Forced Cohabitation

The leads of the high-emotion, romantic I Hear Your Voice double up a more than once, because of a stalker/murderer and because one of them ends up in a situation where they need to be taken in. The living together humor slays me — domesticity is not her strong point. - u/amnesiafakedating

I Hear Your Voice - they're forced to live together so he can protect her from a revenge-crazed murderer and, later, for support after trauma-induced amnesia strikes :))) The drama is so operatic and emotional and funny and romantic! Karma! Loss! Renewal! The living together scenes are funny af. - u/olddogma

Because This is our First Life - A woman trying to come to terms with the end of her drama writing dream, and trying to find a place to belong in an unfair world, a man who is house poor and trying to do his best meet during desperate times. Cue kinda-but-not forced living situation. It's really cute and the OTP is so refreshing and supportive of each other.  - u/Wanna-be-your-puppy

Because This is my First Life - A slice-of-life drama. ML doesn't believe in marriage but has to marry because of parents. FL is career oriented but see her career going no where and struggles to find a decent place to live. She moves in with ML when their respective friends mistake the other party to be same gender as their respective friends. ML/FL get to know each other and agree to get married for their own conveniences. Superb OST and wonderful quotes in this drama. - u/Psychological_Report

I adore the originality of this drama’s take on fake marriage, its detailed relationships for three sets of leads, and all that slow burn. The drama uses the cliches of this time-tested trope, but rises above them. Its thoughtfulness puts me in a more textured fictional world than the one I encounter in more lightweight kdramas. And yet, Because This Is My First Life is upbeat and makes me laugh.  - u/amnesiafakedating

The Heirs - FL and ML meet in LA, America and when they thought they won’t be meeting again ever, FL ends up living in ML’s house in South Korea in the maid’s room since her mother is a full-time maid of the ML’s mother. Will they be able to date given the circumstances surrounding them? It’s a high-school melo romance with an ensemble cast and indeed one of Kim Eun-Sook’s classics filled will all the tropes that we love to watch in a drama. If you ever do intend to watch this, bear in mind that it’s not to be taken seriously. So watch it and take it for what it is. I would definitely say that Kim Woo-Bin was so charming despite his character going from jerk to lovely. - u/Fatooz

Pinocchio isn't usually thought of as forced cohabitation, but it is. The unrealistic elements are that she hiccups when she lies and that the plot is k-drama larger than life style. The real life cohabitation part is caused by him pretending to be her uncle for the sake of her grandfather's delusion. But there's a lot of family cohabitation issues and warmth, after you get past the larger than life two opening episodes. And then there are a chunk of episodes with young reporters squeezed into one room at a police station, where they sleep like sardines in a can and have comical misunderstandings. Super romantic, building steadily throughout. - unknown

Playful kiss - ML and FL go to same school and their fathers are childhood friends. FL's house goes through natural disaster and they move in with ML's family while their house is constructed. Inevitable happens and they fall for each other. - u/Psychological_Report

It’s Okay, That’s Love - ML and FL have a heated first meet and both have a dislike towards each other, however, it so happens that ML starts living with the FL and two other housemates. Will living together finally bring these two totally opposite personalities together? Loved the chemistry and relationship between the leads and it was nice to see how a 2014 drama dealt with the mental health aspects. The side characters are not very pleasant to watch initially but as time passes by they grow on the ML and the viewers! - u/Fatooz

Legend of the Blue Sea - the male lead and female lead end up living in one house since she is a mermaid with nowhere to go. She lives with him and two of his friends - u/am_lostintranslation

The Legend of the Blue Sea - FL is a mermaid who ends up having a chance encounter with the ML in Spain and falls in love with him instantly. Her love and promise makes her go all the way to Seoul and find her one true love. Since she has no other place to go as she’s out on land for the first time the ML brings her home even though he doesn’t remember meeting her at all. A drama that’s filled with adorable and lovely characters, unusual friendships and two dork main leads who are funny and cute and you can’t help but fall in love with them, they’re bound to bring a smile on your face!  - u/Fatooz

