It began so simply: A man namedGene Roddenberrywanted to make a TV show set in the future, featuring characters who would represent the best of humanity, boldly going where no one has gone before. Now,Star Trekhas become one of pop culture’s most enduring touchstones, constantly evolving with the times.
It is not an easy thing to put together a coherent timeline for a franchise that consists of over 50 years of films and TV (nine series and 13 films, to be exact). YetStar Trek, when you break it down, does hold together pretty well for a narrative that has been crafted by literally dozens of writers and directors over the decades. This is especially impressive given the amount of time travel that’s been built into the story, as well as some conflicting dates (for example, the Eugenics War makes thingscomplicated).
Choosing the most important dates ofTrekhistory to focus on was at times difficult, but an effort was made to pinpoint moments where the franchise’s relationship with time was most complicated — after all, the ultimate goal of this article is to take over 50 years of sci-fi adventure and make it relatively comprehensible. With that in mind, The timeline below is restricted to the film and TV entries in theTrekuniverse, in part because the books, comics, and other media are fascinating enhancements to the narrative (especially when they push forward into the future) but are not widely considered to be officially canon.
Given that many of these events take place on different planets — with, thus, different year cycles — some dates are approximated, especially when their placement in the timeline is based on statements like “a thousand years ago.” (IfTrek’s stardate dating system was easier to compute, then it would have been incorporated here. Alas.) But even when some dates don’t quite line up, the franchise’s central principles are rarely lost.
[Editor’s note: This article was updated on June 26, 2025 to incorporate “Star Trek: Lower Decks” Season 1.]
The Films and TV Shows (Combined)
The Age of Shatner and Nimoy
The Next Generation Begins
The Next Next Generation
The Enterprise Era
The Kelvin-verse
The CBS All Access Age
Note:Spoilersfollow for all of the above, including the season premiere ofPicard.
The Days Before Space
4.6 Billion BCE (or maybe even more):
4 Billion BCE:
3.5 Billion BCE:
400 CE (approximately):
900 CE (approximately):
1600 CE (approximately):
1800 CE (approximately):
1944 (alternate universe):
July 1947:
1992-1996:
August 23, 2025:
Aug. 30-Sept. 2, 2024:
2026 – 2053:
The Dawn of the Warp Era
July 18, 2025:
June 25, 2025:
March 2153:
2156–2160:
March 22nd, 2233:
November 2256:
2258 (Kelvin-verse):
2259 (Kelvin-verse):
2260 (Kelvin-verse):
2263 (Kelvin-verse):
The Rise of Picard, Sisko, and Janeway
The Future Is a Dark Place
2388-89 (approximate):
3200s (or potentially more):
1000 years into the future of the Discovery, the abandoned ship (run by a now-sentient computer) rescues an escape pod and forms a bond with its occupant(ST:ST “Calypso”).
