The BEST episodes of 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing
Every episode of 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of 24 in 24: Last Chef Standing!
Featuring 24 talented and fearless chefs who take on 24 food challenges in 24 consecutive, non-stop hours, the 24-hour competition takes the chefs to the extreme, demanding they display the skills, creativity and stamina needed to be an elite chef.
#1 - Shift 6: Teamwork
Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/18/2025
Frustration and fatigue mounts in hour 16 as co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi ask the eight remaining chefs to work in teams to make a soup and sandwich, all while handling three culinary curveballs that threaten to ruin their chances at survival. After the first challenge, one team is safe while the other team is left to keep on battling. Judges Carlos Anthony and Brian Malarkey decide who will move on to shift seven.
#2 - Shift 8: Elevation Part 2
Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/31/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi challenge the final three chefs to elevate the humble weeknight family meal and cook a Michelin-worthy dish to earn the title of Last Chef Standing and win $100,000.
#3 - Shift 8: Elevation Part 1
Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/31/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi present the final five chefs with an epic obstacle course. Legendary judges Alex Guarnaschelli, Jet Tila, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten decide which two chefs will be clocking out.
#4 - Shift 7: Precision
Season 3 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/24/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi give the remaining chefs a very limited time to execute two exacting dishes. Judge Andrew Zimmern decides which three chefs advance to the final shift, and the bottom two must battle each other.
#5 - Shift 6: Final Six Take Risks
Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/24/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi challenge the remaining six weary chefs to earn as many points as possible in a shift that's all about risk-taking; judge Marcel Vigneron decides their fate.
#6 - Shift 5: Teamwork
Season 3 - Episode 5 - Aired 5/24/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi ask the eight remaining chefs to battle in teams of four, and the winning team gets some well-deserved rest. The losing team must make their best late-night eats for judges Brooke Williamson and Ayesha Nurdjaja.
#7 - Shift 4: Adaptability
Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/17/2026
Chefs often describe their jobs as being 24/7, and now Michael Symon and Esther Choi put that to the test as 24 chefs face 24 challenges in 24 nonstop hours. The chefs take on eight shifts, each testing a different skill, for a chance to win $100,000.
#9 - Shift 2: Speed
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 5/3/2026
Michael Symon and Esther Choi give the remaining chefs three challenges that test their ability to think and cook fast, including a team relay race and a 15-minute fast-food dish. Expert judge Judy Joo sends two chefs home.
#10 - Shift 1: Strategy
Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/26/2026
The chefs begin their first shift and try to impress judge Jet Tila.
#11 - Shift 8: The Final Shift Part 2
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/25/2025
After more than 20 nonstop hours, co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi ask the elite and exhausted chefs to dig deep and create an elevated lunch and an elevated dinner as their final two challenges. Judges Antonia Lofaso, Graham Elliot and Jet Tila decide which chef will walk away with $75,000 and the title of Last Chef Standing.
#12 - Shift 8: The Final Shift Part 1
Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/25/2025
There are five chefs and four challenges remaining in this epic competition of skill and stamina. In the final shift featuring elevation, co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi give the five weary finalists a challenge that will be familiar to them. This sets the course for the final three challenges, which will require making an elevated breakfast, lunch and dinner for judges Antonia Lofaso, Graham Elliot and Jet Tila. But as these chefs have come to learn, these last challenges will not be quite what they expected.
#13 - Shift 7: Risk Taking
Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/18/2025
The chefs are tired and grumpy as shift number seven begins, but they're more determined than ever to get to the final shift and have a chance at winning $75,000. Co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi present the first challenge, which features a three-way battle in spicy street food. Next, it's math time as the chefs must do some measurement calculations after being up for 19 hours! Then, the competitors make a finale-worthy fish dish for judge Andrew Zimmern to earn a spot in the final shift.
#14 - Shift 1: Speed
Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/14/2024
The first three-hour shift is designed to test one of the most important qualities a true master must possess: speed. Speed judge Jet Tila will taste and score every dish, separating the leaders of the pack from the chefs on the brink of elimination. Right out of the gate, the chefs are served up a shocking twist that sets the tone for the rest of the competition, letting them know that no one will be safe from elimination until the end.
#15 - Shift 5: Adaptability
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 5/11/2025
Hour 13 of this extreme culinary competition features unrelenting twists and turns for the exhausted chefs. First, co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi challenge the nine remaining competitors to turn snacks they find in the breakroom into dessert. Then, after being given only two minutes to shop for a lumberjack breakfast, the chefs must turn their breakfast ingredients into a different meal entirely for judge Brooke Williamson. And that's just the beginning!
