Ranking Every MCU Phase By Worldwide Box Office (Photo Credit – Instagram/Hotstar)
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The Marvel Cinematic Universe didn’t just redefine superhero films. It built a box office legacy that has changed how Hollywood operates. Starting from 2008’s Iron Man, the MCU expanded its scope, tightened its storytelling, and brought together characters and timelines in unimaginable ways. Each phase marked a different chapter with distinct themes, risks, and directions. And with every step, the box office stakes kept getting higher.
As new phases introduced multiversal chaos, legacy characters, cosmic stakes, and deeper connections to streaming, the financial performance varied more than ever. Some phases broke global records, bringing in billions and becoming defining cultural events. Though still successful by industry standards, others fell short of MCU’s historic highs.
Here’s a breakdown of all MCU phases ranked strictly by worldwide box office collections, not critical reception, cultural impact, or fan rankings, just the total numbers they brought to the table. All the numbers in the article are as per Box Office Mojo.
Phase Three was Marvel at its peak, both in terms of audience interest and box office dominance. It launched with Captain America: Civil War and closed with Spider-Man: Far From Home, featuring massive crossover events like Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, the latter briefly becoming the highest-grossing film of all time. The phase also introduced Doctor Strange, Black Panther, and Captain Marvel, the latter two earning over $1 billion each. Across 11 films, the phase grossed over $13 billion worldwide and sealed Marvel’s reputation as the most profitable franchise in cinematic history. As a matter of fact, the two Avengers movies of this phase combined grossed almost a billion more than Phase 1 and Phase 5 each.
MCU Phase Three Box Office Summary
Avengers: Endgame – 2.7 billion
Avengers: Infinity War – 2.4 billion
Black Panther – 1.3 billion
Spider-Man: Far From Home – 1.1 billion
Captain Marvel – 1.1 billion
Captain America: Civil War – 1.1 billion
Spider-Man: Homecoming – 878 million
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 – 869 million
Thor: Ragnarok – 850 million
Doctor Strange – 676 million
Ant-Man and the Wasp – 623 million
2. Phase Four – $5.7 Billion (7 Movies, 2021-2022)
Despite pandemic-related disruptions and mixed critical reception, Phase Four still delivered impressive box office returns. With seven theatrical releases, including Black Widow, Shang-Chi, Eternals, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the phase raked in $5.7 billion globally. No Way Home alone grossed nearly $2 billion, becoming the highest-earning Spider-Man movie of all time. Streaming content on Disney+ complemented theatrical runs but did not contribute to box office totals. Worth mentioning is the fact that despite a total gross higher than Phase Two, Phase Four lagged behind in terms of average collection per movie.
MCU Phase Four Box Office Summary
Spider-Man: No Way Home – 1.9 billion
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – 952 million
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – 859 million
Thor: Love and Thunder – 760 million
Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings – 432 million
Phase Two was about building momentum. Beginning with Iron Man 3, which opened Phase Two with a $1.2 billion haul, and ending with Ant-Man, this six-film stretch introduced pivotal characters like the Guardians of the Galaxy and expanded the MCU’s cosmic scale. It featured the first Avengers sequel, Age of Ultron, and laid the groundwork for the major conflicts of Phase Three. Collectively, these films brought in $5.2 billion, securing Marvel’s global domination post-Avengers.
The foundation. Phase One was Marvel’s first major gamble. Six films across four years culminated in the experimental but massively successful Avengers (2012), which became the third film to gross over $1 billion. Starting with Iron Man and closing with Avengers, the phase was built on relatively modest budgets and untested character IPs. Despite that, it earned $3.8 billion worldwide and set up everything that followed. It proved audiences were ready for interconnected storytelling on the big screen.
Phase Five came to a theatrical conclusion with the release of Thunderbolts*. While the Phase included five sequels, it failed to reach the box office success of its predecessors. Deadpool & Wolverine was the crown jewel of this phase with $1.3 billion, while Guardians of the Galaxy 3 followed closely with $845 million. These two movies combined for around 60% of the whole Phase, while the remaining four movies suffered in the theatres, probably due to the superhero fatigue since the end of the Infinity saga.
MCU Phase Five Box Office Summary
Deadpool & Wolverine – 1.3 billion
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 – 845 million
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – 476million
Captain America: Brave New World – 413 million
Thunderbolts* – 381 million
The Marvels – 199 million
Note: Box office numbers are based on estimates and various sources. Numbers have not been independently verified by Koimoi.
