The chronological and release order for Five Nights at Freddy's.
Five Nights at Freddy’s is one of the most popular survival horror franchises out there.
Compared to icons of the genre like Resident Evil and Silent Hill, it’s relatively fresh faced — with the series skyrocketing in popularity after it debuted in 2014 as a terrifying indie game that YouTubers helped make popular. Since then it has ballooned into a multimedia series that has spawned numerous sequels, spinoffs and novels, as well as a hit movie made by Blumhouse.
With a second Hollywood film out later this year, now’s the perfect time to get into the series or catch up on any games you’ve missed out on. If you need a hand getting started, we’ve put together this guide on how to play the FNAF games in order, looking at both the chronological and release date order.
To see this content please enable targeting cookies.
How to play the FNAF games in order
If you want to play every single FNAF game, there are two main ways you can play through the Five Nights at Freddy’s series — either in release date or chronological order.
Release date: If you want to play the FNAF games in release date order, you would begin with the 2014 original that kickstarted the hit franchise, and work your way through all the releases to the most recent mainline game, which is Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2.
Chronological order: Alternatively, you can play the FNAF games in chronological order. The chronology of the series is a hot topic among fans, with the community holding varying views on what order the events of the franchise take place. After digging into this, we’d advise anyone wanting to play the series in chronological order to begin with Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 and finish their playthrough with Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2.
However, whether you can play every single Five Nights at Freddy’s game depends on what platform you own. It’s a close call, but having a PC is the best way to experience the series, as you’ll be able to play virtually all of the games in the franchise, including some of the spin-offs that didn’t make their way to consoles as well as the next mainline installment, which is Five Nights at Freddy’s: Secret of the Mimic. The next FNAF game will also be available on PS5 at launch, but so far hasn’t been announced for Xbox or Switch.
Five Nights at Freddy’s chronological order
There are 17 mainline and spin-off games in the Five Nights at Freddy’s series. To make things simple, in our list explaining the chronological order below we’ll just stick to the 10 main games, and also not include Five Nights at Freddy’s: Special Delivery which isn’t available anymore.
So, without further ado here’s how to play the FNAF games in chronological order:
Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 (2015)
Original release date: 2015
Time to beat: 3 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 is the fourth game released in the series and the first chronologically. It’s the last chapter of the original FNAF story, which is made up of the first four games in the series that were all released within a year of the debut game launching.
It’s set in 1983 around a decade before the events of the very first game. Like the other original games, in Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 players have to survive each night from between 12am to 6am. The action takes place from a first-person perspective and gameplay is akin to a point-and-click adventure, with players clicking on the in-game environment to progress and having limited ways they can fend for themselves, which adds to the tension.
Unlike other early FNAF games, in the fourth entry players don’t have a network of security cameras to monitor the ever approaching enemies, instead having to rely on audio cues. Another big departure is players aren’t controlling a security guard on a late shift. This time they step into the shoes of a child who is being hunted by horrifying animatronics in their home.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 (2014)
Original release date: 2014
Time to beat: 3 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is the second game released in the series, and the second game chronologically. It was released in 2014, just three months after the original game debuted and became a horror phenomenon.
Like the original, in FNAF 2 players once again step into the shoes of a security guard who is on the night shift at a creepy pizzeria, where homicidal animatronic creatures come to life. Players are unable to leave their office, and have to use a network of security cameras to see where the animatronics who stalk the building are.
Unlike the original game, the entrances to the office players are holed up in cannot be sealed off, which makes it easier for the murderous enemies to get closer to your character. This time around though, you have a few extra tools that can slow down the progress of the animatronics that hunt you. Flashlights can be shone that slow enemies down, and players can even wear an animatronic mask to trick enemies and help them avoid being detected and killed.
If your character does get detected and killed, a mini-game can be triggered which is similar to old school Atari video games, that reveals more about the lore of FNAF. In terms of when Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is set, according to a paycheck the player receives towards the end, it takes place in 1987 — around four years after the events of the fourth game.
Five Nights at Freddy’s Sister Location (2016)
Original release date: 2016
Time to beat: 3 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location is the fifth main game released in the series, and the third chronologically — but there is a big caveat to this. Where Sister Location sits in the timeline is a topic of much debate for fans, and it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly where it takes place. However, it looks like it takes place between the late 80s and early 90s which would put it in between the events of FNAF 2 and the original (which we’ll talk about in a bit).
