Watch order guide · Arrowverse

How to watch Arrowverse in order

Updated October 21, 2026 · 9 min read · 10 titles · 540 hours

Watch the Arrowverse by air date, starting with Arrow (2012) and adding The Flash (2014), Supergirl (2015) and Legends of Tomorrow (2016) as each premieres. The yearly crossovers (Invasion!, Crisis on Earth-X, Elseworlds and Crisis on Infinite Earths) run across several shows in one week, so watch those episodes together. Black Lightning, Batwoman and Superman & Lois can be watched on their own.

Titles

10

Series

10

Watch time

540 hours

Avg IMDb

6.6

Arrowverse shows in release order

Here is every Arrowverse title in the order it came out, 2012 to 2021: 0 films and 10 series. Optional entries are marked; you can skip them on a first watch.

Release or chronological: which order is best?

For the Arrowverse, release order and story order are the same thing: every series picks up after the one before it. There is no prequel to slot in early and no flashback to reshuffle, so the list above is the only order you need.

Where to start

Every Arrowverse title, explained

One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.

No. 01 · 2012 · Series · 119h 10m

Arrow

Spoiled billionaire playboy Oliver Queen is missing and presumed dead when his yacht is lost at sea. He returns five years later a changed man, determined to clean up the city as a hooded vigilante armed with a bow.

Why it matters: Oliver Queen returns from five years on an island; the show that started it all.

Starring

Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, and Emily Bett Rickards

Creator

Andrew Kreisberg, Greg Berlanti, and Marc Guggenheim

Scores

IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 86%

Episodes

170 across 8 seasons

No. 02 · 2014 · Series · 128h 15m

The Flash

After being struck by lightning, CSI investigator Barry Allen awakens from a nine-month coma to discover he has been granted the gift of super speed. Teaming up with S.T.A.R. Labs, Barry takes on the persona of The Flash, the Fastest Man Alive, to protect his city.

Why it matters: Barry Allen gets super speed; the crossovers run through this show.

Starring

Grant Gustin, Danielle Panabaker, and Candice Patton

Creator

Geoff Johns, Greg Berlanti, and Andrew Kreisberg

Scores

IMDb 7.4 · Rotten Tomatoes 85%

Episodes

184 across 9 seasons

No. 03 · 2014 · Series · 9h 11m · optional

Constantine

A man struggling with his faith is haunted by the sins of his past but is suddenly thrust into the role of defending humanity from the gathering forces of darkness.

Why it matters: An NBC show whose hero later joins Arrow and Legends; optional.

Starring

Matt Ryan, Angélica Celaya, and Charles Halford

Creator

Daniel Cerone and David S. Goyer

Scores

IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 73%

Episodes

13

No. 04 · 2015 · Series · 1h 4m · optional

Vixen

Originally from Africa, Mari McGabe's parents were killed by local greed, corruption and wanton violence. But the orphaned Marl refuses to succumb to the terrors surrounding her. Inheriting her family's Tantu Totem, Mari can access the powers of animals - anything from the super-strength of a gorilla to the speed of a cheetah. As Vixen she fights valiantly to protect the world from threats like those that claimed her family.

Why it matters: Two short animated web seasons; optional.

Starring

Megalyn Echikunwoke, Grant Gustin, and Stephen Amell

Creator

Marc Guggenheim

Scores

IMDb 6.9

Episodes

12 across 2 seasons

No. 05 · 2015 · Series · 88h 22m

Supergirl

Twenty-four-year-old Kara Zor-El, who was taken in by the Danvers family when she was 13 after being sent away from Krypton, must learn to embrace her powers after previously hiding them. The Danvers teach her to be careful with her powers, until she has to reveal them during an unexpected disaster, setting her on her journey of heroism.

Why it matters: Kara Danvers on her own Earth until Crisis on Infinite Earths merges them.

Starring

Melissa Benoist, Chyler Leigh, and David Harewood

Creator

Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Ali Adler

Scores

IMDb 6.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 88%

Episodes

126 across 6 seasons

No. 06 · 2016 · Series · 76h 38m

DC's Legends of Tomorrow

When heroes alone are not enough ... the world needs legends. Having seen the future, one he will desperately try to prevent from happening, time-traveling rogue Rip Hunter is tasked with assembling a disparate group of both heroes and villains to confront an unstoppable threat — one in which not only is the planet at stake, but all of time itself. Can this ragtag team defeat an immortal threat unlike anything they have ever known?

Why it matters: A time-travelling team of side characters; starts serious, gets gloriously silly.

Starring

Caity Lotz, Amy Louise Pemberton, and Dominic Purcell

Creator

Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Marc Guggenheim, and Phil Klemmer

Scores

IMDb 7 · Rotten Tomatoes 89%

Episodes

110 across 7 seasons

No. 07 · 2017 · Series · 1h 12m · optional

Freedom Fighters: The Ray

Reporter Raymond "Ray" Terrill is investigating a group of government scientists who are developing a weapon using light, when he is attacked with a "genetic light bomb" that ends up bestowing him with light-based super powers.

