10 Best Spongebob Squarepants Episodes Of All Time, Ranked

It's hard not to love SpongeBob SquarePants (Tom Kenny), the ostensibly young adult sponge with a childlike personality, a best friend, and a passion for low-wage fast-food work and jellyfishing. That childlike innocence behind his big round eyes was a huge part of what make the little "absorbent and yellow and porous" dude's Hawaiian music-scored adventures in the undersea world of Bikini Bottom one of Nickelodeon's longest-running shows during its original run.

At its very best, "SpongeBob SquarePants" is a story about the child in all of us struggling to retain that innocence in the adult world. And with its oddball humor and experimental bending of animation tropes with details like the use of real video footage and self-referential humor, "SpongeBob" is one of the most grown-up friendly kids' shows ever made. In fact, when the show first aired, nearly 40 percent of its audience members were young adults between 18 and 34 years old.

The better "SpongeBob" episodes bring SpongeBob's innocence together with all the other things the show does well — great animation, well-placed visual and sound gags, quality storytelling, and a touch of the absurd. But the very best "SpongeBob" episodes make good use of the characters and relationships to tell a story we can all relate to even when the show is at its weirdest.

"Welcome to the Chum Bucket": The fact that SpongeBob loves his job at the Krusty Krab so much makes it that much worse when Mr. Krabs gets hustled in a poker game with Plankton after betting his star employee as part of Plankton's latest bid to get his paws on the top-secret Krabby Patty recipe. Instead, SpongeBob turns out to be such a hassle that Plankton ends up paying Krabs to take him back. It's a surprisingly emotional episode, particularly in its focus on the relationship between Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob.

"Frankendoodle": This is a prime example of how the weirder "SpongeBob" episodes are typically some of the best. When an artist in the real world drops a magic pencil, it ends up in Bikini Bottom in the hands of Patrick and SpongeBob, who use it to create a gibberish-muttering animated doodle of SpongeBob to prank Squidward with. When the SpongeDoodle takes off with the pencil, they realize they've unleashed a monster on Bikini Bottom. Cartoon mechanics do most of the heavy lifting in this bizarre episode that Tony Hawk rated his favorite, and there's even a Nintendo DS game based on the story called "Drawn to Life: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition."

"Survival of the Idiots": SpongeBob and Patrick get themselves stuck in Sandy Cheeks' treedome during her hibernation period. They can't wake her up, and any attempt to do so goes completely sideways, as she has transformed into a bear-like state after gorging herself on acorns in preparation for her deep sleep. She couldn't wake up even if she tried. As the treedome begins to freeze, the pair end up resorting to desperate measures. Although not as funny as "Dumped," "Survival of the Idiots" is a fairly solid episode with plenty of decent gags.

"Dumped": This is the true rock star of this episode pair, and it's one of the best episodes of the series. When SpongeBob's pet Gary the Snail starts to prefer Patrick over SpongeBob, the pair of besties end up ensnared in a custodial drama straight out of "Kramer vs. Kramer." To fill the void, SpongeBob adopts the feral and cantankerous Larry the Snail, which only makes him realize how broken-hearted he is over Gary.

The emotional music of this episode adds to the humor, especially when it's revealed that Gary was only interested in the cookie in Patrick's pocket. "Dumped" also spawned a famous creepypasta about a corrupted copy of the episode linked to mysterious deaths and disappearances.

"Dying for Pie": In "Dying for Pie," Squidward accidentally leaves SpongeBob a pie filled with dynamite. When he and Krabs discover the mixup, they try to retrieve it, only to find SpongeBob licking his fingers and thanking Squidward for the treat. Feeling guilty, and apparently unconcerned about proximity, Squidward tries to make SpongeBob's final hours the best they can be by helping him finish a bucket list that includes things like "knock-knock jokes" and showing his "best friend Squidward" around town in a salmon suit. The explosion scene at the end of the episode uses real bomb test footage from the post-World War II Bikini Atoll Baker explosion as part of Operation Crossroads.

"Imitation Krabs": As his latest attempt to steal the secret recipe for Krabby Patties, Plankton creates a robotic duplicate of Mr. Krabs, the titular "Imitation Krabs," that somehow fools SpongeBob. Operating the robot from inside, Plankton realizes getting SpongeBob to cough up the formula has proven trickier than anticipated. The episode's silliness reaches a fever pitch when SpongeBob is unable to tell the two apart despite the robot's obvious metallic features. The ridiculous take on the "identical imposter" trope is a blast to watch, and it's always good to see Plankton's machinations fail.

