Romantic comedies, more commonly known as rom-coms, are frequently produced. Many of them are lighthearted and a good watch, but some include other genres like action, adventure, drama, fantasy, etc. There are many well-known romantic comedies like “The Notebook”, “10 Things I Hate About You”, “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” and so many more. I’ve watched countless rom-coms and love the classics, but some of my favorite romantic comedies are underrated. 

Here are my top 18 favorite underrated romcoms: 

18. “Life as We Know It” (2010) 

Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel star in this enemies-to-lovers movie about two people who have a strong dislike for each other after a horrible first date but share a love for their goddaughter, Sophie. They unexpectedly become Sophie’s caretakers and must learn how to parent and put aside their differences. 

This is a beautiful story that shows how unexpected circumstances can bring people together.

You can rent this movie on Amazon Prime Video. 

17. “Love Potion No. 9” (1992)

Sandra Bullock and Tate Donovan play two scientists who experiment with a potion given to Donovan’s character by a gypsy after asking her for help with his love life. The potion makes the user irresistible to anyone who hears them speak. 

This is a sweet movie about realizing you don’t need a potion to find love. 

You can rent this movie on Amazon Prime Video.

16. “Can’t Buy Me Love” (1987)

Patrick Dempsey and Amanda Peterson star in this fake-relationship trope movie where  Dempsey’s nerdy high schooler character agrees to pay for an expensive outfit Peterson’s popular character destroys if she pretends to date him for a month to make him popular. 

This movie is about realizing social status isn’t everything. 

You can rent this movie on Amazon Prime Video.

15. “Only You” (1994)

Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. star in this romcom where Tomei’s character is convinced her soul mate is a man named “Damon Bradley” because when she was a teenager, she was told by a psychic that her destiny was a man named “Damon Bradley.” Years later she receives a call from a man named Damon Bradley to wish her and her fiancé all the best. She then blows off her wedding and runs to Italy to track down Damon. 

This movie is beautiful and shows how life is unpredictable and your destiny may not be what it seems. 

You can watch this movie on Hulu or rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

14. “While You Were Sleeping” (1995)

Sandra Bullock, Peter Gallagher, and Bill Pullman star in this movie where Sandra Bullock’s character who works at a train station saves Peter Gallagher’s character from an oncoming train. At the hospital, the doctors say he’s in a coma. Sandra Bullock’s character makes a comment to the man’s family that makes them assume she is his fiance. When she doesn’t tell them she’s not his fiance, the family welcomes her into their home but when she starts to fall for the man’s brother, things get complicated. 

You can watch this movie on Disney Plus and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

13. “Serendipity” (2001)

John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale star in this movie about destiny and fate. On a beautiful winter night when in their 20s, Cusack’s character finds love at first sight but Beckinsale’s character believes in destiny. Instead of just giving him her number, she wrote it in the book she was carrying and told him she’d sell it the next day and if it ends up finding him in the future, they’re meant to be together. After 10 years, they must decide if fate brings them back together. 

This movie feels like magic and makes me believe in true love. 

You can watch this movie on Paramount Plus and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

12. “Love, Rosie” (2014) 

Lily Collins and Sam Claflin star in this emotional rollercoaster of a movie. The two play as best friends from high school, but when Claflin’s character moves from Dublin to America, their friendship is tested. Throughout the whole movie, you’re just hoping for them to be back together after all the obstacles in the way. 

This movie will take you through so many emotions. So much happens throughout the movie and you just want everything to work out. It really is a beautiful movie. 

You can watch this movie on Paramount plus and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

11. “Definitely, Maybe” (2008) 

Abigail Breslin, Isla Fisher and Ryan Reynolds star in this rom-com. Breslin plays Reynolds’s character’s daughter who wants to know what her dad’s life was like before marriage and how her newly divorced parents met. Reynolds’s character flashes back to 1992 and tells his daughter about his romances with three women but changed their names so his daughter had to guess which one became his wife and her mother. 

The way the movie tells this story is adorable and creative. It had me guessing which woman he was going to end up with the whole time and Ryan Reynolds is hilarious.

You can watch this movie on Amazon Prime Video for free with a subscription or for rent. 

10. “Jerry McGuire” (1996)

Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger star in this romcom about a sports agent played by Cruise who has a crisis of conscience and creates an honest and heartfelt company-wide memo that gets him fired. He starts his own management firm to hang onto the athletes he represents and Zellweger’s character, who’s a single mother, volunteered to join him. As they struggle to make their business succeed, they begin to fall for each other. 

