Shows that feel likeColumbo (1971–2003)
If you loved Columbo, the closest series we have are CSI: NY (2004), The Killing (2011) and The Chestnut Man (2021). All three share Columbo's gritty and contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.
Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Alienist (2018).
If Columbo hit the spot, these will too
Episodic murder-solving you can drop into anywhere, case closed by credits
The difference: Evidence does the talking — no cat-and-mouse with the killer
A dogged, underestimated detective who won't let the case go
The difference: One murder stretched across seasons — slow-burn gloom, zero comfort
Two things both keep coming back to: detective and murder
The difference: 50 years apart, and the 2020s show
A murder case built piece by piece, with the accused always in view
The difference: Grim and ambiguous — justice grinds instead of satisfying
Methodical minds reading a killer from the traces he leaves behind
The difference: Period grime and serialized dread replace the cozy rhythm
A rumpled, written-off detective who never stops chipping away
The difference: Her broken personal life is half the show — heavier by design
You spend the case beside a suspect, weighing guilt from the inside
The difference: The detective is the boy's father — anguish, not sleuthing pleasure
A killer hiding in plain sight among people who underestimate the danger
The difference: Teen slasher thrills — closer to horror than to a chess match
Both are built on the same subject: murder investigation
An impossible-seeming case pulled apart by patient, stubborn questions
The difference: Turns supernatural — logic eventually stops being the tool
Common ground: criminal investigation
One thread runs through both: detective
In the mood for more gritty?
all gritty shows →The best-reviewed series that share Columbo’s defining feeling.
