The WORST episodes of House

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

Dr. Gregory House is a maverick physician who is devoid of bedside manner. While his behavior can border on antisocial, Dr. House thrives on the challenge of solving the medical puzzles that other doctors give up on. Together with his hand-picked team of young medical experts, he’ll do whatever it takes in the race against the clock to solve the case.

Last Updated: 2/7/2024Network: FOXStatus: Ended
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Whac-A-Mole
star
7.36
2656 votes

#1 - Whac-A-Mole

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/21/2006

An 18-year-old teenager is brought to the hospital after having a heart attack. House reviews the boy's file and believes he has the diagnosis. He then turns the case into a game by sealing his opinion in an envelope and challenging Cameron, Foreman, and Chase to guess House's diagnosis on their own. Meanwhile, Tritter's actions against Wilson continue to strain the oncologist's relationship with House and destroy his ability to practice medicine.

Directors: Daniel Sackheim
Writer: Pamela Davis
Watch Now:Apple TV
Ignorance is Bliss
star
7.38
4515 votes

#2 - Ignorance is Bliss

Season 6 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/23/2009

On the eve of Thanksgiving, House and the team take on the case of James Sidas, an exceptionally brilliant physicist and author who traded his successful career for a job as a courier. For the ailing patient, intelligence is a miserable burden that has prompted depression and addiction, and this, coupled with a myriad of strange symptoms, nearly stumps the team. Meanwhile the doctors at Princeton Plainsboro wrestle with strained personal relationships.

Directors: Greg Yaitanes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Open and Shut
star
7.43
6497 votes

#3 - Open and Shut

Season 6 - Episode 18 - Aired 4/26/2010

House and the team take on the case of a woman Julia, who is in an open marriage and becomes ill during a date with her on-the-side boyfriend. As perplexing as the case is, Julia's happy and healthy, yet polygamous relationship is equally baffling to the team. Meanwhile, House tests Wilson's relationship with Sam.

Directors: Greg Yaitanes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Forever
star
7.44
2715 votes

#4 - Forever

Season 2 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/9/2006

A young mother has a seizure while bathing her newborn son and nearly drowns him. House and the team have two cases at one time as they try to save the infant and determine the cause of the mother's seizures.

Directors: Daniel Sackheim
Writer: Liz Friedman
Watch Now:Apple TV
Whatever It Takes
star
7.44
3026 votes

#5 - Whatever It Takes

Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/6/2007

Based on practically no information and no medical history about a mystery patient sent by the CIA, House is using some unorthodox methods to diagnose and treat him. Meanwhile the remaining candidates are questioning Foreman's judgment.

Watch Now:Apple TV
Ugly
star
7.44
2848 votes

#6 - Ugly

Season 4 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/13/2007

A film crew and the candidates are following around House distracting him while he is trying to diagnose a teenager who suffers from a heart attack prior to a serious plastic surgery.

Directors: David Straiton
Watch Now:Apple TV
The Jerk
star
7.45
2721 votes

#7 - The Jerk

Season 3 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/15/2007

House treats a 16-year-old chess prodigy who gets everyone on the team annoyed with his behavior. Foreman is upset with House because he thinks his boss sabotaged his job interview with another hospital.

Directors: Daniel Sackheim
Writer: Leonard Dick
Watch Now:Apple TV
Blowing the Whistle
star
7.46
5172 votes

#8 - Blowing the Whistle

Season 8 - Episode 15 - Aired 4/2/2012

The team treats an Army veteran charged with treason after he leaked classified information. But the patient's life is put at risk when he refuses treatment unless he and his brother are given information about their late father, a war veteran, which raises questions about loyalty to one's family and country. Meanwhile, Adams suspects House may be sick, so she recruits Wilson and the other team members to plan an intervention and investigate his illness.

Directors: Julian Higgins
Watch Now:Apple TV
Teamwork
star
7.46
4569 votes

#9 - Teamwork

Season 6 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/16/2009

After House’s medical license is reinstated, he reclaims his role as Head of Diagnostics in time to treat Hank Hardwick, an adult film star admitted to Princeton Plainsborough for pulsating eye pain. Meanwhile, Cuddy is reminded that Princeton Plainsborough is not conducive to healthy personal relationships.

Directors: David Straiton
Writer: Eli Attie
Watch Now:Apple TV
Adverse Events
star
7.47
3098 votes

#10 - Adverse Events

Season 5 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/30/2008

A painter's undiagnosed illness affects his work, and House and his team must look at the man's paintings to determine what's wrong with him.

Directors: Andrew Bernstein
Watch Now:Apple TV
Don't Ever Change
star
7.47
2637 votes

#11 - Don't Ever Change

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 2/5/2008

House and his team must diagnose a Jewish bride who is taken ill at her wedding. However, House is more interested in analyzing Wilson's relationship with his new girlfriend.

Directors: Deran Sarafian
Watch Now:Apple TV
Emancipation
star
7.47
3030 votes

#12 - Emancipation

Season 5 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/18/2008

While Foreman takes on a pediatric case on his own, the rest of the team deals with a 16-year-old factory manager and emancipated minor who collapses at work. When Foreman's patient takes a turn for the worse, he's forced to question whether he can deal with the situation on his own, or if he needs House's help.

Directors: James Hayman
Watch Now:Apple TV
Needle in a Haystack
star
7.48
2667 votes

#13 - Needle in a Haystack

Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/6/2007

House and his staff must deal with a teenage Gypsy boy suffering from inexplicable respiratory distress. However, House has bigger issues on his mind: Cuddy has given away his handicapped spot.

