26 Comedians to Watch in 2026
Comedy comes from everywhere, all at once. These days, it’s coming from comics building audiences online and selling out rooms offline, writers slipping among satire, standup, and solo shows, and performers refusing to choose between funny and meaningful.
This list is about who’s hitting a new level, quietly reshaping the form, or about to break much bigger. Some are industry favorites, some are audience-built, and some are doing work that simply feels inevitable. All are worth your attention.
🚀 On the rise
Leah Rudick
You may have met Leah online first, but the real story is what’s happening onstage IRL. Her character work has translated into sold-out shows and a growing live following—proof that hers isn’t just viral comedy, it’s a sustainable career that is just getting started (by popping right off!).
Laura Ramoso
Character comedy that crosses international borders this cleanly is rare. After Laura slayed multiple sold-out international tours and opening for Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, we assumed she’d slow down. But her hyper-specific cultural impressions have created momentum that is turning into arena-level success.
Jiaoying Summers
There’s nothing tentative about Jiaoying’s rise. She’s a powerhouse! With a completed hour, another special filming, and a tour she built largely herself…babe can’t miss. Regardless of medium, she’s combining brutal honesty with sharp, knowing clarity—a powerful mix.
Chloe Petts
Confidence and knowledge of self radiates from Chloe’s work. Between sold-out runs at Soho Theatre and growing international buzz, she is a comic settling fully into her voice and pulling live audiences along with her. The Butch is back, boss.
Jenny Zigrino
Late-night sets, festival headlining, and recent specials have only sharpened Jenny’s edge. She’s exactly where she needs to be and she’s operating at full power now: fearless, funny, and fully in control of the room.
🎭 Voice-driven standup
Rahkie Mateen
Raw and just the right amount of reckless, Rahkie “Rocky” Mateen turns personal vulnerability into powerful comedy. Her solo show, Unapologetically Rocky, hits hard and honestly. Again and again, Rahkie (who is a member of GOLD Comedy!) delivers hilarious performances that feel intimate, brave, and impossible to forget.
Dina Hashem
Small doesn’t mean quiet! Dina’s deadpan delivery and the specificity of her writing—most recently showcased in her Prime Video special Dark Little Whispers—prove how devastating restraint can be.
Tacarra Williams
There’s an ease to Tacarra’s comedy that comes from lived experience. Years in standup and screen work have refined a voice that’s warm, observant, and deeply resonant. Not everyone can combine personal and topical, but Tacarra proves that when it can be done, it WORKS.
Megan Gailey
Nothing flashy, nothing forced. Just rock-solid standup built on honesty and timing. Megan’s work feels increasingly effortless, which is usually a sign someone’s about to level up again.
Liz Glazer
Smart, personal, and refreshingly unpredictable, this GOLDie’s comedy draws from a life few comics have lived. The result is standup that’s thoughtful without losing the laugh and as genuinely warm as it is hilarious.
Clear-eyed, confident, and current. With writers’ room experience and a growing standup footprint, Amber ison a roll. Her sharp focus tells us that she knows exactly who she is, where comedy is headed next, and how to combine those things into jokes that hit hard.
Rooted in family, culture, and lived experience, Johana turns personal stories into instantly relatable comedy. Her warmth and timing make every set feel like a conversation you don’t want to end with the coolest cousin you wish you had.
🧠 Writers, satirists & shape-shifters
Rachel Rose Keller
Her comedy brain works in every direction. Whether in biting but silly satire, sexy bagel sketches, or live shows shaped by bad Yelp reviews or 70s hospital soaps, this GOLDie brings precision and playfulness. She is the kind of writer-producer hybrid who thrives as comedy keeps mutating.
Jamie Loftus
Few people turn curiosity into comedy the way Jamie can. Podcasts, solo shows, and books about hot dogs…Each project feels obsessive, funny, and culturally sharp in a way that perfectly aligns with the moment.
Virginia Dickens
Sketch comedy built for the internet age but grounded in structure and craft. Virginia’s work captures modern anxiety with surgical clarity and just enough absurdity to still be VERY FUN.
Sarah Adelman
A standup who thinks cinematically. With her award-winning short BUSTED!, she’s carving out a lane that bridges comedy and storytelling and sperm beautifully.
🔥 Boundary-pushers & genre-benders
Charlene Kaye
Rock musician, standup, storyteller—no single label fits. Charlene’s solo show Tiger Daughter has sold out major festivals and is becoming a special for a reason: it’s singular.
Krishna Istha
Comedy that won’t sit still. Krishna’s acclaimed standup and writing on Sex Education signal a creator redefining what funny can be. Out-of-date rules and genres don’t dare touch this.
Mx. Dahlia Belle
Soft, sharp, vulnerable, biting. Often all in the same set. With appearances in Hannah Gadsby’s Gender Agenda and major festivals, Dahlia is helping expand the emotional range of standup.
Sophie Duker
Intellectually fearless and structurally sharp, Sophie’s work challenges audiences while still delivering laughs. A Taskmaster win only widened the spotlight. You heard it here, folks! Taskmaster is not just for old dudes anymore! Thank God.
🌱 Community builders & culture shapers
Ella Yurman
Comedy as connection. Through standup, political satire, and founding NYC’s first all-trans standup show, Ella’s building spaces and jokes that matter while reinventing what late-night comedy can look like.
Hollie Harper
Blending sketch, standup, and commentary, Hollie’s work feels rooted in care as much as comedy. She’s bringing people together into rooms they actually want to be in. She’s as inviting on social media walk-and-talks as she is on stage delivering whammies.
📱 Digital Natives, IRL Payoff
Grace Reiter
Internet-savvy without being internet-limited. Grace’s comedy is absurd, curious, and grounded, powered by a POV that extends far beyond the screen.
Tess Tregellas
Big feelings, total commitment, zero irony. Between touring solo shows and viral sketch work, Tess is building a comedy voice that feels personal, expansive, and dreamy.
Peyton Dix
For the chronically online (said lovingly). Their comedy leans into fandom, desire, and messiness, and the audience knows exactly why it hits. Peyton is the Hot Take Queen we need right now.
Hannah Pilkes
Equal parts polished and precise, plus, like, eight (hundred?) parts absurd, Hannah turns character comedy into an event. Her work feels both online-ready and live-stage tested, with performances that stick in your head long after you scroll.
Why these 26 matter
Comedians cannot be defined only by their style or platform. Comedy careers take intentionality and momentum! These days, comics need to be able to do it ALL. And, like, they can’t get away with doing it only OKAY. They have to be GOOD at everything–marketing (butts in seats), content (silly vids), and performing (this is still the MAIN thing).
The comedians above know what they’re doing, why they’re doing it, and who they’re speaking to (you, me, us, but definitely not HATERS). Some are building momentum steadily. Some are mid-explosion (midsplosion).
In 2026, comedy has to be smarter, sillier, more personal, more global, and more genuine. The bar is constantly rising, and these 26 weirdos are rising to meet it.