Personal Taste - I love that these opposites attract leads grow as people and as creative professionals because of their living together! Also, the sense of home is really strong in this drama, because of the rich and complex history of her dwelling. The drama gets them together by giving him a pressing reason to move in. Which is that to get ahead as an architect, he has to study her traditional Korean home. So he pretends to be gay to become her roommate, because the drama was produced in 2010! But it’s a charming drama that is trying not to be homophobic. And failing, okay, so please don’t hate me for loving this drama, but just be forewarned a bit. - u/amnesiafakedating

Personal taste - The FL agrees to live with ML thinking he's gay and the ML has other ulterior motives(read property reasons) to move in with FL. They're confused when they start falling for each other and eventually ML reveals the truth that he's not gay. - u/Psychological_Report

Suspicious Partner- The FL and ML live in one house after she is kicked out of her property and accused of a crime which she didn't commit. They work together at a law firm which is also based in his house. - u/am_lostintranslation

Cinderella and the Four Knights - FL is gutsy and strong despite her circumstances that are sad for her. She ends up impressing the grandfather of three MLs who’re “brats” and don’t get along with each other even though they’re supposedly a “family”. FL’s task is to bring the differences between them to zero and make them grow closer to each other and to do this she has to move in their house, but she can’t fall in love with either of them. There’s a fourth “knight” as well and you’ll be surprised to see who that is (or maybe not). It’s a cute rom-com filled with clichés but is also hilarious with a FL who is strong and will not take any of the ML’s non-sense. Enjoyable if you don’t take it too seriously.  - u/Fatooz

If you like grand, classy love stories, Crash Landing on You is gorgeously put together. This love affair between two people -- and two halves of a divided country -- has it all: a romance full of meant-to-be, heart-tugging barriers between the leads, sharp dialogue, vibrant ensemble work, and beautiful cinematography depicting both Koreas and also some dreamy places in Switzerland. It gave me a hit of the longing Koreans feel for their country to be unified. And the cultural and socioeconomic contrasts between the two countries are fascinating, too.  - u/amnesiafakedating

Bring it on Ghost -  ML can see and touch ghosts and acts as an exorcist.  Encounters the FL who is a ghost that starts following him and then living with him to help get her memories back. They live together for most of the series while fighting ghosts and trying to understand why she hasn't moved on.

I think it's worth watching as the growth of all the characters is amazing, and really makes you feel like they are real. There's a good balance of horror and comedy and the acting is superb. - u/Andarpthelarp

Bring It On Ghost is an innocent outing, with plenty to appeal to you. Ghostfighting, so special effects and action. Romance between a high school age girl ghost and a living college age guy, and when the forced shared living comes along, not only does she lack a physical body, but they also sleep in separate rooms. I don't remember any bedtime shenanigans in this one. Just adorable closeups of the purty leads. - u/AffableEdith

This drama does a great job of using her presence in his home to combine cute moments of falling in love with a preview of future blissful domesticity. She’s been haunting her high school, but ends up sleeping on his bed while he takes the sofa. And there are several additional instances of male lead nurturing behavior. He cooks for her. He helps her study. Apart from the two of them being adorable in his pad, this drama has a lot of wacky ghost hunting, a demon antagonist, and some fine comic relief from a couple of ghost hunting college students. - u/amnesiafakedating

Shopaholic Louis/Shopping King Louis (2016) - FL trying to find her missing brother and found ML wearing his brother's jacket but ML doesn't remember anything, so FL decided for them to live together. It's a great comedic drama, even second leads are fun to watch. - u/inquestforccna

Full House - the plot itself makes nooo sense (forced cohabitation but with zero effort put into making it realistic).  The early 2000's clothes and hairstyles are hilariously, unbelievably bad.  The plot is insane, the characters are insane, the cinematography is awful.  It's so makjang and cliched it definitely falls into the category of 'so bad it's somehow good'.  I  really enjoyed the drama, but oh man was it bad.  - u/jackaroo1344