"Something Smells": Spongebob is at his absolute Pee Wee Hermanest on "Something Smells." After waking up bright and early in the mood for a Sunday breakfast sundae, SpongeBob is forced to improvise when he realizes he's out of ice cream and everything else he would need. Undeterred, he works with what he has — which happens to be a bowlful of ketchup topped in chopped onions and an entire peanut plant, dirt and all. Unbeknownst to him, the combination gives SpongeBob atrocious breath that repels everyone he meets, even his own reflection.

Convinced it's because SpongeBob is ugly, Patrick sets out to help his friend come to terms with this truth but ends up sharing some leftover sundae, causing the "ugly" to become contagious. One of the funniest episodes of the series, "Something Smells" inspired more than a half-dozen memes and the video game "SpongeBob's Stinky Swagger."

"Bossy Boots": "Bossy Boots" sees Krabs' daughter Pearl take a summer job at the Krusty Krab and immediately start overhauling the place — a transformation that includes humiliating outfits for the staff and 86ing the restaurant's signature Krabby Patties. While it's not nearly as funny as its sister episode, the many SpongeBob costume changes are most certainly a highlight.

"Graveyard Shift": While working an all-nighter, Squidward tells SpongeBob an elaborate ghost story about the Hash-slinging Slasher, a former clumsy Krusty Krab fry cook who accidentally cut off his own hand and replaced it with a rusty spatula before getting hit by a bus and fired at his funeral. As SpongeBob is quaking with fear, Squidward tells him the Slasher's ghost comes back every Tuesday night "to wreak his horrible vengeance" — but the plan backfires when they both end up freaking each other out. The emphasis on the odd-couple relationship and a surprise cameo from Count Orlok of "Nosferatu" make this a super fun Squidward-Spongebob tale that many fans consider the spookiest "SpongeBob SquarePants" episode.

"Krusty Love": "Krusty Love" finds the show's most tragic character, Mr. Krabs, setting out to romance Mrs. Puff after revealing one of the dark details hidden on "Spongebob Squarepants": what happened to Puff's husband (spoiler: he became a lamp). But when the normally thrifty spender Krabs finds himself transformed into a spendthrift in the presence of a pretty lady, things get out of control fast and he's forced to enlist SpongeBob as the hard-pressed financial manager for his romantic life. When SpongeBob can't take it anymore, he erupts in a gibberish "cursing" explosion that makes for one of the series' most hilarious moments.

"Arrgh": This episode revolves around Mr. Krab's obsession with the board game "The Flying Dutchman's Treasure Map" after getting invited to play with SpongeBob and Patrick on a slow day at the Krusty Krab. Krabs immediately becomes obsessed and takes things to the next level, showing up at SpongeBob and Patrick's place the next day with an actual pirate ship using the map from the board game. When their adventure actually uncovers the ghostly Flying Dutchman's treasure, the apparition shows up to take it from them. The episode marks the first appearance of the Flying Dutchman's Ship on the series.

"Rock Bottom": While "Arrgh" is a standard fun SpongeBob adventure, "Rock Bottom" is one of the most bizarre and creative episodes in the Sponge-canon. The whole thing kicks off when SpongeBob and Patrick accidentally hop on the wrong bus after a fun day at Glove World, and instead of Bikini Bottom, they end up in Rock Bottom — a dark and strange deep sea trench full of anglerfish and other weird creatures. Somehow, Patrick makes it out but leaves his buddy behind. Unable to catch another one, SpongeBob ends up in what he calls "advanced darkness" in a freaky place where the locals can't even understand his accent.

Together, "Arrgh" and "Rock Bottom" are responsible for three enduring memes. Besides "advanced darkness," there's Patrick's confused navigation, "East? I thought you said weast!" and Spongebob's plea, "Mr. Krabs, I wanna go to bed!"

"Chocolate with Nuts": After peeping Squidward's copy of Fancy Living Magazine, SpongeBob and Patrick decide they want a taste of the good life and set out to become entrepreneurs by selling candy bars door-to-door. Predictably, they prove truly terrible at it and instead end up buying things they don't need from the people they're meant to be selling to. That is, until they figure out how to lie about their product and become glorified snake oil salesmen. Every door they knock on reveals a fresh gag, including some of the darker humor in the series.

