Wife Swap: Story, Cast and Series Facts

Story and premise

Have you ever wondered whether the grass is greener on the other side of the fence? Two wives discover that it often isn't when they hand over the keys to their homes and literally switch families — but not bedrooms — for two weeks on the new reality show Wife Swap, already a critically-acclaimed smash hit in its third season in the U.K.

Wife Swap is not a competition or a contest. It is a reality show unlike any other, where the battlegrounds are the kitchens and living rooms, child-rearing is a subject of intense and heated debate, and the outcome isn't a cash prize, but a couple's opportunity to re-discover why they love each other and decided to marry in the first place.

In the first week of the swap, the wives move in with their new family and adopt their very different lifestyle. They agree to follow a manual written by the departing wife that sets out the rules of their new household – how they parent, shop, do the house work, manage their budgets and their social life. But then, in the second week, everything changes. The new wives take charge. They introduce their own set of rules and get to run the new household their way. It's a radical shock to both families. The results are explosive, enlightening and often very funny. This is a show about the things that really matter to families across America.

At the end of the show, the two couples meet for the first time. In a highly-charged exchange of views, both couples make a frank assessment of each other and talk about what they've learned from the experience.

Series details

• Title: Wife Swap
• Format: Reality
• Language: English
• Premiere date: 2004-09-26
• Final broadcast date listed: 2010-08-13
• Status in TVmaze: Ended
• Network listed by TVmaze: ABC
• Network country: United States
• Typical episode runtime: 60 minutes
• TVMaze ID: 819

Seasons in the TVmaze catalogue

• Season 1: premiered 2004-09-26; final listed air date 2005-03-23; episode order: 20.
• Season 2: premiered 2005-09-12; final listed air date 2006-05-01; episode order: 24.
• Season 3: premiered 2006-09-18; final listed air date 2007-08-06; episode order: 20.
• Season 4: premiered 2008-01-02; final listed air date 2008-06-25; episode order: 20.
• Season 5: premiered 2008-10-03; final listed air date 2009-05-01; episode order: 22.
• Season 6: premiered 2010-04-02; final listed air date 2010-08-13; episode order: 14.

Source and licence

Adapted from Wife Swap on TVmaze. The synopsis is reproduced as plain text; catalogue facts, cast and season records are selected and reformatted. This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, following the TVmaze API licence. Network and web-channel credits identify the service listed in this source; they do not establish current streaming availability.