Thirty, but Seventeen Shin Hye Sun and Yang Se Jong were so good as a very quirky couple in this.  As well as the side characters (Jennifer!) The feel good put-together-family, forced-living-together situation.  After finishing it, I had to do an immediate re-watch I missed the characters so much!  This is often recommended as a healing drama. - u/LcLou02

9 End 2 Outs - One thing I really love about this accidental roommates drama is that there are romantic misfires on both sides. So the drama’s in grownups territory. Plus you get to see them supporting each other through it all. Friends since school days, so it’s a twofer, because you also get friends to lovers! This drama is great at mining that vein of domestic proximity leading to attraction. And since it’s not gonna be cool with parents and families for them to be sharing an apartment, there are some fun moments when they try to hide the truth.  - u/amnesiafakedating

Sweet Stranger and Me - The way the leads interact over her family home, the history they both have — it all comes together to make me think about what it is to belong somewhere. There’s also some beautiful land that’s part of her inheritance, which adds to the sense of place. This drama also has opposites attract going for it. She’s older, but grew up sheltered, while he’s an orphan who’s been through the school of hard knocks and then some. While it has some awkward elements, this drama has way more smart touches and appealing humor. And the second leads are gifts that just keep on giving.  - u/amnesiafakedating

I Picked Up a Celebrity On the Street The FL is holding a celebrity hostage and they hate each other at first but end up falling in love. It’s relatively short (only 10 eps) and a bit silly, but I enjoyed it. - u/wookieswifey

Angel's Last Mission: Love (Lowkey Forced Cohabitation/Romcom) 

My #1 drama on my tier list. ML is an angel and FL is a ballerina that is blind due to an accident. While on the way home halfway thru episode 1, FL had an accident and almost got killed, but was saved by ML. But his action was deemed illegal and thus he was sent on a mission: find love for the cold-hearted FL. - u/ivanraptor730

Stars Falling From the Sky features a girl who has an unrequited love for the lawyer of the company she works at, when her life goes downhill she is forced to live in the lawyer's house as a maid, and smuggles her five siblings in the house so they might have a place to stay.  - u/silverbluefox

The Time I Loved You 7000 Days - another charming tale of best friends. They live next door to each other with facing bedroom windows. And the homemaking sitch at his house is sketchy so he's a fixture at her house.  - u/olddogma

Romance Is a Bonus Book - I really fell for the naturalness of these two sharing his house. For one thing, it’s no stretch to believe that he’d want her to not have to sleep at the sauna. She’s resilient, but she needs help, and I immediately accept that she feels safe with her friend of many years. And once she’s moved in, the drama showers us with small moments that prove how simpatico they are. Also, it gives him opportunities to be adorably jealous when she meets up with the second male lead. It’s also quite attractive that he creates a space for her. This relationship is a slow burn, so it doesn’t happen right away, but when things start getting cute and cuddly, the living together pays off in sweetness. As far as the drama as a whole goes, I enjoyed the sparkling dialogue, the love of books, and the individualistic workplace characters. She’s discriminated against in Korea’s professional world, and that’s hard to watch — but they did well exploring the issue.  - u/amnesiafakedating

"Mask" starring "Ju Ji-hoon" and "Soo Ae" is a romantic, murder mystery movie where the ML and FL enter into a contractual marriage and are forced to cohabitate.The FL has a double role. The hauty version of FL was supposed to marry the ML instead the naive one marries the FL. I liked the relationship developed between the ML and FL.  - u/cloudy_with_chances

Mask is my guilty pleasure. I know it’s crazy and OTT and I LOVE it. The romance is the most important factor but it involves chaebols, revenge, doppelgängers, murder, loan sharks and our heroine caught between a rock and a hard place. Oh, also forced cohabitation. All the good stuff - u/tistock

