecily Strong in this parody musical series. While backpacking, Josh and Melissa get stuck in Schmigadoon, where the townspeople break out into song and dance until they find true love. The question is will they rekindle their struggling relationship or find true love with other people? With a star-studded cast including Kristen Chenoweth, Jane Krakowski, Dove Cameron, Aaron Tveit, Jaime Camil, and Alan Cumming (whose off-beat mayor rivals Schitt’s Creek’s Roland) Schmigadoon! is like if Schitt’s Creek met The Wizard of Oz and all your other favourite musicals.

One Day at a Time is a reimagined family sitcom about a Cuban-American single mom, Penelope, navigating the ups and downs of raising her children Elena and Alex with the help of her mom, played by icon Rita Moreno. Like Schitt’s Creek, the show warms the heart and will make you feel good. Schitt’s Creek and One Day at a Time also have fantastic LGBTQ+ representation. David and Patrick’s love story is one for the ages. I could cry thinking about their wedding in the finale. In One Day at a Time, not only does Elena come out as a lesbian to her family, but she also has a non-binary love interest, Syd.

If there’s one thing about Schitt’s Creek that seems truly irreplaceable, it’s Moira Rose’s sharp wit and knack for drama (cue iconic shrieking). Although no one will ever truly outshine Moira, Grace and Frankie provides viewers with similar outlandish antics. Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin steal the show as two divorcees fighting off respective mental breakdowns, but the way they ultimately come together is heartwarming and reminiscent of Moira’s softer side. The two also end up making their own line of sex toys, and given her love for scandal, it seems like Moira would approve. With the final episodes coming in 2022, you’d better get started.

It may be a bit of a stretch to call the Rose family villains, but they didn’t come to the Rosebud Motel as perfect people. Oddly enough, that didn’t stop viewers from rooting for them and even identifying with them – and it’s the same case with The Good Place. The action kicks off when Kristen Bell’s character, Eleanor, realises she’s accidentally made it into heaven despite some pretty regrettable decisions made back on Earth. But even knowing all of Eleanor’s flaws, she’s still someone viewers can relate to, and she keeps us rethinking what a real protagonist looks like.

That’s right, it’s another Canadian comedy featuring a gaggle of hysterical characters and a few moments of questionable parenting. In Workin’ Moms, it’s time for four career-driven mothers to return to the workforce after maternity leave. Kate, Anne, Frankie, and Jenny get into some sticky situations and make mistakes along the way as they try their best to balance motherhood with their jobs, love lives, and own identities outside of being moms. The show also takes hot-button subjects such as postpartum depression and missing out on career opportunities as the primary caretakers and gives them a comedic flair, much like Schitt’s Creek does with sexuality. The best thing about the show is that its humour never skips a beat, but it feels just as authentic and relevant as the comedy featured in Schitt’s Creek.

One of the more obvious shows on this list is Arrested Development, which also features a previously wealthy family brought together after losing their fortune. At the centre of all the chaos is Jason Bateman’s character, Michael Bluth, who is desperately trying to keep his spoiled family afloat when his father is sent to prison for white-collar crime. The Bluths are just as complicated and flawed as the Roses. Michael is sort of a Johnny Rose character, but with his own flair, a family business to run, and a son played by Michael Cera. Shot in a handheld camera style, Arrested Development is a little edgy, a little offbeat, and a lot of fun.

If you love the Rose family’s sarcasm and Stevie’s deadpan jokes, then Portlandia will serve as the perfect Schitt’s Creek replacement. This show, featuring Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, consists of sketch comedy designed to poke fun at the free-spirited indie community in Portland, OR. Although it’s no sitcom, Portlandia hyperbolizes the eccentric residents of Portland in much the same way that Schitt’s Creek dramatises the ultrarich. Because surely even the most wealthy celebrities can ride a bike … right? In one of the most hilarious and well-known Portlandia bits, Arminson and Brownstein lovingly mock quirky bird-obsessed hipsters who decorate everything with birds!

As the title suggests, Kim’s Convenience is a Canadian comedy about a lovable father trying his best to run a convenience store in Toronto and keep up with the times with the help of his family. Sort of if Schitt’s Creek focused mostly on Johnny Rose and his never-ending problems with the Rosebud Motel. The show’s passionate fandom dubbed the #KimBits loves how the show blends sharp social commentary with stories about the Kim family’s lives and observational humour. Kim’s Convenience also has similar heartfelt comedy that makes it impossible not to fall in love with every character.

Remember David’s manipulative photographer ex? The one everyone can’t stand? If he had his own TV show, he would be the star of Cuckoo. The British sitcom kicks off when the Thompson parents are introduced to their daughter’s new husband, Cuckoo. Played by Andy Samberg, Cuckoo is a free-spirited hippie who is all different kinds of “too much” for the traditional parents to handle. As Mr. Thompson struggles especially hard to warm up to the newest member of his family, he exudes the same type of awkwardness as Johnny Rose and Roland Schitt trying their best to understand each other. And in an unpredictable turn of events in season two, Taylor Lautner replaces Samberg as Cuckoo’s long-lost lovechild, Dale. Who knew our fave brooding werewolf could be so hilarious?

