#1 of 3,342 Best documentary movie
95 Echo Score $56.9M worldwide
Directed by Lance Oppenheim
About You Can See Everything Top 100 · Documentary
The 100 Best Documentary Movies, Ranked
We rank 3,342 of the 33,240 documentary films on the site; these are the top 100. You Can See Everything (2026) is #1 with an Echo Score of 95, ahead of Giannis: The Marvelous Journey (2024) and The Alabama Solution (2025). Ranked by Echo Score; 16 of these 100 films have none (released before 2017, when Echo Scores start) and are ranked by a blend of their Metascore and IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings. A ranked watchlist for real stories and non-fiction filmmaking. For new releases and box office hits, see the documentary movies guide.
- ranked documentary films
- 3,342
- documentary films on the site
- 33,240
- release years in the top 100
- 1970–2026
- award winners in the top 100
- 10
#1 of 3,342 Top 10
What Are the Best Documentary Movies?
You Can See Everything (2026) leads with an Echo Score of 95, ahead of Giannis: The Marvelous Journey (2024); 10 of the top 10 are from the 2020s. Ranked by Echo Score, our 0–100 rating.
- 1. You Can See Everything 95 Echo (Echo Score 95 out of 100)
2026 · Documentary, Biography · 2h 54m
Dir. Lance Oppenheim $56.9M worldwide
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2. Giannis: The Marvelous Journey 94 Echo (Echo Score 94 out of 100)2024 · Sport, Documentary · 1h 49m
Dir. Kristen Lappas
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3. The Alabama Solution 93 Echo (Echo Score 93 out of 100)2025 · Documentary · 1h 57m
Dir. Andrew Jarecki 2 award nominations
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4. Songs of Earth 92 Echo (Echo Score 92 out of 100)2024 · Documentary, Biography · 1h 30m
Dir. Margreth Olin $1.1M worldwide
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4. The Tale of Silyan 92 Echo (Echo Score 92 out of 100)2025 · Documentary · 1h 20m
Dir. Tamara Kotevska 2 award nominations
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4. A Secret Love 92 Echo (Echo Score 92 out of 100)2020 · Documentary · 1h 21m
Dir. Chris Bolan $1.7M worldwide
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4. David Byrne’s American Utopia 92 Echo (Echo Score 92 out of 100)2020 · Documentary, Music · 1h 45m
Dir. Spike Lee
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4. Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan 92 Echo (Echo Score 92 out of 100)2020 · Documentary · 2h 4m
Dir. Julien Temple
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#11 to #100
Documentary Movies Ranked #11 to #100
Places 11 to 100: My Undesirable Friends: Part II - Exile (2026) opens the list and Sirens (2022) closes it. 17 of these 90 films are not in English; 13 languages appear in all. Filter by decade or language, or sort by year or box office.
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Decade
Language
Places 11 to 100; films with the same score share a rank. Use a filter or another sort to include the top 10.
