Decades Tier List: Ranking the 1920s to the 2020s
Every decade has a case to make: the music, the fashion, the politics, the vibe. We're ranking all eleven decades from the 1920s through the 2020s on culture, music, movies, fashion and just how much people romanticize them (or wish they'd skip them entirely).
This is a vibes-based ranking, not a GDP chart. We pulled from what people actually argue about on forums and comment sections, where the 80s vs 90s wars never really end, and added our own take when the debate was split down the middle. Disagree? That's half the fun. Rank them yourself and see where your gut lands.
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SS Tier: The decades everyone wants back
1990s
Grunge, the birth of the internet, Tamagotchis, and movies like Pulp Fiction all in one decade. No world wars, no Great Depression, just the Cold War quietly ending and pop culture exploding. It's the decade most people actually want to time travel back to, not just read about.
About 1990s
Marked by the end of the Cold War, the rise of grunge and hip-hop, the early internet, and a wave of influential independent cinema.
- Known for
- Grunge, early internet, indie film
- Tech milestone
- World Wide Web goes public
1980s
Neon, synth-pop, John Hughes movies, and the birth of MTV culture. Everyone's got an opinion on 80s music and almost all of them are positive. The fashion gets mocked, sure, but nobody skips the soundtrack at a party.
About 1980s
A decade known for synth-pop and new wave music, the rise of MTV, blockbuster teen movies, and the final years of the Cold War.
- Known for
- Synth-pop, MTV, Cold War's end
- Tech milestone
- Rise of the personal computer
AA Tier: Genuinely great eras
1960s
The Beatles, the moon landing, the civil rights movement and a cultural shift that still shapes how we think about protest and art. Heavy stuff happened here, Vietnam, assassinations, but the decade's creative energy keeps it near the top.
About 1960s
A decade of major cultural and political upheaval, including the civil rights movement, the moon landing, the Vietnam War and a musical revolution led by acts like The Beatles.
- Known for
- Civil rights movement, counterculture
- Milestone
- Moon landing, 1969
1970s
Disco gets the jokes, but this is also the decade of Scorsese, punk rock's birth, and some of the best movies ever made. Economic turmoil and gas lines hold it back from the very top, but the music and film alone earn it a high spot.
About 1970s
The decade of disco, punk rock, New Hollywood cinema, and significant economic difficulty including oil crises and stagflation in much of the West.
- Known for
- Disco, punk rock, New Hollywood
- Economic issue
- 1970s oil crisis
2000s
Low-rise jeans and flip phones aside, this is the decade that gave us the iPod, early internet culture, and a genuinely weird, fun pop landscape. 9/11 and the Iraq War weigh on it, but nostalgia for this one is climbing fast among people who grew up in it.
About 2000s
The decade of early smartphones, the rise of social media platforms, the Iraq War, and major shifts in how people consumed music and news.
- Known for
- Early internet culture, iPod
- Major event
- 9/11, 2001
BB Tier: Solid, with real highlights
1950s
Rock and roll is born, diners and drive-ins define a whole aesthetic, and postwar optimism is everywhere in the US. But it's also a decade people romanticize while conveniently forgetting how restrictive it actually was for a lot of folks.
About 1950s
A decade of postwar prosperity in much of the Western world, the birth of rock and roll, and the early Cold War, alongside the start of major civil rights activism in the US.
- Known for
- Rock and roll, postwar boom
- Cultural icon
- Elvis Presley
2010s
Smartphones went from novelty to appendage, streaming killed the DVD, and social media rewired everything. It's recent enough that nostalgia hasn't fully kicked in, but Vine, Tumblr and peak meme culture already feel like a specific, fondly-remembered moment.
About 2010s
Defined by the dominance of smartphones and social media, the rise of streaming services, and rapid shifts in political and cultural discourse worldwide.
- Known for
- Social media, streaming
- Tech milestone
- Smartphone era matures
CC Tier: Mixed bags
1930s
The Great Depression dominates the decade's reputation, and fairly so. But it's also when Hollywood's golden age really got going, with the studio system cranking out classics even as breadlines stretched around the block.
About 1930s
Dominated globally by the Great Depression, though also home to Hollywood's golden age and the rise of fascist movements in Europe that would lead to World War II.
- Known for
- Great Depression, Hollywood's golden age
- Major event
- Rise of Nazi Germany
2020s
Still being written, and so far it's been a pandemic, a lot of political chaos, and AI showing up faster than anyone expected. Too early to fully judge, but the early returns have been a lot, and not always in a fun way.
About 2020s
An ongoing decade that opened with the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued with major political shifts and the rapid rise of artificial intelligence.
- Known for
- COVID-19 pandemic, AI boom
- Status
- Still in progress
DD Tier: Rough going
1920s
Flappers, jazz and the glamour of the Gatsby image are real, but that's largely an American, largely wealthy-class story. Worldwide, it's a decade still digging out from one world war while quietly sliding toward another.
About 1920s
Known as the Jazz Age or Roaring Twenties, a decade of postwar economic boom, flapper culture and Prohibition in the US, ending in the 1929 stock market crash.
- Known for
- Jazz, Prohibition, flapper fashion
- Ended with
- 1929 stock market crash
FF Tier: Nobody's throwing a theme party for this one
1940s
World War II defines this decade almost entirely, and that's not a knock on the people who lived through it, it's just not a decade anyone looks back on fondly as a whole. The back half brings recovery and the UN's founding, but the first half is as dark as modern history gets.
About 1940s
Defined by World War II in its first half and postwar recovery and rebuilding in its second, including the founding of the United Nations.
- Known for
- World War II
- Key event
- UN founded, 1945
How we ranked them
We weighed cultural output (music, film, fashion, art), the big historical moments that defined each decade, and overall "would you want to live through this" appeal. We leaned on what fans and critics keep saying across nostalgia threads, best-of lists and retrospectives, then made the final call ourselves wherever the crowd was split.
Think we got it wrong?
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Rank these yourselfFAQ
What's the most popular decade among fans?
The 1990s and 1980s consistently top nostalgia polls and online discussions, usually trading the top spot depending on who you ask and what music they grew up on.
Why does the 1940s rank so low?
World War II dominates the decade's global memory. It's not a judgment on the era's people or achievements, just an honest look at how grim the overall period was.
Is it fair to rank the 2020s already?
Not entirely, the decade isn't over. We ranked it based on what's happened so far, which has been a mix of genuine upheaval and early uncertainty.
Why isn't the 1960s in S tier?
It's close. The music and cultural shifts are massive, but the decade also carries a lot of real turmoil, assassinations, war, unrest, that keeps it just below the very top.
Do fans agree on these rankings?
Mostly on the extremes. Almost everyone loves the 80s and 90s, and almost nobody picks the 1940s as their favorite. The middle tiers are where real arguments happen.
More rankings
Image credits
- 1990sPhoto: Evan-Amos, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- 1980sPhoto: Sue Ream, photographer (San Francisco, California), CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
- 1960sPhoto: Neil Armstrong, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- 1970sPhoto: Anders Hanser, CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
- 2000sPhoto: Blake Patterson, CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
- 1950sPhoto: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. Reproduction Number: LC-USZ6-2067 Location: NYWTS -- BIOG, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- 2010sPhoto: SpaceX, CC0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
- 1930sPhoto: Charles Clyde Ebbets, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- 2020sPhoto: Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York from United States of America, CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
- 1920sPhoto: National Photo Company Collection, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- 1940sPhoto: Victor Jorgensen, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source