TV · in order
The Walking Dead Universe Watch Order
A guide to watching The Walking Dead universe in order, from the 2010 flagship through Fear, World Beyond and the post-finale sequels Dead City, Daryl Dixon and The Ones Who Live.
The Walking Dead Universe Watch Order: complete list
Check off what you've finished, it saves automatically · See all your lists → ·
Why this order?
The recommended watch order starts with the flagship The Walking Dead (2010-2022), the 11-season anchor that introduces Rick Grimes and the core survivors. Everything else hangs off it, so finish the main show first, or at least get deep into it, before the sequel series spoil who lives and who dies. This is the order most fans suggest and the one that keeps every emotional payoff intact.
Fear the Walking Dead is the flexible one. It begins as a prequel, showing the outbreak's first days in Los Angeles before Rick ever wakes up, then runs parallel to and eventually past the flagship's timeline across eight seasons. You can watch it alongside the main show or save it for after; it shares only a couple of crossover characters, so spoilers are minimal either way. The Walking Dead: World Beyond is a self-contained two-season story about sheltered teens, and it quietly seeds the mysterious CRM military group that matters later.
The three newest series are direct sequels that only make sense after the flagship finale. The Walking Dead: Dead City follows Maggie and Negan into a walker-choked Manhattan. The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon strands fan-favorite Daryl in France. The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live finally reunites Rick and Michonne and resolves the CRM mystery, so it lands hardest if you have seen World Beyond and the flagship's later seasons.
Tales of the Walking Dead is an anthology of standalone episodes spanning different characters and eras; drop it in whenever you want a side dish. If you like sprawling interconnected horror, this universe pairs well with anthology-style worlds, but here the through-line is always Rick's people. The big gotcha: watch the original first, then branch.
How many episodes is The Walking Dead?
The Walking Dead has 363 episodes across the 7 series entries tracked in this guide.
- The Walking Dead 177 episodes 2010-2022
- Fear the Walking Dead 113 episodes 2015-2023
- The Walking Dead: World Beyond 20 episodes 2020-2021
- Tales of the Walking Dead 6 episodes 2022
- The Walking Dead: Dead City 22 episodes 2023-2026
- The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon 19 episodes 2023-2025
- The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live 6 episodes 2024
Timeline 2010-2024
Every entry by release year: rows that share a year are a cluster, and the long droughts are called out on the rail.
- 2010 The Walking Dead
- 5-year gap
- 2015 Fear the Walking Dead
- 5-year gap
- 2020 World Beyond
- 2022 Tales of the Walking Dead
- 2023 Dead CityDaryl Dixon
- 2024 The Ones Who Live
Where to play it today
Availability changes often and varies by region - links search each platform for The Walking Dead.
Frequently asked questions
What order should I watch The Walking Dead in?
Start with the flagship The Walking Dead (2010), then add Fear the Walking Dead and World Beyond. Save the sequels Dead City, Daryl Dixon and The Ones Who Live for after the flagship finale, since they follow original characters and spoil major outcomes.
How many The Walking Dead shows and seasons are there?
There are seven series in the universe. The flagship ran 11 seasons (2010-2022), Fear the Walking Dead ran eight, World Beyond two, and Tales is an anthology. Dead City, Daryl Dixon and The Ones Who Live are the newer sequels.
Can I watch Fear the Walking Dead at the same time as the main show?
Yes. Fear starts as a prequel set during the early outbreak, then runs parallel to the flagship. It shares only a few crossover characters, so you can watch it alongside the main series or save it for later with minimal spoilers.
Which characters do the spinoffs follow?
Dead City follows Maggie and Negan in Manhattan, Daryl Dixon follows Daryl stranded in France, and The Ones Who Live reunites Rick Grimes and Michonne. Fear and World Beyond introduce their own separate casts.
Do I need to watch World Beyond before The Ones Who Live?
It helps. World Beyond introduces the mysterious CRM military group, and The Ones Who Live pays off that mystery with Rick and Michonne. It is not strictly required, but it deepens the final sequel.
Where can I stream The Walking Dead universe?
AMC+ carries the entire universe including the newest sequels. Many of the older seasons also stream on Netflix and Hulu, though availability varies by region and changes over time.
Last verified · Sources: en.wikipedia.org, Wikidata
← Browse all TV orders