What’s the best way to watch Marvel Movies in order?: MCU Chronology and Release Date Timelines Explained

The adventures of superheroes and villains take many different forms in the expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It can be difficult to choose how to watch films and TV shows in a way that is both pleasurable and sensible, given the ever-growing selection available. In this guide, we look at various strategies that you can apply in order to watch Marvel movies, for instance – depending on release date, chronological order, and more. We have you covered whether you’re a diehard Marvel fan or are just getting started.

How to Watch Marvel Movies?: According to the Internal Chronological order

1. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
2. Captain Marvel (2019)
3. Iron Man (2008)
4. Iron Man 2 (2010)
5. The Incredible Hulk (2008)
6. Thor (2011)
7. The Avengers (2012)
8. Thor: The Dark World (2013) 9. Iron Man 3 (2013)
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
10. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
11. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
12. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
13. Ant-Man (2015)
14. Captain America: Civil War (2016) 16. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) 17. Black Panther (2018)
15. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
16. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
17. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
18. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

This order is based on the events of the films themselves, as well as statements made by Marvel Studios executives. For example, Captain America: The First Avenger is set in the 1940s, while Iron Man is set in the present day. This means that Captain America: The First Avenger must come first in the internal chronological order.

Of course, there is some flexibility in this order. For example, Spider-Man: Homecoming can be watched before or after Thor: Ragnarok, as the two films do not directly intersect. However, following the internal chronological order is generally the best way to experience the MCU films in the order that they happen.

How to Watch Marvel Movies?: According to the Release Date

The Infinity Saga

Phase One

• Iron Man (May, 2008)
• The Incredible Hulk (June, 2008)
• Iron Man 2 (May, 2010)
• Thor (May, 2011)
• Captain America: The First Avenger (July 22, 2011)
• Avengers Assemble (May 4, 2012)

Phase Two

• Iron Man 3 (May, 2013)
• Thor: The Dark World (November, 2013)
• Captain America: The Winter Soldier (April, 2014)
• Guardians of the Galaxy (August, 2014)
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (May, 2015)
• Ant-Man (July, 2015)

Phase Three

• Captain America: Civil War (May, 2016)
• Doctor Strange (November, 2016)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (May, 2017)
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (July, 2017)
• Thor: Ragnarok (November, 2017)
• Black Panther (February, 2018)
• Avengers: Infinity War (April, 2018)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp (July, 2018)
• Captain Marvel (March, 2019)
• Avengers: Endgame (April, 2019)
• Spider-Man: Far From Home (July, 2019)

The Multiverse Saga

Phase Four

• WandaVision (TV series) (January, 2021)
• The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (TV series) (March, 2021)
• Loki season 1 (TV series) (June, 2021)
• Black Widow (9th July 2021)
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (3rd September 2021)
• Eternals (5th November 2021)
• Hawkeye (24th November 2021)
• Spider-Man: No Way Home (17th December 2021)
• Moon Knight (TV show -30th March 2022)
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (5th May 2022)
• Ms Marvel (TV show – 8th June 2022)
• Thor: Love and Thunder (8th July 2022)
• She-Hulk (TV show – 18th August 2022)
• Werewolf By Night (TV special – 7th October 2022)
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (11th November 2022)
• The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (TV special – 25th November 2022)

Phase Five

• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (17th February 2023)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 (5th May 2023)
• Secret Invasion (TV show – 21st June 2023)
• Loki season 2 (TV show – 6th October 2023)
• The Marvels (10th November 2023)
• Echo (TV show – 29th November 2023)
• Deadpool 3 (3rd May 2024)
• Captain America: Brave New World (26th July 2024)
• Thunderbolts (20th December 2024)
• Blade (14th February 2025)
• Ironheart (TV show – 2024)
• Agatha: Darkhold Diaries (TV show – 2024)
• Daredevil: Born Again (TV show – 2024)

