Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) is the main character of the series. He starts off being an awkward and confused kid that just kind of wants to understand the world around him. He was a very lazy boy that wanted to go through life without ever putting too much effort into it. As he grows up, his slacker tendencies continuously lessen and he becomes a more matured young man. By the end of the series run, Cory becomes a very paranoiac, often pessimistic guy with a very marked sense of what is right and what is wrong.
Eric Matthews (Will Friedle) is Cory's older brother. On the onset of the show he's the typical popular teenage boy that has lots of friends and dates lots of girls. His character then takes a turn as the series progresses and he becomes more a clown type character. Contrary to Cory, Eric became dorkier and dorkier as time went on. He often appeared to have a loose grasp of reality but one this was clear to him, and that was a great value of friendship and family, and being there for the people that you love. However, Eric is a lot more intelligent than he appeared to be and would often surprise the people around him.
Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong) was always Cory's best friend. His life hasn't been an easy one as he has had to deal with very unfit parents; his mother left him, and his father went after her leaving him alone. Other than Cory, Shawn was the only character to appear in all 158 episodes of this show. Shawn was more of a bad boy, and had multiple girlfriends. He prone to depression and would sometimes see himself as worthless trailer trash but Cory would always prove him wrong. The differences in their personality often were the cause of problems between them, but their friendship always remained throughout the show.
Topanga Lawrence (Danielle Fishel) was Cory's main love interest. Out of all the characters, she was the one to go through the most drastic changes in her personality. She started off as being one of the "strange kids" in school. She was very concerned with the environment and was a vegetarian. As she grew up however, those concerns lost emphasis and she became a smarted more matured young woman. When it came to her relationship with Cory, she was often overwhelmed with doubts, but by the end of the show, the two ended up getting married.
