How to Watch Every Marvel Movie & TV Show in Order

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been around for sixteen years, with a vast array of films, TV shows, web series, and one-shots. The universe has grown in size, making it a challenge for even the most dedicated Marvel fans to keep track of the timeline and watch everything.

For those looking to watch the Marvel movies and shows in chronological order, we’ve compiled a timeline that includes all the films, shows, and phases they belong to. Alternatively, if you prefer to watch them in the order they were released, we’ve also provided a release date order for all the shows and films.

Marvel has its own official timeline for the movies, as detailed in the book Marvel Studios: The First Ten Years. This timeline provides specific years for when each film is set, up to Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame.

We are currently in Phase 5 of the MCU, which is the second segment of the Multiverse Saga. The phase began with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

For those interested, we have similar articles on watching all the Spider-Man films in order and the Mission: Impossible films in order. You can also explore how She-Hulk sets up Daredevil’s future in the MCU.

How to watch the Marvel movies and TV shows in chronological order

When watching the Marvel films and TV shows in chronological order, keep in mind that the timeline becomes more complex as you progress. Some films overlap in time, and Marvel has made a few inconsistencies in the timeline. However, as long as you watch them in roughly the right order, you’ll be fine.

Marvel has released all the post-credit scenes up to Endgame in one giant Twitter thread, providing a visual summary of the teases that built up the MCU.

Disney+ updated its list in January 2024 to include the Netflix Marvel shows, and we have adjusted our list accordingly.

We have categorized everything into Marvel’s ‘phases,’ but there are some gray areas where certain films and shows do not neatly fit into a single phase. Additionally, Spider-Man: Far From Home is considered the last film in Phase Three but takes place after the first two Disney+ shows.

Here is the chronological ordering of the Marvel film universe as it stands now, with films in bold and TV shows not in bold. You can watch most of the films and shows on Disney Plus.

* – not available on Disney Plus

It’s worth noting that some recent releases, like Deadpool and Wolverine and Echo, are placed in the timeline but without specific details due to their time-travel elements and references to other universes.

Loki and What If…? have stories that span various points in the MCU timeline and require context from previous films to make sense.

Spider-Man: No Way Home draws on other Spider-Man universe films, and films not produced by Marvel Studios, such as Fox’s X-Men, are not included in the official MCU timeline.

We have included Agents of Shield, Inhumans, Cloak and Dagger, and The Runaways in our list, as they reference events from the main MCU timeline.

How to watch the Marvel films and TV series in release date order

If you prefer to watch the films and series in the order they were released, the process is less complicated. We’ve listed everything that has been released in the MCU so far, with films in bold.

We have not included the DVD shorts here, as they can be found with each movie or on Disney Plus. Watching everything in release date order may make more sense, as Marvel has occasionally broken its own timeline. Some films and shows set earlier reference events that happen later due to time travel and multiverse elements.

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