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Free! Watch Order
10 entries · · community-maintained
Also known as Free! -Iwatobi Swim Club-
The Free! watch order runs three TV seasons plus three films and two OVAs, and it opens on a movie rather than a season. Start with High Speed! Free! Starting Days, the prequel film, before the first 12-episode season and the 13-episode second season. The Eternal Summer Forbidden All-Hard! OVA comes next, then the Timeless Medley: Kizuna and Yakusoku films and the Take Your Marks movie. Watch the Dive to the Future Build-Up of Early Spring! OVA before finishing with the final 12-episode season. This is the chronological order Kyoto Animation's swimming series is best watched in, with each recap film and short landing between the arcs it bridges. If you want just the core story you can start at the first season and skip the compilations, but the complete correct order including all movies and OVAs begins with Starting Days.
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Recommended first watch
Checked October 2026Watch Free! (2013), Eternal Summer (2014), Take Your Marks (2017), Dive to the Future (2018), then The Final Stroke parts 1 and 2 (2021-2022).
High Speed! Free! Starting Days (2015) is a middle-school prequel film; it is listed first for story order but works just as well after Eternal Summer.
The Timeless Medley films are recaps and the OVAs are bonus episodes; all are optional.
Start here
- Watch first
- Start with High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie.
- What to skip
- 3 entries are optional: Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA, Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies, and Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVA. The story still tracks without them.
- Filler notes
- Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies. Optional.
- Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVA. Optional.
- Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA. Optional.
Chronological order
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Fix this order
High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie
#1 · 1 entry
- 1High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie
Starting Days (film, 2015): the prequel, Haru and Makoto's first year of middle school. Story order puts it first.
Movie
Free! Iwatobi Swim Club
#2 · 1 entry
- 2Episodes 1-12
Start here. Free! (12 episodes, 2013): Haru, Makoto, Nagisa and Rei start a swim club at Iwatobi High.
0/12
Free! Eternal Summer
#3 · 1 entry
- 3Episodes 1-13
Eternal Summer (13 episodes, 2014): the second season, the Iwatobi club's last summer with its seniors.
0/13
Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA
#4 · 1 entry
- 4Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVAOptional
Optional. Forbidden All-Hard! (2015): an unaired bonus episode released with the Eternal Summer Blu-ray.
OVA
Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies
#5 · 1 entry
- 5Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku MoviesOptional
Optional. Timeless Medley: Kizuna & Yakusoku (2 films, 2017): recaps of mostly Eternal Summer with a few new scenes.
Movie
Free! Take Your Marks Movie
#6 · 1 entry
- 6Free! Take Your Marks Movie
Take Your Marks (film, 2017): four new stories from the seniors' last summer, set between Eternal Summer and Dive to the Future.
Movie
Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVA
#7 · 1 entry
- 7Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVAOptional
Optional. Dive to the Future episode 0 (2018): a prologue episode first shown at a fan event.
OVA
Free! Dive to the Future
#8 · 1 entry
- 8Episodes 1-12
Dive to the Future (12 episodes, 2018): the third season, Haru and Makoto in their first year of university.
0/12
Free! the Final Stroke: The First Volume
#9 · 1 entry
- 9Free! the Final Stroke: The First Volume
The Final Stroke, part 1 (film, 2021): the climax of the series begins as Haru and Rin head for the world stage.
Movie
Free! the Final Stroke: The Second Volume
#10 · 1 entry
- 10Free! the Final Stroke: The Second Volume
The Final Stroke, part 2 (film, 2022): the last chapter of Free!. Watch right after part 1.
Movie
The correct order to watch Free!, as one listShowHide
Watch Free! in this order. 10 entries, chronological.
- High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie (movie)
- Free! Iwatobi Swim Club: Episodes 1-12
- Free! Eternal Summer: Episodes 1-13
- Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA (OVA) — optional
- Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies (movie) — optional
- Free! Take Your Marks Movie (movie)
- Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVA (OVA) — optional
- Free! Dive to the Future: Episodes 1-12
- Free! the Final Stroke: The First Volume (movie)
- Free! the Final Stroke: The Second Volume (movie)
How this order works
AnimeChrono watch orders put every season, movie, OVA, ONA and special for a franchise in chronological story order, the order the events happen. When an OVA or movie takes place partway through a season, the episode range is split so it sits where it belongs. Entries you can skip are marked optional, and each order says where to start. Release order, sorted by air date, is a secondary view once every entry has a date. The orders began as a hand-curated set, and episode counts and air dates come from AniList. Fans maintain the orders from there. Any signed-in user can edit one. Edits from trusted contributors go live right away and the rest are reviewed first. Every change is versioned and can be reverted, and each order shows when it was last updated and last checked.
Something wrong or missing?
This order is maintained by the community. Report a problem, or sign in to fix it yourself.
Free! watch order FAQ
What order should I watch Free! in?
Watch Free! (2013), Eternal Summer (2014), Take Your Marks (2017), Dive to the Future (2018), then The Final Stroke parts 1 and 2 (2021-2022). High Speed! Free! Starting Days (2015) is a middle-school prequel film; it is listed first for story order but works just as well after Eternal Summer. The Timeless Medley films are recaps and the OVAs are bonus episodes; all are optional.
Where should I start Free!?
Start with Free! Iwatobi Swim Club (June 2013, 12 episodes). The prequel film High Speed! Free! Starting Days (2015) can come first or after Eternal Summer.
Are the Free! Timeless Medley movies required?
No. Kizuna and Yakusoku (2017) recap mostly Eternal Summer with a few new scenes. Take Your Marks (2017) is different: four new stories set between Eternal Summer and Dive to the Future.
What is the chronological order of Free!?
Start with High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie, then continue with Episodes 1-12 (Free! Iwatobi Swim Club), Episodes 1-13 (Free! Eternal Summer), Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA, Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies, and Free! Take Your Marks Movie, followed by 4 more entries. The full Free! watch order on this page has 10 entries across 10 series, listed in chronological viewing order.
What is the release order of Free!?
In the order they aired, start with Episodes 1-12 (Free! Iwatobi Swim Club), then Episodes 1-13 (Free! Eternal Summer), Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA, High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie, Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies, and Free! Take Your Marks Movie, followed by 4 more entries. Release order follows air dates and is not the recommended chronological order.
How many episodes is Free!?
Free! has 37 TV episodes in this order, plus 5 movies and 2 OVAs.
Where do the Free! movies fit in the watch order?
High Speed! Free! Starting Days Movie comes first, Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies comes right after Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA, Free! Take Your Marks Movie comes right after Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies, Free! the Final Stroke: The First Volume comes right after Episodes 1-12 (Free! Dive to the Future), and Free! the Final Stroke: The Second Volume comes right after Free! the Final Stroke: The First Volume.
Can I skip anything in Free!?
Yes. 3 entries are marked optional: Free! Eternal Summer "Forbidden All-Hard!" OVA, Free! Timeless Medley- Kizuna & Yakusoku Movies, and Free! Dive to the Future "Build-Up of Early Spring!" OVA. Everything else is part of the main story.
Is Free! finished?
Yes. Free! has finished airing, and this order covers everything released so far in chronological viewing order.
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