Most Emmys Won by a TV Show: All-Time Rankings Through 2025

Most Emmys won by a TV show is a leaderboard where one variety institution laps every scripted rival: Saturday Night Live holds 113 Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy wins as of the September 2025 ceremony, per the Television Academy database and reporting from Gold Derby and NBC. The next-closest series, HBO’s Game of Thrones, counts 59 wins — the scripted-drama record. This guide ranks verified totals through the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards and Creative Arts weekends, explains how variety shows outpace sitcoms and dramas, and spotlights Frasier, The West Wing, Cheers, and other dynasty builders. We cite Emmys.com and major trade databases; Daytime Emmys are excluded unless noted. For who might join this leaderboard after the 78th ceremony, see our Emmy nominations predictions 2026 guide. Year-by-year 2026 results will live in our Emmy winners 2026 full list hub once envelopes open. We cover records and ceremony context — not red-carpet outfit breakdowns (Pillar F owns fashion analysis).

Counting the most Emmys won by a TV show sounds straightforward until you compare a live sketch show that airs 40-plus weeks a year with an eight-season fantasy epic that sweeps Creative Arts weekends. The Television Academy credits both Primetime and Creative Arts trophies toward a series’ career total in public databases — the standard method used by Entertainment Weekly, IndieWire, and Stacker. That means writing, directing, casting, hairstyling, and sound-mixing wins all count, not just Outstanding Drama or Comedy Series envelopes. A fair all-time list therefore mixes SNL’s half-century volume with Game of Thrones’ peak-season hauls and Frasier’s five-year comedy streak.

Most Emmys Won by a TV Show: How Totals Are Counted

The Emmys.com show database and Television Academy records combine Primetime Emmy Awards and Creative Arts Emmy Awards won by a single series across its run. Regional Emmys, News & Documentary Emmys, and Daytime Emmys use separate competitions and generally do not appear in “most wins by a series” listicles unless a source explicitly folds them in. When publications disagree — common for vintage totals — we follow Television Academy figures and note reportedly for disputed counts.

Nominations measure sustained Academy respect; wins measure envelopes opened. Game of Thrones leads scripted series with 159 career nominations and 59 victories. Saturday Night Live carries 349 nominations — also a record — illustrating how decades on air create more shots per September. None of that changes the trivia answer fans memorize: SNL first, Thrones second among scripted dramas, Frasier and The Simpsons battling for the comedy-animation tier below.

#1 Saturday Night Live — 113 Wins

NBC’s Saturday Night Live (1975–present) owns the most Emmys won by a TV show with 113 trophies through the 2025 ceremony. The 50th season brought a windfall: 11 Creative Arts wins for the regular season and SNL50: The Anniversary Special, plus one more at the Primetime telecast, per NBC and Gold Derby reporting.

Why the gap is so wide: SNL competes annually in variety, writing, directing, and technical categories across five decades. Cast turnover refreshes nomination slates; behind-the-camera crews collect sound-mixing and lighting prizes year after year. Only four cast members have won performance Emmys for their SNL work — Chevy Chase, Gilda Radner, Dana Carvey, and Kate McKinnon — while dozens of writers and directors share the haul. That structure makes SNL nearly impossible to catch on total wins unless another variety show runs for 50 years at similar volume.

#2 Game of Thrones — 59 Wins (Scripted Record)

HBO’s Game of Thrones (2011–2019) is the most Emmy-winning scripted series with 59 wins from 159 nominations. The fantasy epic won Outstanding Drama Series four times (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019) and dominated Creative Arts weekends for costumes, makeup, visual effects, and sound.

Peter Dinklage is the only cast member with acting Emmys — four Outstanding Supporting Actor trophies as Tyrion Lannister. The show’s final season remains controversial among fans, but its win total still anchors any most Emmys won by a TV show conversation about peak-era premium cable. Until another drama matches 59, Thrones holds the scripted crown regardless of finale debates.

#3 Frasier — 38 Wins

The Frasier franchise (1993–2004 original; 2023–2024 Paramount+ revival) counts 38 Primetime Emmys, per Stacker’s Television Academy tally through 2025. Kelsey Grammer won four Lead Actor trophies; David Hyde Pierce took three Supporting Actor awards. The original run won Outstanding Comedy Series five times — a dynasty that held the “most wins for a fictional series” mark until Game of Thrones surpassed it in 2016.

The Cheers spin-off proves spin-offs can outshine parents: Cheers itself ranks #6 on this list with 28 wins. Frasier’s 2023 revival added nominations but no new wins before Paramount+ canceled the sequel in January 2025, leaving the 38-win total intact for now.