Echo Score, our 0–100 rating (films from 2017 on) Blend: Metascore with IMDb/Letterboxd user ratings, for films without an Echo Score
- 1 1. You Can See Everything
2026 · Documentary, Biography · 2h 54m
95 Echo $56.9M - 2 2. Giannis: The Marvelous Journey
2024 · Sport, Documentary · 1h 49m
94 Echo - 3 3. The Alabama Solution
2025 · Documentary · 1h 57m
93 Echo - 4 4. Songs of Earth
2024 · Documentary, Biography · 1h 30m
92 Echo $1.1M - 4 4. The Tale of Silyan
2025 · Documentary · 1h 20m
92 Echo $30.8K - 4 4. A Secret Love
2020 · Documentary · 1h 21m
92 Echo $1.7M - 4 4. 32 Sounds
2023 · Documentary · 1h 37m
92 Echo $151.2K - 4 4. David Byrne’s American Utopia
2020 · Documentary, Music · 1h 45m
92 Echo $248.6K - 4 4. Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan
2020 · Documentary · 2h 4m
92 Echo $142.2K - 4 4. Simple as Water
2021 · Documentary · 1h 37m
92 Echo - 11
11. My Undesirable Friends: Part II - Exile2026 · Documentary · 5h 55m
91 Blend $17.6K - 11
11. Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal2024 · Documentary, Biography · 2h 3m
91 Echo - 13
13. Stop Making Sense1984 · Music, Documentary · 1h 28m
90 Blend $13.1M - 14
14. Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)2021 · Documentary · 1h 57m
90 Echo $3.7M - 14
14. Faces Places2017 · Documentary · 1h 29m
90 Echo $4M - 14
14. Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus2024 · Documentary, Music · 1h 43m
90 Echo $744.4K - 14
14. The Eternal Memory2023 · Documentary · 1h 25m
90 Echo $118.9K - 14
14. Honeyland2019 · Drama, Documentary · 1h 30m
90 Echo $1.3M - 14
14. Sugarcane2024 · Documentary · 1h 51m
90 Echo $134.3K - 14
14. Minding the Gap2018 · Documentary · 1h 33m
90 Echo $90.3K - 14
14. Crumb1995 · Biography, Documentary · 1h 59m
90 Blend $3M - 14
14. Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror2025 · Documentary · 1h 29m
90 Echo $141.4K - 14
14. Sachin2017 · Biography, Drama · 2h 18m
90 Echo $288.6K - 14
14. Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore2025 · Documentary, Biography · 1h 38m
90 Echo $109.3K - 14
14. Björk: Cornucopia2025 · Documentary, Animation · 1h 38m
90 Echo $230.3K - 14
14. Bye Bye Barry2023 · Documentary, Sport · 1h 32m
90 Echo $151.4K - 14
14. A Photographic Memory2024 · Documentary · 1h 27m
90 Blend $29K - 14
14. Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street2021 · History, Family · 1h 47m
90 Echo $1.2K - 14
14. My Mom Jayne2025 · Documentary · 1h 45m
90 Echo - 14
14. Mr. Nobody Against Putin2025 · Documentary · 1h 30m
90 Echo - 14
14. Two Gods2021 · Documentary
90 Echo - 14
14. Not Just a Goof2025 · Documentary, Family · 1h 27m
90 Echo - 14
14. Bad Faith2024 · Documentary · 1h 29m
90 Echo - 14
14. Derek DelGaudio’s In & Of Itself2021 · Documentary · 1h 30m
90 Echo - 14
14. Soufra2017 · Documentary · 1h 13m
90 Echo - 14
14. Spring Awakening: Those You've Known2022 · Musical, Documentary · 1h 30m
90 Echo - 14
14. Keyboard Fantasies2021 · Biography, History · 1h 11m
90 Echo - 38
38. The Act of Killing2013 · History, Crime · 1h 55m
89 Blend $726.3K - 39
39. Apollo 112019 · History, Documentary · 1h 33m
89 Echo $15.3M - 39
39. Daughters2024 · Documentary · 1h 42m
89 Echo $412K - 39
39. Wild Inside2026 · Documentary · 1h 36m
89 Blend $256.2K - 39
39. The Remarkable Life of Ibelin2024 · Documentary, Animation · 1h 46m
89 Echo $1.3M - 39
39. The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart2020 · Music, Documentary · 1h 51m
89 Echo $280.4K - 39
39. White Riot2020 · Music, Documentary · 1h 20m
89 Echo $186K - 39
39. The First Wave2021 · Drama, Documentary · 1h 34m
89 Echo $65.2K - 39
39. The Other Side of Everything2018 · Documentary · 1h 40m
89 Echo $4.7K - 39
39. Come See Me in the Good Light2025 · Documentary · 1h 44m
89 Echo - 39
39. BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions2025 · Documentary, Fantasy · 1h 53m
89 Echo - 39
39. Asog2025 · Documentary, Comedy · 1h 41m
89 Blend - 39
39. Ronnie's2022 · Documentary · 1h 43m