Phase Six

• Fantastic Four (2nd May 2025)
• Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (1st May 2026)
• Avengers: Secret Wars (7th May 2027)

How to Watch Marvel Movies?: According to Runtime

1. The Incredible Hulk – 1 hour 52 minutes
2. Thor: The Dark World – 1 hour 52 minutes
3. Doctor Strange – 1 hour 55 minutes
4. Thor – 1 hour 55 minutes
5. Ant-Man – 1 hour 57 minutes
6. Ant-Man and The Wasp – 1 hour 58 minutes
7. Thor: Love and Thunder -1 hour 59 minutes
8. Guardians of the Galaxy – 2 hours 2 minutes
9. Captain America: The First Avenger – 2 hours 4 minutes
10. Captain Marvel – 2 hours 4 minutes
11. Iron Man 2 – 2 hours 4 minutes
12. Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania – 2 hours and 5 minutes
13. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – 2 hours 6 minutes
14. Iron Man – 2 hours 6 minutes
15. Spider-Man: Far From Home – 2 hours 9 minutes
16. Iron Man 3 – 2 hours 10 minutes
17. Thor: Ragnarok – 2 hours 10 minutes
18. Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings – 2 hours 12 minutes
19. Spider-Man: Homecoming – 2 hours 13 minutes
20. Black Panther – 2 hours 14 minutes
21. Black Widow – 2 hours 14 minutes
22. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – 2 hours 16 minutes
23. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – 2 hours 17 minutes
24. Avengers: Age of Ultron – 2 hours 21 minutes
25. The Avengers – 2 hours 23 minutes
26. Captain America: Civil War – 2 hours 27 minutes
27. Spider-Man: No Way Home – 2 hours 28 minutes
28. Avengers: Infinity War – 2 hours 29 minutes
29. Eternals – 2 hours 36 minutes
30. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – 2 hours 41 minutes
31. Avengers: Endgame – 3 hours 1 minute

Watch Marvel Movies: Based on Disney+ Availability

1. Iron Man
2. The Incredible Hulk
3. Iron Man 2
4. Thor
5. Captain America: The First Avenger
6. The Avengers (Avengers Assemble)
7. Iron Man 3
8. Thor: The Dark World
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
10. Guardians of the Galaxy
11. Avengers: Age of Ultron
12. Ant-Man
13. Captain America: Civil War
14. Doctor Strange
15. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
16. Thor: Ragnarok
17. Black Panther
18. Avengers: Infinity War
19. Ant-Man and the Wasp
20. Captain Marvel
21. Avengers: Endgame
22. Black Widow
23. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
24. Eternals
25. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
26. Thor: Love and Thunder
27. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
28. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
29. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

What’s the best way to download and watch Marvel movies? 

Being a Disney+ member is the best way to download and watch Marvel films. You can watch all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films on Disney+, and the number of Marvel TV shows is growing all the time. You can also get Disney+ films to watch when you’re not online.

To download a Marvel movie from Disney+, follow these steps:

• Open the Disney+ app on your device.
• Find the movie you want to download and tap on it.
• Tap on the download icon.
• Select the quality you want to download the movie in.
• Tap on “Download”.

Going to the “Downloads” tab in the Disney+ app will let you watch the movie when you’re not online.

If you don’t want to subscribe to Disney+, you can also purchase or rent. You can do this on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Google Play, among others. On the other hand, keep in mind that you won’t be able to download films from these stores to watch elsewhere.

