Who Is the Best Game Show Host Currently on TV? (POLL)
The thing about game shows is that once the sun sets on one legendary host, it rises once again with a new one and a fresh take on the previously established format. Many game shows, like Family Feud, Jeopardy!, and To Tell The Truth all have ushered in a new host a time or two due to various circumstances.
Although in most cases, it’s a smooth transition that feels pretty natural, other times it alienates the fan base and causes those to make teams for which host they prefer the most (looking at you, Jeopardy! folks.) With that in mind, we’ve decided to pose the question of who is the best game show host currently on television.
Take a look at our selection of game show hosts below and vote in the poll with your choice! Didn’t see your favorite host? Let us know who your favorite host is in the comment section!
Jane Lynch - Weakest Link
Jane Lynch currently hosts the revival of Weakest Link since 2020 and serves as its executive producer. She uses her sarcastic snark delivery from Glee to shine as a memorable host. Weakest Link will return to NBC. The network has renewed the series hosted by Lynch, based on the British game show, for a bumper third season.
Anthony Anderson - To Tell the Truth
The most recent iteration is now on the ABC network and has been hosted by Anthony Anderson since 2016. Under his tenure on the long-running show, which has seen a revolving door of hosts like Alex Trebek and Lynn Swann, many changes were made to the format. Including the addition of Anderson’s mother as scorekeeper (what a great son).
Ken Jennings - Jeopardy!
Ken Jennings is the highest-earning American game show contestant, having won money on five different game shows, including $4,522,700 on Jeopardy!, which he currently hosts, sharing duties with Mayim Bialik. He is one of the very few hosts on the list to have been a competitor, and his expansive knowledge of game shows makes him a fan favorite.
Drew Carey - The Price Is Right
Although it is impossible to replace the likes of the legendary Bob Barker, who manned The Price Is Right before many folks today were born, Drew Carey managed to make the show his own over time. When Carey began hosting, the set, theme music, and show logo were updated, which reflected the new era of the show. In 2022, Carey celebrated his fifteenth anniversary as host of the show.
Mayim Bialik - Jeopardy!
Mayim Bialik has become a fan favorite on TV shows such as Call Me Kat, Blossom and The Big Bang Theory. From May 31 to June 11, 2021, Bialik was a guest host of Jeopardy! She was such a hit that she returned as interim host before the show landed on Ken Jennings. Finally, it was announced that Bialik and Jennings would be the show’s permanent hosts in a job-sharing arrangement.
Steve Harvey - Family Feud
Steve Harvey is one of the original Kings of Comedy, a well-known stand-up comedian who had his own sitcom before transitioning to daytime talk television and radio hosting. Harvey began hosting Family Feud in 2010 and has seen improved ratings under his time. He has surpassed every previous Feud host so far in terms of length of consecutive tenures. Harvey also hosts the spin-off series Celebrity Family Feud.
Wayne Brady - Let's Make A Deal
Wayne Brady is famously known for being a regular on Whose Line Is It Anyway? Before long, he transitioned as the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show. Brady hosted the original host of Fox’s Don’t Forget the Lyrics! and has been the host of Let’s Make a Deal since its 2009 revival.
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P
Mayim isn't even the best host of her own show.
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O
Are you a Beatles fan?? 🙂
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B
Ken and Wayne are definitely the ones who got the hang of their respective shows the quickest. Drew and Steve took a little more time to warm up to audiences but eventually did so in a way that has kept each of their shows popular. Jane Lynch has done a respectable job keeping true to the spirit of the original "Weakest Link", despite the reboot's flaws. Anthony Anderson is an affable presence and has the star power, but little of that show resembles the original "To Tell The Truth." Mayim belongs nowhere near the set of "Jeopardy."
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K
What? You sound like you have a thing against women. Your bias is showing. Mayim should be Numero Uno.
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B
Well she’s currently in a distant fourth with a whopping 8% (¡ocho!)
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G
If you were really interested in talking about deserving women who belong on this list, Brooke Burns and Leah Remini should be in the conversation, with Mayim Bialik nowhere in sight.
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B
I LOVE Leah! She is really great and seems real, and they seem to have a great time!
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P
Gray used his comment to compliment Jane Lynch and you say he has a bias against women? You can't force people to compliment men or women they don't like.
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O
When 8x more people (at least by this poll) prefer one host to the other, it goes past the realm of bias and into the territory of disdain.
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B
Yeah Kay, I’m sure Jena has something against women. 🙄 The fact of the matter is that Mayim is not a popular Jeopardy host. Popular actress and personality, sure, but critically detested as a host.
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G
I would like to put in an honorable mention for John Michael Higgins for America Says.
He is SO nice and a fabulous host! I LOVE him.
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P
I'd say he's definitely better than Anthony Anderson, Jane Lynch and Mayim Bialik. Should have had a shot to at least guest host Jeopardy as well!
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K
Better than Ken Jennings for sure.
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O
I’d have voted for JMH if he was on the list. I think his improv experience makes him a great host; for one thing, of all the hosts, his improv skills make him able to be the one host who doesn’t say the Exact. Same. Things. at every intro, commercial break, etc.
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G
Thanks for replying!
I even don't mind the parts where they talk to the contestants, because he is SO nice and seems so genuine!
He's awesome!
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B
Bialik at 7%? I'm surprised there are even that many people who like her.
