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How to watch Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden (both anime and movies) in order

We've gathered each chapter of Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, and the 11 Naruto movies in order for your binging pleasure

Naruto in Sage Mode — Image credit: Pierrot

Guides by Trent Cannon, Senior Contributing writer

Additional contributions by Dion Dassanayake, Grant DeArmitt

Published on Mon Apr 22 2024

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Few anime have been as enduring as Naruto. 20 years after its TV debut, it remains one of the most popular series in the world. With spin-off manga and anime, a remarkably popular video game franchise, and even an amusement park on the way, Naruto and his friends are here to stay. But that means there is a lot of Naruto to catch up on for new viewers.

Even if this isn’t your first trip to the Hidden Leaf Village, it can be helpful to know the best way to watch Naruto and its sequel series, Boruto, to get the most out of the show. Here is everything you need to know to watch Naruto in chronological and release order.

We're going to take you through every one of Naruto's animated adventures, not just on the small screen, but the cinematic ones too. Before we do any of that, however, there's an important question we've got to answer for you. If you want to know more about the Naruto world and how his lineage ties into it, check out out Naruto family tree guide.

What's the difference between Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden?

Naruto ran from 2002-2007, while Shippuden ran from 2007-2017. Like the series' respective airings, the difference between the two shows is a matter of time - Naruto follows the main characters as children, and Shippuden follows them as young adults.

With the timeline cleared up, we can go ahead and talk about...

How to watch Naruto in chronological order

Artwork showing different Naruto characters which celebrates the anime's 20th anniversary. — Image credit: Bandai Namco / Shueisha

With hundreds of hours of ninja-fightin', energy-blastin', katana-duelin' fun packed into both series, the best way to not miss out on any of the action is by organizing your binge by order of episodes. Call us biased, but the way we recommend doing that is in chronological order, in other words, tracking the Naruto universe by its historical events. You can do that with this order:

How to watch Naruto in release order

Image from the Naruto anime showing the main character charging up an attack. — Image credit: Crunchyroll, Pierrot

Be warned if you're embarking on this path: During its original run in Japan, some of the Naruto movies were released slightly out of sync with the events of the series. Because of that, the events taking place in the movies could be happening at a later or earlier point in the timeline than what the anime had got up to.

Still, if you wanted to have an experience with Naruto like the fans who were keeping up with it as it was airing, you can do so in this order:

How many Naruto episodes are there?

Just so you don't have to go through these lists and count them yourself (unless you're into that. In that case, go nuts!), there are 220 episodes of the original Naruto series and exactly 500 episodes of Shippuden, for a total of 720 Naruto episodes, plus ten films.

Better get watching.

How to watch the Naruto movies in order

There are eleven Naruto movies in the franchise, including ones from Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, and Boruto. While these aren't considered canon, most of them have some fun plots and solid animation that make them well worth watching. Whether you watch all or some of the Naruto movies in order, just don't expect them to massively impact the anime's plot.

Wondering how to watch all of the Naruto movies in order? Here's how:

Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow
Legend of the Stone of Gelel
Guardians of the Cresent Moon Kingdom
Naruto Shippuden the Movie
Naruto Shippuden the Movie: Bonds
Naruto Shippuden the Movie: The Will of Fire
Naruto Shippuden the Movie: The Lost Tower
Naruto the Movie: Blood Prison
Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie
The Last: Naruto the Movie
Boruto: Naruto the Movie

Are the Naruto movies connected?

As they don't directly impact the main story of Naruto, you'd expect that the Naruto movies might exist in their own continuity, but that isn't the case. Each can be considered a standalone story that you can watch without needing to watch the rest. It is still best to watch watch the Naruto movies in order, though, as characters develop different relationships and abilities as the story goes on.

Did Naruto stop airing?

Technically, the answer to this question is yes. Naruto stopped airing in 2007, and Naruto Shippuden stopped airing in 2017. As of now, there are no shows focused on the titular ninja regularly producing new episodes. But does that mean Naruto isn't on TV at all?

Nope.

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is a sequel/spinoff of the two Naruto shows, focused on another character but still featuring anime's most popular ninja, aged even older than he was in Shippuden.

Why did Boruto anime stop airing?

