How many seasons does the U.S. version of The Office have?

How to get close to this number

Another American network sitcom, another run in the high single digits — nine seasons, in the same band as the others on this site. The pattern is consistent enough that for any successful American sitcom, guessing nine or ten is a good default.

The comparison in the explanation is the genuinely instructive one: the British original ran two seasons plus a special. Same premise, same format, two television cultures, and a fourfold difference in length. British comedy convention is to stop while the idea is intact; American convention is to continue while the audience remains.

Neither is obviously right, and the difference is economic rather than artistic. American network shows need enough episodes to sell into syndication, which historically required around a hundred, so the format pushes toward length. British shows are commissioned by broadcasters with no equivalent incentive, so they stop when the writer is finished.