In creator Loren Bouchard's original concept for the show, the Belcher family were cannibals, but Fox executives convinced him to drop that idea. The concept was still referenced in the pilot episode when Louise spreads a rumor that the burgers are made of human flesh.

For the pre-sale proof of concept, Bouchard hired local San Francisco artists including character designer Jay Howell and background designer Sirron Norris. The test animation featured Bob forgetting his wedding anniversary while grinding human meat, with Linda finding a ring on a severed hand and assuming Bob bought her jewelry.

The original concept for the eldest Belcher child was a son named Daniel, and Loren Bouchard had already cast Dan Mintz to voice him. However, Fox executive Kevin Reilly felt the character was overused in media, so Daniel was replaced by Tina Belcher, which shifted the show's dynamic.

John Roberts was cast as Linda Belcher based on his years of impersonating his own mother on YouTube and in live comedy shows, and his love of music influenced Linda's tendency to sing about everything.

After the scripts are written, voice actors read them as scripted but are later allowed to improvise lines, with editors and writers deciding which improvisations make the final cut.

The ukulele track in the show's theme song is an edited version of the very first recording Loren Bouchard made in 2008; if the EQ filter is removed from the original track, background noise from the nightclub below his apartment can be heard.

In a crossover episode of Archer titled 'Fugue and Riffs,' Sterling Archer (voiced by H. Jon Benjamin, who also voices Bob) is found flipping burgers at the shore, believing himself to be Bob Belcher due to amnesia.

The setting of the show is officially unnamed but is informally called 'Seymour's Bay' by the staff writers, a name that appeared on-screen in the season 11 episode 'Y Tu Tina También' when Bob reads a newspaper called the 'Seymour's Bay Times.'

On January 6, 2011, several Fatburger locations across the US were rebranded as 'Bob's Burgers' for a day as a promotion, offering a special burger and free giveaway coupons; two California locations kept the Bob's Burgers name into 2016.