Friends is a true classic sitcom, to this day. It is very funny and rewatchable, with beloved main characters and clever storylines. The true heart of Friends was its characters, and their relationships with each other. The characters were all very well-written, with strong character development, and great development of their relationships throughout the course of the show.
Friends had very smart writing, with sharp jokes, and clever emotional storylines for the stories and the characters' individual and group arcs. The show also had many memorable quotes that were both funny and emotional. These are the 10 best Friends quotes, ranked.
Friends
TV-14
Romance
Sitcom
Where to Watch
- stream
- rent
- buy
Not available
*Availability in US
- Release Date
- September 22, 1994
- Cast
- Jennifer Aniston , Courteney Cox , Lisa Kudrow , Matt LeBlanc , Matthew Perry , David Schwimmer
- Seasons
- 10
- Studio
10 "Welcome to the real world! It sucks. You're gonna love it."
Monica Geller (Season 1, Episode 1)
The pilot episode of Friends was truly the perfect introduction to the series. It had the friends all together in the coffee shop, with Ross stressing about his divorce before Rachel suddenly showed up in a wedding dress. As Monica went on a big first date, the primary focus of the episode was Rachel adjusting to being an independent adult for the first time.
Towards the end of the pilot, Rachel separated herself from her parents by cutting up her old credit cards. Monica showed her support for Rachel by saying, "Welcome to the real world! It sucks. You're gonna love it." This is a great line, because it is the earliest example of the group supporting each other. It shows how difficult adult life can be, and how wonderful.
9 "The fridge broke, so I had to eat everything."
Joey Tribbiani (Season 6, Episode 19)
In the latter half of Season 6, Joey was living alone, after Monica and Chandler moved in together, and after Janine moved out and before he would eventually become roommates with Rachel. Like the rooming assignments of the show, Joey's acting career fluctuated a lot throughout the series. This was one of the moments where Joey was less successful while living alone, so he was struggling for money.
When Joey's fridge broke, he did not have the money to fix it. This led to a very funny line from Joey, "The fridge broke, so I had to eat everything." It is a perfect example of Joey Tribbiani's brand of logic, in how he handled the situation. He did not want to waste food, and could not think of any other possible way to handle the situation.
Chandler Bing (Season 8, Episode 17)
While every character on Friends was funny in their own right, Chandler easily had the funniest and cleverest one-liners. In Season 8, episode 17, "The One with the Tea Leaves," Rachel and Joey are extremely awkward around each other after Joey confesses his feelings for Rachel, but she does not return them. This led to a desperate Rachel looking for advice.
When Rachel turned to Chandler to ask how to handle the situation, Chandler said, "I'm not great at the advice. Can I interest you in a sarcastic comment?" Chandler's sarcasm was a very notable and essential character trait of his. However, it was especially funny to see Chandler be so self-aware of his sarcasm and his own shortcomings.
7 "He's her lobster."
Phoebe Buffay (Season 2, Episode 14)
One of the biggest parts of Friends' legacy was the on-and-off, will-they-or-won't-they relationship between Ross Geller and Rachel Green. In Season 2, Ross and Rachel almost became a couple after their first real kiss, but Rachel shortly rejected him due to her hurt over his list. Then, in Season 2, episode 14, "The Prom Video," their relationship finally shifted again, and they finally got together.
In this episode, Phoebe gave the perfect explanation of Ross and Rachel's relationship. "It's a known fact that lobsters fall in love and mate for life. You can actually see old lobster couples walking around their tank holding claws." When Rachel kissed Ross at the end of the episode, Phoebe happily declared, "He's her lobster." Friends is still known for this symbolism today.
6 "Oh, I'm sorry, did my back hurt your knife?"
Rachel Green (Season 2, Episode 2)
At the end of Season 1, Rachel found out about Ross's feelings for her, but she was dismayed when he returned from his work trip with a new girlfriend, Julie. Even worse was the betrayal in Season 2, episode 2, "The One with the Breast Milk," when Monica befriended Julie, and even went shopping with her. When Rachel confronted Monica about this, it led to a fight between the iconic Friends duo.
When Monica was upset that Rachel was upset, Rachel retorted, "Oh, I'm sorry, did my back hurt your knife?" It was a very clever play on the concept of being stabbed in the back, made especially humorous by the nature of Monica and Rachel's fight. This line was a hilarious way for Rachel to show how betrayed she felt by Monica at that moment.