Although it only made it through its first season, Champions is a sitcom worth watching. After all, it is a part of the ever-growing Mindy Kaling television universe (she co-created the series). In the show, a young fitness-obsessed playboy, Vince, meets his 15-year-old son Michael, played by the inimitable Josie Totah, for the very first time when his mother (Mindy Kaling) brings him to New York City to chase his dreams. Michael is essentially a mini-David. He’s got style, finesse, and lots of opinions. And as is the case with the Roses, there’s no question about Vince’s acceptance of Michael’s gay identity and his willingness to understand him. The story that ensues makes for the perfect family comedy, especially for big fans of David’s one-liners and infinite sass.

If Alexis and David had roommates, you might end up with something close to New Girl. Similar to Schitt’s Creek, New Girl is a show you can consume for hours at a time without so much as checking the clock. Zooey Deschanel’s character, Jess, will become your onscreen best friend in minutes, and the show is fueled by the same kind of feisty sarcasm and quirkiness that makes Schitt’s Creek so much fun to watch. Not to mention her roommates Nick, Schmidt, Winston, and Coach get into enough shenanigans of their own – the pranks alone are guaranteed to make you roar with laughter. And there are plenty of heartfelt moments since these guys are always there for their friend Jess when she needs them.

If your friends are tired of hearing “Ew, David!” every 20 seconds, Broad City is guaranteed to offer a few alternative catchphrases. In fact, everything Ilana says is pretty much gold. Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson are the masterminds behind this absurd, sometimes stoner comedy, and a lot of Broad City‘s content is based on their real-life friendship. A change of pace of Schitt’s Creek’s small-town setting, Ilana and Abbi are two women trying to make it in the big apple. The show also contains strong LGBTQ+ themes similar to Schitt’s Creek, and it sets a precedent for making queerness a basic part of television.

Fresh Off the Boat gives Schitt’s Creek a run for its money when it comes to shows about families united by highly uncomfortable situations. Based on Eddie Huang’s best-selling memoir, the show is centred on a Taiwanese family struggling to transition from DC’s Chinatown to suburban Orlando in the ’90s after Eddie’s dad decides to open a Southwestern themed restaurant in the area. With a cast featuring Randall Park and Constance Wu, this groundbreaking series humorously depicts just one of many immigrant experiences in the US. The quirky family bonding in every episode makes Fresh Off the Boat an ideal alternative to the wonderfully frenzied Roses.

Mixed-ish, a spinoff of the hit TV show Black-ish, recounts the story of Tracee Ellis Ross’s Black-ish character, Rainbow Johnson. After living in a commune for the majority of her childhood, Rainbow and her siblings are suddenly pulled out of their comfort zone and made to adapt to suburbia. As the title implies, besides dealing with the typical childhood obstacles every family faces, Rainbow’s has to deal with the challenges of being a mixed-race family in the ’80s. Of course, her new home is far from the rundown town of Schitt’s Creek, but Rainbow’s story is still all about adapting to a new world and finding her own identity with the help of her family.

In terms of dysfunctional family dynamics, Modern Family might be the closest you can get to a Schitt’s Creek replacement (if you haven’t already watched and rewatched every single episode). Every character – and there are many – has unique quirks and a talent for sarcasm, making for a fast-paced and utterly outrageous family you can’t help but relate to. With its mockumentary style, Modern Family feels like it’s giving you a sneak peek into the family’s chaotic moments, and its sweetest too – when they can manage to get their acts together. In fact, between the Dunphys and the Roses, you’ll have a hard time deciding which family you’d rather be a part of.

PEN15 takes every awkward moment of middle school and breaks it down into an incredibly relatable comedy you can’t help but cringe over (in the best way possible). Created by Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, and Sam Zvibleman, the show has the same honesty as Schitt’s Creek, and the characters have just as many hilarious mannerisms. At first, you might be caught off guard when you see Erskine and Konkle playing fictional versions of their younger selves in the early 2000s, but the awkward familiarity will tug at your heartstrings. Don’t be surprised if your stomach hurts from laughing so hard the next day.

The Middle is a family comedy that highlights a mother, played by Patricia Heaton, working hard to keep her incredibly eccentric family together. Heaton’s character, Frankie Heck, is in “the middle” in almost every way – middle age, middle class, and middle American. But she’s got big love for her family. Like Schitt’s Creek, the Hecks’ family dynamic is what truly makes the show. Some of the best ones include the kind-hearted, enthusiastic daughter who doesn’t quite fit in and the adorable son who can’t stop talking to himself. It’s a feel-good show that will quickly become your new favourite.

The Roses can be a little dysfunctional with Alexis and David’s constant bickering and Moira’s struggle to connect with them. In hidden gem Great News, ambitious cable news producer Katie’s workplace gets a little dysfunctional when her mom becomes an intern. Thanks to her oddball crew of two clashing news anchors, a laid-back editor, and an uptight news producer and her mother in tow, shenanigans and hijinks ensue in Katie’s newsroom and in the field as she aims to get the latest scoop. The second season levels up when comedy legend Tina Fey joins the cast as a powerful executive taking over.