The first season of The Hills, an American reality television series, consists of 10 episodes and was broadcast on MTV. It aired from May 31, 2006, until August 2, 2006. The season was filmed primarily in Los Angeles, California, with additional footage in New York City. The executive producer was Liz Gateley. The Hills focuses on the lives of Lauren Conrad, Audrina Patridge, Whitney Port, and Heidi Montag. During the season, Conrad moves from Laguna Beach to Los Angeles. Accompanied by her best friend and housemate Montag, the pair attend the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, though the latter left the college after receiving employment from Bolthouse Productions. Conrad befriends Port through an internship with Teen Vogue, while Montag develops a companionship with Patridge after learning that she lives in their apartment building.

The second season of The Hills premiered on January 15, 2007 and concluded on April 2, 2007. The season continues to follow the lives of Lauren Conrad, Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge and Whitney Port in Los Angeles as they face new challenges at work and school, with romances threatening to damage their friendships. This season was filmed from late summer 2006 through February 2007.

The third season of The Hills, an American reality television series, consists of 28 episodes and was broadcast on MTV. The first portion aired from August 13, 2007, until December 10, 2007, while the second portion aired from March 24, 2008, until May 12, 2008. It was primarily filmed in Los Angeles, California, with additional footage in Crested Butte, Colorado; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Paris, France. The executive producer was Liz Gateley. The Hills focuses on the lives of Lauren Conrad, Audrina Patridge, Whitney Port, and Heidi Montag. During the season, Conrad ended her friendship with Montag after suspecting that she and her boyfriend Spencer Pratt fabricated rumors of a sex tape involving herself and ex-boyfriend Jason Wahler. The ensuing feud between the three became a central focus of the series, and was carried through each subsequent season. Meanwhile, Patridge resumed a relationship with her on-again/off-again boyfriend Justin Brescia.

The fourth season of The Hills, an American reality television series, consists of 20 episodes and was broadcast on MTV. It aired from August 18, 2008, until December 22, 2008. The season was filmed primarily in Los Angeles, California, with additional footage in New York City, New York; Las Vegas, Nevada; Italy; and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The executive producer was Liz Gateley. The Hills focuses on the lives of Lauren Conrad, Audrina Patridge, Whitney Port, and Heidi Montag. During the season, Conrad's distaste for Montag's boyfriend Spencer Pratt continues to inhibit reconciliation between the women. Meanwhile, Patridge is concerned that her new housemate Lo Bosworth is straining her relationship with Conrad. The season finale saw Port relocate to New York City to accept employment with Diane von Fürstenberg, while Montag and Pratt elope. Upon the conclusion of the season, Port was commissioned her own spin-off series The City, which originally chronicled the lives of her and friends Olivia Palermo, Jay Lyon, Erin Lucas, and Adam Senn. Additionally, rumors were widespread that Conrad wished to leave the series to pursue other career opportunities, though she made her final appearance on the series during the mid-season finale of the following season.