Most important command is...

People ask me all the time, "I don't have a lot of time to train.  What commands are the most important?"  No easy answer. Some commands are fairly easy to train so would take less time to master while others are more complex and require more training time. 

There are certain commands that are important for safety reasons. The dogs got out of my mom's yard. Strange town, strange neighborhood, strange smells. It could have been disastrous. I heard the neighborhood dogs barking and something told me to go outside. I saw one fuzzy butt disappear around the corner of a house and panicked!  I called, "Cooper, Sadie!  Come!"  Both came running. Whew!  So glad we practice that at least once every training session. Relatively easy command

Sometimes, though, I wouldn't want the dog to "come". If they had run across a busy street and tried to come to me, they could have been hurt or worse. 

So, back to giving commands from a distance. The dog needs to learn that a command is to be followed immediately. It doesn't matter where he is. If I say "down", for instance, I don't mean, "come to me and then lie down". I mean "lay down, now, where you are."  Not an easy concept especially if the dog is used to taking food or training treats from your hand. So, training early on to catch the treat that is tossed can help. Popcorn is a good choice since it has a longer "hang" time. But, you have to have fairly good aim. If the dog goes down, then has to get up and chase down the treat, you have defeated your purpose. 

So, back to the original question. Which is the most important command?  It depends a lot on the dog and the owner's needs. If jumping up on people is a problem for a particular dog, then sit might be more important.  However, if the dog is a runner, then come might be more important. The commands are as individual as the dogs themselves and their owners.