Elsewhere, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has also been released in cinemas and is now on Disney+, introducing us to the next MCU big bad in the form of Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors), but later in the year, Phase Five continues.
We can expect the female-led sequel to Captain Marvel titled The Marvels in November, followed by the Sam Wilson solo film Captain America: Brave New World next year along with the anti-hero superhero team Thunderbolts and, finally, the vampire hunter Blade, also in 2024, which stars double-Oscar winner Mahershala Ali.
Catch the trailer for the Captain Marvel sequel The Marvels, which also features Ms Marvel and Monica Rambeau, below.
Marvel Studios has also laid out their Phase Six plans, which will begin with the enigmatic new adventure for the Fantastic Four (14th February 2025), before concluding with the two-part finale Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2nd May 2025) and Avengers: Secret Wars (1st May 2026).
It’s actually quite tricky to navigate the MCU, thanks to the sheer volume of multiverse adventures, and the important question of whether you want to watch in chronological order or by release order.
And with the MCU continuing to expand its multiverse, it’s only going to get more difficult to follow.
In addition to Marvel movies, Disney Plus has been dropping several new series in recent years, which form just as vital a part of the MCU; there's been the quirky WandaVision, the Christmas-themed Hawkeye, the thrilling Falcon and the Winter Soldier, the timey-wimey Loki, the spooky but epic Moon Knight, the family-friendly Ms Marvel, and the highly amusing She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
And of course, there are plenty more where that came from, including the upcoming Secret Invasion featuring Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury, Loki season 2, later this year, Hawkeye spin-off series Echo to round out 2023, the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever spin-off Ironheart, WandaVision spin-off Agatha: Coven of Chaos, and the return of the Man Without Fear himself, Daredevil: Born Again.
Fortunately, RadioTimes.com has you covered on how to watch all of the Marvel movies and series in order.
We also have you covered for how to watch the Spider-Man: No Way Home streaming release, which is a little more complicated due to the rights issues of it being owned by Sony Pictures – and might also require you to brush up on how to watch the Spider-Man movies in order.
How to watch all the Marvel movies in order: MCU chronological timeline and release order
With so many new additions on the way, the MCU timeline can get a little muddled, but there are two main ways to watch the Marvel movies in order, chronological order, which kicks things off with Captain America: The First Avenger, or Marvel movies in release order, which starts with Iron Man.
When it comes to the best way to watch the Marvel movies in order, it's really down to you, we like seeing things in release order as they naturally developed, but always advocate giving the chronological order a go at least once.
With Phase Four now wrapping up there's no better time to get started. We've included all your options so get that Marvel movie marathon binge started now.
Marvel movies in chronological order
Looking at the series in chronological order, it's actually Captain America: The First Avenger that is set earliest, taking place during the Second World War where a skinny Steve Rogers is first dosed with the incredible Super Soldier Serum.
The latest film entries in the chronological timeline are Thor: Love and Thunder and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which were released in 2022 but due to the Endgame time jump, actually takes place around the year 2026.
Some fans believe that this is the best way to watch the MCU movies as elements are introduced as the characters in the story encounter them – for instance, this method makes Nick Fury's Infinity War cameo more satisfying, as viewers will already have the context provided by Captain Marvel (released in cinemas the following year).
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However, there are other cases in which this is a detriment, such as Ant-Man and the Wasp, which is largely set before the events of Infinity War, but its own post-credits scene spoils the ending to the epic crossover movie.
The following list of films and TV series are based on Disney+'s official viewing order.
Here are the Marvel movies in chronological viewing order:
Meanwhile, below you can find the Marvel TV shows in chronological viewing order:
- Werewolf By Night (TBC)
- Loki (after Endgame, but outside of the main timeline – read more on Loki's timeline)
- WandaVision (2023)
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2023)
- Hawkeye (2024)
- Moon Knight (2025)
- She-Hulk: Attorney At Law (2025)
- Ms Marvel (2025)
Marvel's What If...? is set outside the main timeline, as it takes place in various parallel realities.
Marvel movies in order of release
If the chronological order sounds a little too confusing, there is also the option to simply watch in release date order, which also neatly categorises the MCU story into four distinct "phases".
The first three phases make up what is now referred to as the Infinity Saga, beginning with the introduction of the Avengers characters and ending with the time-hopping mega-event that was Avengers: Endgame.
Watching this method will send you on the same journey that millions of Marvel fans all over the world have enjoyed, allowing you to watch first-hand how the MCU grew from a fairly grounded superhero flick to an all-out space opera.
