Psycho-Pass Watch Order: The Right Order for the Series

Download Article

Anime expert Richard Moore shares the best watch order for the Psycho-Pass series

Co-authored by Richard Moore and Glenn Carreau

Last Updated: February 24, 2026 Fact Checked

Download Article

Release Order

|

Chronological Order

|

All Seasons & Movies

|

Where to Watch

|

What is Psycho-Pass Extended Edition?

|

Video

If you’re interested in exploring the dystopian world of Psycho-Pass, we can help you get started! Psycho-Pass’s anime franchise consists of three seasons and several accompanying movies. In an exclusive interview with wikiHow, an anime expert outlined the best order to watch them all in. Plus, for those of you looking to shake up your Psycho-Pass experience, we’ll also explain how to watch the series in chronological order. So, what are you waiting for? Let’s dive in!

Recommended Psycho-Pass Watch Order for New Viewers

Illustrated flow chart of the recommended “Psycho Pass” watch order.

Anime expert Richard Moore recommends watching Psycho-Pass in release order for the best experience:

Psycho-Pass (2012 - 2013) - Anime (first season)
Psycho-Pass 2 (2014) - Anime (second season)
Psycho-Pass: The Movie (2015) - Movie
Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System (2019) - Movie trilogy
Psycho-Pass 3 (2019) - Anime (third season)
Psycho-Pass 3: First Inspector (2020) - Movie
Psycho-Pass: PROVIDENCE (2023) - Movie

Section 1 of 5:

How to Watch Psycho-Pass in Release Order

Download Article

Moore says the best and easiest way to watch Psycho-Pass is in release order.^{[1]
X
Expert Source

Richard Moore
Anime Expert

Expert Interview} Most fans of the franchise wholeheartedly agree! And, thankfully, following the series in release order isn’t too tricky; there are three seasons of the anime, plus several movies that are just as integral to the plot (meaning there really isn’t any filler or non-canon content to worry about). Here’s the Psycho-Pass release order:
- Psycho-Pass (2012 - 2013) - Anime (first season)
- Psycho-Pass 2 (2014) - Anime (second season)
- Psycho-Pass: The Movie (2015) - Movie
- Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System (2019) - Movie trilogy
  - Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - Crime and Punishment
  - Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - First Guardian
  - Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - On the Other Side of Love and Hate
- Psycho-Pass 3 (2019) - Anime (third season)
- Psycho-Pass 3: First Inspector (2020) - Movie
- Psycho-Pass: PROVIDENCE (2023) - Movie^{[2]
  X
  Expert Source
  
  Richard Moore
  Anime Expert
  
  Expert Interview}
Meet the wikiHow Expert

Richard Moore is an anime expert based in Dayton, Ohio. He has 6+ years of experience creating anime-related content for over 386K followers.

Section 2 of 5:

How to Watch Psycho-Pass in Chronological Order

Download Article

On the other hand, you could certainly try watching Psycho-Pass in chronological order. However, if you’re a first-time viewer, you might see a few things out of context (considering the first piece of content chronologically is a movie that examines the background of one Psycho-Pass character). Release order is, generally, how the series was meant to be experienced—but chronological order can be a fun alternative if you’re doing a re-watch!^{[3]
X
Research source}
- Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - First Guardian (2019) - Movie trilogy, part 2
- Psycho-Pass (2012 - 2013) - Anime (first season)
- Psycho-Pass 2 (2014) - Anime (second season)
- Psycho-Pass: The Movie (2015) - Movie
- Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - Crime and Punishment (2019) - Movie trilogy, part 1
- Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the System - On the Other Side of Love and Hate (2019) - Movie trilogy, part 3
- Psycho-Pass: PROVIDENCE (2023) - Movie
- Psycho-Pass 3 (2019) - Anime (third season)
- Psycho-Pass 3: First Inspector (2020) - Movie

Section 3 of 5:

All Psycho-Pass Seasons & Movies, Explained

Download Article

1
Psycho-Pass (Season 1)The first season of Psycho-Pass sets the stage for the franchise. According to Moore, “It’s a cyberpunk psychological crime anime set in the future where a system called the Sibyl System constantly scans minds and assigns a ‘crime coefficient.’”^{[4]
X
Expert Source

Richard Moore
Anime Expert

Expert Interview} Essentially, the Sibyl System measures a person’s mental state and calculates their likelihood of committing crimes. “It's kind of wild because if your score is too high, you'll get arrested or executed even if you haven't done anything,” Moore says.^{[5]
X
Expert Source