#4 The Simpsons — 37 Wins

Fox’s The Simpsons (1989–present) has 37 Emmy wins, the only animated series in the top five. Twelve victories came in Outstanding Animated Program; sixteen in Outstanding Voice-Over Performance. Renewed through 2029, the series could eventually pass Frasier on the most Emmys won by a TV show list if Creative Arts weekends keep rewarding Springfield.

#5–#10: Reality, Sketch, and Political Drama

RuPaul’s Drag Race (29 wins) and The Mary Tyler Moore Show (29 wins) share fifth place. RuPaul’s eight consecutive Outstanding Host Emmys (2016–2023) and four straight Reality-Competition Program trophies (2018–2021) show how unscripted formats stack wins when the same host and format dominate a decade.

Cheers (28 wins) launched Frasier and anchored NBC’s Must-See TV era. Hill Street Blues and The West Wing each earned 26 wins — Hill Street broke single-season records in 1981; The West Wing won Outstanding Drama Series four straight years (2000–2003) under Aaron Sorkin’s walk-and-talk revolution. The Carol Burnett Show (25 wins) and The Simpsons neighbor illustrate how sketch and animation accumulate trophies alongside prestige drama.

#11–#25: ER, Succession, and Modern Prestige

The middle tier shows how long runs and streaming-era peaks fill trophy cases:

• ER — 23 wins, 124 nominations; one Outstanding Drama Series trophy (1996)
• The Daily Show with Jon Stewart — 23 wins; 10 consecutive Outstanding Variety Series Emmys (2003–2012)
• Modern Family — 22 wins; five straight Outstanding Comedy Series victories (2010–2014)
• All in the Family — 22 wins; Norman Lear’s taboo-breaking sitcom
• The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel — 22 wins; Amy Sherman-Palladino’s 2018 sweep
• The Sopranos — 21 wins; two Outstanding Drama Series trophies (2004, 2007)
• The Crown — 21 wins across three Queen Elizabeth portrayals
• Dancing with the Stars — 21 wins in choreography and technical categories
• 24 — 20 wins; Kiefer Sutherland’s 2006 Lead Actor trophy
• NYPD Blue — 20 wins; Dennis Franz’s four Lead Actor Emmys
• Boardwalk Empire — 20 wins without a Drama Series crown
• American Masters — 20 wins; PBS documentary institution
• Succession — 19 wins in four seasons; 2023 and 2024 Drama Series sweeps
• Will & Grace and Murphy Brown — 18 wins each

Streaming newcomers like Succession climbed fast because HBO stacked casting, writing, and acting wins in concentrated four-season runs — a different path than SNL’s marathon variety grind but equally valid on a career total.

Variety vs. Scripted: Two Different Races

Fans often ask why Saturday Night Live’s 113 wins dwarf Game of Thrones’ 59 without implying Thrones was “less awarded.” Variety and sketch series compete every eligible year across writing, directing, and technical fields. Scripted dramas peak during buzz seasons — Thrones won nine Emmys in a single 2015 haul — then go off air. Comparing raw totals without context misleads; comparing within genre tells the real story.

Scripted drama leader: Game of Thrones — 59 wins
Scripted comedy leader (live-action): Frasier — 38 wins
Animation leader: The Simpsons — 37 wins
Variety/sketch leader: Saturday Night Live — 113 wins
Reality-competition leader: RuPaul’s Drag Race — 29 wins

Key Milestones in Emmy Win History

1975: Saturday Night Live premieres; within two seasons it begins accumulating variety Emmys that compound for five decades.

1981: Hill Street Blues sets a single-season win record (eight) until The West Wing wins nine in 2000.

2000–2003: The West Wing’s four-year Outstanding Drama Series streak cements 26 career wins.

2011–2019: Game of Thrones redefines fantasy prestige and overtakes Frasier as the most Emmy-winning scripted series.

September 2025: SNL’s 50th season pushes the variety giant to 113 total wins — extending the most Emmys won by a TV show record it already owned.

Quick Reference: Most Emmys Won by a TV Show

• Overall record: Saturday Night Live — 113 wins (349 nominations)
• Scripted series record: Game of Thrones — 59 wins (159 nominations)
• Comedy (live-action): Frasier — 38 wins
• Animation: The Simpsons — 37 wins
• Political drama: The West Wing — 26 wins
• Daytime Emmys: Not included in these Primetime/Creative Arts totals
• 2026 updates: Pending September 2026 ceremony — see our Emmy hubs for live results

Explore More Awards Coverage

• Pre-ceremony projections in our Emmy nominations predictions 2026 guide.
• Live winner tracking via our Emmy winners 2026 full list hub.
• Music-awards context in our most Grammy awards won by an artist leaderboard.
• Visit our Awards archive for ceremony history, records, and ranked guides.