How to Train Your Dragon: Definitive read and watch order

When it comes to fantasy series that can capture both adult and child attention, there is possibly none better than How to Train Your Dragon. The first was written by Cressida Cowell back in 2004, and the world she created has since spawned an enti𝔉re franchise.&ꦛnbsp;

So far, there are:

• 12 mainline books
• 3 related companion books
• 1 children’s picture book
• 12 graphic novels
• 3 animated movies
• 5 animated TV series
• 6 animated shorts

And all of that is without counting the upcoming live action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon that’s coming in June 2025. I know, it’s a lot.

If you’re just ꩲgetting into 🐠the world of Hiccup and Toothless, and are struggling to figure out where to begin, here’s how to both read and watch their story. 

How to read How to Train Your Dragon

When first diving into Hiccup’s world, the best place to start is with Cressida Cowell’s original novel series. They are, technically, children’s books, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable for a more mature audience. They’re well written, and offer a lot of insight into the Viking world that she worked to fictionalize and bu🧸ild as her setting. 

Thankf🌌ully, the recommended reading order of the 12 novel seri𝔉es is the same as the order in which they were released:

• How to Train Your Dragon (2004)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Be a Pirate (2005)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Speak Dragonese (2006)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Cheat a Dragon’s Curse (2007)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Twist a Dragon’s Tale (2008)
• How to Train Your Dragon: A Hero’s Guide to Deadly Dragons (2009)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Ride a Dragon’s Storm (2010)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Break a Dragon’s Heart (2011)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Steal a Dragon’s Sword (2012)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Seize a Dragon’s Jewel (2013)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Betray a Dragon’s Hero (2013)
• How to Train Your Dragon: How to Fight a Dragon’s Fury (2015)

While the novels were being published, Cowell also worked on t𒈔hree companion books to go alongside the sꩵeries:

• How to Train Your Viking by Toothless the Dragon (2006)
• The Day of the Dreader (2012)
• The Complete Book of Dragons: A Guide to Dragon Species (2014)

There is also a standalone children’s book about Hiccup’s early years and his struggle to fit in, called “How to Be a Viking”. Although it w🦄as released late in the timeline in 2014, it is confirmed by Cowell to be the first book in the canonical timeline. 

After the release of the first How to Train Your Dragon movie and it’s immediate success, Dreamworks authorized the release of 12 graphic novels through Titan Comics and Dark Horse Comics. These add additional story elements for Hiccup, T🧔oothless, and the rest of the characters. 

If you’re interested in how these fit into the canonical timeline, graphic novels released by Titan Comics feature stories that take place during the same time period as those shown in The Riders of Berk series. Those released by Dark Horse Comics give additional stories occurring just after the events of the second How to Train Your Dragon movie. 

Titan Comics

Dragons: Riders of Berk

• Dragon Down (2014)
• Dangers of the Deep (2014)
• The Ice Castle (2015)
• The Stowaway (2015)
• The Legend of Ragnarok (2015)
• Underworld (2015)

Dragons: Defenders of Berk

• The Endless Night (2016)
• Snowmageddon (2016)

Dark Horse Comics

• The Serpent’s Heir (2017)
• Dragonvine (2018)

How to watch How to Train Your Dragon

At first glance, the watch order of How to Train Your Dragon seems like a fairly easy🎀 thing to figu♊re out. The three films are in timeline order, so watching them is a pretty safe way to get a lot of the story pinned down. 

However, there are also six shorts and five entire multi-season series to take into account, so figuring out the timeline actua𝔉lly gets pretty complicated. 

If you want to watch from start to finish in chronological order, here’s how you should watch all of the animated How to Train Your Dragon content:

1. How to Train Your Dragon (Movie, 2010)
2. Legend of the Boneknapper Dragon (15 minute short, 2010)
3. Gift of the Night Fury (20 minute festive short, 2011)
4. Book of Dragons (15 minute short, 2011)
5. Riders of Berk (Single season series, 2011 – 2012)
6. Defenders of Berk (Single season series, 2012 – 2013)
7. Dawn of the Dragon Racers (Short, 2014)
8. Race to the Edge (Multi season series, 2015 – 2018)
9. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Movie, 2014)
10. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (Movie, 2019)
11. Homecoming (Short, 2019)
12. Snoggletog Log (Short, 2019)

If you want to round off the collection with both spin-off series, 💎🦋then they’re as follows:

• Rescue Riders (Spin-off series, 2020 – 2022)
• The Nine Realms (Spin-off series, 2021 – 2023)

However, bear in mind that these do not feature Hiccup, Toothless, or anyone else 🅘familiar from the main series. Rescue Riders focuses on an entirely new cast, ⛎while The Nine Realms is set 1,300 years later in the modern world, so they do lose a lot of the charm of the original story.