As the name suggests, the game is set in a sister location of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria. Players take control of a technician who performs late night maintenance work at Circus Baby’s Pizza World, and has to survive being hunted by the venue’s homicidal animatronics.
Sister Location freshens up the formula that the original games in the series were known for. Players now have more mobility, and aren’t just based in one room — as they can now move between different areas using crawlspaces. Each night also ends after certain tasks are completed, as opposed to the first four games where there was a timer players had to run down.
Five Nights at Freddy’s (2014)
Original release date: 2014
Time to beat: 2 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
The original Five Nights at Freddy’s is where the hit horror series began. The first game released in the franchise is the fourth chronologically, with the action taking place in 1993. Players take control of a security guard called Mike, who has to survive the late shift working at a creepy pizzeria, where murderous animatronics come to life at night.
Players are unable to move from their office each night, and have to use a network of security cameras to see where the animatronics who stalk the restaurant are, and whether the enemies are about to burst through their door. There is a catch though — using cameras and closing the doors to your office, which don’t stay shut for long, all use up power. If you run out of power before a shift ends, or an animatronic manages to get into your office, then it’s game over.
The first FNAF game laid the groundwork for what the series became known for, with its creepy enemies like Freddy Fazbear, the nerve-shredding atmosphere and terrifying jump scares. Its popularity was also helped by YouTubers who did playthrough videos which generated millions of views and all added to the buzz surrounding it.
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Into The Pit (2024)
Original release date: 2024
Time to beat: 4 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Into The Pit is the most recent game released in the series. It’s the 17th game released for the franchise, but the fifth chronologically. As with Sister Location, there is a caveat to this — it’s not easy to place exactly where Into The Pit fits in the timeline. There are segments that take place as far back as 1985, but the graphic novel it is based on suggests the main events take place around 2020, which would mean Into The Pit takes place between the original and Five Nights at Freddy’s 3.
Unlike other games in the series which feature a first-person perspective, Into The Pit is a retro-inspired, side-scroller with pixelated graphics reminiscent of the 16-Bit era of gaming. Players take control of Oswald, a ten-year-old who discovers a ball pit at a rundown pizzeria that lets him travel through time. He was just trying to get away from his mundane life, but ends up being chased by a murderous animatronic wreaking havoc across time and space, that threatens not only him but his family and friends as well.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 (2015)
Original release date: 2015
Time to beat: 2.5 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 is the third game released in the series, but the sixth chronologically. The action takes place 30 years after the Freddy Fazbear Pizzeria from the first game closed down and became the stuff of urban legend, which means the third game takes place in the timeline around 2023.
This time around, players take control of a security guard at Fazbear’s Fright: The Horror Attraction, which is an attraction that’s meant to cash in on all the rumours surrounding the location of the first game, and is home to vintage animatronics including enemies from the first and second games.
Gameplay is similar to other early entries, with players unable to leave their office and having to use a network of security cameras to monitor where the enemy is. This time around though, there’s only one animatronic called Springtrap that can kill the player. Other phantom animatronics can appear that cause jump scares and lead to systems the player has to monitor like the camera and audio feeds failing, which leaves the player vulnerable to Springtrap.
Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator (2017)
Original release date: 2017
Time to beat: 3 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox / iOS / Android
Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator is the seventh game released in the series, and the seventh chronologically. It puts players in charge of running their own Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria, but this isn’t your typical management sim.
Brightly coloured mini-games are mainly used to depict the day-to-day running of your pizzeria, which are mixed together with first-person segments in your dimly lit office. In these scenes you have to salvage damaged, creepy animatronics that are sitting opposite you and staring at you unnervingly. There are also more traditional sections where you have to stay safe from the terrifying animatronics that roam the pizzeria after it closes.
In terms of where it fits in the timeline, one of the animatronics that appears in Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator is Springtrap, the main antagonist of Five Nights at Freddy’s 3, which suggests the game takes place sometime after FNAF 3.
