Every Season of Yellowstone, Ranked from Worst to Best

One of the biggest television hits in recent years is Yellowstone, created by Taylor Sheridan. The neo-western following the Dutton family is in the midst of its fifth season, escalating the melodrama and intrigue. Here are all five seasons of Yellowstone ranked.

Every Season of Yellowstone, Ranked from Worst to Best

5. Season 5

It’s hard to fully judge Yellowstone Season 5 on its own merits because, at the time of this writing, the season still isn’t complete, with its concluding episodes slated to be released toward the end of 2024. However, if anything, the prolonged mid-season hiatus has only lessened the impact of Season 5, reducing all the dramatic tension and audience investment in its storylines. The season opens with John Dutton sworn in as the Governor of Montana, with the family facing even more rivals and dangerous developments from the heightened public profile.

While Kevin Costner is reliably good in what is reportedly his final performance as John Dutton, Yellowstone Season 5 lacks the focus that made its best seasons so well-regarded. There are definitely some juicy moments in the season, including a particularly volatile Beth and the ranchers dealing with local workers using deadly chemicals, but the season is an overall step down in intensity. It’ll be interesting to see if Yellowstone Season 5 sticks the landing, but its first half doesn’t quite reach the bar set by prior seasons.

4. Season 1

The first season of Yellowstone is among its weakest as the show is still trying to find its balance in tone and the direction to take its characters moving forward. Right from the outset of introducing the Dutton family, the stakes are already high, with the family implicated in multiple murders while contending with rivals by any means necessary, including explosives. With the family in a precarious position, the Duttons circle the wagon to face threats to their livelihoods while learning who they can actually trust in their inner circle.

So much of what Yellowstone does right is apparent from its opening episodes, with its sweeping landscape shots of Montana and Utah, but the show hasn’t quite gelled together yet. The cast are all good and take to their respective roles quickly, but the inaugural season runs particularly heavy on melodrama, requiring a bit of suspension of disbelief at times. Still, a solid foundation is laid here and one that will be effectively tempered in the seasons to follow.

Related: Is Yellowstone Canceled After Season 5?

3. Season 4

The fourth season of Yellowstone is when the show starts to feel like it’s running the risk of jumping the shark a bit, which says something about how ludicrous some of the plot developments can be and why it’s not ranked higher. This season has the Dutton family become increasingly involved in politics, especially John, who begins to advance his plans to run for Governor of Montana. Meanwhile, Beth rethinks her own volatile strategy for dealing with perceived threats around her while her relationship with her devil-may-care lover, Rip Wheeler, reaches a major crossroads.

Even for Yellowstone, Season 4 is filled with some absolute mayhem, particularly the odd circumstances surrounding the wedding of Beth and Rip that reaches its culmination in the season finale. John and Jamie’s character arcs in the fourth season are much more even-keeled, at least relatively speaking, though not without their own outrageous moments. A season that largely feels like it’s running the risk of careening off the tracks, Yellowstone Season 4 stays the course, if only just barely.

2. Season 2

By Season 2, Yellowstone had really found its narrative footing and voice, moving forward with a much more confident and cohesive season than its predecessor. Each of the family steps up in their own way to defend the ranch from external threats while John’s enemies take bold moves against him. This all culminates in a bloody and escalating showdown with the family’s bitter rivals, the Becks.

Though the melodrama and seemingly unending wave of twists, turns, and ridiculous moments that defined the opening season of Yellowstone are present, they’re incorporated in a way that doesn’t take the audience out of the proceedings. That narrative and tonal balance has been achieved as has a season-long roadmap that culminates in what is arguably the best season finale the show has had so far. Having overcome its growing pains, Yellowstone avoids a sophomore slump by delivering one of its best seasons ever.

1. Season 3

Having established a firm foundation and coming back with a stronger sophomore season, Yellowstone takes even bigger swings with its third season and, fortunately, most of them connect. Family secrets are uncovered over the course of the season that shake several figures in the Dutton family to their core and threaten to upend the ranch from within. Meanwhile, new enemies and rivals surface at a time when the Duttons are at their weakest in terms of presenting a unified front.

Yellowstone Season 3 is the series firing on all cylinders, with each of the Dutton family given rewarding and interesting character arcs, each filled with their own challenges and twists. The principal has all grown effectively into their respective roles, and the threats they face in the third season aren’t as over-the-top as they generally are in other seasons. A clear example of what has made the series such a strong and growing success, Yellowstone Season 3 is compelling and violent family drama at its best.

And that’s every season of Yellowstone, ranked from worst to best.

Yellowstone is streaming on Peacock.