The best new reality shows of the last five years

After 14 years into The Real Housewives of New York, Bravo overhauled the entire cast in place of a new group of “diverse” women that represented what the Big Apple is all about. It was a light-hearted season filled with shade about NYC neighborhoods, out-of-style restaurants, and first-class flights.

The Golden Bachelor is just what it sounds like — a Bachelor spin-off featuring a cast of individuals searching for love. The first-ever "Golden" star is a 72-year-old from Indiana who has surprisingly turned this new series into a must-see. 

Reality TV producers knew they struck gold when they decided to cast a group of famous villains on a show with a $250,000 grand prize. Since the first season features icons like Johnny Bananas, Tiffany “New York” Pollard, and Omarosa, you can expect thrilling content — from fiery arguments to clever gameplay. 

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip is essentially The Real Housewives: All Stars (our title), and it couldn’t be better. Mixing greats like Teresa Giudice with unhinged personalities like Ramona Singer is a recipe for disaster, and that’s exactly what it turned out to be. Thankfully, since Season 1, we’ve got two additional seasons featuring favorites Phaedra Parks and Porsha Williams.  

Who knew we needed a Housewives series set in Park City, Utah, that centers around the Mormon Church? Not us. But since 2020, this series and cast have blown us away, giving us authentic moments from shocking arrests to fall-outs of years-long friendships. 

The Masked Singer spins your modern-day singing competition show on its head. It’s a light-hearted reality competition show placing big-name contestants like Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown behind a microphone.

Carlos King’s Love & Marriage franchise is often underrated, but this reality show is one of OWN’s most-watched series of all time. Its spin-offs are filmed in Alabama, Washington, DC, and Detroit, and as you can imagine, the stars put on one heck of a show. 

It was only a matter of time before we got a rebooted Jersey Shore series. Family Vacation follows the original crew of houseguests, including Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola, living in a shared house like the old days. Except this time, they’re approaching their conflict as friends from an entirely new place. They’re mothers, wives, husbands, soon-to-be partners, and former prison inmates, so there’s bound to be a little commotion. 

You’ve got to have a good cooking show in your reality TV rotation, and The Great Soul-Food Cookoff is the perfect choice. It’s fun and easygoing while maintaining the competitive spirit these shows are known for. But if that’s not enough to get you to watch, you may also finish this series feeling inspired to whip up your favorite soul-food dish.  

MTV is the royal channel when it comes to original reality TV programming. They birthed iconic franchises like The Real World and The Challenge, and in 2009, they added Teen Mom to the list. There have been several specials with the original crew of 16 & Pregnant, including Teen Mom: OG; however, this new series features a collection of stars across the entire franchise.  

Not many reality shows feature an all-Black cast, so when Bravo announced Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard, it sent fans into overdrive. And rightfully so. Although the first season only featured eight episodes, they were full of conflict and thrill and ended with love.

We can’t help but continue to keep up with the Kardashians. Their new Hulu series is in its fourth season, and as you can picture, they’re giving us petty fights over fashion designers like Dolce & Gabbana that we continue to eat up every time.  

Who knew another reality show about finding love would become the phenom this one did? Netflix hit gold with their series Love Is Blind — a social experiment consisting of 15 men and women dating in built-in pods has been the talk of the town for the last several years. Eventually, the season ends with a few marriages (or runaway brides), broken hearts, and lots of tears, but they’re testing the question, “Is love really blind?” 

As the title suggests, this show follows ordinary people pursuing relationships with prison inmates. It’s the third spin-off in the Love After Lockup franchise and showcases the challenges these couples face in their relationship. 

Selling Sunset is another Netflix original that has pop culture lovers in a frenzy. It’s Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing, but bigger, brighter, and better. Although producers are known to overproduce the show’s storylines slightly, it makes for a fantastic show. It even sparked spin-offs in Tampa, Florida, and Orange County, California.  

In this new show, Netflix takes their most-watched series and brings it to real life. Squid Game: The Challenge featured 456 people living together to compete for what’s said to be the largest single cash prize in game show history: $4.56 million. This show is so captivating; you’ve spent hours watching all ten episodes before you know it. 

The Challenge has always been a force, but the All-Stars version is special for many reasons. Not only do viewers get to see host TJ Lavin back in action, but he’s reunited with some of the first contestants ever to play. Darrell Taylor, Aneesa Ferreira, and Brad Fiorenza all return for one of the greatest reboots in reality TV history. 

The Mole is a revived classic that premiered on Netflix in 2022. It’s another strategic game show that features 12 players competing for a stack of money. However, one of the players has been assigned as the group’s mole — a player tasked with sabotaging the game.  

What length would players go to if they could flirt, scheme, and catfish their way to $100,000? Check out Netflix’s The Circle to find out. There are twists and turns, and if you’re looking for drama, there’s a little bit of that, too.