American Experience — 1988-present · 37 seasons · 393 eps

★ 8.6

American Experience poster

American Experience

1988-present 37 seasons 393 episodes

★ 8.6 (2,478 votes) Top 11%

TV's most-watched history series brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.

Episode Ratings Grid

Every episode at a glance, color-coded by rating. Rows are episode numbers within each season, columns are seasons.

Size: M

S1

S2

S3

S4

S5

S6

S7

S8

S9

S10

S11

S12

S13

S14 1-30

S14 31-60

S14 61-90

S14 91-101

S15

S16

S17

S18

S19

S20

S21

S22

S23 1-30

S23 31-60

S23 61-90

S23 91-102

S24

S25

S26

S27

S28

S29

S30

S31

S32

S33 1-30

S33 31-60

S33 61-90

S33 91-101

S34

S35

S36

S37

E1

7.9

6.5

5.7

7.1

7.9

7.1

8.5

7.1

8.5

8.2

8.4

8.3

7.7

8.3

—

—

—

7.6

8.4

8.0

7.9

7.4

6.6

7.8

7.5

7.3

—

—

—

7.2

8.1

7.2

7.6

8.1

7.1

7.9

8.1

7.2

8.0

—

—

—

6.6

7.2

7.8

7.2

E2

7.5

7.5

8.0

5.7

7.9

6.8

8.3

6.9

8.3

7.7

7.8

8.2

7.5

8.2

—

—

—

7.3

7.6

7.8

7.6

7.2

7.7

7.9

7.4

6.9

—

—

—

7.5

8.0

8.1

7.2

8.1

7.8

7.4

8.2

7.5

7.9

—

—

—

7.0

7.8

8.0

7.6

E3

7.8

7.2

7.9

6.8

8.2

7.6

6.7

7.0

6.9

7.4

7.1

8.2

?

8.2

—

—

—

8.1

7.5

6.5

7.3

7.0

7.5

7.6

7.2

6.9

—

—

—

7.7

8.0

8.2

7.1

7.2

7.9

7.4

7.9

7.7

8.2

—

—

—

7.6

7.3

7.7

7.7

E4

6.2

7.4

8.0

7.4

7.2

7.3

6.6

7.8

7.4

?

7.0

8.2

6.7

7.0

—

—

—

8.0

8.3

7.2

6.9

6.8

7.4

7.5

7.5

7.2

—

—

—

7.7

7.7

8.4

7.7

7.6

7.8

7.6

7.6

8.3

7.5

—

—

—

7.6

7.8

8.2

7.8

E5

7.3

5.2

5.6

6.5

6.5

7.8

8.1

7.1

7.2

7.9

6.7

7.9

7.1

6.8

—

—

—

7.8

7.3

7.5

7.9

6.6

7.4

8.1

7.1

7.3

—

—

—

7.8

7.8

8.2

7.2

7.4

7.2

—

7.3

7.4

6.6

—

—

—

8.3

7.3

7.5

—

E6

6.3

7.3

6.6

7.9

7.1

7.5

7.4

6.8

6.5

7.7

7.3

7.8

7.3

6.9

—

—

—

7.9

7.4

7.3

7.2

7.0

7.5

7.9

8.3

7.8

—

—

—

7.8

7.8

6.5

7.5

7.9

8.2

8.0

8.5

7.5

7.4

—

—

—

8.0

7.4

7.5

7.3

E7

7.0

6.2

8.2

7.2

6.5

7.6

7.2

7.7

7.1

7.8

6.6

7.2

8.5

6.8

—

—

—

7.1

7.2

7.2

7.3

7.0

7.0

7.9

7.8

7.4

—

—

—

7.6

7.3

8.3

8.0

7.5

8.7

7.3

7.9

—

—

—

7.5

7.9

7.3

E8

6.7

7.4

7.6

?

7.5

7.5

7.7

7.8

7.5

7.5

7.1

7.3

8.1

7.1

—

—

—

7.9

6.5

6.9

6.6

7.1

7.4

7.7

8.2

7.7

—

—

—

7.6

7.1

7.3

8.2

8.6

7.9

8.0

—

—

—

7.3

—

E9

6.6

6.4

7.6

7.3

8.4

8.1

7.4

7.2

7.0

?

7.0

8.3

7.2

—

—

—

7.3

7.4

7.1

8.1

6.3

6.9

7.9

7.3

—

—

—

8.0

7.9

8.2

7.9

8.2

—

—

—

—

6.7

—

E10

7.4

5.7

?

6.4

6.1

6.2

6.9

8.2

8.1

6.6

—

—

—

7.0

7.5

7.6

6.9

6.1

7.7

8.0

—

—

—

7.4

8.1

8.1

—

—

—

—

—

E11

7.7

7.0

4.2

7.2

7.3

7.3

6.6

8.2

7.3

—

—

6.7

7.9

7.2

7.9

8.2

6.9

7.4

—

—

7.8

—

—

—

7.5

—

E12

6.2

?

