Although the world of reality television has expanded massively over the past few decades, but the best seasons of Are You The One? exemplify what makes unscripted drama so watchable. Pioneer of reality TV, MTV still knows how to create some of the most fun, unique, and interesting reality TV concepts on television. One of their intriguing forays into reality TV dating shows is Are You the One?, a series that blends together romance and a cash prize that all the contestants can share if they figure out who their chosen perfect love matches are. So, which is the best season of Are You the One?

As one of the best reality shows on MTV, Are You The One? contains drama upon drama as love triangles run rampant, people are matched and unmatched, and the stakes are ramped up by different competitions. Each season offers its own twists and turns, and it's always difficult to judge based on the first episode which two people are going to end up together and win the cash prize. The latest shakeup in Are You the One? sees Kamie Crawford replace former host Terrence J for season 9. Here is the best season of Are You the One?, along with how the others rank, from worst to best.

9 Season 5

It comes as no surprise that Are You the One? ranks season 5 as the worst season in the show's history, as it has the extremely dubious distinction of being the only season where the cast lost at the final matchup and went home with nothing. Therefore, season 5 is easily the worst season of Are You the One? While in some reality shows a loss can be even more exciting than a win, this definitely wasn't the case with Are you the One? season 5.

The finale felt anticlimactic, and after investing in the cast for 10 episodes seeing nobody walk away with the money was a letdown. Even putting their final loss aside, the cast themselves weren't particularly memorable, with future The Challenge competitor Kam Williams being the only breakout star of the season. There was a fair amount of relationship drama, but ultimately most people wanted to forget the season, including the cast themselves.

8 Season 9

Audiences had to wait a total of three years for Are You the One? season 9, and it has unfortunately been an utter disappointment. The main thing to blame has been the setup of the competitions themselves. Normally, the challenges required that people pair up and compete. However, season 9 sees the men and women switch off and compete by themselves, something that really takes away from the relationship building and drama.

Definitely not the best season of Are You the One?, the new host Kamie Crawford (who also did a stint on Catfish) doesn't seem to have the same mass appeal as Terrence J. In addition, season 8 was one of the best seasons of Are You the One?, so the follow-up overall has been lackluster compared to the previous installment. The series made some bizarre decisions and formula changes that downplayed the relationship-building aspect of the show, and season 9 suffered for it. Hopefully, Are You The One? season 10 can deliver better.

7 Season 7

For the most part, season 7 was a great season of AYTO, or at the very least it had a very memorable cast with a lot of interesting and dramatic relationships. Despite not being the best season of Are You the One?, Nutsa was a standout cast member, and the drama between Tevin and Kenya, Brett and Nutsa, and the love triangle of Zak, Bria, and Morgan drove a lot of the season's narrative.

However, one twist that didn't seem to go over well with audiences was that instead of competing to go on dates, contestants were just randomly chosen for them. The twist detracted from the overall stakes, making audiences forget that the entire thing is supposed to be a competition. The randomization element also removed from contestants the ability to scheme or strategize, which was a key part of the winning Are You the One? formula.

6 Season 6

Are You the One? season 6 is highly rated, though it's not the best season of Are You the One?. It's not hard to see why audiences found season 6 it so entertaining though. Most fans of Are You the One? go into each season hoping for a lot of interpersonal drama and developments, and season 6 certainly delivered on those expectations — and then some.

Are You the One? season six stands out for its web of complex relationships. The drama between Alexis Eddy (who tragically ed away in 2020) and Keith was one of the biggest storylines, as was the love triangle between Malcolm, Nurys, and Diandra. No-match couple Clinton and Uche actually made it for the long haul, and in an iconic twist, Nurys and Diandra both moved on from Malcolm and are now best friends.

5 Season 1

Although viewers, MTV, and the contestants on the show really had no idea what was going to happen in the inaugural season of Are You the One? it seems safe to say that the drama that unraveled when these stars tried to find their perfect match was exactly what everyone was hoping to see. It's also a positive that the first season of Are You the One? isn't its best, as it demonstrates how far the show has come since 2014.

The drama between confirmed no matches Chris T and Shanley took up the majority of the storyline for the season, and Brittany's one-sided infatuation with Adam as well as Scali's romance with Paige were also memorable aspects of the season. Though it's not the best season of Are You the One?, it at least had a major success in that Ethan and Amber of the season 1 couples are the only AYTO perfect match to actually get married!

4 Season 2

Although Are You the One? was still in its infancy in 2014's season 2, the showrunners decided to introduce a twist in the competition early on. While it's not technically the best season of Are You the One?, the twist went over way better than season 7's highly controversial changes, upping the stakes of the overall game rather than diminishing them. If season 1 was the proof-of-concept, Are You the One season 2 was the blueprint for how to make that concept work.

Once again there were ten male contestants, but in Are You the One season 2 an 11th girl, Christina LeBlanc, was added to make the game more difficult. If Christina and another female contestant shared a male match, a metaphorical race was on in the Truth Booth. The first to successfully find a match would knock the other out of the contest — condemning them to leave empty-handed. It seems like a cruel twist, but as the continued success of Are You the One after season 2 shows, it worked.

3 Season 3

It's a near guarantee that any season of Are You the One? will lay the drama on thickly, but few seasons have been as intensely stuffed with romantic connections, breakups, and love triangles as season 3 was. Despite the fact that the third installment isn't the best season of Are You the One?, it's arguably the most memorable, and had the cast lost in the end it still would be regarded as among the best Are You the One? seasons (unlike season 5).

Are You the One? season 3 delivered text-book edge-of-your-seat unscripted drama. It was borderline miraculous that this cast even won the game by the time the finally aired, as they wound up putting contestant Kiki Cooper (who unfortunately spent most of the season with her confirmed no-match, Devin Walker) into the Truth Booth with five out of ten of the guys and still didn't manage to find her match until the final matchup ceremony.

2 Season 8

By the time season eight of Are You the One? rolled around, many fans and viewers had noticed that the series thus far had been extremely heteronormative. Each season consisted of at least ten cisgender men and women who were all looking for heterosexual cisgender partners. While it's not the best season of Are You the One?, season 8 certainly added the best twist to date, both making the show more inclusive and the 8th iteration of the competition formula feel fresh once again. MTV listened to the criticisms and opted to make their season 8 cast one that was completely populated by sexually fluid cast of contestants, meaning that essentially anyone could be anyone else's perfect match.

The result was one of the most beloved and exciting seasons of the entire series. It delivered on representation in a way that few reality TV shows do — especially important since Are You the One? season 8 is TV traditionally geared toward a heteronormative audience, and didn't start life as an overtly LGBTQ+ positive property like global megahit RuPaul's Drag Race. As well as being one of the best seasons of Are You the One?, season 8 was a landmark moment in television, both within the wider reality TV genre and for MTV itself.

1 Season 4

It comes as no surprise that season 4 is one of the highest-rated seasons as it was one of the most intense and dramatic seasons in the history of the series. It's almost universally considered the very best season of Are You the One?. Right from the jump, John's overly intense interest in Julia created a lot of intrigue. Fresh off the back of season 3, season 4 continued to deliver throughout and then some, which is partly why season 5 was such a disappointment.

In addition to John and Julia's fiery ion, the hot and cold relationships between bother Gio and Kaylen alongside Asaf and sca really sustained the drama for the bulk of Are You the One? season 4, creating the kind of mess that reality TV fans are almost always looking for. The perfect blend of drama, heartbreak, and intrigue makes season 4 by far the best installment of the show, as it gives everything that fans could want and more, even leading to many asking where the contestants of Are You the One? season 4 are now.