The 21 actors with the most Emmy wins of all time

Jean Smart won five Emmys for "Hacks," including one this year. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images The Emmys are pretty much the Oscars for television. Apple TV's "Widow's Bay" won big at the 2026 Emmys, which were held Monday. We compiled a list of actors with the most Emmys, from Mary Tyler Moore to Bryan Cranston. An Emmy is the biggest award an actor can win for their work on the small screen — and when there's a show or a performance Emmy voters love, it often gets multiple nominations and wins. We've pored over the stats and compiled a list of the most Emmy-awarded actors of all time. It includes some of the biggest TV stars of all time, including Bryan Cranston, Betty White, Mary Tyler Moore, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. In fact, Louis-Dreyfus is tied with Cloris Leachman, Jean Smart, and Allison Janney for eight Emmy wins as a performer and with Carl Reiner for the most total Emmy wins among the actors on this list, with 11, if you include their awards in other categories, too. The total Emmy wins listed here aren't exclusively for performances: Some on this list have won for writing, directing, or producing — Cranston was a producer on "Breaking Bad," and Louis-Dreyfus is an executive producer for "Veep," for example — but the majority of their Emmys are for acting.  Here are the actors with the most Emmy wins. Carrie Wittmer contributed to a prior version of this article. 15 (tie). Don Knotts — 5 wins and 5 nominations Don Knotts at the 1962 Emmy Awards. NBC/NBCUniversal/Getty Images Knotts was nominated for five Emmy Awards (in 1961, 1962, 1963, 1966, and 1967) for his performance as Barney Fife in "The Andy Griffith Show" — and he won them all. 15 (tie). John Larroquette — 5 wins and 7 nominations John Larroquette at the 1985 Emmy Awards. George Long /American Broadcasting Companies/Getty Images Larroquette won four consecutive Emmys from 1985 to 1988 for his performance in "Night Court." His last win came for his guest role in "The Practice" in 1998. 15 (tie). Candice Bergen — 5 wins and 9 nominations Candice Bergen at the 1995 Emmy Awards. Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images All five of Bergen's wins came from her performance as the titular role in the CBS sitcom "Murphy Brown." She was nominated for an additional two awards in the 2000s for "Boston Legal." 15 (tie). Peter Falk — 5 wins and 12 nominations Peter Falk at the 1976 Emmy Awards. ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content/Getty Images All but one of Falk's Emmys came from his long-running performance as one of the most iconic TV detectives: Frank Columbo on "Columbo." He also won in 1962 for "The Dick Powell Show." 15 (tie). Michael J. Fox — 5 wins and 19 nominations Michael J. Fox at the 2000 Emmy Awards. Bob Riha Jr/Getty Images Fox won three consecutive Emmys in '86, '87, and '88 for playing Alex P. Keaton in "Family Ties." He won another two for "Spin City" and "Rescue Me." In 2026, he was nominated for his guest appearance on "Shrinking," but lost to Rob Reiner, who won posthumously for his appearance on "The Bear." He did, however, receive the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award this year. 15 (tie). Kelsey Grammer — 5 wins and 17 nominations Kelsey Grammer at the 1998 Emmy Awards. Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images Four of Grammer's wins came from his long-running performance as Frasier Crane on "Frasier." His fifth (and most recent) win came from his vocal performance as Sideshow Bob in an episode of "The Simpsons." 15 (tie). Betty White — 5 wins and 21 nominations Betty White at the 2015 Daytime Emmy Awards. Jesse Grant/Getty Images for NATAS White's wins were for "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "The Golden Girls," "The John Larroquette Show," and "Saturday Night Live." 9 (tie). John Lithgow — 6 wins and 13 nominations Emmy Winner John Lithgow (3rd Rock) backstage at the 52nd Emmy Awards Show at the Shrine Auditorium, September 12, 1999 in Los Angeles, California Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images Lithgow won three Emmys for his performance in "3rd Rock from the Sun" in the '90s. He also won in 1986 for his guest role in "Amazing Stories." More recently, he won for playing the evil Trinity Killer in "Dexter" and for playing Winston Churchill in "The Crown." He was nominated once again in 2021 for "Perry Mason." 9 (tie). Tim Conway — 6 wins and 13 nominations Tim Conway at the 1996 Emmy Awards. Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images Conway was nominated for both his acting and his writing. He won for acting on "The Carol Burnett Show," "Coach," and "30 Rock." 9 (tie). Maya Rudolph — 6 wins and 16 nominations Maya Rudolph at the 2024 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Variety/Getty Images Rudolph won twice while on "Saturday Night Live," and won four times for voicing Connie the Hormone Monstress on "Big Mouth." 9 (tie). Art Carney — 6 wins and 12 nominations Art Carney and one of his Emmy Awards. NBC/NBCUniversal/Getty Images Carney won four times for "The Jackie Gleason Show," once for "The Honeymooners," and once for the made-for-T