Why it matters: An animated web series tied to the Crisis on Earth-X crossover; optional.

Starring

Russell Tovey, Jason Mitchell, and Dilshad Vadsaria

Scores

IMDb 5.9

Episodes

12 across 2 seasons

No. 08 · 2018 · Series · 41h 21m · optional

Black Lightning

Jefferson Pierce is a man wrestling with a secret. As the father of two daughters and principal of a charter high school that also serves as a safe haven for young people in a New Orleans neighborhood overrun by gang violence, he is a hero to his community.

Why it matters: On its own Earth until Crisis; mostly standalone and optional.

Starring

Cress Williams, Nafessa Williams, and China Anne McClain

Creator

Salim Akil

Scores

IMDb 6.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%

Episodes

58 across 4 seasons

No. 09 · 2019 · Series · 36h 3m

Batwoman

Kate Kane, armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, soars onto the streets of Gotham as Batwoman, an out lesbian and highly trained street fighter primed to snuff out the failing city's criminal resurgence. But don't call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, Kate must overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham's symbol of hope

Why it matters: Kate Kane, then Ryan Wilder, protect Gotham while Batman is missing.

Starring

Rachel Skarsten, Meagan Tandy, and Nicole Kang

Creator

Caroline Dries

Scores

IMDb 3.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 83%

Episodes

51 across 3 seasons

No. 10 · 2021 · Series · 38h 20m

Superman & Lois

After years of facing megalomaniacal supervillains, monsters wreaking havoc on Metropolis, and alien invaders intent on wiping out the human race, The Man of Steel aka Clark Kent and Lois Lane come face to face with one of their greatest challenges ever: dealing with all the stress, pressures and complexities that come with being working parents in today's society.

Why it matters: Clark and Lois raise twin sons in Smallville; revealed as its own Earth.

Starring

Tyler Hoechlin, Elizabeth Tulloch, and Alex Garfin

Creator

Greg Berlanti and Todd Helbing

Scores

IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 88%

Episodes

53 across 4 seasons

The best and worst rated Arrowverse shows

Across 10 rated titles, the Arrowverse averages 6.6 on IMDb. The top of the list is Superman & Lois at 7.8, then Arrow (7.5) and Constantine (7.5). At the bottom: Batwoman (3.6) and Freedom Fighters: The Ray (5.9).

1. Superman & Lois7.8 · RT 88%
2. Arrow7.5 · RT 86%
3. Constantine7.5 · RT 73%
4. The Flash7.4 · RT 85%
5. DC's Legends of Tomorrow7 · RT 89%
6. Vixen6.9
7. Supergirl6.2 · RT 88%
8. Black Lightning6.1 · RT 92%
9. Freedom Fighters: The Ray5.9
10. Batwoman3.6 · RT 83%

Who appears in the most Arrowverse shows

Stephen Amell leads with 2 appearances as Oliver Queen and Green Arrow, ahead of Emily Bett Rickards (2) and Katie Cassidy (2). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.

Arrowverse directors and creators

11 filmmakers have directed or created the Arrowverse; Greg Berlanti has the most, with 5.

• Greg BerlantiArrow (2012), The Flash (2014), Supergirl (2015), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016), and Superman & Lois (2021)
• Andrew KreisbergArrow (2012), The Flash (2014), Supergirl (2015), and DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016)
• Marc GuggenheimArrow (2012), Vixen (2015), and DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016)
• Geoff JohnsThe Flash (2014)
• Daniel CeroneConstantine (2014)
• David S. GoyerConstantine (2014)
• Ali AdlerSupergirl (2015)
• Phil KlemmerDC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016)
• Salim AkilBlack Lightning (2018)
• Caroline DriesBatwoman (2019)
• Todd HelbingSuperman & Lois (2021)

How long it takes to watch every Arrowverse show

All 10 titles add up to 540 hours. That is about 270 two-hour evenings, or 54 days of ten-hour binges. The essentials cut it to 487 hours.

Which Arrowverse shows can you skip?

4 titles can go without losing the main story. They are side stories, spin-offs or entries the later films ignore. Dropping them saves 53 hours.

• Constantine2014 · Series · 9h 11m · optionalAn NBC show whose hero later joins Arrow and Legends; optional.
• Vixen2015 · Series · 1h 4m · optionalTwo short animated web seasons; optional.
• Freedom Fighters: The Ray2017 · Series · 1h 12m · optionalAn animated web series tied to the Crisis on Earth-X crossover; optional.
• Black Lightning2018 · Series · 41h 21m · optionalOn its own Earth until Crisis; mostly standalone and optional.

Common questions

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