5 "They don't know that we know they know we know!"
Phoebe Buffay (Season 5, Episode 1)
Perhaps the greatest risk that Friends took turned out to be one of its greatest rewards, with the relationship of Monica and Chandler in Season 5. Keeping the relationship a secret for the first half of the season was a clever way to keep tension in the show, and the payoff of the rest of the group slowly finding out was amazing. This led to one of the funniest episodes of Friends, Season 5, episode 14, "The One Where Everybody Finds Out."
When Phoebe found out about Chandler and Monica, she decided to use this opportunity to mess with them, leading to a hilarious game of chicken between Phoebe and Chandler. As Phoebe and Chandler prepared for a very awkward date, both sides were unwilling to back down. As Phoebe pointed out, "They don't know that we know they know we know!" It was a very funny and seemingly confusing line that perfectly encompassed the scheme.
4 "Don't you worry about me falling asleep; I still have your letter!"
Ross Geller (Season 4, Episode 1)
Perhaps the most devastating episode of Friends was when Rachel and Ross broke up for the first time after he cheated on her while they were on a break. They finally got back together in the first episode of Season 4, "The One with the Jellyfish," after Rachel wrote Ross a heartfelt letter, and Ross agreed to her terms. However, their happiness was short-lived. Ross fell asleep while reading the letter, so he just agreed without knowing what he was agreeing to so that he could get back together with Rachel.
When Ross actually read the letter, though, he found that he disagreed and was unwilling to take full responsibility for their breakup. Ross then shouted that they were on a break, leading to a hilarious and explosive breakup between the two of them. When Rachel suggested that Ross would have trouble sleeping without her, he fired back, "Don't you worry about me falling asleep; I still have your letter!"
3 "Okay, you have to stop the Q-tip when there's resistance!"
Chandler Bing (Season 2, Episode 1)
Chandler always had the best one-liners, particularly when it came to giving one of his friends a hard time. When Joey's lack of intelligence paired with Chandler's sarcasm, it always made for some very funny scenes. In the first episode of Season 2, "The One with Ross's New Girlfriend," Joey recommends his tailor to Chandler.
While discussing Frankie's credits, Joey made sure to tell Chandler how long he had been working, before then asking, "When was 1990?" To this, Chandler responded, "Okay, you have to stop the Q-tip when there's resistance!" It was a hilarious one-liner that played off of Joey's intelligence, where the joke relied on what was implied, rather than what was said outright.
2 "Boyfriends and girlfriends are gonna come and go, but this is for life."
Phoebe Buffay (Season 7, Episode 11)
Phoebe and Joey's friendship was one of the greatest bonds within the friend group on Friends. In Season 7, episode 11, "The One with All the Cheesecakes," it was revealed that Joey and Phoebe regularly went out to dinner just the two of them, to talk about the rest of their friends. This was very fitting for their relationship. However, Joey bailed at the last minute for a date.
Phoebe was really upset that Joey bailed, and he didn't understand why. She explained to him, "Boyfriends and girlfriends are gonna come and go, but this is for life." It was a really sweet moment, and very fitting for the show. While Friends has many funny quotes, it was also great to get a more serious quote that showed how much the friends all meant to each other.
1 "It's an electric drill! You get me, you kill me!"
Chandler Bing (Season 3, Episode 5)
Chandler and Joey's friendship was one of the true highlights of Friends. Many of the funniest jokes and scenes came from the two of them playing off of each other. In Season 3, episode 5, "The One with Frank Jr.," Joey decided to build an entertainment unit for his and Chandler's apartment. Naturally, this led to some hilarious moments, as Joey started to get on Chandler's nerves with the construction.
During the building process, Joey sawed through the door to Chandler's bedroom and continued to cause various forms of chaos in the apartment. It all came to a head when Joey was drilling through the door, and he almost drilled into Chandler's head. When Joey said, "Oh, sorry, did I get you?" Chandler responded with, "It's an electric drill! You get me, you kill me!" This line is absolutely hilarious, especially for Matthew Perry's fantastic delivery.
NEXT: The Best Phoebe Episodes in 'Friends,' Ranked
 - Shopify)