89 Echo - 39
39. La Mami2022 · Documentary · 1h 21m
89 Echo - 39
39. Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words2024 · Documentary · 1h 52m
89 Echo - 39
39. Barbara Forever2026 · Documentary, Biography · 1h 41m
89 Blend - 39
39. Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story2020 · Biography, Sport · 1h 19m
89 Echo - 39
39. Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance and Bravery in WW22022 · Documentary · 1h 30m
89 Echo - 56
56. Hoop Dreams1994 · Drama, Sport · 2h 50m
88 Blend $11.8M - 57
57. American Doctor2026 · Documentary, War · 1h 31m
88 Blend $608.9K - 57
57. What Now? Remind Me2014 · Documentary · 2h 44m
88 Blend $3.1K - 59
59. Three Identical Strangers2018 · Documentary · 1h 36m
88 Echo $13.4M - 59
59. Won't You Be My Neighbor?2018 · Biography, Documentary · 1h 34m
88 Echo $22.8M - 59
59. Kokomo City2023 · Documentary · 1h 13m
88 Echo $118.7K - 59
59. Amazing Grace2018 · Documentary · 1h 27m
88 Echo $7.8M - 59
59. Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger2026 · Documentary, Music · 2h 2m
88 Echo $12.5M - 59
59. Menus Plaisirs - Les Troisgros2023 · Documentary · 4h
88 Echo $146.8K - 59
59. King Coal2023 · Documentary · 1h 20m
88 Echo $54.1K - 59
59. Oliver Sacks: His Own Life2020 · Documentary · 1h 51m
88 Echo $193.7K - 59
59. Ailey2021 · Documentary · 1h 22m
88 Echo $214.3K - 59
59. Good Luck2018 · Documentary · 2h 23m
88 Echo $263.8K - 59
59. Bisbee '172018 · Western, Documentary · 1h 52m
88 Echo $117.5K - 59
59. Mr. Bachmann and His Class2022 · Documentary · 3h 37m
88 Echo $41.2K - 59
59. Canary2023 · Documentary · 1h 44m
88 Echo $819.2K - 59
59. Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters2021 · Documentary · 1h 34m
88 Echo $9.7K - 59
59. Sam Now2023 · Adventure, Drama · 1h 27m
88 Echo - 59
59. Dick Johnson Is Dead2020 · Drama, Documentary · 1h 29m
88 Echo - 59
59. Apollo 13: Survival2024 · Documentary, History · 1h 36m
88 Echo - 59
59. Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story2024 · Documentary · 1h 17m
88 Echo - 59
59. Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror2025 · Documentary · 1h 30m
88 Echo - 59
59. Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie2023 · Documentary · 1h 35m
88 Echo - 59
59. Restoring Tomorrow2018 · Documentary · 1h 22m
88 Echo - 59
59. The Go-Go's2020 · Documentary · 1h 38m
88 Echo - 59
59. King in the Wilderness2018 · Documentary · 1h 51m
88 Echo - 59
59. Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS2017 · Documentary · 1h 39m
88 Echo - 59
59. 40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie2018 · Documentary · 1h 39m
88 Echo - 59
59. Paris Calligrammes2021 · Documentary · 2h 9m
88 Echo - 59
59. Bruce Springsteen's Letter to You2020 · Documentary
88 Echo - 59
59. Late Life: The Chien-Ming Wang Story2018 · Sport, Documentary · 1h 39m
88 Echo - 87
87. Sound and Fury2000 · Documentary · 1h 20m
88 Blend $114.9K - 88
88. Woodstock1970 · History, Music · 3h 4m
87 Blend $321.3K - 89
89. 42: Forty Two Up1999 · Biography, Documentary · 2h 19m
87 Blend - 90
90. They Shall Not Grow Old2018 · History, War · 1h 39m
87 Echo $21.7M - 90
90. AlphaGo2017 · Documentary · 1h 30m
87 Echo - 90
90. Stories We Tell2013 · Documentary · 1h 48m
87 Blend $2.6M - 90
90. Tiger2024 · Documentary · 1h 30m
87 Echo - 90
90. The Dawn Wall2018 · Adventure, Documentary · 1h 40m
87 Echo $1.4M - 90
90. One More Time with Feeling2016 · Music, Documentary · 1h 52m
87 Blend $904.4K - 90
90. The Last Rider2023 · Documentary · 1h 38m
87 Echo $240.9K - 90
90. Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan2017 · Documentary · 1h 30m
87 Echo $147.8K - 90
90. Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché2022 · Biography, Music · 1h 36m
87 Echo $53.9K - 90
90. My Journey Through French Cinema2017 · Documentary · 3h 21m
87 Echo $73.5K - 90
90. Sirens2022 · Documentary · 1h 19m
87 Echo $19.3K
No film in this list matches both filters. Choose "All" in one of them.
