List of improvisational theatre companies

Improvisational theatre companies, also known as improv troupes or improv groups, are the primary practitioners of improvisational theater. Modern companies exist around the world and at a range of skill levels. Most groups make little or no money, while a few, well-established groups are profitable.
Although improvisational theater has existed in some form or another since the 16th century, modern improv began with the teachings of Viola Spolin in Chicago, Illinois, USA and Keith Johnstone during the 1940-50s in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Spolin's teachings led to the creation of The Compass Players, the first modern improvisational theater company, in 1955. The presence of The Compass Players, The Second City, and ImprovOlympic in Chicago created a strength in the form within the city that continues to this day. New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Toronto are other major hubs of improvisational theater in the North America.
Many companies host improvisational theatre festivals or give improvisational theatre classes. Professional groups often perform a regular stage show acted by the most senior members. Along with this, they host "house" improv teams made up of improv students or graduates from their classes. In the past decade, professional improvisational theater groups have gradually started working more with corporate clients, using improvisational games to improve productivity and communication in the workplace.
Major Professional companies have branches in more than one city, have touring groups, and/or host large-scale improvisational comedy schools. Professional troupes are those not affiliated with a university or secondary school. Collegiate groups are those associated with a post-secondary educational institution. If a company performs more than one type of improvisational comedy, they are defined as using Multiple improvisational comedy types. If it is unclear what particular kind of improvisational comedy a group performs, they are defined as Improvisational. Those marked Semi-improvisational generally perform shows that are partially improvised and partially scripted.
The following is a list of noteworthy improvisational theatre companies from around the world.

Improvisational theatre companies in Canada

Name	Group Level	Improv Type	Location	Date Established	Reference
The Bad Dog Theatre Company	Professional	Multiple	Toronto, Ontario	2003
Die-Nasty	Professional	Television	Edmonton, Alberta	1991
Ligue nationale d'improvisation	Professional	Improvisational	Quebec	1977
Loose Moose Theatre	Professional	Theatresports	Calgary, Alberta	1977
Rapid Fire Theatre	Professional	Theatresports	Edmonton, Alberta	1982

Improvisational theatre companies in the United States

Name	Group Level	Improv Type	Location	Date Established	Reference
8th Floor Improv Comedy	Collegiate	Multiple	Columbus, Ohio	2004
ACME Comedy Theatre	Professional	Theatresports	Los Angeles, California	1989
Baltimore Improv Group	Professional	Multiple	Baltimore, Maryland	2004
The Annoyance Theatre	Professional	Improvisational	Chicago, Illinois	1987
Bassprov	Professional	Long-form	Chicago	2000
BATS Improv	Major Professional	Theatresports, Long-form, Musicals	San Francisco, California	1986
The Bent Theatre	Professional	Multiple	Charlottesville, Virginia	2004
Blackout Improv	Professional	-	Minneapolis, Minnesota	2015
Bovine Metropolis Theater	Professional	Multiple	Denver, Colorado	1998
The Brave New Workshop Comedy Theatre	Professional	Multiple	Minneapolis, Minnesota	1958
Chicago City Limits	Major Professional	Shortform	New York City, New York	1977
Comedy Arts Theater of Charlotte	Professional	Longform	Charlotte, NC	2016
ComedySportz	Major Professional	Shortform	Milwaukee, Wisconsin	1984
Compass Players	Professional	Cabaret	Chicago, Illinois	1955*
Complete Theater Company	Professional	Improvisational	Manhattan, New York	2009
Dad's Garage Theatre Company	Professional	Multiple	Atlanta, Georgia	1995
Dead Parrot's Society	Collegiate	Multiple	Bellingham, Washington	1998
The Diggers	Professional	Guerrilla	San Francisco, California	1966*
Erasable Inc.	Collegiate	Improvisational	College Park, Maryland	1986
Face Off Unlimited	Professional	Multiple	New York City, New York	2003
The Focus Group	Professional	Long-form	Bangor, Maine	2009
Friday Night Improvs	Collegiate	Improv Jam	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1989
The Groundlings	Major Professional	Semi-improvisational	Los Angeles, California	1974
Highwire Improv	Professional	Multiple	Baltimore, Maryland	2020
HUGE Theater	Professional	Long-form	Minneapolis, Minnesota	2005
The Immediate Gratification Players	Collegiate	Long-form	Cambridge, Massachusetts	1986
ImprovOlympic	Major Professional	the Harold	Chicago, Illinois	1980
Improvolution	Professional		New York City, New York	2002
Improv Asylum	Major Professional	Semi-improvisational	Boston, Massachusetts	1998
ImprovBoston	Major Professional	Multiple	Cambridge, Massachusetts	1982
Improv Everywhere	Professional	Guerrilla	New York City, New York	2001
Improv for the People	Professional	Multiple	Los Angeles, California	2009
Improv Institute	Professional	Improvisational	Chicago, Illinois	1983*
Jet City Improv	Professional	Multiple	Seattle, Washington	1992
Just Add Water	Collegiate	Improvisational	New Haven, Connecticut	1986
Laughing Matters	Professional	Shortform	Atlanta, Georgia	1985
The Lobby	Professional	Shortform	Fullerton, California	2005
Madcap Theater	Professional	Shortform	Westminster, Colorado	2006
Magnet Theater	Major Professional	Long-Form	New York City, New York	2005
The N Crowd	Professional	Shortform	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	2005
The National Comedy Theatre	Major Professional	Shortform	San Diego, California
On Thin Ice	Collegiate	Shortform	Cambridge, Massachusetts	1984
Peoples Improv Theater	Major Professional	Multiple	New York City, New York	2002
Philly Improv Theater	Major Professional	Multiple	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	2005*
The Playground	Professional	Long-form	Chicago, Illinois	1997
Providence Improv Guild	Professional	Multiple	Providence, Rhode Island	2013
The Purple Crayon of Yale	Collegiate	Long-form	New Haven, Connecticut	1985
SAK Comedy Lab	Major Professional	Multiple	Orlando, Florida	1991
The San Francisco Improv Alliance	Professional	Multiple	San Francisco, California	2005
The Second City	Major Professional	Semi-improvisational	Chicago, Illinois	1959
Second Nature Improv	Collegiate	Long-form	Los Angeles, California	2002
Starla and Sons	Collegiate	Longform	Providence, Rhode Island	2006
Stevie Rays Comedy	Professional	Multiple	Chanhassen, Minnesota	1988
Theatre Strike Force	Collegiate	Multiple	Gainesville, Florida	1989
The Home Comedy Theater	Professional	The Harold	Chicago, Illinois	2024
The National Comedy Theatre	Professional	Multiple	Phoenix, Arizona	2007
Unexpected Company	Professional	Long-form	Warwick, Rhode Island	2003
Unexpected Productions	Professional	Theatresports, Long-form	Seattle, Washington	1983
Under the Gun Theater	Professional	Multiple	Chicago, Illinois	2014
The Upfront Theatre	Professional	Multiple	Bellingham, Washington	2004
The Un-Scripted Theater Company	Professional	Multiple	San Francisco, California	2002
Upright Citizens Brigade	Major Professional	Multiple	New York City, New York	1999
Washington Improv Theater	Professional	Longform	Washington, DC	1998
Whole World Theatre	Professional	Shortform	Atlanta, Georgia	1994
Wing-It Productions	Professional	Multiple	Seattle, Washington	1992
The Yale Ex!t Players	Collegiate	Short-form	New Haven, Connecticut	1984

*This group is no longer performing.