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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallFor a first-time viewer, watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies in theatrical release order. That sequence preserves the intended character introductions, post-credits teases, surprises, and large story reveals. Use chronological story order for a rewatch, when following the fictional history matters more than preserving those reveals.
As of August 9, 2026, there are 38 released MCU theatrical films. The newest is Spider-Man: Brand New Day, released in the United States on July 31, 2026. The next unreleased film is Avengers: Doomsday, scheduled for December 18, 2026. This guide covers the movies only—not every Marvel-branded film, television series, special, or short.
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Last updated: August 9, 2026. U.S. theatrical dates are used below; international dates may differ.
Quick answer: release order or chronological order?
| Viewing method | Best for | Advantage | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Release order | First-time viewers | Preserves intended introductions, reveals, and post-credits setups | The story jumps backward and forward in time |
| Chronological order | Rewatches | Follows the broad in-universe history | Can spoil reveals and weaken some character introductions |
| Phase order | Viewers scheduling manageable blocks | Provides natural release-era stopping points | Phases are not chronological periods |
| Movies plus shows | Continuity completists | Includes the widest range of MCU stories | Much longer and more complicated than a movie marathon |
Marvel’s official original MCU watch guide follows the release-era structure for the Infinity Saga. That is the safest starting point. Chronological viewing can place characters such as Nick Fury into the story before the narrative intended to introduce them, a problem also noted in release-order and chronological-order comparisons.
All 38 MCU movies in theatrical release order
These are the U.S. theatrical release dates, grouped by the official MCU phases. This is the recommended order for a first viewing. Click or search for each title on your preferred legal service; availability is discussed below.
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Phase One
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iron Man | May 2, 2008 | Introduces Tony Stark and establishes the modern MCU’s grounded starting point. |
| 2 | The Incredible Hulk | June 13, 2008 | Introduces Bruce Banner’s Hulk story within the MCU. |
| 3 | Iron Man 2 | May 7, 2010 | Expands S.H.I.E.L.D.’s role and begins connecting the individual heroes. |
| 4 | Thor | May 6, 2011 | Opens the MCU to Asgard, gods, and a larger cosmic mythology. |
| 5 | Captain America: The First Avenger | July 22, 2011 | Introduces Steve Rogers and the wartime origins of a central MCU hero. |
| 6 | The Avengers | May 4, 2012 | Brings the Phase One heroes together for the first major crossover. |
Marvel’s official Phase One guide identifies these six films as the first phase.
Phase Two
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Iron Man 3 | May 3, 2013 | Follows Tony Stark after the events of The Avengers. |
| 8 | Thor: The Dark World | November 8, 2013 | Continues Thor’s Asgardian and cosmic storyline. |
| 9 | Captain America: The Winter Soldier | April 4, 2014 | Turns the Captain America story into a major political and S.H.I.E.L.D. thriller. |
| 10 | Guardians of the Galaxy | August 1, 2014 | Introduces the unlikely spacefaring team and the wider cosmic side of the MCU. |
| 11 | Avengers: Age of Ultron | May 1, 2015 | Reassembles the Avengers and creates consequences for the next phase. |
| 12 | Ant-Man | July 17, 2015 | Introduces Scott Lang and the shrinking technology that later matters to the wider saga. |
Phase Three
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Captain America: Civil War | May 6, 2016 | Splits the Avengers and introduces Tom Holland’s Spider-Man to the MCU. |
| 14 | Doctor Strange | November 4, 2016 | Introduces Stephen Strange and the MCU’s mystic dimension. |
| 15 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | May 5, 2017 | Continues the Guardians’ story shortly after their first film. |
| 16 | Spider-Man: Homecoming | July 7, 2017 | Moves Peter Parker into his own MCU adventure after his debut in Civil War. |
| 17 | Thor: Ragnarok | November 3, 2017 | Reinvents Thor’s story and positions him for the next Avengers crossover. |
| 18 | Black Panther | February 16, 2018 | Introduces Wakanda’s political and technological world in greater depth. |
| 19 | Avengers: Infinity War | April 27, 2018 | Brings the MCU’s heroes and cosmic storylines into direct conflict. |
| 20 | Ant-Man and the Wasp | July 6, 2018 | Continues the Ant-Man story while its post-credits material connects directly to Infinity War. |
| 21 | Captain Marvel | March 8, 2019 | Introduces Carol Danvers and fills in an earlier chapter of the MCU’s history. |
| 22 | Avengers: Endgame | April 26, 2019 | Concludes the main Infinity Saga storyline. |
| 23 | Spider-Man: Far From Home | July 2, 2019 | Shows Peter Parker dealing with the aftermath of Endgame. |
These 23 films make up the Infinity Saga. Marvel’s official watch guide covers this original sequence.
