14 More Amazing Shows Like Workin' Moms To Watch That Also Get Real About Motherhood

If you haven’t already seen The Letdown, you are missing out. It is a very excellent Australian series about new mom Audrey, played by Alison Bell, who finds herself struggling with her role as a mom and wife and friend and trying to make it all work. Sound familiar? Audrey suffers an identity crisis that leads her to make some questionable decisions in the first season of The Letdown, but it’s not about judgement.

"We don't want to judge anyone's parenting in this show, because we're not getting it right either,” Bell told The Guardian in 2019. “The expectations are never met, that's pretty much the thrust of the show; we've been fed so many versions of motherhood and most of them are pretty glossy, particularly our generation. That's being dismantled now I think."

Watch The Letdown on Netflix.

OK, so maybe you are not a suburban mom looking to rob a grocery store with two of your friends like Christina Hendricks, Mae Whitman, and Retta in Good Girls. But doesn't it sound like so much fun to watch? Moms breaking the rules? Even Hendricks can’t get enough of the action.

“We play it very real. There are these very intense, dramatic moments that are sort of heart-wrenching and really hard," she said in 2019. "But these characters are just weirdos, and they’re out of their element, and so funny things ensue." I'm a fellow weirdo and when I think about what would happen if I tried to rob a bank (hypothetically, of course) I feel no excitement. I just get anxious and laugh about all of the mistakes I would make.” Who doesn’t want to watch these “weirdos?”

Watch Good Girls on Netflix.

You've probably already watched Modern Family, of course you have. It was on ABC for 11 years, after all. But watch it again through the lens of a mom. It changes everything and trust me. Suddenly Phil Dunphy will seem like the man of your dreams because he's just so present with his kids. And Claire Dunphy’s struggles to deal with her kids getting older even as she’s trying to manage her relationships with her brother, her dad, her husband, and everyone else around her feel very real. Yes, Modern Family was a funny series full of interesting characters, but it also had heart. And sometimes you need a bit of both.

Watch Modern Family on Peacock.

SMILF on Showtime (which stands for single mother I'd like to f**k or Southie for South Boston, apparently) was created by its star Frankie Shaw. The show follows Bridgette as she learns her way as a single mom and co-stars Rosie O'Donnell as Bridgette's mom Tutu. It was cancelled last year after just two seasons, but it's still worth a watch. The show was nominated for a Golden Globe in 2018, after all, for Best Television Series — Musical or Comedy. Frankie Shaw, also received a nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Musical or Comedy, so that should tell you everything you need to know.

Watch SMILF on Showtime.

Black-ish on ABC starring Anthony Anderson and the amazing Tracee Ellis Ross is a hilarious, light, easy-watching depiction of a family raising their kids in the suburbs. It’s time to give Black-ish a rewatch as the show is heading into its eighth and final season.

“In this day and age it is rare to get to decide when your show should come to an end,” Black-ish creator Kenya Barris wrote in a May Instagram announcing the show’s final season, “and we are grateful along with ABC to be able to make this final season exactly what we’d hoped for – and to do it with the entire and AMAZINGLY STELLAR cast coming back to close this chapter out with us the right way!”

Watch Black-ish on Hulu.

Comedian Andrea Savage created something fun and real with her truTV series I'm Sorry, especially when she's explaining "vagina holes" to her small daughter. I’m Sorry is all about trying to navigate the complicated world of parenting, perhaps especially trying to maintain friendships with other parents and hold on to your own sense of self and not messing up your kid in the process. Also please watch if only for some fantastic cameos from hilarious comedians who bring their A game.

Watch I’m Sorry on HBO Max.

I remain a fan of HBO's Big Little Lies. Sure, the lives of the mothers in Monterey, California played by Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Zoe Kravitz, Laura Dern, and Shailene Woodley aren't entirely relatable, but the mystery and the gorgeous scenery and the acting will take you out of your regular life for a few hours and sometimes that's all you need. There are two seasons of Big Little Lies to watch, and while the second season does feature Meryl Streep playing Nicole Kidman’s former mother-in-law, definitely throw your precious time into the first season if you have to make a choice. It’s just that much better. Still watch the second season, though, if only to be prepared for the third which is being concocted.