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted (2019)
Original release date: 2019
Time to beat: 12 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted is the ninth game released in the series, and the eighth chronologically. It was originally launched as a VR-only game, before a version that could be played without headsets was later released.
It’s a very meta game, with players stepping into the shoes of a user of the ‘Freddy Fazbear Virtual Experience’. This is a fictional VR game which has been created by Fazbear Entertainment, the firm that runs the Freddy Fazbear restaurants. The game has been created to improve the company’s reputation, and make the public believe the violent incidents that happened at their restaurants, which have become the stuff of urban legends, are not true.
The game recreates moments from the previous games in the series, all the way up to FNAF 3, and also features some that are unique to Help Wanted. We’ve placed it in our timeline after Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 and Pizzeria Simulator, as it makes sense that Fazbear Entertainment would want to improve their image after the events of the latter.
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach (2021)
Original release date: 2021
Time to beat: 10 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach is the 13th game released in the series, and the ninth chronologically. It’s set in a large entertainment complex called Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex, which is home to animatronics like the hair metal-inspired Glamrock Freddy who perform for the audiences.
Players take control of a young child named Gregory, who has got trapped inside the complex. The youngster has to evade the murderous animatronics that roam the place, and also escape the clutches of a security guard named Vanessa. This time around though, Gregory will get help from the unlikeliest of places, Freddy himself — who suffered a malfunction on stage and isn’t acting as aggressively as the other animatronics.
Security Breach also freshens up the FNAF formula by introducing free roam gameplay, giving much more freedom than other games in the series. There’s also a DLC for Security Breach called Ruin, which introduces another child protagonist called Cassie. But this expansion technically takes place after the next entry in our list.
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2 (2023)
Original release date: 2023
Time to beat: 8.5 hours
Where to buy: Steam / PlayStation / Switch / Xbox
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2 is the 16th game released in the series, but the 10th chronologically. Like its predecessor, it originally launched as a VR-only game before a version was released that could be played without a headset.
It recreates moments from previous games in the series, and mainly focuses on Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location and Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach. Chronologically, it’s set after the events of Security Breach, with players taking control of the last remaining employee at the Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex.
However, it is not quite the final game in the FNAF timeline. The events of Help Wanted 2 take place prior to Security Breach’s DLC Ruin.
FNAF release date order
If you’d rather play the Five Nights at Freddy’s series in release order, then here’s how to play every single mainline and spin-off game in the FNAF franchise:
- Five Nights at Freddy’s — (2014)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 — (2014)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 — (2015)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 — (2015)
- FNAF World — (2016)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location — (2016)
- Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator — (2017)
- Ultimate Custom Night — (2018)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted — (2019)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s AR: Special Delivery — (2019)
- Freddy in Space 2 — (2019)
- Security Breach: Fury’s Rage — (2021)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach — (2021)
- Youtooz Presents: Five Nights at Freddy’s — (2022)
- Freddy in Space 3: Chica in Space — (2023)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2 — (2023)
- Five Nights at Freddy’s: Into the Pit — (2024)
We’ve included every single game released in the Five Nights at Freddy’s series. But unfortunately you’ll have trouble playing two previously released mobile games, which are no longer available on the iOS or Android app stores.
These delisted games are Five Nights at Freddy’s AR: Special Delivery and Youtooz Presents: Five Nights at Freddy’s.
What’s next for the Five Nights at Freddy’s series?
The next game getting released in the FNAF series is Five Nights at Freddy’s: Secret of the Mimic, which is out on PS5 and PC on Friday 13th June 2025. Besides this mainline game, a spin-off kart racing game called Five Laps at Freddy’s is also in development, and is currently scheduled to release in 2026.
After the huge success of the live-action Five Nights at Freddy’s movie, a sequel is also in the works, hitting cinemas later this year. Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is out on Friday 5th December 2025, and once again stars Josh Hutcherson as Mike Schmidt and Elizabeth Lail as Vanessa.
That’s it for our Five Nights at Freddy’s order guide. If you’d like to know more about FNAF, check out the teaser trailer for the second Five Nights at Freddy’s film, or watch our Ian Higton get spooked by Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted. We’ve also got a story on FNAF creator Scott Cawthon announcing his retirement.