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Phase Four
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | Black Widow | July 9, 2021 | Explores Natasha Romanoff’s past and fills in a period after Civil War. |
| 25 | Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings | September 3, 2021 | Introduces Shang-Chi and a new martial-arts and mythological corner of the MCU. |
| 26 | Eternals | November 5, 2021 | Introduces an ancient group whose history stretches across human civilization. |
| 27 | Spider-Man: No Way Home | December 17, 2021 | Expands the MCU’s multiverse through Peter Parker’s next major crisis. |
| 28 | Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | May 6, 2022 | Develops the multiverse and Strange’s increasingly dangerous choices. |
| 29 | Thor: Love and Thunder | July 8, 2022 | Continues Thor’s post-Endgame journey. |
| 30 | Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | November 11, 2022 | Returns to Wakanda and introduces new MCU tensions surrounding its future. |
Phase Five
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania | February 17, 2023 | Officially begins Phase Five and deepens the saga’s multiverse-era conflict. |
| 32 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 | May 5, 2023 | Brings the Guardians’ central film trilogy to its next major turning point. |
| 33 | The Marvels | November 10, 2023 | Connects Captain Marvel with two newer MCU heroes. |
| 34 | Deadpool & Wolverine | July 26, 2024 | Brings Deadpool and Wolverine into an MCU multiverse story. |
| 35 | Captain America: Brave New World | February 14, 2025 | Continues the Captain America mantle with Sam Wilson. |
| 36 | Thunderbolts* | May 2, 2025 | Assembles a team of morally complicated MCU characters. |
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania officially kicked off Phase Five; see its Marvel film page.
Phase Six
| # | Film | U.S. release | Why it belongs here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | The Fantastic Four: First Steps | July 25, 2025 | Introduces the Fantastic Four as a Phase Six MCU feature in a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world. |
| 38 | Spider-Man: Brand New Day | July 31, 2026 | Continues Peter Parker’s MCU story after No Way Home and is the latest released MCU film. |
Marvel’s official pages confirm the status and release information for The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
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All 38 MCU movies in chronological story order
This is the best practical movie-only chronology, based on Marvel’s Disney+ MCU Movie Timeline. It is not a perfectly precise scene-by-scene calendar: several films overlap, contain flashbacks, span multiple years, or take place in alternate realities.
- Captain America: The First Avenger
- Captain Marvel
- Iron Man
- Iron Man 2
- The Incredible Hulk
- Thor
- The Avengers
- Thor: The Dark World
- Iron Man 3
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Avengers: Age of Ultron
- Ant-Man
- Captain America: Civil War
- Black Widow
- Black Panther
- Spider-Man: Homecoming
- Doctor Strange
- Thor: Ragnarok
- Ant-Man and the Wasp
- Avengers: Infinity War
- Avengers: Endgame
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- Eternals
- Spider-Man: Far From Home
- Spider-Man: No Way Home
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
- Thor: Love and Thunder
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
- The Marvels
- Deadpool & Wolverine
- Captain America: Brave New World
- Thunderbolts*
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Why this timeline is approximate
- Captain America: The First Avenger is mostly set during World War II, making it the earliest-set released MCU film even though it was the fifth movie released.
- Captain Marvel is primarily set in 1995, before Iron Man.
- Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor overlap substantially. A practical viewing list still needs to put them in a sequence.
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 takes place only a short time after the first Guardians, despite arriving three years later.
- Black Widow is mainly set after Captain America: Civil War, not after Avengers: Endgame, where it was released.
- Ant-Man and the Wasp overlaps Avengers: Infinity War. Its mid-credits material should be viewed after Infinity War if you are protecting the intended reveal.
- Avengers: Endgame begins in the aftermath of Infinity War and then jumps forward five years, so assigning it one simple calendar date is misleading.
- Eternals contains historical sequences from thousands of years of human history, but its principal present-day story belongs after Endgame.
- Spider-Man: No Way Home is an MCU film even though its multiverse story draws on characters from other Spider-Man continuities.
