Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. The award is presented to the best performance by a lead actor in a television comedy series. Beginning with 1966, leading actors in comedy have competed alone. However, these comedic performances included actors from miniseries, telefilms, and guest performers competing against main cast competitors. Such instances are marked below:
- # – Indicates a performance in a miniseries or television film, prior to the category's creation
- § – Indicates a performance as a guest performer, prior to the category's creation
Winners and nominations
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
Programs with multiple awards
;4 wins- All in the Family
- Frasier
- The Big Bang Theory
- 3rd Rock from the Sun
- Get Smart
- The Odd Couple
- Family Ties
- Monk
- 30 Rock
- Barry
- The Bear
- The Defenders
- The Dick Van Dyke Show
- M*A*S*H
- Taxi
- Cheers
- Ted Lasso
- ''Transparent''
Performers with multiple wins
- Michael J. Fox
- Kelsey Grammer
- Carroll O'Connor
- Jim Parsons
;2 wins
- Alan Alda
- Alec Baldwin
- Ted Danson
- Bill Hader
- Judd Hirsch
- Jack Klugman
- Richard Mulligan
- Jason Sudeikis
- Jeffrey Tambor
- Jeremy Allen White
Programs with multiple nominations
- Cheers
- M*A*S*H
- Frasier
- The Odd Couple
- All in the Family
- Monk
- 30 Rock
- Barney Miller
- Black-ish
- The Big Bang Theory
- Curb Your Enthusiasm
- Roseanne
- 3rd Rock from the Sun
- Everybody Loves Raymond
- The Office
- Only Murders in the Building
- Mad About You
- Shameless
- Benson
- The Larry Sanders Show
- Louie
- Seinfeld
- Taxi
- Two and a Half Men
- Barry
- The Bob Cummings Show
- The Danny Thomas Show
- The Dick Van Dyke Show
- Episodes
- Family Affair
- Family Ties
- Friends
- Get Smart
- House of Lies
- The Phil Silvers Show
- Spin City
- Will & Grace
- Atlanta
- The Bear
- Chico and the Man
- Coach
- Empty Nest
- Father Knows Best
- The Good Place
- Happy Days
- The Kominsky Method
- Newhart
- Night Court
- Sanford and Son
- Three's Company
- Ted Lasso
- Transparent
- Arrested Development
- The Bernie Mac Show
- Black Monday
- Buffalo Bill
- Crazy Like a Fox
- The Defenders
- Dragnet
- Evening Shade
- Hennesey
- Hogan's Heroes
- The Jack Benny Program
- The Jackie Gleason Show
- The Last Man on Earth
- Master of None
- Naked City
- Perry Mason
- Schitt's Creek
- Shrinking
- Soap
- The Wonder Years
- ''The Untouchables''
Performers with multiple nominations
- Ted Danson*
- Alan Alda*
- Kelsey Grammer*
- Michael J. Fox*
- Carroll O'Connor*
- Tony Shalhoub*
- Anthony Anderson
- Alec Baldwin*
- Larry David
- John Goodman
- Matt LeBlanc
- Hal Linden
- Steve Carell
- Don Cheadle
- John Lithgow*
- William H. Macy
- Jim Parsons*
- Paul Reiser
- Ray Romano*
- Louis C.K.
- Robert Cummings
- Robert Guillaume*
- Judd Hirsch*
- Jack Klugman
- Richard Mulligan
- Tony Randall*
- John Ritter*
- Jerry Seinfeld
- Garry Shandling
- Don Adams*
- Bill Hader*
- Eric McCormack*
- Charlie Sheen
- Martin Short
- Phil Silvers*
- Danny Thomas*
- Jack Albertson*
- Harry Anderson
- Dabney Coleman
- Michael Douglas
- Redd Foxx
- Jackie Gleason
- Donald Glover*
- Brian Keith
- Craig T. Nelson*
- Bob Newhart
- Jason Sudeikis*
- Jeffrey Tambor*
- Dick Van Dyke*
- Henry Winkler
- Jeremy Allen White*
- Robert Young*
- Aziz Ansari
- Jason Bateman
- Jack Benny*
- Sid Caesar*
- Bob Crane
- Will Forte
- Ricky Gervais*
- Eugene Levy*
- Bernie Mac
- Steve Martin
- Burt Reynolds*
- Fred Savage
- Jason Segel
- Jack Warden
Superlatives
Total awards by network
- NBC – 26
- CBS – 19
- ABC – 11
- HBO/HBO Max – 3
- USA – 3
- Amazon – 2
- Apple TV+ – 2
- FX – 1
- Pop TV - 1