Family Matters (1989)

Adventure · Comedy · Drama

A long-running dramedy centering on the Winslow family, a middle-class African American family living in Chicago, and their pesky next-door neighbor, ultra-nerd Steve Urkel. A spin-off of Perfect Strangers.

IMDb rating: 6.6 (32,436 votes)
Episode average: 7.2 ↑ +0.6 vs IMDb
Seasons: 9
Streaming (US): Hulu
Language: EN
Type: TV series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

Browse shows by rating shape → Open in Rising Shows app → View on IMDb

Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 9 seasons indexed

Cast

Seasons

Season 1 (1989)

7.06 avg 22 episodes 6.7 → 6.8 25 min avg

Mid-peak

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	The Mama Who Came to Dinner	6.7	297
2	Two Income Family	6.9	243
3	Short Story	6.7	218
4	Rachel's First Date	6.9	218
5	Straight A's	7.1	209
6	Basketball Blues	6.7	199
7	Body Damage	7.1	199
8	Mr. Badwrench	6.9	198
9	Stake-Out	7.4	203
10	False Arrest	7.2	206
11	The Quilt	7.2	204
12	Laura's First Date	7.5	219
13	Man's Best Friend	7.0	188
14	Baker's Dozen	7.1	189
15	The Big Reunion	7.3	190
16	The Party	7.1	188
17	The Big Fix	7.4	192
18	Sitting Pretty	6.9	186
19	In a Jam	7.3	181
20	The Candidate	7.0	176
21	Bowl Me Over	7.2	177
22	Rock Video	6.8	175

Season 2 (1990)

7.21 avg 25 episodes 7.1 → 7.9 26 min avg

Big finale

Season 2 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Rachel's Place	7.1	179
2	Torn Between Two Lovers	7.5	170
3	Marriage 101	7.7	182
4	Flashpants	7.1	165
5	The Crash Course	7.4	166
6	Boxcar Blues	7.6	160
7	Dog Day Halloween	7.5	178
8	Cousin Urkel	7.4	166
9	Dedicated to the One I Love	7.2	157
10	The Science Project	6.9	163
11	Requiem for an Urkel	7.0	158
12	Fast Eddie Winslow	7.1	156
13	Have Yourself a Very Winslow Christmas	7.3	184
14	Ice Station Winslow	7.1	162
15	Son	6.9	151
16	Do the Right Thing	6.8	148
17	High Hopes	6.9	151
18	Life of the Party	7.4	175
19	Busted	6.8	153
20	Fight the Good Fight	7.4	197
21	Taking Credit	6.9	151
22	Finding the Words	7.6	180
23	Skip to My Lieu	7.0	150
24	The Good, the Bad, and the Urkel	6.8	154
25	I Should Have Done Something	7.9	179

Season 3 (1991)

7.12 avg 25 episodes 7.3 → 7.6 25 min avg

Rebound

Season 3 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Boom!	7.3	164
2	Brain Over Brawn	7.1	154
3	The Show Must Go On	7.0	150
4	Words Hurt	7.1	159
5	Daddy's Little Girl	6.8	148
6	Citizen's Court	7.0	151
7	Robo-Nerd	7.1	153
8	Making the Team	7.2	148
9	Born to Be Mild	8.0	194
10	The Love God	7.2	159
11	Old and Alone	7.2	145
12	A Pair of Ladies	6.9	147
13	Choir Trouble	6.5	154
14	A Test of Friendship	6.7	147
15	Jailhouse Blues	6.9	157
16	Brown Bombshell	7.2	146
17	Food, Lies and Videotape	7.1	154
18	My Broken-Hearted Valentine	7.2	156
19	Woman of the People	7.2	148
20	Love and Kisses	6.8	145
21	Stop in the Name of Love	7.2	139
22	The Urkel Who Came to Dinner	7.2	141
23	Robo-Nerd II	7.2	142
24	Dudes	7.3	144
25	Farewell, My Laura	7.6	155

Season 4 (1992)

7.19 avg 24 episodes 7.3 → 7.0 24 min avg

Mid-peak

Season 4 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Surely You Joust	7.3	149
2	Dance to the Music	7.1	143
3	Driving Carl Crazy	7.6	146
4	Rumor Has It	6.8	150
5	Number One with a Bullet	7.2	151
6	Whose Kid Is It Anyway?	6.9	156
7	An Officer and a Waldo	6.8	154
8	Just One Date	7.0	146
9	The Oddest Couple	6.9	139
10	It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Urkel	8.0	186
11	Muskrat Love	7.1	145
12	Hot Wheels	7.4	133
13	The Way the Ball Bounces	7.2	131
14	A Thought in the Dark	7.3	140
15	Tender Kisses	7.5	144
16	Heart Strings	7.2	134
17	It's a Mad, Mad, Mad House	7.1	151
18	Higher Anxiety	7.1	138
19	Mama's Wedding	7.1	142
20	Pulling Teeth	7.1	142
21	Walk on the Wild Side	7.2	171
22	Hot Stuff	7.3	143
23	Stormy Weather	7.3	138
24	Buds 'n' Buns	7.0	138

Season 5 (1993)

