by While there are many people who believe the books were better than their movie adaptations, the Harry Potter movies have become an essential part of the series. The cinematic universe even expanded beyond the original series with 3 additional Fantastic Beast prequels that introduced us to a new part of the wizarding world. Now that Hogwarts Legacy has also arrived, it’s a good time to revisit the Potter timeline to see where everything fits.
Whether you’re new to the series or you’ve simply forgotten the proper order of the movies, you’ll find our guides below. See how to watch the Harry Potter movies in chronological order or by release date.
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How many Harry Potter movies are there?
Although there were only 7 books in the original series, there are approx a total of 11 Harry Potter movies. This includes 8 movies based on the books (2 Deathly Hallows parts) and 3 Fantastic Beasts prequels. Outside of the movies, there’s a Broadway play called Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and quite a few Harry Potter games – including the most recent, Hogwarts Legacy.
Where does Hogwarts Legacy fit into the Harry Potter timeline?
The Hogwarts Legacy takes place before the main films, around the 1890s. For context, the Fantastic Beasts movies start in the 1920s and the Harry Potter movies start in the 1990s. And although it takes place before the movies, there are quite a few names in Hogwarts Legacy that you’ll recognize from the books and movies, and Hogwarts Castle is almost exactly the same.
Harry Potter movies in chronological order
1. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
Set in 1926, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was the first Harry Potter spin-off prequel to hit theaters. Given that it takes place around 70 years before Harry starts school at Hogwarts, this is the first movie you’ll want to watch if you’re going in chronological order. The first Fantastic Beasts movie centers on Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) as he navigates New York City and the magical foundations of the United States.
Read our Review of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
2. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Just months after the conclusion of the first prequel, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald takes us back to England and features even more ties to the original Harry Potter films. We get a glimpse of a young Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and even meet a young Minderva McGonagall (Fiona Glascott). The film itself largely focuses on the villain revealed in the first film, Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp).
Read our The Crimes of Grindelwald review
3. Fantastic Beasts: Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is the first Fantastic Beasts film to feature a true time jump. Set 5 years after the events of The Crimes of Grindelwald, the third film in the Fantastic Beasts series again largely focuses on Grindelwald himself – this time played by Mads Mikkelsen. There are a few time jumps due to the creature named Qilin, but most of the film takes place in the 1930s.
Read our Dumbledore’s Secrets review.
4. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is the first film in the original series. And while most of the film’s action takes place in 1991, the film’s true beginning is technically 1980 – the year Harry was born and Hagrid dropped him off at the Dursley mansion. As this is the first Harry Potter movie released, it gives us our first look at Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint), as well as our first foray into the wizarding world through a Muggle lens.
See more about Sorcerer’s Stone.
5. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the second film released in the series and thus follows Harry’s second year at Hogwarts. This places the film between 1992 and 1993 as Harry discovers truths from the past from giant spiders and a young, ghost-like Voldemort. It also gives us our first introduction to Professor Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branagh) and Dobby the house elf.
See more about the chamber of Secrets.
6. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the third film in the original series and coincides with Harry’s third year at Hogwarts – set in 1993. This is the first film where we really start to see the darker side of the wizarding world as we are introduced to the likes of Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) and Peter Pettigrew (Timothy Spall). We also get an introduction to werewolves from the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin (David Thewlis), and of course the terrifying soul-sucking Azkaban dementors.
Read our Prisoner of Azkaban review.
7. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth film in the original series and coincides with Harry’s fourth year at Hogwarts. Taking place in 1994, the Goblet of Fire breathed new life into Hogwarts, adding the Triwizard Tournament and Yule Ball. We meet important new characters such as Mad-Eye Moody (Brendand Gleeson) and Cedric Diggory (Robert Pattinson). We also get our first look at a professional Quidditch tournament, as well as members and faculty from other wizarding schools. It is also the first film where Harry comes face to face with a fully alive Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes).
Read our Goblet of Fire review.
8. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the fifth film in the original series, set in 1995. Harry begins his fifth year at Hogwarts with something of a newfound family, and we meet other members of the Order of the Phoenix for the first time, like shapeshifter Nymphadora Tonks (Natalia Tena). We also get our first introduction to Luna Lovegood (Evanna Lynch), who plays a major role in the upcoming movies. There’s also a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who has a penchant for cruelty that everyone hates, Delores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton).
Read our Order of the Phoenix review.
9. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is the sixth film to be released and is set in 1996. As Harry enters his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Witchcraft, he begins to truly grow up after facing even more deaths. In this film, we get our first look at the themes of Severus Snape (Alan Rickman) and Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton). We also see Voldemort and the Death Eaters fully at large as Dumbledore reveals more secrets about the prophecy of which Harry is a part. While this film is starting to get quite dark, we also see more of Ginny Weasley (Bonnie Wright) in it and develop her relationship with Harry.
Read our Half-Blood Prince review.
10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 takes place in 1997 and coincides with the seventh and final book in the series. This is the first movie to split the story of one book into two movies, and for good reason, because there are a lot of stories to unpack. In what would have been Harry’s seventh year at Hogwarts, Harry, Hermione, and Ron instead ventured into the real world to find and destroy the Horcruxes. With plenty of action and deep character development between Harry, Ron and Hermione, it’s clear the series reaches its climax here. We also get a deeper look at the relationship between Voldemort and the rest of the Death Eaters.
Read our Deathly Hallows Review – Part 1.
11. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is chronologically the last film in the Harry Potter series. Set in 1998, this film continues Part 1, picking up exactly where the previous film left off. As Harry and his friends reveal more about the prophecy that Harry is part of, they finally return to Hogwarts to face Voldemort and the Death Eaters. It’s an emotional battle that culminates in the deaths of some fan-favorite Harry Potter characters, but we get to see the true heroism of Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) and a fairly definitive conclusion to the story.
Read our Deathly Hallows Review – Part 2.
How to watch the Harry Potter movies by release date
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011)
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
- Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
- Fantastic Beasts: Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)
Looking for more movie dates? Check out our guide on how to watch The Lord of the Rings in order, as well as our guide to Star Wars in order. And if you’re looking for merch, check out our collection of Harry Potter merch from the IGN Store.
