The Real Housewives of Orange County, abbreviated RHOC, is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on March 21, 2006.

It has aired eighteen seasons and focuses on the personal and professional lives of several women residing in Orange County, California.

The cast of the upcoming nineteenth season consists of Tamra Judge, Heather Dubrow, Shannon Storms Beador, Gina Kirschenheiter, Emily Simpson, Jennifer Pedranti and Katie Ginella; with former housewife Gretchen Rossi appearing in a "friend of" capacity.

[3] Show creator Scott Dunlop said that it was originally planned to be set in a single gated community in Coto de Caza, California.

[4] The show was inspired by scripted soap operas Desperate Housewives and Peyton Place, and would document the lives of upper-class women who "lead glamorous lives in a Southern California gated community where the average home has a $1.6 million price tag and residents include CEOs and retired professional athletes.

"[3] The first season premiered on March 21, 2006, and starred Kimberly Bryant, Jo De La Rosa, Vicki Gunvalson, Jeana Keough and Lauri Peterson (then Waring).

The third season premiered on November 6, 2007, which featured Tamra Judge (then Barney) as the latest housewife, while Quinn Fry joined the cast in the sixth episode.

The sixth season which premiered on March 6, 2011, introduced Peggy Tanous as the newest housewife and friend of the housewives Fernanda Rocha.

Keough and Tanous appeared in guest capacities, with the latter receiving confessional interviews in the season's first two episodes, while Sarah Winchester was featured as a friend of the housewives.

The sixteenth season premiered on December 1, 2021, with Beador, Kirschenheiter and Simpson returning, along with former housewife Dubrow, and new housewives Jen Armstrong and Noella Bergener joining the main cast.

Filming began in January 2024 with all cast members from the seventeenth season returning, minus Taylor Armstrong who confirmed her departure in November 2023.

[44] The eighteenth season premiered on July 11, 2024, with new housewife Katie Ginella joining the cast, as well as Bellino appearing as a "friend of the housewives".

Former housewives Vicki Gunvalson, Elizabeth Lyn Vargas and Jo De La Rosa and Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave made guest appearances throughout the season.

[50] Since its premiere, the series has alternated airing on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings and has been frequently shifted between the 8:00, 9:00, and 10:00 pm timeslots.

[51] After becoming engaged to Judge in February 2013,[52] Barney was commissioned to star in the three-part spin-off special Tamra's OC Wedding.