The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies can be watched in two main orders: by release date or by the chronological timeline of events within the MCU story.

Watching Marvel Movies by Release Order (Recommended for Newcomers)

This order follows how the movies were originally released, preserving intended reveals and story progression: Phase 1

• Iron Man (2008)
• The Incredible Hulk (2008)
• Iron Man 2 (2010)
• Thor (2011)
• Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
• The Avengers (2012)

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)

Phase 3

• Captain America: Civil War (2016)
• Doctor Strange (2016)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
• Thor: Ragnarok (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)

This order continues with subsequent phases and newer releases

Watching Marvel Movies in Chronological Timeline Order

This order arranges movies based on the timeline of events in the MCU universe, starting with stories set earliest in history:

• Captain America: The First Avenger (WWII era)
• Captain Marvel (1995)
• Iron Man (2008)
• Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor (around 2010)
• The Avengers (2012)
• Thor: The Dark World (2013)
• Iron Man 3 (2013-2014)
• Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 & 2 (2014)
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
• Ant-Man (2015)
• Captain America: Civil War (2016)
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (2016)
• Doctor Strange (2016-2017)
• Black Panther (2016)
• Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
• Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
• Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
• Avengers: Endgame (2018-2023)
• Spider-Man: Far From Home (2024)
• And continuing through the latest releases and Disney+ series following the official MCU timeline

Summary

• Release order is best for first-time viewers to experience the story as intended.
• Chronological order can be interesting for rewatching but may spoil surprises and disrupt narrative flow.

For most viewers, starting with the release order is recommended, then exploring the chronological timeline if desired