The BEST episodes of The Americans (2013)

Every episode of The Americans (2013) ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The Americans (2013)!

Set during the Cold War period in the 1980s, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple in the suburbs of Washington D.C. and their neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI Counterintelligence agent.

Last Updated: 9/13/2024Network: FXStatus: Ended
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START
star
8.63
1786 votes

#1 - START

Season 6 - Episode 10 - Aired 5/30/2018

In the series finale, the Jennings face a choice that will change their lives forever.

Directors: Chris Long
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Jennings, Elizabeth
star
8.29
1677 votes

#2 - Jennings, Elizabeth

Season 6 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/23/2018

Elizabeth wrestles with competing loyalties, and Philip has an encounter that turns into much more than he had bargained for.

Directors: Chris Long
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Colonel
star
8.19
3432 votes

#3 - The Colonel

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 5/1/2013

When Philip and Elizabeth are ordered to go through with a meeting that could potentially be a set-up, they find themselves confronted with unexpected truths about their relationship. Stan's investigation puts him and the FBI even closer to Philip and Elizabeth.

Directors: Adam Arkin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Echo
star
8.02
2629 votes

#4 - Echo

Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 5/21/2014

No one is safe as Philip and Elizabeth evacuate their children while trying to complete the mission. Stan holds Nina's future in his hands.

Directors: Daniel Sackheim
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Summit
star
8.01
1623 votes

#5 - The Summit

Season 6 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/16/2018

With the arms control summit underway, a shocking revelation from Philip throws Elizabeth - and her work - into turmoil. Stan follows a dangerous hunch.

Directors: Sylvain White
Writer: Joshua Brand
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Great Patriotic War
star
7.94
1692 votes

#6 - The Great Patriotic War

Season 6 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/25/2018

As the summit fast approaches, Elizabeth enlists Philip’s help for a mission that could yield game-changing intel.

Directors: Thomas Schlamme
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
March 8, 1983
star
7.92
2287 votes

#7 - March 8, 1983

Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/22/2015

Elizabeth and Paige take a trip that lands them in treacherous territory. After an emotionally charged mission, Philip turns to an unlikely source for solace. Stan’s plan to save Nina culminates in unforeseen ways.

Directors: Daniel Sackheim
Watch Now:Amazon
Harvest
star
7.91
1640 votes

#8 - Harvest

Season 6 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/9/2018

Philip and Elizabeth come together for a perilous operation unlike any they've ever had before. Stan and Henry spend a little quality time together.

Directors: Stefan Schwartz
Writer: Sarah Nolen
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Oath
star
7.90
3407 votes

#9 - The Oath

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 4/24/2013

One of Elizabeth's agents has key intel for sale, but she and Philip find themselves taking increasingly greater risks for what could well be a set-up. Meanwhile, Stan's pursuit of Directorate S suddenly begins to yield unexpected results.

Directors: John Dahl
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Stingers
star
7.89
2272 votes

#10 - Stingers

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 4/1/2015

Philip and Elizabeth deploy a plan for the C.I.A.’s Mujahideen visitors. Tensions at the Jennings’ home escalate.

Directors: Larysa Kondracki
Watch Now:Amazon
Dinner for Seven
star
7.87
2666 votes

#11 - Dinner for Seven

Season 4 - Episode 11 - Aired 5/25/2016

Elizabeth completes the last steps of a very personal operation… but at what cost?

Directors: Nicole Kassell
Writer: Joshua Brand
Watch Now:Amazon
Dyatkovo
star
7.85
2445 votes

#12 - Dyatkovo

Season 5 - Episode 11 - Aired 5/16/2017

A surprise assignment from the Centre divides Philip and Elizabeth, forcing them into a moment of profound crisis. Stan gives Henry a tour of the FBI.

Directors: Steph Green
Writer: Joshua Brand
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
A Little Night Music
star
7.85
3020 votes

#13 - A Little Night Music

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 3/19/2014

Just when Philip and Elizabeth think they have a quiet road ahead, an old friend returns to complicate things. Not only do they have to intercept a target who could prove valuable to the Soviet Union, but they also have to take on an important rogue mission without the support of the Centre. Divisions inside the Rezidentura deepen between Oleg and Arkady and there’s an upheaval at the FBI as the chickens come home to roost for Agent Gaad. Meanwhile, Martha’s frustrations threaten to blow Philip’s cover.