6.8

7.7

7.1

6.6

8.4

7.6

—

—

7.2

7.3

7.6

7.5

7.6

—

—

—

7.7

—

—

—

—

E13

6.6

6.6

7.5

7.0

7.1

7.5

8.2

—

—

5.8

7.3

6.5

7.3

8.2

—

—

—

—

—

—

E14

5.4

?

8.1

6.9

7.2

7.9

8.1

—

—

6.5

7.1

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E15

6.9

6.9

7.1

6.8

7.2

—

—

—

7.5

—

—

—

—

—

—

7.2

E16

7.2

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E17

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E18

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E19

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E20

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E21

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E22

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E23

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E24

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E25

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E26

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E27

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E28

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E29

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

E30

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

Avg

6.9

6.7

7.1

7.0

7.4

7.5

7.6

7.3

7.2

7.6

7.2

7.5

7.8

7.4

7.5

7.5

7.3

7.5

7.0

7.2

7.8

7.6

7.5

7.6

7.9

7.7

7.5

7.7

7.8

7.7

8.1

7.7

7.7

7.5

7.4

7.7

7.5

Great

Good

Mid

Bad

Awful

Episode Power Rankings

The best and worst episodes at a glance. Use this to find must-watch episodes or ones you might want to skip.

🏆 Top Episodes

#1 8.7

S31E7 Chasing the Moon: Earthrise

Anderson Hatfield and Randolph McCoy, the patriarchs of the legendary feud, were entrepreneurs seeking to climb up from hardship after fierce economic competition and rapid technological change had turned their lives upside down. When members of both families took their grievances to court, their dispute escalated into a war between two families and a struggle between two states. The Feud reveals more than an isolated story of mountain lust and violence between “hillbillies” — the Hatfield - McCoy feud was a microcosm of the tensions inherent in the nation’s rapid industrialization after the Civil War.

#2

S31E8 8.6

Chasing the Moon: Magnificent Desolation

#3

S7E1 8.5

FDR: Part I

Polio at age 39, president at age 50. Explore the public and private life of a determined man who steered the United States through two monumental crises: the Depression and World War II. FDR served as president longer than any other, and his legacy still shapes our understanding of the role of government and the presidency. A film by award winning filmmaker David Grubin.

4. S9E1 "T.R.: The Story of Theodore Roosevelt (Part I)" 8.5
5. S13E7 "Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided Part 1 - Ambition" 8.5
6. S31E6 "Chasing the Moon: A Place Beyond the Sky" 8.5
7. S5E9 "Knute Rockne and His Fighting Irish" 8.4
8. S11E1 "America 1900" 8.4
9. S13E12 "Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided Part 6 - Blind with Weeping" 8.4
10. S16E1 "New York: Center of the World" 8.4

📉 Bottom Episodes

#386

S3E11 4.2

Wildcatter: A Story of Texas Oil

After the stock market crashed in 1929, thousands suffered unemployment and poverty in the Great Depression. The most desperate year, 1932, brought World War I veterans' Bonus March, the election of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the New Deal.

385. S2E5 "Forever Baseball" 5.2
384. S1E14 "Eudora Welty: One Writer's Beginnings" 5.4
383. S3E5 "God Bless America and Poland, Too" 5.6
382. S4E4 "Scandalous Mayor" 5.7

The Quality Arc

Each point is an episode, plotted chronologically. The colored bands mark season boundaries. Look for upward or downward trends to see if quality improved or declined over time.

Trend

Episode Engagement

Vote count shows how many people cared enough to rate. High votes + high rating = beloved classic. High votes + low rating = notorious stinker. Low votes + high rating = hidden gem.

Rating threshold:

142 Standouts

52 Infamous

53 Hidden Gems

139 Forgettable

Top Standout: S8E7 The Battle Over Citizen Kane

Most Infamous: S29E1 Tesla

Best Hidden Gem: S5E9 Knute Rockne and His Fighting Irish

Episodes plotted by rating vs. vote count. The vertical line marks the rating threshold (7.5). More votes = more engagement. Toggle above to compare against global or show-specific median.

Series Trajectory

A simplified view: one point per season. This smooths out episode-to-episode noise to show the overall arc of the series.

Trend

Season Momentum

Did each season build momentum or fizzle out? Green arrows mean the finale rated higher than the premiere. Red means the opposite. Longer arrows = bigger swings.

Season Consistency

Some seasons are reliable bangers. Others are hit-or-miss. Each dot is an episode. Tightly clustered dots mean consistent quality. Scattered dots mean a mixed bag.

Each dot is an episode. Clustered dots = consistent quality. Scattered dots = variable season. Hover for episode details.