Decade by decade
The Best Documentary Movie of Every Decade
From The Living Desert (1953) in the 1950s to You Can See Everything (2026) in the 2020s: the highest-ranked documentary movie of each of 8 decades. The 2020s place the most films in the top 100 (68).
- 1950s
69 Metascore The Living Desert 1953 - 1960s
84 Metascore Bob Dylan: Dont Look Back 1967 - 1970s 95 Metascore Woodstock 1970
- 1980s 94 Metascore Stop Making Sense 1984
- 1990s 93 Metascore Crumb 1995
- 2000s 85 Metascore Sound and Fury 2000
- 2010s 90 Echo Faces Places 2017
- 2020s 95 Echo You Can See Everything 2026
Awards
Which Documentary Movies Won the Most Awards?
Con Artist (2010) has the strongest record with 26 wins from 49 nominations, including wins at Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTA. Wins and nominations are counted across every ceremony on our awards pages.
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Con Artist 26 wins / 49 nom.2010 · Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTA -
Searching for Sugar Man 4 wins / 4 nom.2012 · Oscars, BAFTA, Critics' Choice · 79 Metascore -
Man on Wire 3 wins / 5 nom.2008 · BAFTA, Critics' Choice, Spirit Awards · 89 Metascore -
Amy 3 wins / 5 nom.2015 · Oscars, BAFTA, Critics' Choice · 85 Metascore - 2021 · Oscars, BAFTA, Spirit Awards · 90 Echo
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20 Feet from Stardom 3 wins / 4 nom.2013 · Oscars, Critics' Choice, Spirit Awards · 83 Metascore -
American Factory 3 wins / 4 nom.2019 · Oscars, DGA Awards, Spirit Awards · 77 Echo -
Free Solo 3 wins / 4 nom.2018 · Oscars, BAFTA, TIFF · 78 Echo
Keep exploring
More Ways to Explore Documentary Movies
The top 100 are the best 3% of 3,342 ranked documentary films. The documentary guide, the full list of 33,240 films and the documentary box office chart cover the rest of the genre.
FAQ
Documentary Movies: Questions & Answers
Answers from the documentary ranking above: the best documentary film, how many documentary movies there are, the strongest decade and the most awarded documentary film.
What is the best documentary movie?
You Can See Everything (2026) is the best-ranked documentary movie on What's After the Movie, with an Echo Score of 95. Giannis: The Marvelous Journey (2024) and The Alabama Solution (2025) follow. Ranked by Echo Score, our 0–100 rating.
About You Can See Everything How many documentary movies are there?
The site lists 33,240 documentary films. 3,342 of them are ranked: features of 60+ minutes with a real audience, critic, award or box office signal and a score. This page shows the top 100.
All documentary movies Which decade has the best documentary movies?
The 2020s place 68 films in the top 100, more than any other decade. The oldest film in the list is Woodstock (1970), the newest You Can See Everything (2026).
What is the most awarded documentary movie?
Con Artist (2010) won 26 awards from 49 nominations, ahead of Searching for Sugar Man (2012) (4 wins), counted across the Oscars, festivals and guild awards on our awards pages.
Movie awards How is this list different from the documentary genre page?
This page is only the ranking of the 100 best documentary films. The documentary genre page covers the whole genre: new releases, the biggest box office hits, its directors and how it changed over the decades.
Documentary movies guide