A comic strip is a format used in (or a synonym for) comics, a sequence of drawings that tells a story.

Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a comics artist or cartoonist, and many such strips are published on a recurring basis (usually daily or weekly) in newspapers and on the Internet.

In the UK and the rest of Europe comic strips are also serialized in comic book magazines, with a strip's story sometimes continuing over three pages or more. Comic strips have also appeared in US magazines such as Boys' Life. Storytelling using a sequence of pictures has existed at least since the ancient Egyptians. One medieval European example in textile form is the Bayeux Tapestry. Examples in print form exist in 19th century Germany, and in 18th century England, where some of the first satirical or humorous sequential narrative drawings were produced, see William Hogarth.

The American comic strip developed this format into the 20th century. It introduced such devices as the word balloon for speech, the hat flying off to indicate surprise, and specific typographical symbols to represent cursing. The first comic books were anthologies of newspaper comic strips.

As the name implies, comic strips can be humorous (for example, "gag-a-day" strips such as Blondie, Bringing Up Father and Pearls Before Swine). Starting in the early 1930s, comic strips began to include adventure stories. Buck Rogers, Tarzan and The Adventures of Tintin were some of the first. Soap-opera continuity strips such as Judge Parker and Mary Worth gained popularity in the 1940s. All are called, generically, "comic strips", though cartoonist Will Eisner has suggested that "sequential art" would be a better name for them.

Newspaper comic strip

The first newspaper comic strips appeared in America in the late 19th century.Robinson, Jerry; The Comics: An Illustrated History of Comic Strip Art. 1974. G.P. Putnam's Sons, pub. The Yellow Kid is usually credited as the first newspaper comic strip. However, the artform combining words and pictures evolved gradually, and there are many examples of proto-comic strips. Newspaper comic strips are divided into daily strips and Sunday strips. Most newspaper comic strips are syndicated; that is, a syndicate hires people to write and draw the strip, and then distributes it to many newspapers for a fee. A few newspaper strips are exclusive to one newspaper. For example the Pogo comic strip by Walt Kelly originally appeared only in the New York Star in 1948, and was not picked up for syndication until the following year.

Daily strips