The Rookie is a unique take on the highly popular crime procedural genre, and the best shows like The Rookie follow in the same vein of providing a new spin, showcasing a comedic ensemble cast, and featuring plenty of high-stakes drama and action. Considering how bingeable cop shows can be, fans of ABC's hit series can't get enough and need something to fill the void between weekly episodes. The Rookie follows middle-aged divorcee John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), who in his 40s decides to finally follow his lifelong dream of becoming a police officer for the LAPD.

The Rookie features a stellar cast of characters whose chemistry is undeniable, and The Rookie's best episodes contain a high amount of heart-pounding action mixed with a dash of romance and relational drama. For those looking for shows like The Rookie, all these things play a factor in possibilities. From classic police stalwarts such as Law & Order to off-beat comedies like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, there are a host of great shows to tide fans over. While plenty of shows exist in the police procedural genre, only the very best have the same vibe and character-driven narrative as The Rookie.

20 Monk (2002-2009)

A Former Detective With OCD Solves Crimes

Tony Shalhoub stars as Adrian Monk, a former brilliant homicide detective who had a mental breakdown after his wife's unsolved murder. After leaving the force, he eventually becomes a private investigator and helps them solve crimes using his extreme OCD, which allows him to see anything out of place. The overarching storyline sees Monk wanting to solve his wife's murder, but the main episodes are all about him solving crimes using his brilliant investigating skills.

The entire tone of Monk is very similar to that of The Rookie. While the two shows have different detective archetypes, they never take themselves too seriously, although both shows have moments where it can get very dark when needed. Monk also has a strong legacy, and Shalhoub is just as strong of a leading man as Nathan Fillion, and they are both responsible for their show's success.

19 Bones (2005-2017)

An FBI Agent Teams With A Forensic Anthropologist

After spending years playing a vampire with a soul in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, David Boreanaz signed on to play a more realistic character as an FBI agent named Steeley Booth, who is assigned to work with forensic anthropologist Temperance "Bones" Brennan (Emily Deschanel). Much like The Rookie, these two might be the lead characters, but this is more of an ensemble, with the other investigators playing just as big of a role in both the cases and in the interpersonal storylines.

The "will they or won't they?" question played out in both shows throughout multiple seasons.

Bones and The Rookie also share the same humor and romantic storylines. The Rookie focuses on Chen and Bradford and their relationship; in Bones, it is all about Bones and Booth. Their romantic relationship is also always a strong part of their mystery-solving investigations, although it didn't become as pronounced on Bones until its later seasons. The "will they or won't they?" question played out in both shows throughout multiple seasons.

18 Criminal Minds (2005- )

The FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit

Criminal Minds is often on a different level from shows like The Rookie. While the Nathan Fillion series is often lighthearted, it also tends to bring in some serious bad guys to go up against the LAPD. However, Criminal Minds is all about dark criminals and often the worst of the worst. Many of the bad guys in this show are based on real-life serial killers, and the team has to stop them or face having innocents die, including often having to save children from dangerous situations.

With that said, the big selling point of Criminal Minds, above the deadly killers, is the relationship between the team . They have developed a close relationship, and they are there for each other time and time again. They will put their lives on the line to save each other and never think twice about it. As The Rookie moved on, it developed a similar style, with the LAPD officers having each other's backs and it being just as much about their teamwork as it is about the cases they solve.

17 Rookie Blue (2010-2015)

The Original Show About Police Rookies

The Rookie is a show about rookie police officers and the training officers who work with them. There is a lot more to the show than that, but that is the basic premise. There was a similar show from 2010 that had the same premise. Rookie Blue is a Canadian police procedural that follows a group of rookie police officers who set out to prove themselves in the field. Both shows do the same thing when they learn more about their jobs and seek to find respect from the senior officers on the force.

The show has some familiar faces in the cast, with Missy Peregrym starring before she moved on to FBI a few years later, alongside Travis Milne, years before he took on another police officer role as Detective Peyton in Chucky. Like The Rookie, this is more than a basic police procedural, as it is more about the relationships between the group of rookies, making it a perfect parallel series to The Rookie.