Ranked List of Marvel Movies: According to IMDb

1. Avengers: Endgame (IMDb score: 8.4)
2. Avengers: Infinity War (IMDb score: 8.4)
3. Spider-Man: No Way Home (IMDb score: 8.3)
4. Guardians of the Galaxy (IMDb score: 8)
5. Avengers Assemble (IMDb score: 8)
6. Iron Man (IMDb score: 7.9)
7. Thor: Ragnarok (IMDb score: 7.9)
8. Captain America: Civil War (IMDb score: 7.8)
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (IMDb score: 7.7)
10. Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (IMDb score: 7.6)
11. Doctor Strange (IMDb score: 7.5)
12. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (IMDb score 7.4)
13. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (IMDb score: 7.4)
14. Spider-Man: Far from Home (IMDb score: 7.4)
15. Spider-Man: Homecoming (IMDb score: 7.4)
16. Black Panther (IMDb score: 7.3)
17. Avengers: Age of Ultron (IMDb score: 7.3)
18. Ant-Man (IMDb score: 7.3)
19. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (IMDb score: 7.1)
20. Iron Man 3 (IMDb score: 7.1)
21. Ant-Man and the Wasp (IMDb score: 7)
22. Thor (IMDb score: 7)
23. Iron Man 2 (IMDb score: 6.9)
24. Captain America: The First Avenger (IMDb score: 6.9)
25. Thor: Love and Thunder (IMDb score: 6.9)
26. Thor: The Dark World (IMDb score: 6.9)
27. Captain Marvel (IMDb score: 6.8)
28. Black Widow (IMDb score: 6.7)
29. The Incredible Hulk (IMDb score: 6.6)
30. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (IMDb score: 6.4)
31. Eternals (IMDb score: 6.3)

Keep in mind that this ranking changes according to the votes.

Ranked List of Marvel Movies: According to Rotten Tomatoes

• Black Panther (Rotten Tomatoes score 96%)
• Avengers: Endgame (Rotten Tomatoes score 94%)
• Iron Man (Rotten Tomatoes score 94%)
• Spider-Man: No Way Home (Rotten Tomatoes score 94%)
• Thor: Ragnarok (Rotten Tomatoes score 93%)
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (Rotten Tomatoes score 92%)
• Guardians of the Galaxy (Rotten Tomatoes score 92%)
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (Rotten Tomatoes score 91%)
• Avengers Assemble (Rotten Tomatoes score 91%)
• Spider-Man: Far From Home (Rotten Tomatoes score 90%)
• Captain America: Civil War ((Rotten Tomatoes score 90%)
• Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Rotten Tomatoes score 90%)
• Doctor Strange (Rotten Tomatoes score 89%)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp (Rotten Tomatoes score 87%)
• Avengers: Infinity War (Rotten Tomatoes score 85%)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (Rotten Tomatoes score 85%)
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Rotten Tomatoes score 84%)
• Ant-Man (Rotten Tomatoes score 83%)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Rotten Tomatoes score 82%)
• Captain America: The First Avenger (Rotten Tomatoes score 80%)
• Captain Marvel (Rotten Tomatoes score 79%)
• Black Widow (Rotten Tomatoes score 79%)
• Iron Man 3 (Rotten Tomatoes score 79%)
• Thor (Rotten Tomatoes score 77%)
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (Rotten Tomatoes score 76%)
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (Rotten Tomatoes score 74%)
• Iron Man 2 (Rotten Tomatoes score 72%)
• Thor: Love and Thunder (Rotten Tomatoes score 67%)
• The Incredible Hulk (Rotten Tomatoes score 67%)
• Thor: The Dark World (Rotten Tomatoes score 66%)
• Eternals (Rotten Tomatoes score 47%)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Rotten Tomatoes score 47%)

Ranked List of Marvel Movies: According to Letterboxd

1. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) – 4.0/5.0
2. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – 4.0/5.0
3. Avengers: Endgame (2019) – 3.9/5.0
4. Thor: Ragnarok (2017) – 3.9/5.0
5. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) – 3.8/5.0
6. Black Panther (2018) – 3.8/5.0
7. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) – 3.8/5.0
8. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) – 3.8/5.0
9. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – 3.7/5.0
10. Iron Man (2008) – 3.7/5.0
11. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) – 3.7/5.0
12. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) – 3.7/5.0
13. Doctor Strange (2016) – 3.7/5.0
14. Captain America: Civil War (2016) – 3.6/5.0
15. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) – 3.6/5.0
16. Ant-Man (2015) – 3.6/5.0
17. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) – 3.6/5.0
18. Iron Man 3 (2013) – 3.5/5.0
19. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) – 3.5/5.0
20. Thor: The Dark World (2013) – 3.4/5.0
21. Iron Man 2 (2010) – 3.4/5.0
22. The Incredible Hulk (2008) – 3.4/5.0

