Release Order Recommended
0 / 40 watchedThe order these films actually came out in theaters, grouped by Phase. This is the order Marvel Studios recommends for a first watch.
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 4
Phase 5
Phase 6
Chronological Order
0 / 39 watchedThe in-universe timeline, best suited to a rewatch once you already know the story. Phases 1 to 3 follow a fairly clean single timeline; Phase 4 onward gets looser as the multiverse takes over, so treat the later placements as the commonly cited approach rather than a fixed answer.
About Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is Marvel Studios' shared continuity, built from six numbered Phases that group films around a central Avengers team-up. The first three phases (the Infinity Saga) run from Iron Man in 2008 to Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Phases four through six (the Multiverse Saga) pick up from there, introducing the multiverse and building toward Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Disney+ series like WandaVision, Loki and Daredevil: Born Again sit inside this same continuity and occasionally matter for a film's setup, but this guide focuses on the theatrical films, since that is what most newcomers mean by "the MCU" and what release order and chronological order actually apply to.
Good to know
Release order is what Marvel Studios designed the films around, so reveals like Nick Fury's post-credits cameo in Iron Man land the way they were intended. Chronological order is a fun rewatch once you know the story, but a poor first watch, since it spoils character arcs out of sequence.
Post-Endgame, the multiverse makes strict chronology harder, with films running in parallel or overlapping realities. The list below is a commonly cited placement, not an official Marvel Studios timeline.