"Mermaidman and Barnacle Boy 5": The people of Bikini Bottom call for a hero when Barnacle Boy, the sidekick of aging superhero Mermaidman, splits to form EVIL (Every Villain is Lemons). To stop them, he enlists SpongeBob, Sandy, Patrick, and Squidward to be the new IJLSA (International Justice League of Super Acquaintances) by putting on colorful superpower-infused costumes. Another episode with plenty of humor for older audiences with plenty of great lines from one of the 10 best characters on "SpongeBob SquarePants," the episode has a blast lampooning DC superheroes and villains.

"Wet Painters": "Wet Painters" finds SpongeBob and Patrick charged with the daunting task of painting the inside of Mr. Krabs' house without getting paint on a single thing under the threat that Krabs will mount their butts on his wall if they do. Freaked out by all of Krabs' countless tchotchkes, knick-knacks, and art, the petrified pair spend hours avoiding it before somehow managing to finish the job perfectly except for a single drop of paint on Mr. Krabs' first dollar bill.

"Krusty Krab Training Video": As amusing as "Wet Painters" is with its Mr. Bean-inspired antics, "Krusty Krab Training Video" is the true gem of this episode duo. The episode is presented like a corporate fast-food restaurant training video, complete with an enthusiastic narrator (Steve Kehela) that the video's subjects (most notably Patrick) seem to react to as a disembodied voice. Naming this one of his favorite episodes, "SpongeBob" actor Tom Kenny explained (via Amazon), "'P.O.O.P. – People Order Our Patties.' Need I say more? That word being said repeatedly makes me laugh. Boy, am I mature, or what? A clever, outside-the-box episode."

Together, the episodes won music editor Nicolas 'Nick' Carr a Golden Reel Award for best sound editing in television animation — music in 2003. 

"The Secret Box": On "The Secret Box," Patrick's refusal to share the contents of his "secret box" drives Spongebob to near-madness — and the fact that Patrick can't stop looking in his box and laughing right in front of him only fuels the fire. "Inside this very box is the most secrety secret in all of Secreton," he tells SpongeBob. "And I am its sole witness!"

In his desperation to find Patrick's secret, SpongeBob info-dumps a ton of backstory, including the fact that he puts jelly on both sides of his toast and that he sometimes wears three pairs of underwear at the same time. Besides being charmingly funny, "The Secret Box" presents an awfully sweet look into SpongeBob and Patrick's longstanding friendship.

"Band Geeks": "Band Geeks" is a genuinely hilarious Squidward-centric episode. After Squidward's band class nemesis Squilliam Fancyson calls Squidward up to roast him for being a fast-food worker, Squidward ends up with an opportunity to play the coveted Bubble Bowl — if he can round up the band to do it with. A group of townspeople show up for him — or, at least for the promised free food — but their instrument experience is limited, with Plankton listing "instruments of torture" and Patrick listing "mayonnaise." Despite an absolutely disastrous rehearsal process, they end up completely killing the performance on the day, and SpongeBob's rock vocals make for one of the series' funniest scenes.

"Nasty Patty": This "SpongeBob" episode is full of details that only adults will understand. One of the series' darker episodes, "Nasty Patty" feels a lot like the true crime drama adaptation of a "Dateline" episode. Convinced they killed a health inspector, SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs try to dispose of his body and the evidence, but it proves harder than expected. It's the juxtaposition of that dark content against the backdrop of whimsical kids' animation that makes this episode so hilarious. As one IMDb review wrote, "The humor and jokes in this episode are pretty freaking great and its really funny to see a regularly kids cartoon have a episode about killing a health inspector and trying to bury his body."

"Idiot Box": "Idiot Box" is easily the most hilarious episode of "SpongeBob SquarePants" from the moment Squidward declares, "I didn't realize it was happy hopping moron day" while watching SpongeBob and Patrick absolutely lose their marbles over a mail truck delivery. And what should arrive but a giant screen television — one they promptly toss aside so they can play in the box. Although Squidward promptly curb checks the TV, he quickly becomes distracted by the realistic sound effects coming out of the box Patrick and SpongeBob have enclosed themselves in. Squidward's fixation on the box and the episode's many visual and auditory gags and puns are good to the last drop — and so is the "imagination rainbow" that launched a thousand memes.