The ninth and final season of the American television comedy The Office premiered on NBC on September 20, 2012, and concluded on May 16, 2013, consisting of 25 episodes.

The ninth season of The Office aired on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. (Eastern) in the United States, as part of the Comedy Night Done Right television block.

It stars Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, and Ed Helms, with supporting performances from Catherine Tate, Leslie David Baker, Brian Baumgartner, Creed Bratton, Clark Duke, Kate Flannery, Mindy Kaling, Ellie Kemper, Angela Kinsey, Jake Lacy, Paul Lieberstein, B. J. Novak, Oscar Nunez, Craig Robinson, and Phyllis Smith.

This is the second season not to star Steve Carell as lead character Michael Scott, although he returned for a cameo appearance in the series finale.

The ninth season largely focuses on the relationship between Jim (John Krasinski) and Pam Halpert (Jenna Fischer).

After Jim decides to follow his dream and start a sports marketing company in Philadelphia, Pam begins to worry about moving, and the couple's relationship experiences stress.

Meanwhile, Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) abandons the office for a three-month boating trip, eventually quitting his job to pursue his dream of becoming a star, although he soon becomes famous for a viral video.

The documentary airs, and a year later, the office members gather for Dwight and Angela's marriage and a final round of interviews.

Following the decline in ratings from the previous year, the ninth season of The Office managed to stabilize around 4 million viewers per episode.

The show is based on the British comedy series of the same name, which was created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant for the BBC.

Daniels said, "This year feels like the last chance to really go out together and make an artistic ending for the show that pays off a lot of the stuff that matters most to fans.

[7][8] A central point during the season was the romance between Erin Hannon (Ellie Kemper) and Pete Miller (Jake Lacy).

[10] For the season, cast members John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, Rainn Wilson, and Ed Helms were credited as producers.

[9] Krasinski ultimately continued to appear in every episode, but was frequently absent from the primary Scranton setting as part of a storyline that saw Jim begin a start-up business in Philadelphia.

[30] Kinsey and Wilson also noted that the cast and crew could neither "confirm nor deny" but were "hoping" for a return of Steve Carell as Michael Scott.

[49] "Finale" also featured the return of several recurring characters, such as Nancy Carell as Carol Stills, Michael's real-estate agent and short-time girlfriend, Sendhil Ramamurthy as Ravi, Jackie Debatin as Elizabeth (who first appeared in the third season episode "Ben Franklin"), Devon Abner as Devon (who was a former Dunder Mifflin employee fired in "Halloween"), and Spencer Daniels as Jake Palmer (who first played Meredith's son in the season two episode "Take Your Daughter to Work Day").

[36][37] Stephen Colbert guest starred in the Halloween episode as Broccoli Rob, a former member of Here Comes Treble, Andy's a cappella group.

[51] Former NBC co-chairman and The Office executive producer Ben Silverman had a minor recurring role as one of Jim's colleagues.

[56] Comedian Roseanne Barr had a two-episode arc as a talent agent named Carla Fern, and first appeared in the episode "Stairmageddon".

[57] Michael Imperioli guest starred in the episode "Livin' the Dream" as Sensei Billy, acting as a foil for Dwight.

guest starred Aaron Rodgers, Clay Aiken, Mark McGrath, Santigold, and Jessica St. Clair, all playing themselves.

[59] The series finale guest starred: Rachael Harris as Angela's sister; Joan Cusack and Ed Begley Jr. as Erin's biological parents; Malcolm Barrett as Stanley's replacement; and Bill Hader and Seth Meyers as themselves.

[64] The series hit an all-time low with the twentieth episode, "Paper Airplane", which was viewed by only 3.25 million viewers, and received a 1.7 rating/5 percent share.

"[83] Roth Cornet of IGN noted that "The interplay between Jim, Dwight, and Pam has been the core of the series since Michael Scott's departure, and it was good to see the trio front and center once again as The Office comes to a close.

"Lice", for instance, was called "terrible" by Campbell, as well as the "epitome of filler" by Brett Davinger of The California Literary Review.

[95] The subplot involving Brian (played by Chris Diamantopoulos), a boom mic operator for the in-series documentary, was met with mostly negative reviews.

[96] Dan Forcella of TV Fanatic criticized the reintroduction of the character in the episode "Promos", noting that his reappearance felt "forced".

[95] Daniels later revealed in an interview that the subplot was a red herring to keep viewers emotionally invested in Pam and Jim's story.

[99][100] Michael Scott's return was nominated and won the fan-voted "Best TV Moment" at the 3rd Critics' Choice Television Awards on June 10, 2013.

[106] In addition, the web documentary "The Office: The Farewells", which aired on NBC.com prior to the series' conclusion, was nominated for an Outstanding Special Class Program Creative Arts Emmy Award.