I just started watching the new one on Viki, 100 Days My Prince and it’s fun. A little palace intrigue stuff but not too much. Basically the crown prince survives an assassination attempt but is wounded and gets amnesia (of course) and winds up married to a village girl. Everyone in the village calls him a useless husband because he doesn’t know how to farm or do anything practical. Sort of like a contract marriage / forced cohabitation romance historical comedy?  - u/setlib

100 Days My Prince - If you're looking for a good fusion sageuk, I'd recommend this drama. The reason why I enjoyed this drama so much is because it combined many tropes that we all know and love/hate: amnesia, childhood connection, forced cohabitation, contract marriage and made it fun. The premise is that the crown prince has lost his memory after a bad injury from an assassination attempt, and is saved by a villager. The crown prince lives as a commoner because no one knows his identity. He is also forced to marry a woman he's "never met" because of a royal order. The humor comes from the fact that although the prince lost his memories, he still retains his "noble and upperclass" habits and tastes, which gets him in trouble while he's adjusting to life in the village. I think this drama is the most enjoyable if you've seen other historical dramas before, because you'll understand why the villagers are so frustrated with the prince's behaviors, since no one expects his true identity as the crown prince. However, this drama is a fun watch nonetheless, and there's also a great romance story in it. Lastly, the two leading actors, EXO's D.O. and Nam Ji-hyun have excellent chemistry and bring so much charm to the drama. - u/eal8

You're Beautiful. It cheerily welcomes you to the forced cohabitation plot, one of the dearest devices in kdrama. Kpop idols of a cuteness incredible populate this adored old chestnut.  - unknown

The Tale of Nokdu - At first the ML dresses up as a female to be able to infiltrate the village. He ends up sharing a room with the FL.  - u/am_lostintranslation

Charming leads that banter as the sparks fly make this drama a classic among contract relationship dramas. It’s fun to see the chemistry growing and the tsundere melting. Luckily, they’re thrown together by their arrangement, since without it I have absolutely no idea how they’d get past their differences.  - u/amnesiafakedating

My Roommate is a Gumiho - ML is a 999-year-old Gumiho wanting to become a human before he reaches the 1000-year mark. It so happens that his marble ends up in FL’s stomach and now they have to live together for the protection of the marble and the FL. It’s one of those rom-coms that maintain a good balance between cute and mature. There was not even one character that I could hate and pretty much all were wholesome and lovely. Kang Han-Na surprised me with her quirky girl-next-door character and I loved her cute, cheerful and wise character. It was a non-toxic and entertaining drama. - u/Fatooz

Kill Me, Heal Me - The ML has a mental illness (DID), but has to keep it under wraps because his family finding out would threaten his position in his conglomerate family. So he hires a psychiatrist to help him with it, but she’s posing as his live-in assistant as to not arise suspicion. You should watch this drama because aside from it being hilarious, it deals with his mental condition really well/fairly realistically, and his journey to healing (with help of the fl) is absolutely beautiful! - u/No-Clue-9155

It’s Okay to Not Be Okay - The ML reluctantly ends up living with the FL because his brother decides to live with her first. The ML reluctantly follows his autistic brother because he feels like he needs to take care of him. This drama also deals with mental health really well and is a healing love story. It also has comedic relief and amazing characters! - u/No-Clue-9155

Run On - The ML and FL only live together for a short time, but it occurs because he needs a place to stay after he has to leave his residence. They also barely see each other while he stays with her due to different sleeping patterns. Regardless of this, you should absolutely watch this if you like character-focused slice of lifes! The characters are interesting to watch despite not being unnecessarily problematic/dramatic; they help each other grow in a healthy wholesome way. Every episode for me was a daily dose of happiness.  - u/No-Clue-9155

Black Knight - The FL ends up living with the ML because she frankly has nowhere else to stay. This is one of my favourite dramas because despite the questionable ending, it has a unique plot, and has not one boring episode. Also, it’s a modern drama, but it has flashbacks to the Joseon period, if that’s something that intrigues you.  - u/No-Clue-9155