Watch Big Little Lies on HBO Max.

Parenthood was really ahead of its time when it came to making the lives of mothers seem exactly as complex and dramatic and nuanced as they actually are. The NBC series following four siblings raising their kids in various combinations and also dealing with their parents and their relationships. They grapple with troubled teens, careers, infidelity, and a child on the Autism spectrum in a way that feels very real. It's busy, complicated, stars Lauren Graham as a single mom, and is worth watching over and over again.

Watch Parenthood on Hulu.

It’s time to revisit Jane the Virgin. It’s been eight years since the ingenious series first premiered on the CW, so let’s cast our minds back shall we? Jane the Virgin follows Jane as she discovers she is going to be a mom despite the fact that she's never had sex. Gina Rodriguez is a delight as Jane, and a story that could come across as a bit contrived is actually delightful. The series ran for five seasons and ended in such an emotional, satisfying way that you are going to want to rewatch right from the beginning just to get that big old emotional hit.

Watch Jane The Virgin on Netflix.

Dr. Mindy Lahiri on Hulu's The Mindy Project didn't become a mom until later on in the series, but when she does become a mom to baby Leo, her work/life balance feels very real. As well as her struggles with boyfriend Danny (Chris Messina), who pressures her to stay home with their child. Perhaps one of the most important ways that The Mindy Project echoes Workin’ Moms is that Mindy’s life does not revolve around being a mom. Far from it. She remains passionate about her work as an OB/GYN and continues to build her career and she never apologizes for loving both her baby and her work. And rom-coms.

Watch The Mindy Project on Hulu.

If you like an ensemble comedy about single parents trying to raise their kids and support each other and get into fun hijinx, you'll love Single Parents. Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester plays Angie, a single mom of one whose son might be slightly too attached to her. Fun fact, Meester’s husband Adam Brody plays the irresponsible father of her son on the series, and apparently he’s so good at it she has a hard time separating his character from reality. “He is the baby daddy. In real life and not real life," Meester told Refinery29. "Sometimes I'll be like, Oh yeah, I forgot I'm married to you.”

Watch Single Parents on Apple TV+.

Trying is a British comedy series about the often difficult process of adoption. Nikki and Jason are a married couple who discover they can't have a baby and decide to adopt. And that's when things get complicated... but funny.

“All Nikki and Jason want is a baby — but it’s the one thing they just can’t have. How are they going to fill the next 50 years if they can’t start a family? They already went through The Sopranos in a weekend," the show's synopsis reads. "After ruling out every other option, Nikki and Jason decide to adopt and are confronted by a world of bewildering new challenges. With their dysfunctional friends, screwball family, and chaotic lives, will the adoption panel agree that they’re ready to be parents?"

Watch Trying on AppleTV+.

Hear me out here; yes Maid was about a young single mom who is struggling with issues that are far more serious than anything you’ll see on Workin’ Moms. Young mom Alex leaves an emotionally abusive relationship in the middle of the night with her young daughter, no money, no help, no job, no hope. But she never stops wanting more. Maid is sadly more realistic for many moms than Workin’ Moms. The 2021 limited series is a reminder that there are moms out there who seem like they have nothing but will do whatever it takes to make a better life for their kids.

Watch Maid on Netflix.

Catastrophe is a real hidden gem of a television series. An American advertising executive named Rob meets an Irish school teacher named Sharon and they have a fling that results in a baby. They don’t know each other but they decide to try to make it work; and this is just the first two episodes. Catastrophe examines what the long game looks like for two people who barely know each other become parents and decide to stay together. It’s messy and sweet and funny and weirdly on the nose, and there are four whole seasons of it to enjoy. Trust me, you’ll fall in love with this series where everyone is beautifully flawed, especially parents.

Watch Catastrophe on Amazon Prime.