The 7 best HGTV shows available to stream, ranked

Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY
·5 min read

Everyday is an HGTV kind of day, if you want it to be.

The cable network has, like Kleenex for tissues, become synonymous with home renovation TV shows. And it's no wonder, considering how many of them it has. But not every couple with a hammer and a paint color wheel is guaranteed to make a home show as polished as a fresh flip. Even fewer real estate series are both available to stream and worth watching.

A few of HGTV's best series are among those available on Hulu, which streams the network's content (although some wonderful series are left out, like the late, great "Restored by the Fords").

So when looking for something to binge-watch for hours on end while you fold laundry, turn to these seven shows. (But don't waste your time on the grating "Flip or Flop" or the lackluster "Property Brothers" spinoffs.)

7. Home Town

So soft and wholesome you might confuse it with a meditation video, "Home Town" is on the sweetest end of HGTV's sugary spectrum, and occasionally is just a bit much. But married couple Ben and Erin Napier are so earnest as they help new families move into their small hometown of Laurel, Mississippi, you can't help but warm to them. Their penchant for money-saving DIY hacks and Erin's surprising design helps make the show more than a blatant "Fixer Upper" copycat.

6. Property Brothers

HGTV shows make many of us wish we could purchase a fixer upper and turn it into our dream home, but its best series make it more relatable by educating the audience. Drew and Jonathan Scott are perhaps the most accessible HGTV personalities, not just renovating homes but actively convincing their clients that a cheaper, imperfect fixer is better than something shiny and move-in ready. From picking out lamps to learning the correct way to pull up laminate countertops, the series is full of helpful hints, in addition to satisfying before-and-after shots.

5. House Hunters International

One of the joys of HGTV is that many of the featured home buyers and owners have budgets comparable to what many viewers can afford, making the gorgeous houses and condos seem within reach. But sometimes it's exciting to see the lavish, the outrageous and the unattainable, like many homes on this spinoff series. Although not all of them are, the locations make them feel extravagant even if an episode is about a single woman looking for a cheap rental in Italy.

4. House Hunters

The architecture and prices of "International" can be exciting, but the domestic version is just a bit more satisfying, considering many of the locales covered, from major cities to small towns, are more familiar to viewers. "Hunters" is the HGTV series that best understands its viewers' voyeuristic desires, almost inviting the audience to yell at the screen when the couple chooses the wrong house. Even if you've seen dozens of episodes, the series still can surprise, such as in a recent headline-making episode featuring a throuple.

3. Love It or List It

If you love HGTV but also a good old competition, "Love It" is the perfect choice. The series is about renovations and house hunting, sure, but it's more fun as a hilariously hyped competition between interior designer Hilary Farr and real estate agent David Visentin. Each tries desperately to get the couples they work with to either stay in their remodeled home (a win for Farr) or sell it to upgrade to something turnkey (a win for Visentin). The "surprise" endings, even if predictable, give "Love It" a little extra verve.

Karen E. Laine and her daughter, Mina Starsiak-Hawk, are the team behind HGTV's "Good Bones," which highlights their efforts to revitalize a southeast Indianapolis community one house at a time.
Karen E. Laine and her daughter, Mina Starsiak-Hawk, are the team behind HGTV's "Good Bones," which highlights their efforts to revitalize a southeast Indianapolis community one house at a time.

2. Good Bones

The best series to fill the "Fixer Upper"-sized hole in your heart, "Bones" has just the right amount of sweetness to be uplifting without getting too saccharine. A combo of a client renovation and house flipping series, "Bones" chronicles the Indianapolis mother-daughter duo of Karen Laine and Mina Starsiak. Sometimes they flip and sell, other times they redo homes for families in need of an upgrade. But their love of bright colors, their adorable relationship and keen budgeting know-how make the show practically radiate sunshine and DIY tips. They often buy crumbling houses for as little as $4,000 and put hundreds of thousands more into construction and design, so the series' transformations are some of the most dramatic on HGTV.

1. Fixer Upper

Who can argue with a classic? The brand of Chip and Joanna Gaines is far bigger than their now off-the-air series (they have their own network debuting in October, they're very busy), but there is a reason that they have rocketed to bigger heights than their HGTV cousins. "Fixer" is the ideal renovation show. The Gaineses are just better at hosting, playing off each other and designing homes than their competitors. Just look at how prevalent sliding barn doors and shiplap walls have become in the past five years. The series ran for five seasons, but there isn't a boring episode among the bunch. Even if you've seen them before, a Saturday spent with Chip and Jo is a satisfying weekend indeed.

More: Chip and Joanna Gaines on latest renovation project: Their own cable network

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: HGTV: The 7 best shows now streaming on Hulu, ranked