(Updated 10/17/2023)
With 32 released movies, the Marvel Cinematic Universe can feel as big as an actual universe. For those who’ve been watching since the beginning, when IRON MAN debuted in 2008, it’s been easy to keep up. But for younger viewers, people who never got into Marvel until later in the game, or those who want to revisit everything prior to THE MARVELS, the MCU can be a daunting place.
We're here to help, with advice on the best way to watch the Marvel movies in order.
There are a few possible MCU viewing orders. Which is the best MCU viewing order? Well. There's release order, which winds through four and a half "phases" – THE MARVELS is the third Phase Five movie. There’s also chronological order, which looks at the movies from a story timeline perspective. But with flashbacks, time travel, and other story aspects, that's not always ideal.
What's the solution? A hybrid!
The Best MCU Viewing Order
We want to propose an ideal Marvel order that is mostly chronological, with a few deviations. We group some themes and characters, and give some big events space to breathe. The Spider-Man movies FAR FROM HOME and NO WAY HOME, for example, basically take place one right after the other, despite the fact that several real-world years passed between them.
Notably, we keep ETERNALS at the end. While it takes place some time after the events of AVENGERS: ENDGAME, there are big events in the story which haven't been referenced more widely in the MCU so far.
What About End Credits Scenes?
The question of end credits scenes can be tricky! Most of BLACK WIDOW, for example, is set after the events of CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, but the post-credits scene takes place after ENDGAME. With that as a guide, we've mostly ignored mid- and post-credits scenes for the purposes of setting up a Marvel viewing order.
How to Watch the Marvel Movies in Order
OK, enough talking! Here's how we recommend watching the MCU in order:
1) Captain America: The First Avenger
2) Iron Man
3) Incredible Hulk
4) Iron Man 2
5) Thor
6) The Avengers
7) Thor: The Dark World
8) Guardians of the Galaxy
9) Captain America: The Winter Soldier
10) Iron Man 3
11) Guardians of the Galaxy 2
12) Avengers: Age of Ultron
13) Doctor Strange
14) Ant-Man
15) Captain America: Civil War
16) Black Widow
17) Black Panther
18) Spider-Man: Homecoming
19) Ant-Man & the Wasp
20) Thor: Ragnarök
21) Avengers: Infinity War
22) Captain Marvel
23) Avengers: Endgame
24) Spider-Man: Far from Home
25) Spider-Man: No Way Home
26) Thor: Love and Thunder
27) Shang-Chi & the Legend of the Ten Rings
28) Dr. Strange & the Multiverse of Madness
29) Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
30) Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3
31) Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania
32) Eternals
THE MARVELS opens on November 10.
All images courtesy of Marvel Studios.