Richard Moore
Anime Expert

Expert Interview} The show follows rookie inspector Akane Tsunemori as she’s assigned to Division One of the Public Safety Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division.^{[6]
X
Research source}
- Air dates: October 12, 2012 - March 22, 2013
2
Psycho-Pass 2Although it’s titled Psycho-Pass 2, this is technically both the sequel and second season to the original Psycho-Pass anime series. In Psycho-Pass 2, Akane Tsunemori is swept up into another case involving Kirito Kamui—a criminal mastermind who is undetectable by the Sibyl System, and wants to bring down the Sibyl System for good.
- Air dates: October 10, 2014 - December 19, 2014
3
Psycho-Pass: The MovieThe Psycho-Pass franchise’s first movie takes a look at the world beyond Japan and its Sibyl System, following Akane Tsunemori’s operation against foreign terrorists infiltrating Japan. Traveling to a neighboring country beset by war, Tsunemori searches for her former enforcer—now a rogue agent—Shinya Kogami, while attempting to bring terrorists from the South East Asia Union to justice.^{[7]
X
Research source}
- Release date: January 9, 2015
4
Psycho-Pass: Sinners of the SystemSinners of the System (or Psycho-Pass SS) is a trilogy of three movies, each focusing on the backstories of different characters from the Psycho-Pass anime. Here’s a little more information about each movie in the trilogy:
- Crime and Punishment - This movie follows enforcer Ginoza and inspector Shimotsuki as they discover a woman injected with a mind-altering drug. Tsunemori joins the case, and her search leads her to discover an experimental prison with some dark secrets.
  - Release date: January 25, 2019
- First Guardian - This movie is about enforcer Teppei Sugo, a former military officer. It follows his journey from officer to enforcer, including the traumatic losses his squad suffered in the wake of a big military strike—and the conspiracy that he unravels after.
  - Release date: February 15, 2019
- On the Other Side of Love and Hate - This movie turns the focus to Kogami, working as a freelance mercenary after the events of Psycho-Pass: The Movie. He becomes involved in a revenge plot that stirs up memories of his past.
  - Release date: March 8, 2019
5
Psycho-Pass 3Psycho-Pass 3 is the third season of the anime series, shining the spotlight on new agents: Arata Shindo and Kei Mikhail Ignatov, assigned to Unit One (which is led by Mika Shimotsuki). The series follows Shindo and Ignatov’s dangerous investigation—all while former protagonist Akane Tsunemori has been imprisoned for unknown reasons.
- Air dates: October 24, 2019 - December 12, 2019
6
Psycho-Pass 3: First InspectorFirst Inspector is the follow-up to Psycho-Pass 3, continuing Ignatov and Shindo’s story as they investigate a terrorist group called Bifrost. The movie is broken up into three 45-minute episodes, following Bifrost’s attempts to take down Tokyo’s governor, Karina Komiya. It also further explores the dynamics between the main cast and ties up Tsunemori’s story (which was left hanging in the anime).^{[8]
X
Research source}
- Release date: March 27, 2020
7
Psycho-Pass: PROVIDENCE Although it’s the most recent release in the franchise, PROVIDENCE is actually a prequel to Psycho-Pass 3. It involves a series of terrorist attacks enacted by a paramilitary force called the “Peacebreakers.” Akane Tsunemori returns to investigate (with her team, of course), alongside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Shinya Kogami.
- Release date: May 12, 2023

Section 4 of 5:

Where to Watch Psycho-Pass

Download Article

The Psycho-Pass anime is available to stream on Crunchyroll. That includes Psycho-Pass, Psycho-Pass 2, and Psycho-Pass 3, as well as the Psycho-Pass: First Inspector movie (although you’ll need a Crunchyroll subscription to watch). Sinners of the System, PROVIDENCE, and Psycho-Pass: The Movie are also all available on Crunchyroll—so you can catch everything in one place.^{[9]
X
Research source}
- The last season of Psycho-Pass and the sequel movie are both available on Amazon Prime as well.

Section 5 of 5:

What is Psycho-Pass Extended Edition?

Download Article

The first Psycho-Pass has an extended edition with double-length episodes. Essentially, Psycho-Pass’s extended edition replaces all of season one’s episodes with longer ones, each containing additional scenes and content. You can watch the original, the extended edition, or both—they both tell the same story; one simply has more detail than the other!
- Psycho-Pass Extended Edition is available on Crunchyroll, just like the rest of the series. It’s listed as its own season (after the original season 1), with 11 episodes in total.