Hierarchy was produced by Studio Dragon and directed by Bae Hyeon-jin, who previously co-directed Start-Up, Big Mouth, and Alchemy of Souls, with the script written by Chu Hye-mi, known for writing About Time.

In March 2023, lead actors Roh Jeong-eui, Lee Chae-min, Ji Hye-won, and Kim Tae-jeong were reportedly cast, before being confirmed alongside Kim Jae-won and Lee Won-jung.

Filming for the series took place across multiple South Korean locations including Seoul, Goyang, Incheon, Jecheon, Namhae County, Paju, Seocheon, Yangpyeong, Yangyang, and Yeongam.

Actors Seo Bum-june and Roh Jeong-eui reunited on this project one year after appearing together on SBS Inkigayo in 2023.

Lee Won-jung and Ji Hye-won reunited a year after co-starring in the 2023 KBS2 drama Behind Your Touch (also known as A Good Day to Be a Dog).

Choi Won-young and Kim Jun-hyung reunited nine months after working together on the 2023 tvN drama Twinkling Watermelon.

The series received generally negative reviews from critics, with outlets like Ready Steady Cut and NME criticizing it as a derivative retread of familiar teen drama tropes despite its promising premise.

Despite mixed critical reception, Hierarchy ranked second in Netflix's Global Top 10 TV (Non-English) category within three days of release, later topping the chart with 48 million hours watched by 6.3 million viewers, and was well received in 51 countries.