It's hard to forget the feeling of turning on The CW at 8pm every Thursday night and hearing Stefan's opening line in The Vampire Diaries.
At first glance, the story seems like nothing more than a love triangle between a girl and two vampires. But over the course of its 8 seasons, the show proved itself to be a drama, a fantasy, a romance, and even at times historical fiction. Even though it's irreplaceable, there are other shows that have some (or all) of those elements. Shows that can give you the same feeling of magic and love, that will have you arguing with your best friend over which guy the main character should end up with.
Now that The Vampire Diaries is done for good, we have to move forward and consider other shows. To help you with the decision-making process, we've listed 20 shows that have similarities to The Vampire Diaries to help fill the void.
20 Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina Has A Witch Torn Between Two Lovers
Sabrina Spellman is half-human, half-witch, and on her 16th birthday, she finds herself having to make a choice between embracing her magical side and becoming a full witch, or leaving her human life behind, including her boyfriend. Things change when she attends a school for witches and she meets a rebellious new guy who shows an interest in her.
19 Teen Wolf Mixes Up High School Students With Supernatural Creatures
While The Vampire Diaries focuses on vampires, witches, and werewolves, Teen Wolf focuses on different monsters such as wolves, banshees, and wendigos. If you're a fan of the friendship between the characters on TVD, then Teen Wolf is right up your alley. All that being said, Stiles is one character from Teen Wolf that no one on The Vampire Diaries can compare to.
18 True Blood Is The Vampire Diaries For Adults
Being an HBO show, True Blood is far from family-friendly. But if you're not including the intimate scenes, it's one of the most similar shows to The Vampire Diaries. Both shows have a strong leading lady that isn't afraid to stand up to vampires, a love triangle between a bad guy and a nice guy, and a variety of other supernatural creatures also get involved here.
17 Just Like Damon, Lucifer Is A Bad Boy With A Good Side
We all started watching The Vampire Diaries because of the post-Twilight vampire hype, but we all continued watching it for Damon, right? Well, imagine if there was a whole show about Damon, Stefan doesn't exist, and instead of being a vampire he's actually the devil... that's basically what Lucifer is.
16 If Bonnie Went To Witch School, She’d Be Part Of The Magicians
When Quentin discovers a magical world from a children's book he read might actually exist, he gets some of his classmates at Brakebills (a school for Magicians) involved in trying to find it with him. This show can also be seen as a mature cross between Harry Potter and Narnia, but it's perfect for The Vampire Diaries fans who loved the magic.
15 The Order Brings Us Back To A World Of Werewolves And Magic
When Jack Morton becomes part of a secret society at his university, he finds out that his family has a dark past. Similarly to The Vampire Diaries, The Order puts its main character right in the middle of a battle between different supernatural creatures after the loss of his mother, but in this show, things get much darker.
14 Charmed Is About Witches That Use Their Powers For Good
If you've never seen the original Charmed from 1998, then the remake on The CW might be your next favorite show. The Charmed witches feel like they could be from the same universe as TVD, as each sister has her own unique ability but they're strongest when they work together, just like the Gemini Twins. It's filming locations are also reminiscent of Mystic Falls, despite taking place in another town.
13 Hemlock Grove Entices Viewers With Vampires, Werewolves, And Romance
Hemlock Grove has nearly every element you'd find in The Vampire Diaries, from the mysterious town to all of its magical creatures. This one isn't for the light-hearted though. While The Vampire Diaries leans more toward fantasy, Hemlock Grove is categorized as a horror, so be wary if you scare easily.
12 Being Human Is About Supernatural Beings Struggling With Humanity
Being Human follows a ghost, a vampire, and a werewolf that are all sharing an apartment together and also trying to juggle their double lives. This show captures the essence of one of the most important concepts in The Vampire Diaries, which is the desire to hold on to your humanity when you're not human.
11 Shadowhunters Throws A "Human" Girl Into A World Of Vampires, Demons, And Werewolves
When teenager Clary Fray finds out she's half-human, half-angel, her life suddenly becomes dangerous as she depends on her new demon-hunting friends to help her find her missing mother. This was the second adaptation of the book series titled The Mortal Instruments, which just goes to show how well-loved this story is.
10 Riverdale Is Dark And Mysterious Just Like TVD
Riverdale may not have vampires, witches, or werewolves, but apparently it takes place in the same universe as Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, so close enough, right? But in all seriousness, if one of your favorite aspects of TVD is the overall tone and dark setting, Riverdale shares that same vibe. That and all of the mystery and intrigue should be enough for any TVD lover.
9 Aliens Blend In With Humans In Roswell: New Mexico
If you said the premise of The Vampire Diaries but replaced the word "vampire" with "alien," you'd end up with Roswell: New Mexico. In Roswell, the main character falls in love with the mysterious guy at school who turns out to be an alien, and of course, ends up in a lot of danger. Also, Michael Trevino, who played our favorite werewolf Tyler Lockwood is on this show too.
8 Buffy The Vampire Slayer Gives Alaric A Run For His Money
You can't make a list about shows similar to The Vampire Diaries without including the OG vampire show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Just like Elena, Buffy was a brave high school student that wasn't afraid to fight a vampire. She had a love triangle with two vampires and had a close group of friends that were practically family.
7 Beauty & The Beast Is About A Woman Falling For A Monster
Beauty & the Beast manages to turn a classic tale into a darker and more intense love story. This is another CW show just like The Vampire Diaries, and it has the same theme of falling in love with someone who's a danger to you. Not only that, but who doesn't love a dark reimagining of a Disney movie?
6 V Wars Brings Ian Somerhalder Back Into The Vampire World
It seems Ian Somerhalder can't give up the world of vampires, as he's now the star of the new Netflix show V Wars. In this show, things are a little different. While he played the dark and sometimes cruel vampire Damon on TVD, on V Wars he's a human scientist. V Wars focuses on more of the biological side of vampires rather than the magic of it all, so the shows are certainly not the same.
5 Outlander Is A Fantasy Period Drama With A Love Triangle
If your favorite scenes in TVD were the flashbacks to 1864, you just might love Outlander for the same reason. Outlander follows Claire Randall, a married nurse, as she mysteriously travels back in time to 1743. In order to survive, she gets married to a different man and becomes torn between two entirely different lives.
4 Dracula Is The Real Original Vampire
Bram Stoker's Dracula was one of the first and most popular vampire stories ever told. If you've always been intrigued but haven't had a chance to get your hands on the book, there's an adaptation of the tale on Netflix. If there's one show that can cure your vampire cravings, it's the one about the vampire who inspired them all, Dracula.
3 Lost Girl Is An Underrated Fantasy/Romance
Lost Girl is a hidden gem on Netflix that's about a woman who discovers she's a succubus after an intimate moment gone very wrong. This show is one for mature audiences only and it goes over a lot of dark topics. Unlike the Vampire Diaries, this show deals with Fae, which are supernatural beings with unique ways to feed off humans.
2 Legacies Is Like TVD If They Actually Went To School
Legacies is a spin-off of both The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, but things are very different in this series. While the previous shows focused primarily on vampires, witches, and werewolves, this new show introduces a new creature in every single episode... from gargoyles to even dragons. It follows Alaric at his school for supernatural students, his twin daughters, and Klaus' daughter Hope.
1 The Originals Follows Up With Everyone's Favorite Family From TVD
The original family gave us some of the best and most memorable episodes of The Vampire Diaries. In this spin-off, you get to follow up on Klaus and his siblings, and there are even some guest appearances from major characters like Stefan, Caroline, and Alaric. For any fan that's truly missing TVD, The Originals is the most satisfying replacement.