Isekai series rarely receive a lot of installments, but Sword Art Online has established a formidable franchise, making it even more respectable. So if you want to experience the wonderful game world of SAO, you should try out the anime free of the isekai genre bias.
SAO has many time skips, and the narrative jumps from one point to another, thus making it a difficult watch for fun. However, I have arranged the anime by its release and chronological order just so that you can watch it without getting confused or without skipping anything.
Sword Art Online has three seasons which consist of 96 episodes, and it has also received four movies. You should first watch Sword Art Online according to its release order if you do not want to keep pausing and switching seasons. SAO has multiple spin-offs and recap episodes, which you can skip as they are not essential to the main plot.
1. Release Order of Seasons and Movies
- Season 1: Sword Art Online (2012)
- Season 2: Sword Art Online II (2014)
- Sword Art Online The Movie -Ordinal Scale-
- Season 3:
- Part 1: Sword Art Online: Alicization (2018-2020)
- Part 2: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld (2019–20)
- Part 3: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Part 2 (2020)
- Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night
- Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of a Dark Dusk
2. Chronological Order of Sword Art Online
The chronological watch order of Sword Art Online is good for keeping track of the timeline, as all the installments have been arranged according to when they took place in the SAO time frame.
- Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night
- Season 1: Sword Art Online (Episodes 1-2)
- Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of a Dark Dusk (Upcoming October 2022)
- Season 1: Sword Art Online (Episodes 3-25)
- Sword Art Online: Extra Edition
- Season 2: Sword Art Online II
- Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online
- Sword Art Online Movie: Ordinal Scale
- Season 3, Part 1: Sword Art Online: Alicization
- Season 3, Part 2: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld
- Season 3, Part 3: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld 2nd Season
3. Where to watch Sword Art Online with English subtitles or dub?
Sword Art Online is available to watch on Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix US, and Hulu with English subtitles and dub, but the movies can be a bit hard to find as they are not streamed by any website.
We have a full list of where to watch each installment right here:
| Title | Where to Stream | English subbed or dubbed |
| Season 1: Sword Art Online (2012) | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Season 2: Sword Art Online II (2014) | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Sword Art Online The Movie -Ordinal Scale- | Funimation | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Season 3: Part 1: Sword Art Online: Alicization (2018-2020) | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Season 3: Part 2: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Season 3: Part 3: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Part 2 (2020) | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
| Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night | Crunchyroll | English Subbed |
| Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of a Dark Dusk | – | – |
| Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online | Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix, Hulu | English Subbed and Dubbed |
4. Where can you download SAO to view offline?
The Sword Art Online anime is available to watch on Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation, and Netflix and is available to download on all of them under specific packages.
Several websites offer download options with their different packages, and we have the readymade list right here.
| Website | Subscription Packages | Offline Viewing |
| Crunchyroll | Fan – $7.99/month | No |
| Mega Fan – $9.99/month | Yes | |
| Ultimate Fan – $14.99/month | Yes | |
| Funimation | Premium: $5.99 a month / $59.99 per year | No |
| Premium Plus: $7.99 a month / $79.99 per year | Yes | |
| Premium Plus Ultra: $99.99 per year | Yes | |
| Netflix | Basic with ads: $6.99/month | No |
| Basic: $9.99/month | Yes | |
| Standard: $15.49/month | Yes | |
| Premium: $19.99/month | Yes | |
| Hulu | Ad-Supported: $7.99/month (or $79.99/year) | Yes |
| No Ads: $14.99/month | Yes |
5. What to do if Sword Art Online is not available to watch in your region?
If Sword Art Online isn’t available on any streaming website in your area, then you can use a VPN to bypass the geo-block. Some of the top VPN service providers in the game are ExpressVPN, Nord VPN, Proton VPN, Cyberghost, and Private Internet Access, to name a few.
All you have to do is connect to a country where your preferred anime is streaming, and voila, you can now watch Sword Art Online, even if it is unavailable in your region.
There are many unpaid VPN services at hand or free browser extensions. However, using low-tier VPN providers might decrease your speed and get you blocked by streaming services. Connection drops and unsecured encryption are also other disadvantages.
The important thing is that Sword Art Online is present on Netflix, Crunchyroll, Funimation, Hulu, and some other streaming websites’ catalogs, so set your VPN to a suitable location to access the anime from anywhere.
