The BEST episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Every episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer!

In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. Buffy Summers is The Chosen One, the one girl in all the world with the strength and skill to fight the vampires. With the help of her close friends, Willow, Xander, and her Watcher Giles she balances slaying, family, friendships, and relationships.

Last Updated: 2/26/2024Network: UPNStatus: Ended
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Once More, With Feeling
star
8.95
1453 votes

#1 - Once More, With Feeling

Season 6 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/6/2001

A mysterious force impels the Scooby Gang to burst into song, revealing their true feelings. Buffy admits that she was pulled out of heaven, and she and Spike share a kiss. Musical episode, with the cast doing their own vocals.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Chosen
star
8.83
951 votes

#2 - Chosen

Season 7 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/20/2003

Buffy comes up with a plan: The gang makes an attack on the First's army, aided by Willow, who performs a powerful spell to imbue all of the Potentials with Slayer powers. Meanwhile, wearing the amulet that Angel brought, Spike becomes the decisive factor in the victory, and Sunnydale is eradicated. Buffy and the gang look back on what's left of Sunnydale, deciding what to do next...

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Becoming (2)
star
8.56
1191 votes

#3 - Becoming (2)

Season 2 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/19/1998

After Drusilla's attack on her friends which resulted in the death of Kendra and Giles' abduction, Buffy is arrested for the murder but escapes from the police. She heads to the hospital where she learns that Xander has a broken arm and Willow is left in a coma. They all realize that Giles was taken by Drusilla and Buffy prepares herself to face Angelus. After being stopped by another cop, Spike comes to her aid and convinces her that he wants to be rid of Angelus too and they form an unusual alliance. Buffy is forced to slay a vampire in front of her mother and tells her the truth but she does not want to accept it. When Buffy tries to leave to fight Angelus, Joyce tells her that if she goes she better not bother coming back. After retrieving Kendra's sword from the library she heads toward Angelus' mansion. Meanwhile, Willow wakes up and decides to try the spell again and Xander runs to Buffy's aid.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Gift
star
8.52
1022 votes

#4 - The Gift

Season 5 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/22/2001

Buffy must square off against a true god when Glory prepares to use Dawn to break down the walls between the dimensions and unleash Hell on Earth.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Graduation Day (2)
star
8.48
1089 votes

#5 - Graduation Day (2)

Season 3 - Episode 22 - Aired 7/13/1999

After their ultimate 'Fight-to-the-Death' Faith escapes from Buffy, albeit in a coma, so Buffy offers her own blood to Angel to rid his body of the poison. When she recovers the gang finally devise a plan to defeat the Mayor, rallying the students and asking for their help in fighting the resulting serpent demon before Buffy leads him into the library which has been rigged with explosives.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Tabula Rasa
star
8.46
953 votes

#6 - Tabula Rasa

Season 6 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/13/2001

Despite Tara's misgivings about her overindulgence in magic, Willow does a spell that goes awry and gives the Scoobies amnesia. This is the last straw for Tara, who breaks up with Willow and moves out.

Directors: David Grossman
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Passion
star
8.42
1133 votes

#7 - Passion

Season 2 - Episode 17 - Aired 2/24/1998

Angelus continues his obsessive torment of Buffy by visiting her during the night and leaving presents in her bed. Meanwhile Ms Calendar tries to make amends for her deceit of Buffy and Giles by attempting to translate the Gypsy curse to restore Angel's human soul, with dire consequences.

Directors: Michael Gershman
Writer: Ty King
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Body
star
8.39
1064 votes

#8 - The Body

Season 5 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/27/2001

Buffy and the gang are overcome by grief when tragedy strikes and they are robbed of someone they hold dear.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Hush
star
8.33
1392 votes

#9 - Hush

Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 12/14/1999

The entire town of Sunnydale goes silent when a group of fairy tale demons called The Gentlemen appear and steal everyone's voices. Without being vulnerable to the one thing that can kill them (a human scream) they are free to steal the hearts of seven people. Buffy and gang must solve the mystery and overcome the bad guys without being able to discuss anything.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Who Are You? (2)
star
8.32
1091 votes

#10 - Who Are You? (2)

Season 4 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/29/2000

After Faith switches bodies with Buffy via the device that was left for her by the Mayor, she begins to slip into Buffy's life. When the police try to take away Faith (Buffy in Faith's body) she is kidnapped by a special group from the Watcher's Council. As Buffy tries in vain to convince them that she is not Faith, Faith in Buffy's body is out having a good time. Willow attempts to introduce Tara to Buffy but when Tara senses that something is amiss they perform a spell which uncovers the switch. The man/demon/machine Adam has determined that his purpose is to kill and recruits some vampires to help. The vampires take over a church and both Faith and Buffy arrive to stop them. Using a Katra that Willow and Tara conjured, Buffy gets her own body back and Faith runs and disappears without a trace.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Grave (2)
star
8.27
868 votes

#11 - Grave (2)

Season 6 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/21/2002

Giles faces off with Willow, but she drains him of his powers. This much power causes her to feel all the suffering in the world, so she decides to end it — the world, that is.

Directors: James A. Contner
Writer: David Fury
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Graduation Day (1)
star
8.26
1047 votes

#12 - Graduation Day (1)

Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/18/1999

The gang receive some valuable information from old enemy Anya who has actually witnessed an Ascension. She reveals that the Mayor plans to transform himself into pure demon, something that has not been seen for thousands of years. When Angel is poisoned by Faith to distract Buffy, Buffy faces Faith for the final time in order to get the only cure to the poison: Faith's blood.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Lover's Walk
star
8.26
1123 votes

#13 - Lover's Walk

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/24/1998

Spike returns to Sunnydale a shadow of his bad-ass vampire self and kidnaps Willow so she can put a love spell on Drusilla. While he is out collecting magic spell ingredients and convincing Buffy why she shouldn't kill him, Willow and Xander lose their inhibitions in the heat of the moment only to be caught in the act by a rescue party in the form of Oz and Cordelia.