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations aired its final episode in March 2023, going on a seemingly indefinite hiatus. The reason wasn't that the story ended (Episode 293 of Boruto has a massive cliffhanger) or that there wasn't the demand for it. The simple reason why the Boruto anime stopped airing is because the Boruto: Naruto Next Generations manga went on hiatus. It returned in 2024 with Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, which continues the story following a time skip. There is no word on when the Boruto anime will pick up again. Presumably, it will be once the manga has enough of a buffer that it won't overtake the source material.

Is Naruto coming back?

Killer B in Naruto — Image credit: Pierrot

Yes! It was announced that, as part of the Naruto 20th anniversary celebrations, four brand new episodes would be released in September 2023. Unfortunately, those episodes have been pushed back to "further raise its quality," according to an announcement on the official Naruto website, with no further release date given. As of November 2024, there was still no word on when - or if - these anniversary episodes of Naruto would be released.

Where can I watch Naruto?

Naruto, Naruto Shippuden and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations can all be watched on Crunchyroll, where the first seasons of all three shows can also be watched entirely for free.

Simply head to the Naruto Crunchyroll page, Naruto Shippuden Crunchyroll page or Boruto Next Generations Crunchyroll page and choose the first season. Then, click on the episode you want to watch. These episodes are available to watch for free with ads.

To watch every single Naruto episode you'll have to sign-up for a Crunchyroll Premium plan, which is available from $7.99 a month.

Why is there so much filler in Naruto?

Naruto holding his fist up — Image credit: Pierrot

Because the anime was being made at the same time as the original manga, it quickly began to catch up to the source material. Rather than go on hiatus with one of the most popular shows in Japan at the time, the studio decided to make their own content to fill time so that the manga could get a decent buffer. The result was that the show stayed on the air with 76 episodes in a row that were nothing but filler.

Who replaced Naruto as Hokage?

Not to dive too deeply into spoilers for Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, but there is a point where Naruto is no longer able to serve as the 7th Hokage. This leaves the position open for a short period of time, but soon it is filled by none other than Shikamaru. It makes sense, of course - Shikamaru was always the most intelligent ninja in the village and was Naruto's adviser for many years. However, he lacked the drive or work ethic to be the village leader. After Naruto is taking out of action, though, Shikamaru is forced to step up and become the next Hokage.

Will the Boruto anime ever continue?

It has been nearly two years since the Boruto anime went on hiatus to allow the manga to pick up again. While Boruto: Two Blue Vortex has started publishing, there hasn't been any official announcement that the next Boruto anime is being produced. We suspect that the studio will want to have at least a year of manga chapters to adapt before they put the next series into production. However, the continued popularity of Naruto and Boruto means that it will probably happen eventually.

How many Naruto series are there?

Though titles change as the characters get older, all of the Naruto anime take place in the same setting and feature the same characters. The first series, simply titled Naruto, follows the exploits of the titular ninja as he begins his training. The second series, Naruto Shippuden, takes place after a time skip of around two years where Naruto receives training from his mentor Jiraiya. Boruto: Naruto Next Generations takes place after an even longer jump in time where Naruto has become Hokage and his son is the main character. However, there is a fourth manga series that has yet to be adapted into an anime titled Boruto: Two Blue Vortex.

If you approach each of these as individual series, then there are four Naruto series.

Naruto
Naruto Shippuden
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations
Boruto: Two Blue Vortex

Who is Sarada Uchiha's mother?

There is some confusion in the early stories of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations about who the biological mother of Sarada Uchiha is. It is pretty obvious who her father is, since she gains the Sharingan ability that can only be passed through the Uchiha bloodline, but Sasuke is only have the equation. Sarada herself is the one who doubts that Sakura is her real mother, but it is soon confirmed that this is the case. Sarada inherited Sakura's chakra color as well as her ability to focus her chakra to give herself superhuman strength, clearing up any misunderstanding that may exist.

Can I skip the Naruto movies?

None of the Naruto movies are considered canon, which means that they don't do anything to impact the story or characters in a significant way. This means that you can safely skip them if you want to speed up your way through all those episodes, you don't need to watch the movies as well. However, as we said in the Naruto Movies in Order section above, there are some very cool moments and some outstanding animation in the films so they are worth watching if you have the time. Just don't expect anything important to happen.

Each week, Popverse's resident anime expert Trent Cannon runs down the latest and, dare we say "greatest," in anime and manga in Popverse Jump. Some recent columns have included...