158 titles · 80 movies · 61 TV series · 659.8 hours
Track Your Progress →Follows the in-universe timeline. Starts in 1943 with Captain America, progresses through the decades to the present. Best for first-time viewers — you experience events as the characters do, with full context.
Follows the real-world premiere dates. Starts with Iron Man (2008). Shows how the MCU was built phase by phase, including the easter eggs and post-credits scenes as they were originally revealed.
Just the 48 titles that directly feed into the main Avengers storyline. Skips deep-dive character studies and legacy titles. Cuts total runtime from 659.8h to 120.8h.
Story order (roughly chronological) is recommended for first-timers. It starts with Captain America: The First Avenger (set in 1943) and follows the narrative timeline, giving you the most coherent story experience before Avengers: Doomsday.
As of 2026, there are 158 MCU titles: 80 movies, 61 TV series and 17 shorts and specials. This includes upcoming releases like Avengers: Doomsday (December 18, 2026).
All 158 titles total approximately 659.8 hours. Watching only the 48 titles flagged essential cuts this to 120.8 hours — the minimum to follow the main story. Preparing for Avengers: Doomsday specifically? Its list is 45 titles — see the Before Doomsday guide.
Some are essential to the MCU: WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel, and Echo — the "Essential Only" filter above shows them. You can skip the rest and still follow the main story. Preparing for Avengers: Doomsday specifically? Its list is different — see the Before Doomsday guide.
Avengers: Secret Wars is the follow-up event, dated for December 17, 2027. Several Phase 6 projects are in development, including Fantastic Four sequels and X-Men introduction films.
MCU Watchlist lets you mark titles as watched, plan your marathon around your schedule, and know exactly how many days until you're ready for Doomsday.
Open MCU Watchlist →