Though the iconic animated comedy known as SpongeBob SquarePants has aired over 250 episodes across its twelve-season span, some episodes of the Nickelodeon show are certainly better than others. To give credit to the best of the best, we’re here to look at the top ten SpongeBob episodes of all time, as determined by the fans at IMDb. The popular entertainment website has given every SpongeBob episode a star rating, based on the votes of registered users on a scale of 1 to 10. Those with the highest scores will be showing up in this lineup. Yes, if you guessed all the highest-rated episodes aired across the first three seasons, you’d be correct.
With that said, it’s time to head to Bikini Bottom and get ready to laugh at the past; here are the greatest episodes of SpongeBob, according to IMDb.
Updated on September 29th, 2020, by Richard Keller: SpongeBob SquarePants continues to entertain viewers in a variety of media outlets. It’s not only kids. There are plenty of adults who cherish some time in front of a screen to watch SpongeBob and his friends frolic around Bikini Bottom. Here are a few more of the top episodes to repeatedly watch.
15 Shanghaied/Gary Takes a Bath (9.1)
From the second season comes this classic pairing that brings in numerous elements that make SpongeBob so loved. The first installment, “Shanghaied,” is introduced by Patchy the Pirate as his favorite episode. It involves SpongeBob, Squidward, and Patrick as they climb aboard the Flying Dutchman for some psychedelic adventures.
In the second episode, “Gary Takes a Bath,” SpongeBob dreads the snail’s bathtime. He tries various methods to get Gary to the bathtub; however, they fail for some reason. Eventually, SpongeBob gets his comeuppance when he ends up taking a bath.
14 SB-129/Karate Choppers (9.1)
SpongeBob SquarePants didn’t wait for later episodes to enter the surreal. As early as this season one episode, the creators took the plunge in “SB-129.” In this adventure, Squidward gets trapped in the Krusty Krab’s freezer for 2000 years. Once a futuristic SpongeBob chisels him out, the moody cephalopod can’t adjust to the changes.
The legendary “Karate Choppers” features SpongeBob and Sandy in a non-stop tale of got-yous as they try to one-up each other through karate moves. They encounter each other at the market, the Krusty Krab, and various other locations. Eventually, they end up karate-chopping everything they see at the park.
13 Club SpongeBob/My Pretty Seahorse (9.1)
This season three episode reworks a pair of literary works into animated joke-fests. In the first installment, “Club SpongeBob,” the iconic sponge and his best pals, Patrick and Squidward, get lost in a Kelp Forest. It’s there that Lord of the Flies is played out with Squidward starving while the other two get luck thrown at them.
In the second installment, “My Pretty Seahorse,” the show takes a page out of The Black Stallion. On a lovely spring day, SpongeBob meets and befriends a green seahorse he names Mystery. Though he wants to keep him secret it gets harder when Mystery causes havoc at places like The Krusty Krab.
12 Krabby Land/The Camping Episode (9.1)
In “Krabby Land,” Mr. Krabs shows his unique cheapness by opening a ramshackle playground to draw children into his restaurant for high-priced kid’s meals. After several disappointments, the kids get angry and seek revenge on Mr. Krabs for taking their money.
The second installment, “The Camping Episode,” Squidward gets into it again with SpongeBob and Patrick. This time it’s due to them camping right in front of his house. Except, they’re using their imaginations and think it’s the wilderness. So, everyone needs to be aware of sea bear attacks.
11 Pizza Delivery/Home Sweet Pineapple (9.1)
This is an early episode in the history of SpongeBob SquarePants, and it shows by the animation and character personalities. In the first installment, “Pizza Delivery,” SpongeBob and Squidward are asked to deliver a pizza made of Krabby Patties to a customer. Hence, a crazy adventure ensues.
The second installment, “Home Sweet Pineapple,” SpongeBob and Patrick try to build a new pineapple home after nematodes eat it. Of course, things don’t go as planned. He ends up spending the night with both his best friend and Squidward.
10 Sailor Mouth / Artist Unknown (9.2)
The first part of Season 2, Episode 18 — “Sailor Mouth” — has SpongeBob and Patrick discovering an inappropriate word on the dumpster outside of the Krusty Krab. Unsure of what it means, the two conclude that sea creatures say this word to make their sentences fancier. This has the best friends ending up in major trouble.
Part two — “Artist Unknown” — sees SpongeBob becoming Squidward’s lone art class student. After SpongeBob proves himself to be an art prodigy, Squidward convinces him he’s doing something wrong. Unfortunately, after an art collector shows up and falls in love with Spongebob’s work, it’s up to Squidward to get SpongeBob’s creative juices flowing yet again.
9 Snowball Effect / One Krabs Trash (9.2)
In Season 3’s “Snowball Effect,” Patrick and Spongebob engage in the most classic form of winter fun: a snowball fight. Though Squidward is at first angry about his neighbors creating a ruckus outside, he eventually fancies the idea of watching the two destroy each other. Squidward‘s dreams melt into the snow, however, after accidentally entering the fight himself.
