MCU Timeline: Watch Marvel Movies In Order | Exchange (2023)

Superhero movies have always been popular. Since Christopher Reeve's first appearance as Superman, there has always been some sort of comic book adaptation in the works. For decades, the most important superheroes on our giant screens have been Batman and Superman. But that all changed in 2008 when Robert Downey Jr. donned his armor for the first time. Since then, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (affectionately called the MCU) has grown into the greatest film franchise of all time. With 30 films (as of this writing) and over a decade of hype and action, Marvel movies have grossed nearly $28 billion worldwide.

Where to watch Marvel movies

The networking of the MCU makes it fun to watch and re-watch any movie. and the start ofdisney moreThat means every MCU movie (including at least one of Tom Holland's three Spider-Man movies) can be streamed on the same platform. But the big question is, what order do you see them in?

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Would you rather see each film as originally released, starting with Iron Man and ending with Thor: Love and Thunder? Want to see the events as they would have happened and watch the Marvel movies in chronological order? Do you watch all the Marvel movies or just the best and get to Endgame asap?

You don't have to decide now. Check out our guide to watching Marvel movies to see which one you like the most.

How to watch Marvel movies in chronological order

There are quite a lot of time jumps in the MCU, with some movies set in the past, some in the future, and some jumping back and forth between the two. In fact, it's pretty much the foundation of the entire Endgame story. Having seen each film at least once, some fans prefer to watch the Marvel films in chronological order, beginning with Captain America: The First Avenger and ending with the latest MCU release, which is currently Thor: Love and Thunder.

Watching the MCU films in chronological order is a fun way to catch all the callbacks, Easter eggs, and foreshadowings that you may have missed when you first saw the films. For example, Nick Fury invoking Captain Marvel after the events of Infinity War has added impact if you've already seen them meet in the solo Captain Marvel movie.

That's not 100% accurate, thanks to Marvel's famous mid and post credits leading to some overlap, particularly in Captain Marvel, Black Widow, and Ant-Man and the Wasp. Not to mention the flashbacks in Eternals set a few thousand years ago. But for the most part, watch Marvel movies in chronological order:

  • Captain America: The First Avenger (1942)

  • Captain Marvel (1995)

  • Ironman (2008)

  • Iron Man 2 (2011)

  • The Incredible Hulk (2011)

  • Thor (2011) – Six months before the Avengers

  • The Avengers (2012)

  • Iron Man 3 (2012) – sechs Monate nach The Avengers

  • Thor: The Dark World (2013) - after Avengers but before Ultron

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) - after Avengers but before Ultron

  • Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy 2 (2014)

  • Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

  • Ant Man (2015)

  • Captain America: Civil War (2016) - after Ultron and before Infinity War

  • Black Widow (2016, no post-credits scene) - right after the Civil War

  • Spider-Man: Homecoming (2016) - After the Civil War and before Infinity War

  • Doctor Strange (2016-2017)

  • Black Panther (2017)

  • Thor: Ragnarok (2017) - after Ultron and before Infinity War

  • Avengers: Infinity War (2017)

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp (2017) - Takes place simultaneously with Infinity War as the post-credits scene takes place during the snap.

  • Avengers: Endgame (2017–2022)

  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2023)

  • Spider-Man: Far From Home (2023)

  • Eternals (2023, no flashbacks)

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home (2024)

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2025)

  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2025)

  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2025)

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How to watch Marvel TV shows in the MCU timeline

If you want to take it a step further, you can include Disney Plus Marvel TV Shows in your next review. While WandaVision was released first, Loki begins during the events of Endgame, which take place in 2012. Here's how to watch the MCU movies and TV shows in chronological order:

MCU Timeline: Watch Marvel Movies In Order | Exchange (1)

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(Video) How To Watch Marvel Movies In Order | MCU Timeline Explained | MCU Chronological List | SuperFANS

  • Captain America: The First Avenger (1942)

  • Captain Marvel (1995)

  • Ironman (2008)

  • Iron Man 2 (2011)

  • The Incredible Hulk (2011)

  • Thor (2011) – sechs Monate vor The Avengers

  • The Avengers (2012)

  • Loki- picks up after The Avengers in 2012 but still looks better after Endgame.

  • Iron Man 3 (2012) – sechs Monate nach The Avengers

  • Thor: The Dark World (2013) - after Avengers but before Ultron

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) - after Avengers but before Ultron

  • Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy 2 (2014)

  • Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

  • Ant Man (2015)

  • Captain America: Civil War (2016) - after Ultron and before Infinity War

  • Black Widow (2016, no post-credits scene) - right after the Civil War

  • Spider-Man: Homecoming (2016) - After the Civil War and before Infinity War

  • Doctor Strange (2016-2017)

  • Black Panther (2017)

  • Thor: Ragnarok (2017) - after Ultron and before Infinity War

  • Avengers: Infinity War (2017)

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp (2017) - Takes place simultaneously with Infinity War as the post-credits scene takes place during the snap.