Ranked List of Marvel Movies: According to Box Office

1. Avengers: Endgame – $2,797,800,564
2. Avengers: Infinity War – $2,048,359,754
3. Spider-Man: No Way Home – $1,901,232,550
4. The Avengers – $1,518,815,515
5. Avengers: Age of Ultron – $1,402,805,868
6. Black Panther – $1,347,280,161
7. Iron Man 3 – $1,214,811,252
8. Captain America: Civil War – $1,153,296,293
9. Spider-Man: Far From Home – $1,131,927,996
10. Captain Marvel – $1,128,275,263
11. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – $954,821,198
12. Spider-Man: Homecoming – $880,166,924
13. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – $858,852,377
14. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – $863,756,051
15. Thor: Ragnarok – $853,977,126
16. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – $835,724,752
17. Guardians of the Galaxy – $773,350,147
18. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – $714,421,503
19. Thor: Love and Thunder – $698,864,051
20. Doctor Strange – $677,718,395
21. Thor: The Dark World – $644,783,140
22. Iron Man 2 -$623,933,331
23. Ant-Man and the Wasp – $622,674,139
24. Iron Man – $585,796,247
25. Ant-Man – $519,311,965
26. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – $475,967,449
27. Thor – $449,326,618
28. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – $432,243,292
29. Eternals – $402,064,899
30. Black Widow – $379,751,655
31. Captain America: The First Avenger – $370,569,774
32. The Incredible Hulk – $264,770,996

What’s the best way to watch Marvel movies in order?

The best way to watch all of the Marvel films in order is in the internal chronological order. The events of the movies and what Marvel Studios leaders have said led to this order. Moreover, the internal chronological order is different from the order in which the films came out. Captain America: The First Avenger came out in 2011, but it takes place in the 1940s. In other words, it comes before Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, both of which came out in 2008.

You can better understand the story and the links between the characters if you watch the Marvel movies in the order they happen. Seeing how the Marvel Cinematic Universe has changed over time can also help you understand it better.

There is, of course, some room for change in the internal chronological order. Like, you can watch Spider-Man: Homecoming before or after Thor: Ragnarok because the two movies don’t go through each other directly. But following the internal chronological order is usually the best way to see the MCU pictures in the order they happen.

If you’re not sure which Marvel films come first, you can look it up online or in a number of specialist Marvel books.

Here are some tips for watching the Marvel movies in internal chronological order:

• Start with Captain America: The First Avenger.
• Watch the Iron Man movies in order.
• Watch The Incredible Hulk.
• Watch the Thor movies in order.
• Watch The Avengers.
• Watch the rest of the films in the order that they were released.

All Upcoming Marvel Movies & MCU TV Shows: 

1. The Marvels (10th November 2023)
2. Echo (29th November 2023)
3. Kraven the Hunter (August 30, 2024)
4. Ironheart (2024)
5. Agatha: Darkhold Diaries (2024)
6. Daredevil: Born Again (2024)
7. Captain America: Brave New World (3rd May 2024)
8. Thunderbolts (28th July 2024)
9. Blade (6th September 2024)
10. Fantastic Four (14th February 2025)
11. Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2nd May 2025)
12. Avengers: Secret Wars (1st May 2026)
13. Armor Wars (TBA)
14. Untitled Wakanda series (TBA)
15. Untitled mutant film (TBA)