6. How much time will it take to watch Sword Art Online?
If you want to binge every season, movie, and OVAs of Sword Art Online, then it will take you 55 hours and 28 minutes which is a bit more than two days. However, if you just want to follow the seasons and the two SAO Progressive films according to the release order, then it will take you 40 hours and 40 minutes.
| Title | Duration | Type |
| Sword Art Online | 575 minutes | Anime Season 1 |
| Sword Art Online: Sword Art Offline | 99 minutes | BD/DVD Specials |
| Sword Art Online: Extra Edition | 101 minutes | Special |
| Sword Art Online: Sword Art Offline – Extra Edition – | 13 minutes | Special |
| Sword Art Online II | 552 minutes | Anime season 2 |
| Sword Art Online II: Debriefing | 24 minutes | |
| Sword Art Online II: Sword Art Offline II | 117 minutes | BD/DVD Specials |
| Sword Art Online Movie: Ordinal Scale | 119 minutes | Movie |
| Sword Art Online Movie: Ordinal Scale – Sword Art Offline | 14 minutes | Special |
| Sword Art Online Fatal Bullet: The Third Episode – Pilot-ban | 3 minutes | Special |
| Sword Art Online Fatal Bullet: The Third Episode | 3 minutes | Special |
| Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online | 276 minutes | Spin-off anime series |
| Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online – Refrain | 23 minutes | Recap Episode |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization | 576 minutes | Anime Season 3 Part 1 |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – Recollection | 24 minutes | Recap Episode |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Reflection | 24 minutes | Recap Episode |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld | 276 minutes | Anime Season 3 Part 2 |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld –Reflection | 24 minutes | Recap Epsiode |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld – Reminiscence | 24 minutes | Recap Episode |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Part 2 | 264 minutes | Anime Season 3 Part3 |
| Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night | 97 minutes | Movie |
| Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of a Dark Dusk | 100 minutes | Movie |
7. Frequently Asked Questions on SAO Anime
I. Do you need to watch Sword Art Online: Extra Edition?
Sword Art Online: Extra Edition is mostly a recap special with a bit of original content at the end. It has thrown in fan service for good measure, so if you want to watch for just that, you can. Otherwise, you can skip the special, and you won’t miss anything important.
Gun Gale Online is also not central to the story, but give it a watch if you have the time for it.
II. How many seasons does Sword Art Online have?
Sword Art Online has three seasons, but on some streaming websites, Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld which is actually the second part of season 3) is referred to as season 4. The actual season 4 is yet to premiere and hasn’t been announced yet.
III. How many specials and OVAs does Sword Art Online have?
Sword Art Online has a total of 11 specials and 1 ONA, but most of them are not relevant to the plot.
Specials
- Sword Art Online: Sword Art Offline (2013)
- Sword Art Online: Extra Edition (2013)
- Sword Art Online: Sword Art Offline – Extra Edition (2014)
- Sword Art Online II: Debriefing (2014)
- Sword Art Online II: Sword Art Offline II (2014)
- Sword Art Online Movie: Ordinal Scale – Sword Art Offline (2017)
- Sword Art Online Fatal Bullet: The Third Episode (2018)
- Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online – Refrain (2018)
- Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Recollection (2019)
- Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Reflection (2019)
- Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld Reminiscence (2020)
ONAs
- Sword Art Online Fatal Bullet: The Third Episode – Pilot-ban (2018)
8. Sword Art Online Manga Adaptations Read Order
There are twelve manga adaptations of Sword Art Online by original author Reki Kawahara. However, you will find 17 total collections, some of which are spinoffs or reimaginations of the manga with a different art style.