This movie is adorable and such a good watch. 

You rent this movie on Amazon Prime Video.

9. “The Wedding Singer” (1998)

Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore star in this hilarious rom-com. Sandler’s character is heartbroken after being left at the altar by his fiancé and stuck working as a wedding singer. He meets Barrymore’s character who asks for his help planning her wedding. He falls for her and attempts to win her over before her wedding. 

This movie is so funny and romantic. Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore have such good on-screen chemistry. 

You can watch this movie on HBO Max and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

8. “Just Friends” (2005)

Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart star in this adorable and hilarious movie. Reynolds’s character is in love with his high school best friend Smart’s character and finally confesses his feelings, but she says she wants to stay just friends. He leaves town after high school. He becomes a successful record executive who is trying to sign a self-absorbed pop star played by Anna Farris. His plans to go to Paris for the holidays end up taking him back to his hometown and back to Smart’s character.

This is an adorable movie and Reynolds adds such a hilarious aspect. 

You can watch this movie on HBO Max and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

7. “Fool’s Gold” (2008)

Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson star in this action, adventure rom-com. McConaughey’s character is a treasure hunter. He ruined his marriage to Hudson’s character and sank his boat chasing after the legendary Queen’s Dowry. He found a clue that could be key to finding the treasure, he convinces Hudson’s character and her billionaire boss to help him. While they search for the treasure McConaughey’s character’s former mentor, played by Ray Winstone, is determined to do anything to find the treasure first.

This movie is so captivating and a fantastic action mystery rom-com.

You can watch this movie on HBO Max and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

6. “The Holiday” (2006) 

Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Jack Black star in this heartwarming holiday rom-com. This movie is my favorite movie to watch during the holiday season. It is a story of two women played by Diaz and Winslet who are having issues in their love lives and want to escape their normal lives. They swap houses one in the English countryside and the other in a Hollywood mansion. Both women meet local men who change their perspectives. 

This is such a sweet and heartwarming story.

You can watch this movie on Hulu and Paramount plus and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

5. “Before Sunrise” (1995)

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy star in this movie which is the first in a trilogy. It is a sweet spontaneous romance story. Hawke’s character is on his way to Vienna when he meets Delpy’s character, who is on her way back to Paris. After feeling a connection from their long conversations, Hawke’s character convinces Delpy’s character to get off the train with him in Vienna and spend the night wandering the city until his flight back to America in the morning. 

The best aspect of this movie is that it’s so genuine. You can really see the two characters connect with each other in ways movies don’t usually capture like their honest genuine conversations just to get to know each other. 

You can watch this movie on HBO Max and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

4. “The Proposal” (2009)

Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds star in this wonderfully humorous rom-com. Bullock’s character, a boss lady book editor, faces deportation back to Canada, so she says she’s engaged to Reynolds’s character who is her assistant. He agrees to the scheme but only if she promotes him and goes to Alaska to see his family. They have to stick to the charade due to a suspicious immigration official. 

This movie is so funny and features Betty White as Reynolds’s character’s grandmother. It’s such an entertaining movie.

You can watch this movie on Hulu and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

3. “What Happens in Vegas” (2008)

Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz star in this hilarious movie about a wild vacation in Las Vegas after Diaz’s character got dumped and Kutcher’s character got fired. The morning after the drunken night they met, they come to the realization that they married each other. To make things even more complicated, they won a huge jackpot. The judge freezes the jackpot money and tells them they must try to make their marriage work before they can get the money. 

This movie is so funny because they try to sabotage each other the whole movie to try to get the jackpot money for themselves. 

You can watch this movie on HBO Max and Hulu and rent it on Amazon Prime Video.

2. “Knight and Day” (2010)

Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise star in this action romcom where Cruise plays a covert operative that claims he was set up and when he runs into Diaz’s character on a flight out of Kansas. She then must join Cruise’s character in his adventure which takes them internationally. They learn that trust is the most important thing in a partnership. 

This is one of my all-time favorite movies. It is such a captivating story, and they still make it funny.

You can rent this movie on Amazon Prime Video.

1. “A Lot like Love” (2005)

Amanda Peet and Ashton Kutcher star in this comedic will they or won’t they romance. When Peet’s and Kutcher’s characters meet on an airplane, they feel an immediate connection but end up parting ways. Years later they are living separate lives but somehow fate brings them back together multiple times. They have this relationship dynamic where one of them feels more romantic feelings and the other one feels platonic feelings. 

This movie is such a sweet story about reconnecting with past relationships and the right person at the wrong times.

You can rent this movie on Vudu.