Top 21 Police Procedural TV Shows of All Time

Gritty precinct dramas, forensic franchises, a rumpled lieutenant and one very funny squad room are all on the board.

1. 1
   The Wire

   David Simon's sprawling portrait of Baltimore's police and drug trade.
   1000pts
2. 2
   The Rookie

   Nathan Fillion's drama about a late-starting LAPD officer.
   822pts
3. 3
   Law & Order

   Dick Wolf's split police-and-prosecution drama that has run for more than 20 seasons.
   822pts
4. 4
   Prime Suspect

   Helen Mirren's British drama as DCI Jane Tennison.
   754pts
5. 5
   Columbo

   Peter Falk's rumpled LAPD lieutenant solving open-and-shut cases one more question at a time.
   673pts
6. 6
   Line of Duty

   A BBC anti-corruption thriller famous for its marathon interview scenes.
   658pts
7. 7
   NYPD Blue

   Steven Bochco's gritty 1990s precinct drama starring Dennis Franz.
   602pts
8. 8
   Southland

   A raw, handheld-style LAPD drama praised for its realism.
   602pts
9. 9
   Criminal Minds

   An FBI profiling drama that ran for 15 seasons before its Paramount+ revival.
   538pts
10. 10
    Hill Street Blues

    The 1980s ensemble cop drama that reinvented television storytelling.
    538pts
11. 11
    Dragnet

    The pioneering police procedural built on real LAPD case files.
    538pts
12. 12
    The Closer

    Kyra Sedgwick's interrogation-focused LAPD drama on TNT.
    538pts
13. 13
    Law & Order: SVU

    The longest-running US primetime live-action drama, following NYPD sex-crimes detectives.
    466pts
14. 14
    The Shield

    Shawn Ryan's FX drama about a corrupt LAPD strike team led by Vic Mackey.
    384pts
15. 15
    Blue Bloods

    A family drama about a multigenerational NYPD dynasty led by Tom Selleck.
    384pts
16. 16
    NCIS

    A long-running naval criminal investigation drama and one of the most-watched shows in the world.
    384pts
17. 17
    Bones

    A forensic anthropology drama pairing a scientist with an FBI agent.
    290pts
18. 18
    Cold Case

    A Philadelphia drama about detectives reopening unsolved cases.
    179pts
19. 19
    Brooklyn Nine-Nine

    A workplace comedy set in a fictional NYPD precinct.
    0pts
20. 20
    CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

    The forensic hit set in Las Vegas that launched a global franchise.
    0pts
21. 21
    Homicide: Life on the Street

    A Baltimore homicide drama based on David Simon's true-crime book.
    0pts

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