SAO has received several manga adaptations depending on the novels as well as some original materials. Below is a list of all the manga, along with their volumes:
| Manga | Volumes | Description |
| Sword Art Online: Aincrad | 2 | Adaptation of Aincrad arc |
| Sword Art Online: Fairy Dance | 3 | Adapts the Fairy Dance arc of the light novel |
| Sword Art Online: Phantom Bullet | 4 | Adapts the Phantom Bullet arc of the light novel |
| Sword Art Online: Calibur | 1 | Continues the Phantom Bullet arc |
| Sword Art Online: Mother’s Rosario | 3 | Covers the Mother’s Rosario story of the original series |
| Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale | 5 | Manga adaptation of the Ordinal Scale movie |
| Sword Art Online: Project Alicization | 5 | Covers the first half of the Alicization arc |
| Sword Art Online: Girls Ops | 8 | Spin-off manga series following the adventures of Leafa, Silica, Lisbeth and Kuro both online and oddline |
| Sword Art Online: Progressive | 14 | Reboot adaptation of the Sword Art Online: Progressive |
| Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online | 4 | Adapts the spinoff series, Gun Gale Online |
| Sword Art Online: Kirito’s Thousand and One Night Story | 2 | Manga original spin-off based on SAO: Hollow Fragment |
| Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization | 6 | Manga adaptation of the Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization console game |
| Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris | 3 | Manga adaptation of the Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris console game |
| Sword Art Online: Kiss and Fly | 2 | It adapts novel volume 22 and contains collection of side stories |
| Sword Art Online 4-koma | 3 | A 4-Koma manga recreation of the Sword Art Online light novel |
| Sword Art Online 4-koma Official Anthology | 3 | Anthology of 4-koma SAO manga |
| Sword Art Online Re:Aincrad | 2 | The original SAO story but drawn by a different illustrator |
9. Reading Order of SAO Light Novels
The entire SAO franchise sprang from a light novel series and to understand the series best, the light novels are a must-read. It is best to read the novels according to their published order.
I. Publishing Order
- Volume 1: Aincrad
- Volume 2: Aincrad
- Volume 3: Fairy Dance
- Volume 4: Fairy Dance
- Volume 5: Phantom Bullet
- Volume 6: Phantom Bullet
- Volume 7: Mother’s Rosario
- Volume 8: Early and Late
- Volume 9: Alicization Beginning
- Volume 10: Alicization Running
- Volume 11: Alicization Turning
- Volume 12: Alicization Rising
- Volume 13: Alicization Dividing
- Volume 14: Alicization Uniting
- Volume 15: Alicization Invading
- Volume 16: Alicization Exploding
- Volume 17: Alicization Awakening
- Volume 18: Alicization Lasting
- Volume 19: Moon Cradle
- Volume 20: Moon Cradle
- Volume 21: Unital Ring I
- Volume 22: Kiss and Fly
- Volume 23: Unital Ring II
- Volume 24: Unital Ring III
- Volume 25: Unital Ring IV
- Volume 26: Unital Ring V
- Volume 27: Unital Ring VI
Progressive Series
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 01
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 02
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 03
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 04
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 05
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 06
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 07
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 08
II. Chronological Order
- Volume 1: Chapters 1 – 3
- Volume 8: Chapter 3
- Sword Art Online Progressive Volumes 1 – 8
- Volume 2: Chapter 4
- Volume 2: Chapter 1
- Volume 8: Chapter 1
- Volume 2: Chapter 2
- Volume 1: Chapter 4 – 16
- Volume 22: Chapter 1
- Volume 1: Chapter 17
- Volume 2: Chapter 3
- Volume 1: Chapter 18 – 25
- Volume 3: Fairy Dance
- Volumes 4 – 6
- Volume 8: Chapter 2
- Volume 7
- Volume 9
- Volume 22: Chapters 2 – 4
- Volumes 10– 18
- Volume 19 – 20 (side story to the Alicization arc)
- Volume 21
- Volume 23 – 27
10. Conclusion
You should first watch Sword Art Online according to its release order if you do not want to pause the series mid-season to switch to another installment. The chronological order, however, is good for keeping track of the timeline.
The chronological order is for seasoned otakus who are already familiar with the series. You will find that several spinoffs like Gun Gale and Clover Regret are also included in the order, but they are spinoffs, so feel free to skip them if you are only focused on the main plot.
If you want to read SAO, then it is best that you follow the publishing order for both the manga and the light novel.The chronological order for the manga and novel are the same since the manga directly adapts from the novel with a few original bits.
11. About Sword Art Online
Sword Art Online is a Japanese light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by Abec.
The series occurs in the near future and focuses on the protagonist “Kirito” Kirigaya Kazuto and Asuna Yuuki as they play through various virtual reality MMORPG worlds.
At the launch of the game, 10,000 people had connected themselves to the virtual reality of Sword Art Online. The plot takes a twist when people realize that they can’t quit the game.
Protagonist Kirito, a pro gamer and was present for the beta launch of SAO, starts planning to clear levels as soon as possible. Throughout his quest to finish the game, he meets many friends and also a love interest, Asuna.
The plot and the whole premise of the show are remarkably unique and quite believable in some futuristic sense.
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