  • Avengers: Endgame (2017–2022)

  • Wanda-Vision (2022)- three weeks after endgame

  • The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2023)- six months after Avengers: Endgame

  • Spider-Man: Far From Home (2023) - eight months after Endgame

  • Y si...? (xxxx)- Since this spans the entire multiverse, there is no set date, but it's best to look to Endgame.

  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2023)

  • The Eternals (2023) - without flashbacks from almost 7,000 years ago

  • Falcon Eye (2023)

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home (2024)

  • Moon Knight (2025)

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2025)

  • Miss Marvel (2025)

  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2025)

  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2025)

  • Mulher-Hulk (2026)

How to watch Marvel movies in release order

Like me, you might prefer to watch the Marvel movies in order, which is the order in which they were originally released. Here's how to watch Marvel movies in release date order:

MCU Timeline: Watch Marvel Movies In Order | Exchange (2)

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MCU-Phase 1

  • Ironman (2008)

  • The Incredible Hulk (2008)

  • Iron Man 2 (2010)

  • Thor (2011)

  • Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

  • The Avengers (2012)

MCU-Phase 2

  • Iron Man 3 (2013)

  • Thor: The Dark World (2013)

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

  • Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

  • Ant Man (2015)

MCU-Phase 3

  • Captain America: Civil War (2016)

  • Doctor Strange (2016)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy Bd. 2 (2017)

  • Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

    (Video) How to watch Marvel movies (MCU) in order | All Marvel Movies 2002 - 2022 | (Explained in Hindi)

  • Thor: Ragnarök (2017)

  • Black Panther (2018)

  • Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

  • Captain Marvel (2019)

  • Avengers: Endgame (2019)

  • Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)

MCU-Phase 4

  • Wanda-Vision (2021)

  • The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)

  • Loki (2021)

  • Black Widow (2021)

  • And yes...? (2021)

  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

  • Eternal (2021)

  • Falcon Eyes (2021)

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

  • Mondritter (2022)

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)

  • Miss Marvel (2022)

  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

  • She-Hulk - Serie Disney Plus (2022)

  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (11. November 2022)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy Christmas Special (December 2022)

MCU-Phase 5

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed release dates for the next phase of MCU movies and TV shows, beginning in February 2023, at the world-renowned 2022 San Diego Comic-Con.

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (17. Februar 2023)

  • Secret Invasion (Spring 2023)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy Bd. 3 (5. Mai 2023)

  • Echo (Sommer 2023)

  • Loki Season 2 (Summer 2023)

  • The Miracles (July 28, 2023)

  • Leaf (November 3, 2023)

  • Iron Heart (fall 2023)

  • Agatha: Circle of Chaos (Winter 2023/2024)

  • Daredevil: Born Again (Spring 2024)

  • Captain America: New World Order (May 3, 2024)

  • Lightning (July 26, 2024)

MCU-Phase 6

Marvel hasn't revealed much about Phase 6 of the MCU. However, they have announced the titles and release dates for three major films within the upcoming production roster:

  • The Fantastic Four (November 8, 2024)

  • Avengers: Kang-Dynasty (2. May 2024)

  • Avengers: Secret Wars (7. November 2025)

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The best order to watch Marvel movies for the first time

If you're new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and want to catch up on the films without having to watch all 27, here's a list of MCU films you need to watch to fully understand.

MCU Timeline: Watch Marvel Movies In Order | Exchange (3)

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  • Ironman

  • Avengers go ahead

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier

    (Video) MCU BEST WATCH ORDER? We Fixed Marvel's Timeline!

  • Guardians of the Galaxy

  • Captain America Civil War

  • Thor Ragnorok

  • Black Panther

  • Avengers: Infinite War

  • Avengers Endgame

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home

There will be characters you won't be immediately familiar with (Captain Marvel and Dr. Strange) and the odd reference that you'll miss, but overall you'll get an understanding of what's going on in the MCU, and the best see. funniest, most shocking moments. .

How to Watch Marvel Movies in Top Rated Order

Some hardcore Marvel fans have even gone so far as to want to see all 29 MCU films ranked on rating platforms like IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. While this means watching movies in a jumble, it can be a good way to save the best for last. If you started your MCU binge with The Incredible Hulk, a movie that many of us don't really consider part of the MCU, and are building on the final two installments of Avengers.

