Harry Potter watch order

The Wizarding World is eleven films: eight Harry Potter films and three Fantastic Beasts prequels. Release order starts with Harry and is the right choice for a first watch; the prequels assume you already know the world they are foreshadowing. Story order puts the Fantastic Beasts films first, which suits a rewatch.

Both orders are below, complete.

Release order

The default. Start where the world starts working.

1. 
   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone 2001 released as Philosopher's Stone outside the US
2. 
   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 2002
3. 
   Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 2004
4. 
   Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 2005
5. 
   Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 2007
6. 
   Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 2009
7. 
   Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 2010
8. 
   Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 2011
9. 
   Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 2016
10. 
    Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald 2018
11. 
    Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore 2022

Story (chronological) order

The in-universe timeline, from the 1920s to the 1990s. For a rewatch.

1. 
   Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 2016 set in 1926
2. 
   Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald 2018 set in 1927
3. 
   Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore 2022 set in the early 1930s
4. 
   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone 2001 the main story runs 1991 to 1998 from here
5. 
   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 2002
6. 
   Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 2004
7. 
   Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 2005
8. 
   Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 2007
9. 
   Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 2009
10. 
    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 2010
11. 
    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 2011

Keep your place

I Like Movies, the free iPhone and Android app behind this page, carries a curated Wizarding World track: the same catalogue as above, in watch order, with your progress marked per film and per episode. Ratings and a watchlist come along for everything else you watch.

Questions people ask

Should I watch Fantastic Beasts before Harry Potter?

No. The Fantastic Beasts films are prequels made for people who already know the Harry Potter story; their reveals only land if you recognise what they are setting up. Watch the eight Harry Potter films first, then the prequels.

Is Harry Potter and the Cursed Child a film?

No. The Cursed Child is a stage play, published as a script book. There is no film of it, so it does not appear in any watch order.

Will there be a fourth Fantastic Beasts film?

A fourth and fifth film were once planned, but nothing is in production and the series is on hold. The three released films tell a story that pauses rather than ends; The Secrets of Dumbledore closes its main conflict.

Is there a Harry Potter TV series?

HBO has a television adaptation of the novels in production, planned as one season per book. It is a retelling of the same story rather than a continuation, so it will not change the film order above. This page will pick it up when it airs.

More watch orders: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Middle-earth, Dune, Fast & Furious, Alien, Dragon Ball, Naruto, Neon Genesis Evangelion, James Bond, Mission: Impossible, John Wick. Or browse every guide and comparison.