Directors: Peter O'Fallon
Writer: David Foster
Watch Now:Apple TV
No More Mr. Nice Guy
star
7.49
2761 votes

#14 - No More Mr. Nice Guy

Season 4 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/28/2008

House copes with a patient whose symptoms conceal a greater problem, but spends much of his time dodging Cuddy's orders to give performance reviews, and fighting with Amber over who gets to spend more time with Wilson.

Directors: Deran Sarafian
Watch Now:Apple TV
House Training
star
7.49
2676 votes

#15 - House Training

Season 3 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/24/2007

The doctors try to find what's wrong with a scam artist who collapses after her brain "freezes," but the case becomes personal for Foreman.

Directors: Paul McCrane
Writer: Doris Egan
Watch Now:Apple TV
Que Será Será
star
7.50
2911 votes

#16 - Que Será Será

Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/7/2006

The team encounters logistical problems while trying to run tests on a 600-pound man due to his extremely large size. Meanwhile, House spends the night in jail after being arrested by Detective Tritter for various charges, including resisting arrest.

Directors: Deran Sarafian
Watch Now:Apple TV
Small Sacrifices
star
7.51
7422 votes

#17 - Small Sacrifices

Season 7 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/22/2010

Science and faith are called into question when a patient is admitted to the hospital following his reenactment of the Crucifixion. Meanwhile, Taub questions his wife, Rachel, about her relationship with an infidelity support group member, and the team attends a co-worker's wedding where Wilson's relationship with Sam takes an unexpected turn.

Directors: Greg Yaitanes
Watch Now:Apple TV
The Choice
star
7.52
6676 votes

#18 - The Choice

Season 6 - Episode 19 - Aired 5/3/2010

The team takes on the case of an ailing groom-to-be who harbors undisclosed secrets from a previous relationship. As his fiancée tries to get answers to her many questions, a frustrated team winnows down the possibilities. Meanwhile, House spends extra-curricular time with his Princeton Plainsboro colleagues, performing a karaoke rendition of a Gladys Knight & The Pips classic with Foreman and Chase.

Watch Now:Apple TV
Massage Therapy
star
7.52
7933 votes

#19 - Massage Therapy

Season 7 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/11/2010

House and his team make unexpected discoveries about a female patient admitted to the hospital after severe and uncontrollable vomiting; House and Cuddy are forced to face the reservations in their relationship after a visit from a massage therapist.

Directors: David Straiton
Writer: Peter Blake
Watch Now:Apple TV
You Must Remember This
star
7.53
6675 votes

#20 - You Must Remember This

Season 7 - Episode 12 - Aired 2/14/2011

When a waitress with a perfect memory suffers temporary paralysis, her older sister visits her in the hospital, which triggers high stress levels and even more health complications. The patient’s sharp memory proves detrimental when a grudge she’s been holding against her sibling gets in the way of receiving proper medical treatment, and Masters discovers that patching a broken sisterhood may prove to be more complex than diagnosing the patient. Meanwhile, Foreman volunteers to help Taub prepare for a medical examination, while House, determined to help Wilson get back in the dating scene, discovers Wilson’s secret new companion.

Directors: David Platt
Watch Now:Apple TV
Black Hole
star
7.54
5694 votes

#21 - Black Hole

Season 6 - Episode 15 - Aired 3/15/2010

The team takes on the case of a high school senior who inexplicably blacks out during a class field trip. While in the hospital, the patient repeatedly hallucinates. After exhausting myriad ineffective treatments for her mysterious ailments, House attempts one last controversial approach to diagnosing her: monitoring her cognitive patterns and looking for clues. Meanwhile, Taub airs his dirty laundry at work, and Wilson attempts to furnish his condo.

Directors: Greg Yaitanes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Family
star
7.54
2432 votes

#22 - Family

Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/1/2007

Wilson prepares to transplant bone marrow from Matty to his brother Nick. But when Matty gets sick, the team must cure him as he's the only safe donor. Meanwhile Foreman deals with the consequences of his mistake and House has a battle of wills with his new pet Hector.

Directors: David Straiton
Writer: Liz Friedman
Watch Now:Apple TV
Two Stories
star
7.55
6724 votes

#23 - Two Stories

Season 7 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/21/2011

House participates in a school’s Career Day and breaks a few rules by sharing explicit medical stories. Waiting outside the principal’s office, he meets two fifth-grade students who assess House’s relationship woes and try to help him understand how his selfish antics get in the way of showing Cuddy how he really feels.

Directors: Greg Yaitanes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Perils of Paranoia
star
7.55
5656 votes

#24 - Perils of Paranoia

Season 8 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/28/2011

A prosecutor suffers from what he believes to be cardiac arrest during an interrogation at the witness stand. The team's preliminary diagnosis is hyper-anxiety, but when Adams and Park investigate the patient's home and find a hidden arsenal of firearms, they uncover a more alarming and deep-seated psychological disorder.

Directors: David Straiton
Watch Now:Apple TV
Knight Fall
star
7.55
5997 votes

#25 - Knight Fall

Season 6 - Episode 17 - Aired 4/19/2010

House and the team take on the case of Sir William, a "knight" in a closed-off community of men and women living according to the ideals of the High Renaissance. As the team searches the medieval village for environmental factors contributing to Sir William's rapidly deteriorating health, Thirteen and Sir William debate the acts that define honor and loyalty, especially in regard to the "queen" of the community, one of Sir William's most frequent visitors. Meanwhile, Wilson starts over with an ex.

Watch Now:Apple TV