Some of the information on this page will spoil episodes and events: If you want to follow the list WITHOUT being spoiled, you may wish to avoid this page as well.
Why are episodes numbered the way they are? Placeholder
Episode numbering, at least on the pages updated to the newest design, reflect the numbering used on Paramount+. Some of those aren’t numbering choices I would make, but consistency seemed a virtue.
Does Enterprise need much reordering? Placeholder
Enterprise doesn’t require much reordering, though we do skip a few to watch later.
Where do time-travel episodes go? Placeholder
Time-travel episodes are kept in the main viewing order because their stories usually begin and end in the same year, regardless of other parts of the story taking place in different time periods. Moving these episodes solely because of their temporary temporal settings would only confuse viewers who lack context for the characters and plot. We will be applying this guideline throughout the rest of the franchise, which is why we are not, for example, relocating DS9's "Trials and Tribble-ations" to the middle of the TOS run.
Can Strange New Worlds be watched in the order it aired? Placeholder
Strange New Worlds Seasons 1 and 2 work smoothly in aired order.
Where do the original Star Trek films go? Placeholder
These are simple, with movies 1-6 coming after TAS and before TNG. No real notes here.
How are the Next Generation films placed? Placeholder
Generations and First Contact have been placed amongst the TNG/DS9/VOY episodes by theatrical release date.
How are the Short Treks placed? Placeholder
Short Treks is a fun one in that its stories can take place at any time or place in the Star Trek timeline, though so far they’ve mostly stuck to the Discovery/Strange New Worlds era, and it is unfortunately unclear if we will ever get any more. There’s some variance as to how these are numbered, but I’m using the episode numbering from Paramount+, as that seems most official.
Most of these can be pretty roughly placed based on content.
Why aren’t novels, comics and fan films in the guide? Placeholder
Star Trek has had a great deal of incredible non-canon material over the past 50+ years. Just to name a few: excellent novels like Diane Duane’s Spock’s World and John M. Ford’s The Final Reflection; the articles and stories found in zines like Trek and T-Negative; decades of comic books by major companies such as Marvel; shockingly well made fan films and continuations (my personal favorite of which I won’t name here as the main creator turned out to be a sex pest); games like the influential FASA RPG from the 70’s; even bizarre side cartoons like Very Short Treks, which, while actually released by the Star Trek industrial complex, are explicitly non-canonical and should not be confused with “Short Treks” which IS canon.
Many of these are well worth exploring, and even in many cases I would personally endorse them, but I have chosen to leave them off this list as the purpose of this chronology is a journey through the universe of Star Trek, and the criteria is not “what do I like enough” but “what is considered a true part of Trek continuity.” Having said this, keep in mind some things are of debatable continuity, as I mentioned in the section on The Animated Series, but things like those listed above - there’s no debate - they are non-canon.
What about Star Trek: Khan and Star Trek: Scouts? Placeholder
In the modern era we have an additional category: officially-produced Trek stories that don’t cleanly fit the traditional “canon = what’s on TV/film” rule-of-thumb, and also haven’t (as far as I can tell) been cleanly stamped “canon” or “non-canon” in the way fans would love. The two examples I have currently are Star Trek: Khan, a scripted podcast taking place around 2290, flashing back to 2267-68, and Star Trek: Scouts, a series of YouTube shorts for preschoolers that seems to take place in the mid-late 24th century.
So for now I’ll be mentioning them in the viewing order (so they’re on your radar), but I’m not going to break them down into episodes or treat them as full members of the timeline until the continuity status is clearer.
What are the chapters? Placeholder
The guide is divided into chapters so it is easier to find your place. They are only signposts: the viewing order runs straight on from one chapter to the next.
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How do I keep track of what I’ve watched? Placeholder
Tick “Watched” on any episode or film. Your progress is saved in this browser only. The Your progress page lets you mark a whole series or year at once, and back up your progress to move it to another browser or device.
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Can I print the list? Placeholder
Yes. The Checklist page prints the whole guide, or one chapter, as a list of tick boxes, and can leave out what you have already watched.
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Why do some entries have no picture or description? Placeholder
Some stretches of the guide are still being filled in. Their place in the order is final; pictures, descriptions and air dates are added as they are written.
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