It's true that watching this way will mean you see some events outside of their in-universe order, i.e. the origin of Captain America or the first meeting between Nick Fury and Captain Marvel, but this doesn't cause any serious storytelling problems.
In release date order, the MCU begins with 2008's Iron Man and continues all the way up to 2022's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever with several new movies to be added to that list next year.
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)
- Captain America: Brave New World (3rd May 2024)
- Thunderbolts (26th July 2024)
- Blade (6th September 2024)
- Ironheart (TV show - 2024)
- Agatha: Coven of Chaos (TV show - 2024)
- Daredevil: Born Again (TV show - 2024)
Phase Six
- Fantastic Four (14th February 2025)
- Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2nd May 2025)
- Avengers: Secret Wars (1st May 2026)
Future MCU movies and TV shows
- Armour Wars (Movie- TBA)
- Eternals sequel (Movie - TBA)
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings sequel (Movie - TBA)
- Untitled Wakanda Series (TV show - TBA)
- Untitled X-Men movie (Movie - TBA)
So, we still have a wealth of Marvel series left to enjoy in the next few years - and beyond!
Marvel movies on Disney Plus
As Marvel is owned by Disney, you can watch most of the MCU movies whenever you like if you're a subscriber to the studio's very own streaming service: Disney Plus.
That said, there are a few movies missing from the platform at the time of writing, specifically The Incredible Hulk (as it is owned by Universal) and Tom Holland's recent Spider-Man movies (as they were co-produced with Sony Pictures).
Fortunately, The Incredible Hulk is available to rent on Amazon from just £2.49, while Spider-Man: Homecoming and Far From Home are available to purchase digitally.
Cinematic releases Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Thor: Love and Thunder have all made their way to Disney Plus in recent months.
You also have a few more TV series coming to Disney Plus. You've probably already watched WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, the animated series What If..., Hawkeye, Moon Knight, Ms Marvel, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, and Werewolf By Night.
As well as these series, we have coming up:
- Secret Invasion (21st June 2023)
- Loki season 2 (6th October 2023)
- Echo (29th November 2023)
- Ironheart (2023/2024)
- Agatha: Coven of Chaos (2023/2024)
- Daredevil (2024)
- Wonder Man (TBA)
- Vision Quest (TBA)
- Wakanda Series (TBA)
What’s the best way to watch the Marvel movies in order?
While the choice is yours entirely, we'd recommend just watching in plain ol' release order – it's the order in which the films were produced and so, ultimately, the order in which they are best viewed.... at least if you're an MCU newbie, with post-credits scenes, Easter eggs and so on all making the most sense viewed in this order.
We would advise against using the chronological order if you're a total newcomer to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the method sounds appealing in theory, there are several reasons why it could actually hamper your overall experience of the MCU.
First off: you may struggle to remember the background of certain characters. Captain Marvel, for instance, will be introduced in the second film in the list, but won't be mentioned again until more than 40 screen hours later.
Also, making Captain Marvel your second MCU movie means you miss out on the in-jokes and references established over 17 preceding entries.
However, there is something to be said for ardent Marvel fans revisiting the saga chronologically, as this will give more depth to the backstory of some key characters and brings a new understanding of the MCU timeline (e.g. many don't realise that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 and 2 are set mere months apart).
Best Marvel movies by IMDb scores
Another factor that might help you decide which order to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies is their review scores, which have varied a little over the years.
We've ranked the franchise below according to their IMDb scores, decided by the consensus of a large number of fans, and it's little surprise to see the two most recent Avengers films come out on top.
- Avengers: Endgame (IMDb score: 8.4)
- Avengers: Infinity War (IMDb score: 8.4)
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (IMDb score: 8.3)
- Guardians of the Galaxy (IMDb score: 8)
- Avengers Assemble (IMDb score: 8)
- 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: 7.7)
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (IMDb score: 7.6)
- Doctor Strange (IMDb score: 7.5)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (IMDb score 7.4)
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (IMDb score: 7.4)
- Spider-Man: Far from Home (IMDb score: 7.4)
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (IMDb score: 7.4)
- Black Panther (IMDb score: 7.3)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (IMDb score: 7.3)
- Ant-Man (IMDb score: 7.3)
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (IMDb score: 7.1)
- Iron Man 3 (IMDb score: 7.1)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp (IMDb score: 7)
- Thor (IMDb score: 7)
- Iron Man 2 (IMDb score: 6.9)
- Captain America: The First Avenger (IMDb score: 6.9)
- Thor: Love and Thunder (IMDb score: 6.9)
- Thor: The Dark World (IMDb score: 6.9)
- Captain Marvel (IMDb score: 6.8)
- Black Widow (IMDb score: 6.7)
- The Incredible Hulk (IMDb score: 6.6)
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (IMDb score: 6.4)
- Eternals (IMDb score: 6.3)
Naturally, this is a ranking that consistently changes as a result of votes.