Directors: David Semel
Writer: Dan Vebber
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Villains
star
8.25
911 votes

#14 - Villains

Season 6 - Episode 20 - Aired 5/14/2002

Tara's sudden death pushes Willow over the edge. After magically saving Buffy from her own wounds, Willow — consumed by anger and dark magic — hunts down Warren and tortures and kills him.

Directors: David Solomon
Writer: Marti Noxon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Wish
star
8.22
1149 votes

#15 - The Wish

Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 12/8/1998

Wanting to be rid of Xander for good, Cordelia comes to the conclusion that Buffy is the cause of all her problems and makes a wish that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale. A demon grants the wish and Cordelia's world suddenly changes.

Directors: David Greenwalt
Writer: Marti Noxon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Fool for Love
star
8.22
918 votes

#16 - Fool for Love

Season 5 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/14/2000

When Buffy forces Spike to recount how he was able to kill two Slayers, his flashbacks reveal his first meeting with Drusilla.

Directors: Nick Marck
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Something Blue
star
8.17
1129 votes

#17 - Something Blue

Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/30/1999

Willow, in her attempt to get over Oz, casts a spell that ends up causing all sorts of chaos for the gang. Giles goes blind, Xander becomes a demon magnet, and Buffy and Spike fall in love and get engaged.

Directors: Nick Marck
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Doppelgangland
star
8.16
1149 votes

#18 - Doppelgangland

Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/23/1999

While unknowingly participating in a spell with the wish-granting demon Anyanka in order for her to get her powers back, Willow accidentally brings forth the vampire Willow from Cordelia's alternate universe. The vampire Willow sets her sights on turning Sunnydale into the vampire-ruled world she knows but when she learns of her counterpart, she decides to make Willow send her back. After trying to seduce Willow and freaking her out a bit, the vampire Willow is captured. The real Willow, dressed in her doppelganger's outfit, attempts to stop the ensuing slaughter at the Bronze and is almost killed by the vampire Willow before Buffy saves her. Giles and Anya successfully send the vampire back to her world but she arrives at the exact same moment she left, right before she is staked by Oz.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Bargaining (2)
star
8.16
634 votes

#19 - Bargaining (2)

Season 6 - Episode 2 - Aired 10/2/2001

Directors: David Grossman
Writer: David Fury
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Normal Again
star
8.13
847 votes

#20 - Normal Again

Season 6 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/12/2002

A demon's venom causes Buffy to hallucinate, convincing the Slayer that she's a normal girl in a mental ward, that her parents are alive, Dawn never existed, and her Slayer life is a delusion.

Directors: Rick Rosenthal
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Becoming (1)
star
8.12
1092 votes

#21 - Becoming (1)

Season 2 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/12/1998

Angelus' origins from being vamped by Darla in 1753, vamping Drusilla in 1860, being cursed by the Gypsies in 1898, and meeting a demon named Whistler in New York in 1996 who shows him a better way of life are revealed while Angelus prepares to awaken Acathla, an ancient demon that will suck the Earth into the Demon Dimension. Buffy and Willow find the spell to restore Angel's soul and Willow declares that she knows enough about magic to perform it. The gang almost come to blows when Xander tells Buffy outright that she doesn't care what happened to Ms Calendar, she only cares that she can get her boyfriend back. Kendra returns to Sunnydale because a dark power is rising and comes bearing a sword blessed by the knight who first slew Acathla. Angelus tries to awaken the demon but fails. Needing someone to help him with the ritual, he distracts Buffy while Drusilla goes to collect Giles. Drusilla and her friends attack the rest of the gang but only Kendra is there to defend them.

Directors: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Two to Go (1)
star
8.10
879 votes

#22 - Two to Go (1)

Season 6 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/21/2002

Buffy and Xander must protect Jonathan and Andrew, who are next on Willow's list. The Slayer is no match for Willow, who has drained Rack of all his powers. Giles arrives to test Willow's conviction that she's unstoppable.

Directors: Bill L. Norton
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Halloween
star
8.09
1183 votes

#23 - Halloween

Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/27/1997

On Halloween, Buffy, Willow and Xander are 'volunteered' by Principal Snyder to take groups of kids trick-or-treating. They get their costumes from a new store run by an Englishman, Ethan Rayne. Xander chooses a soldier outfit, Buffy buys an 18th century noblewomans dress to impress Angel; and Willow, despite Buffy's attempts to get her to dress in a sexy skirt and halter, dresses as a ghost. Unfortunately Ethan turns out to be a bad guy and casts a spell to transform everyone into their costumes, and causing Buffy and Xander to have amnesia. When Spike and his vampire gang attacks them, Willow, Giles, Angel and Cordelia team up to save Buffy and the rest from being dinner, while they also need to put a stop on Ethan's curse spell.

Directors: Bruce Seth Green
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
After Life
star
8.08
769 votes

#24 - After Life

Season 6 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/9/2001

As Buffy adjusts to life after resurrection, a shadowy presence menaces her sidekicks — a side effect of the spell cast by Willow to bring the Slayer back.

Directors: David Solomon
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Selfless
star
8.07
923 votes

#25 - Selfless

Season 7 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/22/2002

After Anya grants a particularly gruesome wish, Buffy feels that she must kill Anya. Xander tries to stop her, but the problem is solved when Anya requests to take it back and leave the vengeance demon fold.

Directors: David Solomon
Writer: Drew Goddard
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV