Over the course of ten seasons, Friends witnessed the rise and fall of many relationships, but an unlikely pair turned out to be the best of the group: Monica and Chandler - and they were so much better than Ross and Rachel. Friends followed the lives of six young adults (Monica, Phoebe, Rachel, Joey, Chandler, and Ross) in New York City, and the many ups and downs that come with adulthood.
Many of them dated each other as well as other people throughout the series, but things didn't always work out. But one couple that kept cropping up was Ross and Rachel. Friends established the basis for the “Ross and Rachel” pair in the pilot episode, and while they were the favorite couple of many fans, they weren’t the best couple within the group (Phoebe and Mike don’t count as he wasn’t one of the six friends) – Monica and Chandler were.
Monica and Chandler had known each other for years prior to the events in Friends, as Chandler and Ross were college friends. Before getting involved, Monica and Chandler were close friends, and even though there were subtle hints at Chandler having feelings for her, they never pursued a relationship. Ross and Rachel, on the other hand, knew each other before the series, but weren’t friends. Rachel had been Ross’ crush for years, and when Rachel became Monica’s roommate, he went after her again. Ross was always selfish and jealous, and his insistence on dating Rachel felt more like a personal goal than something out of love – the complete opposite to Chandler and Monica.
Monica had a crush on Chandler when he was in college, which was quickly over after he referred to her as Ross’ fat sister. Those feelings were left behind and the two developed a strong relationship, but their feelings for each other were triggered after they slept together in London. Monica and Chandler actually grew a lot when they got together, with Chandler losing his fear of commitment, and they built the family they always wanted and didn’t have when growing up – Monica was neglected by her parents, especially her mother, and Chandler’s parents divorced when he was young because his father came out (and was revealed to have an affair with the pool boy).
Although the relationship of Monica and Chandler had its ups and downs, they always made an effort to talk about it and solve it, whereas Ross and Rachel always argued as Ross was often blinded by jealousy. In the end, Monica and Chandler had a more mature relationship that became so with time and with effort from both parts, with love as the basis of it – Ross and Rachel's relationship felt immature, and Ross' controlling attitude and selfishness wasn't love. Friends did its best to show different types of relationships, and these two are good examples of that.