At the moment it is neck and neck between epic crossover movies for Avengers: Endgame and Avengers: Infinity War for the most popular with audiences, while Eternals is now the least popular.
Best Marvel movies by Rotten Tomatoes score
Many will be wondering what are the most critically acclaimed Marvel movies, however.
So, according to critics' scores on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, here are all the Marvel movies in order of the percentage of reviews that rated the film "Fresh".
According to the current Rotten Tomatoes ratings - which are also consistently changing, Black Panther is the most critically acclaimed MCU film while Eternals and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania rank as the least critically acclaimed and is the only MCU film to be marked as "Rotten".
What is the highest-grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe movie?
All 31 Marvel Cinematic Universe films can be found below with their box office profits at this time of writing.
Avengers: Endgame is the highest-grossing MCU film of all time, while The Incredible Hulk ranks as the lowest-grossing for the franchise.
More information on box office performance can be found on Box Office Mojo and Guinness World Records.
Best Marvel series on Disney Plus
We can also see the IMDb scores for each of the series released as part of the MCU's Phase Four and were released on Disney Plus.
- Loki season 1 (IMDb score 8.2)
- WandaVision (IMDb score 7.9)
- Hawkeye (IMDb score 7.5)
- What If...? (IMDb score 7.4)
- Moon Knight (IMDb score 7.3)
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (IMDb score 7.1)
- Ms Marvel (IMDb score 6.2)
- She-Hulk: Attorney At Law (IMDb score 5.2)
Meanwhile, the Rotten Tomatoes scores for each series by critics' ratings are as follows.
- Ms Marvel (Rotten Tomatoes score 98%)
- What If...? (Rotten Tomatoes score 94%)
- Loki (Rotten Tomatoes score 92%)
- Hawkeye (Rotten Tomatoes score 92%)
- WandaVision (Rotten Tomatoes score 91%)
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Rotten Tomatoes score 89%)
- Moon Knight (Rotten Tomatoes score 87%)
- She-Hulk: Attorney At Law (Rotten Tomatoes score 85%)
It is worth noting that we are only including the series that count as part of the MCU Phases and not including the Marvel Netflix series or ABC and Hulu shows.
Marvel Studios' Netflix series according to their IMDb ratings can be found below.
- Daredevil (IMDb score 8.6)
- The Punisher (IMDb score 8.5)
- Jessica Jones (IMDb score 7.9)
- Luke Cage (IMDb score 7.3)
- The Defenders (IMDb score 7.3)
- Iron Fist (IMDb score 6.4)
We think it's safe to say that Iron Fist is the least popular of these shows, while Daredevil clearly comes out on top!
How to download and watch Marvel movies
As we laid out above, most of the Marvel movies are available to stream on Disney Plus.
However, you can also download the films from the service to watch on the go. Here's your step-by-step guide.
You can download an unlimited number of movies from the Disney Plus mobile app. Your downloaded shows will only be able to watch so long as you’re a subscriber to the service.
You can also buy, rent and download each Marvel movie on Amazon (you do not need to be an Amazon Prime Video customer to do this).
Wondering what else you can watch on Disney Plus? Take a look at our best Disney Plus series guide or the best Disney Plus movies.
Upcoming MCU movies and shows
We'll update this page as new movies and shows are added to Disney+ and Phase 4 of the MCU timeline, but, for now, we've rounded up your ultimate list of what to look forward to by release date:
- Secret Invasion (21st June 2023)
- Loki season 2 (6th October 2023)
- The Marvels (10th November 2023)
- Echo (29th November 2023)
- Ironheart (2023/2024)
- Agatha: Coven of Chaos (Winter 2023/2024)
- Daredevil: Born Again (Spring 2024)
- Captain America: Brave New World (3rd May 2024)
- Thunderbolts (28th July 2024)
- Blade (6th September 2024)
- Fantastic Four (14th February 2025)
- Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2nd May 2025)
- Avengers: Secret Wars (1st May 2026)
- Armor Wars (TBA)
- Untitled Wakanda series (TBA)
- Untitled mutant film (TBA)
Read More
Check out more of our Movies coverage or visit our TV guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight. For Marvel merch, head to our guide to the best Marvel gifts. Check out our list of the best shows on Disney+ or see what else is on and visit our Sci-fi hub for all the latest news.
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