The series was adapted from a 1978 stage play called Two Twenty Seven, written by Christine Houston about the lives of women in a predominantly Black apartment building in 1950s Chicago; the setting was changed to present-day Washington, D.C. for the TV show.

The show was created as a starring vehicle for Marla Gibbs, who had previously starred in Houston's original play in Los Angeles and became famous playing the maid Florence Johnston on The Jeffersons.

According to Gibbs, 227 was originally offered to ABC but ended up being sold to NBC instead.

Because The Jeffersons was still airing on CBS, 227 was originally scheduled to begin in 1986, but when The Jeffersons was unexpectedly canceled in 1985, Gibbs became available and the new show went into production a year earlier than planned.

227 marked the first television acting role for Regina King, who played the Jenkins' daughter Brenda.

Countess Vaughn was cast as child prodigy Alexandria DeWitt in season four after she appeared on the talent show Star Search and told host Ed McMahon that her favorite show was 227.

Kia Goodwin's character Tiffany Holloway was written out after season two because Goodwin's mother was unhappy living in California, leading to the child actor being released from her contract.

By the time season three began taping in 1987, Jackée Harry had just won an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress and changed her stage name to simply Jackée, which she used until 1994.

After season four, a backdoor pilot titled Jackée aired on NBC on May 11, 1989, featuring Sandra moving to New York City to work at a spa; the pilot was rejected and Jackée subsequently left the main cast, though she returned as a guest star in seven episodes of the final season.

In the show's final season, Toukie Smith and Barry Sobel were promoted to the main cast while Stoney Jackson and Paul Winfield joined in an effort to reverse the show's declining ratings, though the changes failed to save the series, which ended in spring 1990.

Pearl Shay, played by Helen Martin, was the only character to appear in all 116 episodes of the show, including a guest appearance in the Jackée backdoor pilot, an episode in which Mary, Lester, and Rose did not appear.