Classic game shows are a staple of prime-time television. For those of us who still watch television, these games allow viewers to join in on the fun and compete against the contestants and anyone who is watching alongside them. However, which shows are the longest-running classic game shows?

Family Feud 

Arguably, the game show with the most memes, thanks to current host Steve Harvey, Family Feud has been on the air for 48 years.  

This classic game show has families face off against each other as they try to guess the most popular answers from a survey of 100 people. A winner is crowned when a team earns 300 points. The winning family then has the chance to play the Fast Money round for a chance at a bigger cash prize. 

The show has multiple international spin-offs from Afghanistan to Vietnam.

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune has viewers screaming at their television sets for the past 49 years. 

Three players guess hidden phrases by guessing one letter at a time, much like Hangman. Players spin to win money or other prizes depending on what they land on. To earn the prize, they must guess a correct consonant in the hidden phrase. The player who earns the most prizes moves forward to a final bonus round where they can win more prizes. These prizes include cars, vacations, and cash.

Sabado Gigante 

At first glance, Sabado Gigante doesn’t seem like a classic game show. 

Hosted by Mario Kreutzberger, or as he’s better known as Don Francisco, this variety game show held singing contests, beauty pageants, lie detector segments, and dance competitions with members of the audience. Every Saturday night, contestants competed to win a car at the end of each episode. Recently, SNL gave the show its flowers through a skit that captures the show’s jovial chaos. 

The show ran for 53 years before ending on September 19, 2015.

Jeopardy 

Most notably associated with its late host, Alex Trebek, Jeopardy is a quiz show that tests contestants on various topics each night for the chance to go home with cash prizes. 

Jeopardy has been on the air for 55 years and is a way for people to learn about topics they would not have cared to look up. I, for example, do not care for sports unless it’s an animated show. However, I learned a little bit about sports from watching the show. However, if asked about specific sports topics, I will react exactly like these contestants. 

Des Chiffres et Des Lettres (Numbers and Letters)

This classic French game show ran from September 1965 to August 2024, a month shy of its 60th anniversary. 

Two contestants face off in a series of challenges that test their numeracy and vocabulary skills. In the number round, players are given six random numbers. Using these six numbers, they must figure out the equation that gives the answer the show is asking for. In the letters round, players are given 10 random letters. They have 30 seconds to create the longest word possible to win. Afterward, players are given various challenges to get to the finale that continue to test their vocabulary and mathematic skills. 

The Price is Right

This iconic show is most known for its longtime host Bob Barker. The Price is Right has contestants guessing the prices of various items to win them and additional cash prizes. The show has been used to demonstrate the economic changes throughout the six decades it’s been on the air, suggesting that we are currently more aware of what items cost versus someone from the 1970s.

Special Mention: It’s Academic

It’s Academic is the longest-running TV quiz show featuring high school students from the Washington D.C. area. 81 schools in the Washington area are put into a single elimination tournament to crown a champion. The students are asked a series of questions to earn points. The team with the most amount of points at the end of the episode moves on to the next round until one school is left standing. 

While it isn’t as popular as the rest of the classic game shows on this list, it gets a special mention for beating out The Price is Right by a year. For 63 years, It’s Academic aired exclusively to the Washington D.C., Charlottesville, Virginia, and Baltimore, Maryland areas.