#16 - Shift 4: Artistry
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/11/2025
At hour 10, fatigue has officially set in for the 10 remaining chefs, but there's no rest for the weary as they face their most creatively demanding challenges yet. First, co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi give the chefs a mere 10 minutes to turn any available produce into a beautiful plate of food that will be judged not by taste but by appearance. Then, the chefs are assigned famous works of art which they must use for inspiration. Judge Fariyal Abdullahi decides which plates of food taste the best and which plates of food look most impressive, and the chef who does the poorest job will have to clock out.
#17 - Shift 3: Resourcefulness
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 5/4/2025
The 11 remaining chefs are starting to feel the effects of cooking for seven straight hours. In a shift that tests resourcefulness, Michael Symon and Esther Choi ask the chefs to create a three-course meal worthy of a black-tie event in 60 minutes. But the chefs will have to be resourceful with more than just their time -- ingredients like strawberry milk, pimento cheese, carrot tops, dried scallops, Carolina reaper peppers and shell-on pistachios must also be incorporated into their meal. How they use the ingredients is up to them, but then it's up to judge Jet Tila to decide which chef will be clocking out.
#18 - Shift 2: Simplicity
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 5/4/2025
Co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi begin the second shift with two chefs in a head-to-head elimination battle that tests simplicity. Their assignment is to turn a basic sandwich plus three ingredients of their choosing into a fancy lunch. After judge Graham Elliot decides which chef will clock out, the 12 remaining chefs must use the simplest of tools -- their palate -- to pass a tricky test that impacts their ability to survive a second elimination challenge. It's only hour four, so the chefs are still running on adrenaline and energy ... for now!
#19 - Shift 1: Speed
Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/27/2025
Co-hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi invite 24 of America's most talented and fearless chefs to compete in an intense competition of 24 challenges in 24 nonstop hours. In the first shift, the chefs must endure three challenges testing speed. Whoever can impress judge Antonia Lofaso will survive, and whoever doesn't will be forced to clock out. When Michael and Esther introduce the all-important golden knife, the chefs learn that this epic day of cooking will be full of twists and turns. The chefs that can adjust on the fly have a chance to be the last chef standing.
#20 - Shift 8: Elevation
Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/12/2024
The four remaining chefs have survived 20 challenges and beat out 20 other chefs to arrive at this moment. In the final hours, hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi revisit an old challenge where the chefs must cook the best dishes of their lives. Whoever can stave off the final daggers of exhaustion and impress a superstar panel of judges will walk away with a $50,000 prize and an unforgettable trip to Hawaii.
#21 - Shift 7: Simplicity
Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/5/2024
As hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choir introduce hour 18 of non-stop cooking, the chefs are bruised, battered and at their breaking point. Simplicity is one of the most difficult techniques to master for any chef, and when they're this exhausted, it borders on impossible. Guest judge Brooke Williamson decides which four chefs will receive a spot in the finale, a mere four challenges and three hours away.
#22 - Shift 6: Risk Taking
Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/5/2024
Hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi begin the most devious shift of all as the chefs earn points during each challenge. They'll be tested in cooking, strategy and much more as guest judge Maneet Chauhan decides their fate. Whoever has the lowest point total at the end will have to clock out, just two shifts shy of a massive pay day.
#23 - Shift 5: Artistry
Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/28/2024
Exhaustion becomes palpable as the chefs enter hour 13 of their 24-hour competition. Hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi challenge them with the unenviable task of turning microwave meals into works of art, and that's the easy part! Guest judge Eric Adjepong will decide which of these chefs must clock out.
#24 - Shift 4: Teamwork
Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/28/2024
By the end of shift four, the remaining chefs will have been cooking for 12 consecutive hours. To make it to hour 13, Michael Symon and Esther Choi present their toughest task yet -- teamwork. Working with chefs they just met mere hours ago, the competitors have to strategize, collaborate and execute under the critical eyes of guest judges Michael and Bryan Voltaggio.
#25 - Shift 3: Resourcefulness
Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 4/24/2024
Fatigue starts to set in as the chefs face hours seven and eight in this intense culinary journey. Hosts Michael Symon and Esther Choi put forth three challenges in one where the chefs must turn one bag of ingredients into three distinct, delicious meals. This never-before-seen social experiment will be over for whoever fails to impress guest judge Scott Conant.