MCU Results IMDB

*Accuracy as of November 2022

  • Avengers: Infinity War (IMDB Score: 8.4)

  • Avengers: Endgame (IMDB Score: 8.4)

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home (IMDB Score: 8.3)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy (IMDb-Punktzahl: 8,0)

  • Iron Man (IMDB Score: 7.9)

  • Thor: Ragnarok (IMDb Score: 7.9)

  • Captain America: Civil War (IMDB Score: 7.8)

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier (IMDB Score: 7.8)

  • Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (IMDB Score: 7.6)

  • Doctor Strange (IMDB Score: 7.5)

  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings (IMDb score: 7.4)

  • Spider-Man: Far From Home (IMDB Score: 7.4)

  • Spider-Man: Homecoming (IMDB Score: 7.4)

  • Schwarzer Panther (IMDB-Score: 7,3)

  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (IMDb Score: 7.3)

  • Avengers: Age of Ultron (IMDB Score: 7.3)

  • Ant-Man (IMDb Score: 7.3)

  • Iron Man 3 (IMDB Score: 7.2)

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (IMDb Score: 7.1)

  • Thor: Love and Thunder (IMDB score: 7.0)

  • The Avengers Assembled (IMDB Score: 7.0)

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp (IMDb Score: 7.0)

  • Thor (IMDB Score: 7.0)

  • Iron Man 2 (IMDB Score: 7.0)

  • Captain America: The First Avenger (IMDB-Punktzahl: 6,9)

  • Captain Marvel (IMDB Score: 6.8)

  • Thor: The Dark World (IMDB Score: 6.8)

  • Black Widow (IMDB Score: 6.7)

  • The Incredible Hulk (IMDb Score: 6.7)

  • Eternal (IMDB score: 6.4)

However, this is a very subjective list, personally I would recommend Dr. Never put Strange above Black Panther. Therefore, you can change this particular list as you see fit.

How long is the MCU timeline?

The events that take place in the MCU universe span thousands of years and it also takes quite a long time to watch all the movies in this universe. With 29 films released over 13 years, each phase of the MCU seemed to have progressively longer runs, with the epic Avengers finale clocking in at just over three hours. How long would it take you to watch all MCU movies? Here are all the MCU movies in order from shortest to longest:

  • The Incredible Hulk: 1 hour and 52 minutes

  • Thor: The Dark World: 1 hour and 52 minutes

  • Thor: 1 hour and 55 minutes

  • Doctor Strange: 1 hour and 55 minutes

  • Ant Man: 1 hour 57 minutes

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: 1 hour and 58 minutes

  • Thor: Love and Thunder: 1 hour and 58 minutes

  • Guardians of the Galaxy: 2 hours and 2 minutes

  • Iron Man 2: 2 hours and 4 minutes

  • Captain America: The First Avenger: 2 hours and 4 minutes

  • Captain Marvel: 2 hours and 4 minutes

  • Iron Man: 2 hours and 6 minutes

  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: 2 hours 6 minutes

  • Spider-Man: Far From Home: 2 hours and 9 minutes

  • Iron Man 3: 2 hours and 10 minutes

  • Thor: Ragnarok: 2 hours and 10 minutes

  • Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings: 2 hours and 12 minutes

  • Spider-Man: Homecoming: 2 hours and 13 minutes

  • Black Panther: 2 hours and 14 minutes

  • Black Widow: 2 hours and 14 minutes

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier: 2 hours 16 minutes

  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: 2 hours and 17 minutes

    (Video) Watch MCU In Order In 2022 | Explained In Hindi | How to watch Marvel movies in order of story?

  • Avengers: Age of Ultron: 2 hours and 21 minutes

  • The Avengers: 2 hours and 23 minutes

  • Captain America: Civil War: 2 hours 27 minutes

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home: 2 hours and 28 minutes

  • Avengers: Infinity War: 2 hours and 29 minutes

  • Eternal: 2 hours and 36 minutes

  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: 2 hours and 41 minutes

  • Avengers: Endgame: 3 hours and 1 minute

This means that the total runtime of the MCU is now 62 hours and 10 minutes. So if you wanted to see the entire MCU timeline non-stop and back-to-back, it would take almost two and a half days.

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So what is the best way to watch all Marvel movies?

Call me old fashioned, but I think it's best to look at the Marvel movies in the order in which they were released first. With all the post-credits teasers, plot twists, and character development, the release order provides the best introduction to each Marvel character and their place in the broader MCU.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Marvel Movies

The best way to watch all Marvel movies is in release order, or chronological order. You can also view it in order of highest rated or shortest to longest.

Black Panther 2, also known as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, will be released on November 11, 2022.

Spider-Man Homecoming is currently available to stream on Netflix in the UK along with other Sony Spider-Man movies.

Spider-Man Far From Home is currently unavailable to stream on any UK streaming service. However, you can buy a digital version from Amazon Prime Video.

Black Widow's solo film takes place after the events of Captain America: Civil War and before the events of Avengers: Infinity War.

Shang Chi isn't technically an Avenger...yet. In the post-credits scene of his solo film, he meets both Bruce Banner and Captain Marvel. But there hasn't been any official confirmation yet that he'll be joining the team or if there will be another Avengers movie in the future of the MCU. However, it is very likely that he will appear in more future Marvel projects and get a sequel to his successful solo film.

Thor: Love & Thunder was released on July 6, 2022.

She-Hulk: Attorney-At-Law first aired on Disney Plus on August 17, 2022.

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