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world. Its visual setting should not automatically move it to the beginning of the main MCU calendar.
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day is described by Marvel as taking place four years after No Way Home. It is safest to place it after that film and before Avengers: Doomsday, without pretending that every Phase Five and Phase Six date has been reconciled precisely.
The MCU by phase and saga
| Saga | Phases | Released films in this guide | What that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infinity Saga | One, Two, Three | 1–23 | The original connected storyline culminating in Avengers: Endgame. |
| Multiverse Saga | Four, Five, Six | 24–38 | The current release grouping, with stories increasingly involving alternate realities, new heroes, and successor characters. |
Phases are release and production groupings, not periods in the fictional timeline. For example, Phase Three includes Captain Marvel, whose main story is set decades before most Phase One films, while Phase Four includes Black Widow, whose main events occur much earlier than its release date.
Do you need to watch the MCU television shows?
No—not to watch the 38 MCU theatrical movies. The films are the complete movie-only route. Some Disney+ series add context or introduce characters, but saying that every show is mandatory creates a much larger viewing burden than most viewers need.
Choose the route that fits your goal
- Movie-only: Watch the 38 films in release order. This is the cleanest route for a new viewer and the one this guide recommends.
- Movie plus useful show bridges: Add WandaVision before Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Ms. Marvel before The Marvels, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier for additional context around Sam Wilson before Captain America: Brave New World. Loki and What If…? are valuable multiverse context, while Hawkeye, Daredevil, and Daredevil: Born Again are useful character-focused additions depending on which stories interest you.
- Complete MCU timeline: Use Marvel’s official Disney+ timeline guide. Its Complete Timeline includes films, series, seasons, and specials, so it is not the same thing as the 38-film Movie Timeline.
What about the older Spider-Man, X-Men, and Fantastic Four movies?
They are not missing from the list by mistake. Marvel adaptations made by Sony, Fox, and other studios belong to separate continuities unless a particular MCU story references or incorporates them. A multiverse appearance does not retroactively turn every older movie into an MCU theatrical film.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches| Franchise | MCU status | Should you include it? |
|---|---|---|
| Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy | Separate Spider-Man continuity, later referenced by multiverse stories | Optional context |
| The Amazing Spider-Man films | Separate Spider-Man continuity, later referenced by multiverse stories | Optional context |
| Fox X-Men films | Separate continuity, relevant background for some multiverse material | Optional, especially before or around Deadpool & Wolverine |
| Venom, Morbius, Madame Web, and Kraven the Hunter | Sony’s separate Spider-Man Universe | Not part of the 38-film MCU list |
| 2005 and 2007 Fantastic Four films | Separate continuity | Optional context only |
| The Incredible Hulk | MCU theatrical film | Include it |
| Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Across the Spider-Verse | Animated multiverse films, not MCU theatrical features | Optional animated Marvel viewing |
The Incredible Hulk has an unusual distribution history, but it remains an MCU movie and belongs at number two in release order. Marvel added it to Disney+ in the United States in 2023; its official announcement confirms that availability at that time.
Where to watch the MCU movies in the United States
Streaming rights change by country, date, and licensing window, so avoid any permanent claim that every MCU film is on Disney+. Disney+ hosts an official MCU Movie Timeline in supported territories, but Disney’s availability policy warns that catalogues differ by region.
| What to check | Practical advice |
|---|---|
| Disney+ | Search the individual title in the app and check whether it is included in your U.S. plan. The Marvel hub can change even when the timeline page remains available. |
| Sony-distributed Spider-Man films | Check these separately. Homecoming, Far From Home, and No Way Home can move between services because Sony controls their distribution arrangements. |
| Other MCU films | Search by title rather than assuming that a Marvel hub contains every film in every territory. |
| Rental or purchase | Digital rental or purchase is the fallback when a film is not included with a subscription; these are different rights from subscription streaming. |
| Live U.S. verification | Use a date-stamped service such as JustWatch U.S., then confirm the result on the actual streaming or digital storefront before subscribing or renting. |
Any streaming table should carry an explicit checked-on date. A service listing that is accurate on August 9, 2026 may be wrong after a licensing window ends.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Post-credits scenes and chronology traps
If you watch in release order, watch every mid-credits and post-credits scene before moving to the next film. Those scenes were designed to tease the next releases and preserve the way audiences originally experienced the MCU.
