Friends: The Male Characters, Ranked By Their Romantic Partner Potential

Whether it was Ross and Rachel’s on-again-off-again love story, Chandler and Monica’s steadier one, or Phoebe’s cute little one-offs, romance had always been the heart and soul of the phenomenal 1990s sitcom Friends. Falling in and out of love was routine and most of the friends had a penchant for dating people who were desperately wrong for them. So exactly how good or bad romantic partners did the quirky male characters make?

Although the central male protagonists are of course Ross, Chandler, and Joey, the other men on the show would also rank fairly high when it comes to romantic partner potential. Characters like the handsome Richard Burke or the absent-minded David, and the cute Mike Hannigan, might just get away with better potential in romance than the perpetually confused main leads.

10 Tag Jones

Tag Jones was one of the longer relationships that Rachel Green found herself in, aside from Ross.

Tag was young, immature, although possibly a good lover if Rachel’s obsession with him was anything to go by. However, Tag ran away as fast as he could when he found out that Rachel was pregnant, so clearly a long-term serious relationship wasn’t in his interest.

9 Gunther

Poor Gunther never had much of a chance when it came to being noticed by women. But curiously enough, if he were more fortunate with romantic partners, he might have been a good one himself.

Gunther, although a staple recurring character in this mega-hit sitcom, never really blossomed into a full-fledged personality, so it’s hard to tell how good or bad a romantic partner he would have made. However, from his devotion to Rachel, it’s possible he would be a loving, even gentle, partner who wouldn’t be afraid to commit to a relationship.

8 Ross Geller

Ross Geller might be for all intents and purposes one-half of one of the most beloved romantic couples on television. But that doesn’t mean he was flawless. In fact, as a potential romantic partner, Ross wouldn’t make it even close to the top.

Ross was loving. kind, and a good man, but he had qualities that often made him a toxic partner. For one, Ross was jealous and possessive, which led to his fight with Rachel, and for another, he immediately went and had rebound sex with another woman, even though—and this fans would agree—they had not broken up. Being unfaithful is a strict no-no in our dictionary, making Ross a rather undesirable romantic partner after all.

7 Jack Geller

Jack Geller was the father of the Geller siblings, a garrulous but good-hearted man, who was, at any rate, a better parent to Monica than her nit-picking mother.

Jack had a steady married life with Judy, and the two were even shown getting handsy inside a wash chamber during a party at Richard’s, an incident that made Monica, who was hiding in the bathtub, cringe. Seeing how their passion still seemed very much alive, Jack probably didn’t make a bad partner at all.

6 Pete Becker

One of Monica Geller’s boyfriends was Pete Becker, who was almost perfect for her and seemed smitten with her, causing some fans to wonder why the relationship ended as quickly as it did.

Pete was an adoring boyfriend and his treasure trove of wealth would make him appealing. However, his obsession with fighting in the ring might have indeed been hard for any partner to live with all the time as Monica soon found out.

5 Joey Tribbiani

It’s hard to imagine Joey Tribbiani settling down into a long-term relationship since the character was built to project a diametrically opposing image.

Yet, Joey was perhaps the most generous among the friends. While his relationship with Rachel never matured, it proved that he had grown as a person and would probably make quite a devoted partner. If he could bring himself to truly commit, Joey might have made a steady family man in time.

4 David

Hank Azaria’s David was one of the most adorable recurring characters in the series, and as fans know now, the writers had even considered that Phoebe should end up with David before Paul Rudd entered the scene.

David was kind, gentle, loving, and clearly devoted to Phoebe. He came back to see her all the way from Minsk and had something of a hilarious face-off with Mike Hannigan. David might have been the quintessential socially awkward academic, but he did have the potential to be a good romantic partner.

3 Richard Burke

Tom Selleck’s gorgeous Richard Burke got pushed aside to make way for Chandler Bing, but Richard was probably one of the most suitable romantic partners among all of the men on the show.

Richard was kind, responsible, mature, loving, and a thorough gentleman. If anything, age had made him more experienced and he didn’t take relationships lightly. He was also well-established in his field, thus being professionally steady. If a younger partner looked past the gaping generation gap, he would be quite a catch romantically.

2 Mike Hannigan

The incredibly sweet and a tad awkward Mike Hannigan was everything a romantic partner could ask for.

Mike was soft-hearted, adoring, and most importantly, stood up for Phoebe to his own family. He was someone one could always count on, and fans loved him for finally appreciating the great Phoebe Buffay.

1 Chandler Bing

Chandler was a decent, lovable man who was often quick with a joke. Chandler also had grown the most as a person, with his various insecurities having gone down by leaps and bounds after finding the love of his life.

Chandler wasn’t afraid to give up his job and let his woman take the lead financially, which already puts him at the top of our list for potential romantic partners. He also encouraged Monica to take up her dream job, and in fact, quit his own to live with her. He supported her in all her endeavors and loved her even when she irritated almost everyone else.

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