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O
She brings so much negative press to the show, it makes me feel like her rise to the job was not organic.
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P
It feels that way because it is exactly as you described. I'm speaking on the condition of anonymity but a friend of mine works for Sony and told me that the studio was gunning for her heavily even before she was announced as a substitute host a few years ago. Her PR team went all out to get the fluff pieces out in the press- much of which is still available online (check TMZ and WatchMojo videos). Ken only came back in a permanent role because of intense fan pressure and the support of Jeopardy's producers and staff. But the studio is secretly hoping to put her as the permanent host once her sitcom is shelved, which is why you see much of the official literature written using the language "Mayim and Ken are hosts for the 39th season", etc.
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G
Mayim Bialik showing up on this list at 6% makes me wonder who paid for at least 5% of those votes.
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C
You really can't compare these people
Some of them are 24/7 comedians. Some are actors and Ken just got lucky.
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O
Nobody was "lucky" by Alex Trebek's unfortunate diagnosis and passing, particularly when he had a few more years remaining on his contract. Ken would be the first one to admit that. What he has done is admirably step up to the host podium and honor Alex with his top-rate performance respectful of his predecessor's legacy.
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P
Drew has done a great job on The Price Is Right. He's my 2nd choice. But Ken Jennings' authenticity as a trivia guru and his warm welcoming demeanor makes him my #1 choice.
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K
Drew Carey? I don’t think so. Ken and Mayim are 50/50 split. I’m sick of this same junk over and over. Time for the trolls to move on
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R
I like Ken and Wayne the most out of this group. Steve is entertaining but the show stopped feeling like Family Feud a long time ago. Same can be said for Anthony on To Tell The Truth, though I am a fan of his movies. Drew feels bored on Price is Right and seems like he shows up to collect a check. I haven't seen Jane's version of Weakest Link so I'll abstain from sharing an opinion of her. I'm not convinced Mayim is a game show host, she seems to pretend while she's there and feels very fake on stage. She's easily my least favorite on the list and definitely towards or at the bottom of my list of game show hosts overall (and I've watched game shows for 37 years!)
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P
If anyone from this list besides Ken, Steve, Drew or Wayne wins an Emmy or any award based on performance as a game show host, I will automatically assume it was bought and paid for by that person's agent. I also agree with the other commenters that Brooke Burns, Leah Remini and John Michael Higgins were snubbed from this poll.
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O
This isn't really a fair comparison of talent, as some shows are daytime, others are primetime, and the rest are syndicated. This affects viewership, plus all the formats of these shows are different. Ken excels on a show like Jeopardy, and Wayne is perfect for Let's Make a Deal - not sure that either would do well hosting each other's show. Steve was not popular in his first years for his antics, but eventually made Family Feud his own, and in the process a very entertaining show. The only true comparison you can make is two hosts of the same show, and in this case, it is Jeopardy. Ken blows Mayim out of the water there, as reflected by the results of this poll and the ratings.
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C
Best game show host Brooke Burns
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O
Most poised for sure!
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G
Awww! I forgot, but I completely agree! LOVE Brooke!
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B
I love Ken Jennings, John Michael Higgins, Brooke Burns. I don't watch Jeopardy when Mayim Bialik is on. I just don't care for her as a host. The other shows seemed to have lost their appeal.
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O
John Michael Higgins and Brooke Burns should definitely be in the list of the most popular game show host. Both of them are terrific, but Ken jennings is still the number one.
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G
I wish there was ranked choice voting for this poll because I would choose Ken first and Wayne as a very close second.
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C
JohnMichael Higgins, Lee Remeni
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C
Pat Sajax, hands down…
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G
I chose Drew, because I think he is awesome, and treats the contestants so nicely.
I do really like Ken.
I also think Jane Lynch is PERFECT for Weakest Link and I love watching her do it.
I used to love Steve Harvey, but I can't stand him any more, and I CANNOT watch Family Feud any more.
It's HORRENDOUS.
How they can call it "Family" is beyond me when they ask questions like
"What would a stripper have on her business card?"
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C
None of these even approach the quality of hosts that became game-show legends (Bob Barker, Monty Hall, Art Fleming, Alex Trebek, Gene Rayburn, even Chuck Woolery). But I don't watch a game show because of who is hosting it. The game itself is the drawing card.
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G
Drew carey is twice the host that Bob Barker was...! And he is not a lecherous old man towards the females who work on the stage. He came very close to having legal problems over that issue. Gene Rayburn make sexist remarks on every show. Monte Hall was just plain rude to some of the contestants who worked hard to their costumes. Alex and Chuck Woolery weren't bad, though.
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C
Barker, Rayburn and Hall lived and worked in a different era. Their behavior was not only accepted but condoned. I'm not saying that is right, but I will not blame them for those actions. Still, the three of them made their shows very entertaining. Of course, like in any game show, the host is not the star. It's the contestants and the game itself.
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O
Why no mention of Wheel & Pat?
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O
"Seis" (6%) as of now! 😂
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R
They’re all number one because you get to see your favorite stars on TV all the time, and they have their own unique way to do the show
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G
Where's Marc Summers? Jack Narz? Tom Kennedy?
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O
Anthony Anderson, Jane Lynch and Mayim Bialak belong on a list of current game show hosts, not "best current game show hosts."
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B
No doubts. It's Steve Harvey. Funny man, totally capable and just a cool person to be around.
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O
Steve Harvey is the best.
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