16 Hawaii Five-0 (2010-2020)

Police Officers Solve Crimes In Hawai'i

Hawaii Five-0 is a remake of the classic TV show Hawaii Five-O, which aired from 1968 to 1980. The new series lasted almost as long, running for 10 seasons and 240 episodes. The rebooted series exists in the same fictional universe as NCIS, Magnum P.I., and MacGyver (the latter two also reboots of classic shows). Hawaii Five-0 is very similar to The Rookie in the setup of the police officers and their relationships both on the job and in their personal lives as they go about their duties.

Alex O'Loughlin and Scott Cann star as Steve McGarrett and Danny Williams lead the cast, while the original cast also included Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park.

The series is also similar to The Rookie in that it could lose cast and still survive the losses by just moving new people into the lead roles. The series ended in 2020, around the same time that Magnum P.I. and MacGyver also ended, and it remained a popular series from start to finish on CBS.

15 CHiPs (1977 – 1983)

Two Motorcycle Cops In California

The late-'70s was a boom period for cop shows. CHiPs is looked back on fondly as a low-stakes classic and is one of the best shows like The Rookie. The series followed the day-to-day exploits of a pair of California Highway Patrolmen as they bust bad guys and try to balance their personal lives. The cases were always secondary to the interpersonal drama surrounding "Ponch" and Baker.

Like The Rookie, the audience was more invested in the characters than in the police procedural aspects, and an investment in the characters meant the other plot points were more exciting as it means the characters they've come to care for are the ones in imminent danger. Though it is cheesy by today's standards, CHiPs is nevertheless a light and enjoyable watch, with its character focus making it one of the best shows like The Rookie.

14 Blue Bloods (2010-2024)

A Team Of New York Police Officers With Family Values

Similar to The Rookie, family is at the heart of the story in Blue Bloods, and over its decade-plus on the air, family has always come first. One of the best shows like The Rookie follows the Reagan clan, a multigenerational police family headed up by Frank, the commissioner for New York City.

The Rookie viewers will love Blue Bloods' character-driven narrative, and the show offers several unique perspectives through all the different of the family. Similar to The Rookie, audiences will fall in love with the series' characters and resonate with their relatable relational struggles. Brilliantly weaving its cop stories with the family's troubles, the show is made all the more riveting thanks to Blue Bloods' intelligent and likable main characters.

13 Third Watch (1999 – 2005)

A Series Combining First Responders & Police Officers

Years before shows like 9-1-1 married the stories of police, firefighters, and paramedics together, Third Watch captivated audiences with the exact same structure, and it's one of the best shows like The Rookie. The show follows the nightly work of the men and women of NYC's 55th precinct, and the tangled web that is their personal lives.

Third Watch is very much like The Rookie in that it focuses on the uniformed officers who do most of the heavy lifting at their police precinct.

The best procedural TV shows find a fine balance between the profession in question and the actual lives of the people who do the job. Third Watch is very much like The Rookie in that it focuses on the uniformed officers who do most of the heavy lifting at their police precinct. On top of that, the inclusion of paramedics and firefighters helped set it apart from the other cop shows of the era, and provides a unique spin on the overdone procedural show, just like The Rookie.

12 S.W.A.T. (2017 — )

A Reboot Of The Classic Police Procedural

Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson of S.W.A.T. and John Nolan of The Rookie might have different life stories, but their complicated path to their jobs is the crux of both shows, making S.W.A.T. a great option for those looking for shows like The Rookie. S.W.A.T. follows the aforementioned lieutenant as he attempts to reconcile his loyalty to the streets with his loyalty to his fellow officers.

Not afraid to get political, S.W.A.T. goes where many procedurals don't dare to tread. Though it is a bit heavier than The Rookie, the character-driven narrative makes it a much more coherent watching experience, and the action is always crisp and exciting from episode to episode. People often discount how action-packed The Rookie is, and S.W.A.T. delivers that same action in spades.

11 Law & Order (1990 – )

The Original Law & Order Series

Even after a 12-year hiatus, the triumphant return of Law & Order means the show can continue to be the standard-bearer for all police procedurals, and is the blueprint for shows like The Rookie. The series follows the detectives of the NYPD as they solve murder cases and assist the DAs in getting solid convictions after the fact.

Ranked highly among the shows in the Law & Order franchise, the original is still the best in many viewers' eyes because it blazed the trail. Shows had depicted detective work before, and others had shown courtroom proceedings, but none had properly married the two together, giving a unique slant to the genre just as The Rookie does. While it is considerably less character-driven than The Rookie, the early seasons are especially dramatic for the detectives.