Directors: Lodge Kerrigan
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Rat
star
7.84
2754 votes

#14 - The Rat

Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired 4/20/2016

Martha must finally face the truth she has denied – and her life may never be the same. Plus, a chilling new development in William’s work forces the Jennings to face the realities of what a biological war would mean.

Directors: Kari Skogland
Writer: Joshua Brand
Watch Now:Amazon
Pilot
star
7.82
5513 votes

#15 - Pilot

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/30/2013

The Americans is a period drama about the complex marriage of two KGB spies posing as Americans in suburban Washington D.C. shortly after Ronald Reagan is elected President. The arranged marriage of Philip and Elizabeth Jennings grows more passionate and genuine by the day, but is constantly tested by the escalation of the Cold War. Tensions heighten upon the arrival of a new neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI agent.

Directors: Gavin O'Connor
Writer: Joe Weisberg
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Travel Agents
star
7.81
2737 votes

#16 - Travel Agents

Season 4 - Episode 7 - Aired 4/27/2016

The KGB and the FBI both race to track down a vital agent… everything is at stake.

Directors: Daniel Attias
Watch Now:Amazon
Chloramphenicol
star
7.81
2590 votes

#17 - Chloramphenicol

Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/6/2016

A devastating flaw during a mission forces Philip, Elizabeth, William and Gabriel to confront the depths of their patriotism… and their mortality. In Russia, in striving to be a better person, has Nina put her life on the line?

Directors: Stephen Schwartz
Watch Now:Amazon
Only You
star
7.81
3238 votes

#18 - Only You

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 4/10/2013

Stan pursues a lead that puts him on the trail to one of Gregory's crew members, closing the gap between him and Elizabeth, and reigniting some of the deepest conflicts between her and Philip.

Directors: Adam Arkin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Dead Hand
star
7.81
1894 votes

#19 - Dead Hand

Season 6 - Episode 1 - Aired 3/28/2018

It’s autumn, 1987, and as a major arms control summit looms, Elizabeth is pushed to her limits as never before. Philip, meanwhile, has settled into running the newly expanded travel agency – until an unexpected visitor makes a disquieting request.

Directors: Chris Long
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Persona Non Grata
star
7.79
2699 votes

#20 - Persona Non Grata

Season 4 - Episode 13 - Aired 6/8/2016

Philip and Elizabeth are in a high-stakes race against the FBI to recover a hazardous package. Will they get there in time? And will Paige follow her parents into the family business?

Directors: Chris Long
Watch Now:Amazon
Safe House
star
7.78
3391 votes

#21 - Safe House

Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 4/3/2013

Philip and Elizabeth are put to the test when a routine mission goes horribly wrong. Stan and the FBI are pushed to their limit when one of their own goes missing.

Directors: Jim McKay (II)
Writer: Joshua Brand
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
A Roy Rogers in Franconia
star
7.77
2633 votes

#22 - A Roy Rogers in Franconia

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 6/1/2016

As Paige deals with last episode’s trauma, she sees her mother in a new light… and finds she has inherited some of her parents’ skills. Plus, has Oleg reached his breaking point with Stan?

Directors: Chris Long
Watch Now:Amazon
Comrades
star
7.77
3239 votes

#23 - Comrades

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 2/26/2014

Elizabeth comes back from her injury and straight into what should have been a routine mission – but it goes awry, leaving her and Philip in fear not only for themselves but for their whole network… and family. Paige's suspicions have only grown in her mother's absence. Meanwhile, Stan continues to fall for the Russian agent who has started to play him.

Directors: Thomas Schlamme
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Rififi
star
7.77
1640 votes

#24 - Rififi

Season 6 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/2/2018

A sudden assignment pulls Elizabeth away from her family at a crucial moment. At the FBI, a major development leads Aderholt to approach Stan about an urgent investigation.

Directors: Kevin Bray
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears
star
7.76
2654 votes

#25 - The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears

Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/4/2016

The Jennings’s approach their breaking points as both Philip and Elizabeth must handle loyal agents. Will they make it through with their patriotism – and sanity – intact?

Directors: Matthew Rhys
Watch Now:Amazon