Reality TV was born in the 90s, but it took off in the 00s with Big Brother and Idols. Since then, countless types of reality shows have emerged, from talent contests and business competitions to dating shows and true survival. What unites them is a focus on real people, real situations, natural reactions, and drama—a lot of drama!
But among the plethora of reality shows, it can be hard to know what to watch. So, in this guide, you will get to know six of the best reality tv shows you can stream right now. Get ready to add some to your watchlist!
Best Reality TV Shows
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1. The Circle
The Circle originated from the UK, but the 5-series-long US version caught the world by storm. First aired in 2020, The Circle takes ordinary people from all walks of life and puts them in a social media experiment oriented toward popularity and deceit.
In The Circle, each contestant is locked in a room alone and can only converse with the others via a social media app. The challenge for each person is to gain enough popularity to win the others’ votes and stay in the competition.
What adds spice to The Circle is that contestants are permitted to catfish one another—in other words, they can share fake photos and personal details, pretending to be someone they’re not.
Like any other contestant, if a catfish doesn’t get enough votes, they are eliminated, and their true identity is revealed. These catfish reveals have made for some of reality TV’s most shockingly memorable moments—expect laughter, tears, and even heartbreak!
2. Love Island
Next up is Love Island, the next big thing since Big Brother. First broadcast in the UK in 2005, Love Island gained immediate popularity and spawned multiple international spinoffs that continue to this day.
The premise of Love Island is relatively simple: it puts single men and women on an enclosed island, requires that they couple up to remain on the show, and lets viewers vote to decide who stays and who goes. Plus, there are challenges to complete on the way.
Whichever country’s version you watch, Love Island is sizzling with heartbreak, drama, fun, and romance. Given that each season can be over 50 episodes long, the show takes you on a real journey over time—and makes for fun water cooler conversations and debates.
3. The Apprentice
No list of the best reality shows is complete without The Apprentice. The show began in the US and has since inspired versions in the UK, Australia, and beyond. The premise: a successful business magnate oversees a group of contestants as they undertake team challenges to demonstrate their business skills.
The Apprentice’s challenges can involve anything from raising money for charity to designing and marketing products. At the end of each round, the ruling magnate eliminates the weakest contestant—with the dramatic statement, ‘You’re fired!’.
What’s compelling about The Apprentice is that it captures the dramatic, cut-throat nature of the business world. You see contestants arguing, backstabbing one another, and being grilled in the boardroom—with entertaining remarks and eyebrow raises from the business magnate and their team.
Although The Apprentice isn’t the most lighthearted of reality shows, it teaches valuable lessons about business and how to succeed.
4. Too Hot to Handle
There have been four seasons of Too Hot to Handle so far, and it’s made an impression. The show takes sexy, commitment-phobic singles from across the world and puts them in a villa, revealing a surprise twist at the end of the first episode.
The twist is that the singletons may not engage in any physical intimacy on the show. If they do, the prize fund will be slashed, and they could face elimination. The point is to encourage them to forego physical desires and focus on forming more genuine, emotional connections.
And it works: every season of THTH has seen at least one couple remain together and make it to the real world. What helps are the intermittent workshops castmates must attend—which include activities like worshipping femininity for the women, sharing vulnerability for men, and, in one case, a one-on-one, day-long retreat with a relationship coach.
Although THTH may initially sound superficial, it is peppered with touching moments of openness and growth, making it something special.
5. Shark Tank / Dragon’s Den
Dragon’s Den (UK) and Shark Tank (USA) are inspired by the Japanese series Money Tigers. In these shows, real budding entrepreneurs get to pitch their business ideas to a group of established business magnates, who then decide whether or not to invest and on what terms.
As with The Apprentice, viewers of Shark Tank and Dragon’s Den get a real insight into how the business world works—particularly the art of self-promotion to investors.
Unique to this business show is the varied emotions it evokes—from tear-jerking stories of entrepreneurs who came from nothing to intense and nail-biting equity negotiations to sardonic feedback from the ‘sharks’ or ‘dragons’ in the face of rookie mistakes.
Another reason to watch is that you’ll get to know new products and businesses on the market, some of which might be right up your street.
6. Love Is Blind
Last on our list is Love Is Blind, a four-season romantic experiment that first aired on Netflix in 2020. On this show, castmates get to know potential romantic partners through a wall without seeing their faces. They get engaged if they fall in love and can proceed to the next stages.
During the following stages, the couples’ relationships are put to the test. Initially, they all live together in a villa, then move into a separate home with their fiance. Inevitably, someone is always unhappy with their ‘blind love’ and cannot help noticing other contestants.
Notably, Love Is Blind has a cult following. While fans remain in awe of certain couples who survived every difficulty, the more controversial cast members remain topics of hot debate. Is X person a narcissist? Did they gaslight person Y? Did Z cheat on A after the show?
To springboard those debates, Love Is Blind hosts a reunion episode at the end of each season, where the castmates come under scrutiny from each other and the show’s probing hosts, Vanessa and Nick Lachey. There is a lot to learn about modern love via Love Is Blind.
…And there you have it: two business contests, a social media competition, and three dating shows—there is an abundance of entertaining reality TV to stream. Hopefully, with the help of this guide, you now know which show you’ll watch next.
Which one is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below.