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Chronological viewing is different. The film may fit earlier in the fictional timeline while its tag assumes you have already seen a later release. To remain as spoiler-safe as possible:
- Iron Man: its tag begins the connective tissue around Nick Fury and the Avengers Initiative.
- Iron Man 2 and Thor: their tags help connect S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Tesseract thread.
- Captain America: The First Avenger: its present-day framing material is part of why the film can feel like it belongs in two eras.
- Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: their tags add character and cosmic-worldbuilding material, so do not skip them.
- Ant-Man and the Wasp: watch the main film in its chronological position, but delay its crucial mid-credits material until after Avengers: Infinity War. This is the most important movie-only chronology trap.
- Captain Marvel: its tag works best after Infinity War if you want to preserve the release-era reveal, even though the main story is set in 1995.
- Black Widow: its tag points toward later MCU developments rather than the film’s main chronological setting.
- Spider-Man: No Way Home: its end material connects with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and includes a separate preview-style scene. Keep all of it until after the film in a chronological marathon.
- Later Phase Five and Six films: The Marvels, Deadpool & Wolverine, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day contain future-facing material. Avoid searching for explanations before watching them.
For a chronology-focused marathon, the safest solution is to watch the films in release order or pause before any tag that clearly points to a later film. The chronology issue surrounding Ant-Man and the Wasp is also documented by RadioTimes.
What to watch before Deadpool & Wolverine
For the MCU story itself, watch through Deadpool & Wolverine in the 38-film release list. No earlier Fox film is mandatory to understand the MCU’s basic plot.
For additional character and multiverse context, watch:
- Deadpool
- Deadpool 2
- Logan
Selected X-Men films can add background, but the Fox mutant films remain outside the MCU’s 38 theatrical features. Treat them as optional context rather than prerequisites for starting the MCU.
What to watch before Spider-Man: Brand New Day
The most relevant movie-only Spider-Man path is:
- Captain America: Civil War — Peter Parker’s MCU introduction.
- Spider-Man: Homecoming.
- Avengers: Infinity War.
- Avengers: Endgame.
- Spider-Man: Far From Home.
- Spider-Man: No Way Home.
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
For a full first-time MCU marathon, simply use the complete release-order list above. Marvel has said that Brand New Day is set four years after No Way Home; that is more reliable than forcing the film into an exact calendar year. It should be watched before Avengers: Doomsday when that film is released.
How long does it take to watch all 38 films?
Plan on roughly 80–85 hours of screen time for the 38 feature films, depending on the edition and how you count credits. With meals, breaks, and the post-credits scenes, the marathon takes several days rather than one ordinary weekend. Watching one film per day makes it a little over five weeks; two films per day takes about three weeks.
Upcoming MCU movies not included in the released list
Future films are not part of the count of 38 released movies. Marvel’s current movie catalogue lists:
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- Avengers: Doomsday — December 18, 2026. This is the next unreleased MCU theatrical film as of August 9, 2026.
- Avengers: Secret Wars — December 17, 2027.
Release dates can change, so check Marvel’s official movie catalogue before planning around either date.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many MCU movies have been released?
There are 38 released MCU theatrical films as of August 9, 2026. The newest is Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which opened in the United States on July 31, 2026. Avengers: Doomsday is not included because it is still unreleased.
Does The Incredible Hulk count as an MCU movie?
Yes. Its distribution history is unusual, but The Incredible Hulk is part of the MCU and belongs at number two in theatrical release order. Do not remove it from a complete movie-only marathon.
Do I have to watch the old Spider-Man and X-Men movies?
No. The Raimi and Amazing Spider-Man films, Fox’s X-Men films, and Sony’s separate Spider-Man Universe movies are not part of the main 38-film MCU list. They are optional context for multiverse stories such as Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine.
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No. The 38 films can be watched on their own. Add specific shows when you want more context—for example, WandaVision before Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness or Ms. Marvel before The Marvels. Marvel’s Complete Timeline is the route for viewers who want films, series, seasons, and specials together.
Which order is best before a first viewing?
Use theatrical release order. It preserves the intended introductions and post-credits reveals better than chronological order. Save chronological order for a rewatch.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Start with Iron Man and watch the 38 released MCU theatrical films in release order through Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Use the chronological list for a rewatch, delay the Ant-Man and the Wasp mid-credits material until after Infinity War if you switch timelines, and treat older Spider-Man, X-Men, Sony, and MCU television titles as optional—not as part of the core 38-film list.
Quick Recap
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