The following segment, “One Krabs Trash,” has Mr. Krabs selling SpongeBob a soda drinking hat for $10. He quickly regrets this decision after learning its worth much more and goes to elaborate measures to get it back.
8 Arrgh! / Rock Bottom (9.3)
The first part of Season 1’s “Arrgh! / Rock Bottom” sees SpongeBob, Patrick, and Mr. Krabs embarking on a search for real treasure after playing “The Flying Dutchman’s Treasure Hunt” board game at the Krusty Krab one slow day. Though the group isn’t fit to become a pirate crew, they do their best to pull themselves together and head “weast” for adventure.
The following story has SpongeBob and Patrick boarding the wrong bus back to Bikini Bottom after enjoying a day at Glove World. They instead end up in the scary sea town of Rock Bottom. Though Patrick quickly finds a ride back home, SpongeBob doesn’t have the same luck.
7 Dying For Pie / Imitation Krabs (9.3)
In Season 2’s “Dying For Pie,” Squidward spitefully buys SpongeBob a pie for Employee Brotherhood Day, unaware that it is a bomb. Mr. Krabs informs the squid that because Spongebob has eaten it, he only has hours to live. Out of guilt, Squidward decides to give SpongeBob the greatest last day of his life.
The next part, “Imitation Krabs,” has Plankton attempting to steal the Krabby Patty secret formula by disguising himself in a Mr. Krabs robot suit. Though SpongeBob is oblivious to Plankton’s tricks, he makes his plans difficult to achieve.
6 Welcome To The Chum Bucket / Frankendoodle (9.3)
Mr. Krabs loses his best fry cook — Spongebob — in Season 2’s “Welcome to the ChumBucket.” Though he is confident he’ll beat Plankton in a game of cards, he loses a bet and is thus forced to terminate SpongeBob’s employment.
In the next half of the episode, “Frankendoodle,” SpongeBob gets ahold of a magic pencil and brings a character in his likeness, DoodleBob, to life. Though SpongeBob hopes to use DoodleBob to prank Squidward, he soon learns that the drawing has a mind of its own. It’s up to SpongeBob to stop him.
5 Graveyard Shift / Krusty Love (9.3)
The sash wringing… the trash thinging… mash flinging… Yes, the hash-slinging slasher! In Season 2’s “Graveyard Shift,” Squidward terrifies SpongeBob with a scary story about a handless fry cook one late night at the Krusty Krab. The tables turn when Squidward’s made-up tale comes to life.
In the second part of the episode, “Krusty Love,” Mr. Krabs develops a crush on Mrs. Puff. Though Krabs tries to give her the greatest date of his life, he soon struggles to decide what he desires more: romance or money.
4 Nasty Patty / Idiot Box (9.4)
In the first part of the Season 3 episode “Nasty Patty / Idiot Box,” SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs make the health inspector a disgusting sandwich, believing that he is a con man on the search for free food. The health inspector ends up knocking out after choking on a fly, but the Krusty Krab team grows concerned that they murdered him. To make things worse, they discover he’s not the impostor.
The next part, “Idiot Box,” has SpongeBob and Patrick using their “imagination” to go on a variety of adventures. It bothers Squidward that he is unable to figure out why there are so many realistic sounds coming from the box they’re playing in.
3 Wet Painters / Krusty Krab Training Video (9.5)
Mr. Krabs enlists SpongeBob and Patrick to paint his home in Season 3’s “Wet Painters.” The pair is fearful that Mr. Krabs will cut off their butts off and hang them above the fireplace if they get paint on anything. This apprehension grows after they drip paint on Krabs’ first dollar.
The following segment is the “Krusty Krab Training Video,” which prepares new employees to make a Krabby Patty. Doing so requires lots of preparation and discipline.
2 Chocolate With Nuts / Mermaidman And Barnacleboy V (9.6)
The first half of Season 3, Episode 12 — “Chocolate With Nuts” — sees SpongeBob and Patrick becoming door-to-door chocolate bar salesmen. Though they’re eager to try the entrepreneurial lifestyle, they get mixed up with a crazy chocolate fan, a sneaky salesman, and a string of lies.
In part two’s “Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy V,” Mermaid Man’s sidekick decides that he’s tired of being treated like a kid and decides to join the villains. This leads SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, and Sandy to form their own superhero team to take down the bad guys.
1 The Secret Box / Band Geeks (9.8)
Topping off the list as the highest-rated SpongeBob episode of all time is Season 2’s “The Secret Box / Band Geeks.” In part one’s “The Secret Box,” Patrick hides an embarrassing photo of SpongeBob at a Christmas party inside of a cardboard cube. SpongeBob doesn’t know what’s inside, however, and attempts to get a glimpse of the contents.
Lastly, in “Band Geeks,” Squidward tries to organize the residents of Bikini Bottom into a band to impress his high school rival, Squilliam Fancyson. Though everyone appears to be terrible at music, they shock Squidward when at the Bubble Bowl, they manage to pull off a powerful rock performance.
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