7.35 avg 24 episodes 7.0 → 7.2 24 min avg

Mid-peak

Season 5 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Hell Toupee	7.0	142
2	It Didn't Happen One Night	7.5	134
3	Saved by the Urkel	7.5	135
4	A Matter of Principle	7.5	134
5	Money Out the Window	7.2	130
6	Best Friends	7.1	142
7	Grandmama	7.8	171
8	Dr. Urkel and Mr. Cool	8.0	181
9	Car Wars	7.4	146
10	All the Wrong Moves	7.6	139
11	Christmas Is Where the Heart Is	7.1	157
12	Scenes from a Mall	7.3	135
13	Rock Enroll	7.2	132
14	Like a Virgin	7.2	133
15	Good Cop, Bad Cop	7.8	163
16	Presumed Urkel	7.6	150
17	Father of the Bride	7.6	134
18	Psycho Twins	7.4	134
19	That's What Friends Are For	7.2	126
20	Opposites Attract	6.7	135
21	A-Camping We Will Go	7.3	135
22	Nunsense	7.0	133
23	Aunt Oona	7.1	143
24	Stefan Returns	7.2	138

Season 6 (1994)

7.22 avg 25 episodes 7.3 → 7.5 23 min avg

Rebound

Season 6 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	To Be or Not to Be: Part 1	7.3	141
2	To Be or Not to Be: Part 2	7.3	143
3	Till Death Do Us Apartment	7.3	127
4	The Looney Bin	7.4	128
5	Beta Chi Guy	6.9	122
6	Dark and Stormy Night	6.9	137
7	Par for the Course	7.1	122
8	Sink or Swim	7.1	125
9	Paradise Bluff	7.5	127
10	Flying Blind	6.9	122
11	Miracle on Elm Street	7.5	139
12	Midterm Crisis	7.3	118
13	An Unlikely Match	7.5	123
14	The Substitute Son	7.4	128
15	The Gun	7.1	187
16	Wedding Bell Blues	7.3	115
17	Ain't Nothin' But an Urkel	6.8	126
18	My Uncle the Hero	7.2	118
19	My Bodyguard	7.6	117
20	Cheers Looking at You, Kid	6.5	117
21	What's Up Doc?	6.8	125
22	We're Going to Disney World: Part 1	7.7	135
23	We're Going to Disney World: Part 2	7.3	137
24	They Shoot Urkels, Don't They?	7.3	128
25	Home Sweet Home	7.5	120

Season 7 (1995)

7.20 avg 24 episodes 6.8 → 7.7 24 min avg

Season 7 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Little Big Guy	6.8	128
2	The Naked and the Nerdy	7.2	129
3	Bugged	7.1	122
4	Teacher's Pet	7.1	117
5	Walking My Baby Back Home	7.1	118
6	She's Back	6.9	121
7	Hot Rods to Heck	6.9	125
8	Talk's Cheap	7.1	128
9	Struck by Lightning	7.4	118
10	Best Years of Our Lives	6.9	121
11	Fa La La La Laagghh!	7.2	130
12	Friendship Cycles	7.0	121
13	South of the Border	7.3	119
14	Life in the Fast Lane	7.5	127
15	Random Acts of Science	7.4	127
16	Tips for a Better Life	6.6	122
17	Swine Lake	7.1	127
18	My Big Brother	7.2	114
19	Eau de Love	7.5	130
20	Twinkle Toes Faldo	7.4	118
21	Scammed	7.2	120
22	Dream Date	7.8	134
23	A Ham Is Born	7.3	119
24	Send in the Clone	7.7	126

Season 8 (1996)

7.00 avg 24 episodes 7.0 → 7.0 23 min avg

Season 8 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Paris Vacation: Part 1	7.0	131
2	Paris Vacation: Part 2	6.9	118
3	Paris Vacation: Part 3	7.1	118
4	Movin' On	7.1	112
5	3J in the House	7.0	123
6	Getting Buff	7.1	118
7	Stevil	7.2	166
8	Karate Kids	6.2	139
9	Home Again	6.9	113
10	Nightmare at Urkel Oaks	6.9	125
11	Chick-a-Boom	6.8	113
12	The Jury	7.1	112
13	It Came Upon a Midnight Clear	7.2	117
14	Revenge of the Nerd	7.3	119
15	Love Triangle	7.0	121
16	Father Time	7.1	122
17	Beauty and the Beast	7.3	118
18	Le Jour d'Amour	7.0	117
19	What Do You Know?	6.9	113
20	Odd Man In	6.9	111
21	Flirting with Disaster	6.8	111
22	Pound Foolish	6.9	114
23	The Brother Who Came to Dinner	7.4	110
24	A Pirate's Life for Me	7.0	116

Season 9 (1997)

7.12 avg 22 episodes 7.6 → 6.8 25 min avg

Season 9 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Out with the Old	7.6	129
2	They Shoot Ducks, Don't They?	7.0	112
3	Dumb Belle of the Ball	7.1	117
4	Drinking and Jiving	7.4	120
5	Who's Afraid of the Big Black Book?	7.2	117
6	A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Read	7.3	120
7	Stevil II: This Time He's Not Alone	6.7	148
8	Trading Places	7.4	121
9	A Pain in Harassment	7.2	121
10	Original Gangsta Dawg	6.6	130
11	Deck the Malls	7.2	137
12	Grill of My Dreams	7.1	124
13	Breaking Up Is Hard to Do	7.3	128
14	Crazy for You	7.4	130
15	Crazier for You	6.9	120
16	Whose Man Is It Anyway?	6.5	120
17	Polkapalooza	7.1	122
18	Throw Urkel from the Train	7.2	120
19	Don't Make Me Over	7.0	117
20	Pop Goes the Question	7.7	139
21	Lost in Space: Part 1	6.9	144
22	Lost in Space: Part 2	6.8	153