The show was created by Robert Doherty, though producer Carl Beverly was reportedly the first to suggest the idea of developing a Sherlock Holmes show.

Producer Carl Beverly described the Sherlock-Watson relationship as a 'bromance' where one of the 'bros' just happens to be a woman, emphasizing the evolution of their friendship over the mysteries themselves.

Because Elementary premiered shortly after the BBC's modern Sherlock Holmes adaptation Sherlock, it faced criticism and scrutiny from Sherlock's producer Sue Vertue, who stated she would examine the CBS pilot closely for any rights infringement.

CBS publicly stated that its Sherlock Holmes adaptation would be based on Holmes, Watson, and other public domain characters, and would respect all copyright laws.

Creator Robert Doherty defended Elementary against comparisons to Sherlock by noting that updated Holmes adaptations date back to the Basil Rathbone films of the 1940s, and he called Sherlock a 'brilliant show.'

Lucy Liu later confirmed that the producers of the UK's Sherlock were shown the Elementary pilot, saw how different it was from their own show, and became okay with it.

The series was filmed primarily in New York City, with some interior scenes shot at Silvercup Studios in Long Island City and many interiors filmed in Queens; exterior shots of Sherlock's brownstone were filmed in Harlem, standing in for Brooklyn Heights.

The season two premiere was partly filmed on location in London.

By the end of season 2, Jonny Lee Miller became the actor who had portrayed Sherlock Holmes the most times in television and/or film, surpassing Jeremy Brett's 41 television episodes and Eille Norwood's 47 silent films.

On February 3, 2013, Elementary aired as the official lead-out program after Super Bowl XLVII and drew 20.8 million viewers despite running past prime time due to a game delay.

Actor Nelsan Ellis, who played Shinwell Johnson in season 5, died in Brooklyn at age 39 just eight weeks after the episode depicting his character's death aired.