The Disney+ the MCU timeline wrong on several counts.
To be fair, some of Disney+'s MCU timeline is well-thought-through. The Disney+ timeline moves Thor: The Dark World to before Iron Man 3, a smart approach that actually improves the shared universe's narrative structure - even if it does break Agents of SHIELD's internal timeline. But the Phase 4 timeline is rather more problematic, even contradicting explicit references in the films and TV series themselves themselves. As an example, Shang-Chi & the Legend of the Ten Rings explicitly references the festival of Qingming, which means it must take place around late March or early April - meaning it has to come before The Falcon & the Winter Soldier.
If viewers want to watch the MCU in chronological order, then the MCU Disney+ timeline is a good start. It isn't quite right, however, meaning audiences will need to tweak it a little. This viewing list only includes official content produced by Marvel Studios, not the Marvel Television shows - whose canonicity is debatable - or the various tie-in comics.
The MCU's Prequel Timeline
In release order, the MCU began with 2008's Iron Man. However, two MCU movies and a one-shot are set prior to this, and it's possible to place these with a strong degree of accuracy:
- Captain America: The First Avenger (1942-1945)
- Agent Carter one-shot (1946)
- Captain Marvel (1995)
Captain America: The First Avenger picks up shortly after the U.S. has entered the Second World War, and Hydra was defeated shortly before the conflict ended. The Agent Carter one-shot specifies that it is set one year after the end of World War II, contradicting the Agent Carter ABC TV series. The chronology then jumps ahead to Captain Marvel, which is specifically dated in 1995 - and can be fixed as sometime after August that year, when the Los Angeles Green Line opened.
MCU Phase 1 Timeline & Fury's Big Week
Phase 1 launched with the release of Iron Man in 2008, and culminated in The Avengers in 2012. Multiple Phase 1 films (and a one-shot) are concurrent, but their precise placement is debatable due to explicit but contradictory dialogue. Here's the best placement, including three Marvel one-shots best watched alongside Phase 1:
- Iron Man (2008)
- Concurrent: Thor (2011)
- The Consultant one-shot (2011)
- The Avengers (May 2012)
- Item 47 one-shot (May/June 2012)
Iron Man has been specifically set in 2008 by subsequent films such as Captain America: Civil War. Looking beyond that, the MCU's best Phase 1 watch-order was actually established by a tie-in comic, Fury's Big Week, published in 2012 by Marvel Comics in coordination with Marvel Studios' in-house writers' program. Unfortunately, dialogue in Iron Man 2 establishes a six-month time jump between Iron Man and its sequel, while The Avengers - definitively (and consistently) set in 2012 is said to be only a year after Thor. The best fit is to move Fury's Big Week to 2011.
MCU Phase 2 Timeline Through To Avengers: Age Of Ultron
The MCU's Phase 2 timeline flows a little more naturally, although there is some debate over the precise placement of Thor: The Dark World as a result of the MCU Disney+ timeline. In this case, the move away from release order is an improvement, althoughThor: The Dark World's new place contradicts Agents of SHIELD which is another TV show where its placement in the canon is unclear. Ignoring the issues with Marvel Television, here is the best viewing order for Phase 2.
- Thor: The Dark World (2012 through to November 2013)
- Iron Man 3 (Christmas 2013)
- All Hail the King one-shot (2014)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (spring 2014)
- Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2014)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (summer 2015)
- Ant-Man (October 2015)
Thor: The Dark World picks up shortly after The Avengers, and the second-to-last scene specifically dates it as wrapping up in 2013; it must span several months, and it's generally assumed to conclude in November, which seems correct. Note the two Guardians of the Galaxy films, which are both in 2014 and have only a six-month gap between them despite having been released years apart.
MCU Phase 3 Timeline: From The Civil War To Thanos
Captain America: Civil War should really be seen as the cornerstone of the MCU timeline, cementing in place the idea that - unless otherwise specifically stated - most MCU movies are set in the year of their release. Consequently, with the exception of some sloppy mistakes in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Phase 3 films are relatively easy to date (and Black Widow, from Phase 4, can be inserted into this viewing order as well).
- Captain America: Civil War (March-April 2016)
- Black Widow (April 2016)
- Black Panther (April 2016)
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (April-September 2016)
- Doctor Strange (November/December 2016 through much of 2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017-April 2018)
- Ant-Man & the Wasp (April 2018)
- Avengers: Infinity War (April 2018)
- Avengers: Endgame (April 2018-October 2023)
Avengers: Endgame includes an unprecedented five-year time jump. This five-year period in the MCU has yet to be explored in detail, but serves as an anchor for Phase 4 - albeit one the MCU has not handled consistently.
MCU Phase 4 & Disney+ Timeline Errors
Disney+ had the advantage of publishing most of the MCU timeline after years of fan debate. That's not the case with Phase 4, however, and matters have been worsened by the sheer quantity of content released by Marvel Studios as part of Phase 4. Statements from some writers and directors have suggested even they have no idea where their films and TV shows fit, and consequently whoever publishes the Disney+ timeline has tended to group several multiversal Phase 4 MCU stories thematically after Avengers: Endgame, followed by a progression that roughly aligns with release order (with some notable exceptions). While the thematic link with the multiverse is prudent - many of those stories take place outside the normal flow of time - other films and Disney+ TV shows can be placed more precisely.
- Loki (takes place outside of time)
- Marvel's What If...? (is set in alternate timelines)
- WandaVision (November 2023)
- Eternals (early 2024)
- Shang-Chi & the Legend of the Ten Rings (March-April 2024)
- The Falcon & the Winter Soldier (June 2024)
- Moon Knight (June 2024)
- Thor: Love & Thunder (May 2024)
- Spider-Man: Far From Home (summer 2024)
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (summer-Christmas 2024)
- Hawkeye (Christmas 2024)
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2025)
- Ms. Marvel (2025)
Some of these placements are, of course, debatable. Moon Knight is placed by some specified calendar dates and the phases of the moon, an amusing level of attention to detail that may unfortunately be retconned going forward. Thor: Love & Thunder's place is confirmed through subtle clues, with a blood test dated 30/4 that suggests it is set in May of one year - and a comment from Thor confirming he hasn't seen Jane in "eight years, seven months, and six days." Given Thor had left Earth by the time of Captain America: Civil War, the only date that makes sense is May 2024, with Thor and Jane breaking up shortly after Avengers: Age of Ultron.
There's particularly intense debate about the placement of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which Disney+ put before Hawkeye. Doctor Strange 2 was thought to be some months after Spider-Man: No Way Home, but Geekritique has rightly pointed to some strong autumnal imagery running through suggests the Disney+ timeline is correct on this point, despite lines in the movie that suggest it takes after Spider-Man: No Way Home. In truth, it's likely nobody at the MCU is quite as invested in the timeline as some viewers.
What's The Best Order To Watch The MCU In?
Most viewers will choose to watch the MCU in release date order, simply because this generally helps to identify the overarching narrative arcs. But the very fact Disney has included an option to view the MCU in chronological order suggests that option should be considered a legitimate one, and it allows for a very different experience of the MCU. Viewers who watch the MCU in this way will encounter occasional problems - post-credits scenes are out of sequence, with Black Widow's post-credits scene teasing Natasha Romanoff's death and Ant-Man & the Wasp's giving a foretaste of Thanos' snap. That's not really an issue, however, because few will look to chronological order as a first option - instead going to it after they've watched the Marvel films and TV shows, simply because they want to see the MCU in a different way - which this allows.