The friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is not just the world's most popular superhero. In fact, he is also one of the most beloved fictional characters ever created. As expected, the web-slinging hero of Marvel Comics has received myriad adaptations on the screen over the years and among his contemporaries, he probably has the most number of adaptations to date.
Over on television, there have been very few years where a Spider-Man animated series has not been on the air since the first iteration way back in 1967. On the big screen, Spider-Man has seen three different live-action portrayals and one mega-crossover animated film (with plenty of sequels in the wings). Fans of the web-slinger have made their opinions on every Spidey story on IMDb, ranking them from worst to best.
Updated on February 1st, 2022, by Shawn S. Lealos: Spider-Man has been in some of the top-grossing movies over the past few years thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This all culminated with his most recent movie, hitting in 2021, which was the biggest box office juggernaut in two years.
Spider-Man: No Way Home presented fans with the biggest treat they could hope for, and has many praying that Marvel and Sony will bring even more Spider-Man movies in the future.
Spidey And His Amazing Friends (2021) - 6.1
- Streaming on Disney+
A new Spider-Man animated series hit in 2021, and sadly it didn't come anywhere near the level of the cartoons that came before. In Spidey and His Amazing Friends, the animation looked like Marvel was aiming for the same fans as Teen Titans Go!
There is only one season so far and it is still in progress as of now. This series has Spider-Man, Miles Morales, and Spider-Gwen and they team up with other heroes to battle his villains. While it has a low IMDb rating, fans did admit that the series is great for little kids, with good life lessons, which is perfect for its Disney Jr. location.
Spider-Man (2017- ) - 6.2
- Streaming on Disney+
As of this writing, this is the most recent animated outing for Spider-Man. This sees a big crossover of Spidey characters with Spider-Man, Spider-Man II, Spider-Gwen, and Spider-Girl. Other Marvel characters have also appeared, including the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
It airs on Disney XD and despite a rather robust cast, Spider-Man has not been as well-received as many of its predecessors. There's just nothing about it that's at all special, outside of it probably having the most number of Marvel characters in a Spider-Man adaptation to date.
Spider-Man 3 (2007) - 6.2
- Streaming on Fubo
The divisive Spider-Man 3 is the last installment of Tobey Maguire's trilogy. It also rates the lowest of any live-action Spider-Man film.
Some fans who don't like the trilogy's abrupt finale might be clouded by popular perception, though, as Spider-Man 3 is not nearly as bad as some people say, and has aged better than the following movies with Andrew Garfield, in the eyes of some fans.
Spider-Man Unlimited (1999) - 6.4
- Streaming on Disney+
Spider-Man Unlimited was a very short-lived animated Fox Kids series that never really had a chance, even though it had the interesting premise of taking Spider-Man to an alternate reality.
The show never found its footing and was canceled just as soon as it came out, leaving little impression on the future of Peter Parker.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) - 6.6
- Streaming on Fubo
Due to an unusually negative reception and disappointing box office numbers, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 proved to be the last of the Andrew Garfield films and one of the messiest Spider-Man movies.
The huge cast of talented actors, however, ensured that parts of it have always had their fans, such as Dane DeHaan's take on Harry Osborn and the Garfield era's Green Goblin.
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) - 6.9
- Streaming on DirecTV
The first film with Garfield in the lead role was Sony's first reboot of the property: The Amazing Spider-Man.
It was interesting for many fans to see a different interpretation of the same hero (and Emma Stone made a great Gwen Stacy), but most have always ranked it lower than the flagship movie of the Raimi era.
Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (2003) - 7.0
- Streaming on Disney+
Spider-Man: The New Animated Series was not met very ceremoniously, but it's remembered for trying to instill crossover elements that the MCU would later perfect.
Neil Patrick Harris' Spider-Man (based on the Tobey Maguire version from the 2002 film) even met the Kingpin from 2003's Daredevil film. There's some merit to that!
Ultimate Spider-Man (2012-2017) - 7.2
- Streaming on Disney+
Ultimate Spider-Man is known for having Drake Bell of Drake and Josh fame lend his voice talents to this Spidey series. Not only that, but this is one of the longest-running Marvel shows of all time!
However, Ultimate Spider-Man was not the most beloved depiction of Peter Parker but it's notable for being quite similar to the comics it was based on. In fact, many of the series' arcs took notes from some of the comics' best runs.
Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends (1981-1983) - 7.2
- Streaming on Disney+
1981 was a weird time to be a Spider-Man fan, as he exploded onto the small screen in a big way after not having been on the air since 1967. Dan Gilvezan portrayed Spider-Man in all three of this cartoon's seasons.
Here, Spider-Man had many interactions with other cherished Marvel properties, like Thor and the X-Men, and even teamed up with Iceman and Firestar. At the time, this was the biggest Marvel crossover, so fans from the '80s would have had their minds blown by Avengers: Infinity War.
Spider-Man (2002) - 7.3
- Streaming on Fubo
The highest-ranking entrant from Sam Raimi's trilogy is actually the very first one: 2002's revolutionary Spider-Man.
Starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, and James Franco, Spider-Man changed both the superhero genre and movies in general forever. The moments when Peter swung around Manhattan still stick in the minds of fans as being undeniably iconic.
Spider-Man 2 (2004) - 7.4
- Streaming on Fubo
Many consider Spider-Man 2 to be the greatest cinematic adaptation of Peter Parker ever. Not IMDb users, though. It's not even the best of the Tobey trilogy, according to votes!
However, sequences in the film like Doctor Octopus' background and the runaway train car should prop this movie up higher. It's more than deserving of the top spot in the eyes of many fans.
Spider-Man (1967-1970) - 7.4
The first animated depiction of Spider-Man came in the animated series from the '60s, which reappeared in Into the Spider-Verse as Earth-67.
This version of Peter Parker was brought to life by the vocal talents of Paul Soles. Not only does it have the definitive Spidey theme tune, it also has generated a ton of memes. As goofy and campy as the show is, it's undeniable that they helped Spidey entrench himself in pop culture.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) - 7.4
- Streaming now on Starz
After the end of Maguire's trilogy and Garfield's two films, Sony and Marvel Studios partnered together to bring Peter Parker into the MCU. Tom Holland's version of Peter Parker was introduced in Captain America: Civil War.
Fans instantly felt a kinship with him and they flocked to Spider-Man: Homecoming. Holland bridged the gap between versatile superpowers and nerdy awkwardness. Plus, Michael Keaton's Vulture is an all-time great villain.
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) - 7.4
- Streaming now on Fubo
Holland's solo follow-up to Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home delivered the goods for longtime fans of both the MCU and Spider-Man on the big screen.
His battles against Mysterio were part of what made Far From Home so engaging. However, the real gold of the movie came from Peter's European flirtations with MJ (Zendaya) and J. Jonah Jameson's (J.K. Simmons) surprise return.
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008-2009) - 8.3
- Streaming on Disney+
Josh Keaton took on the animated reigns of Spider-Man in this series, which ran for just two seasons. However, it has been said to be one of the best Spider-Man adaptations ever.
Many were quick to praise the innovative art style and progressive ethos behind the show. Even TV Guide ranked it as one of the best animated series ever made, regardless of superhero action!
Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1994-1998) - 8.4
- Streaming on Disney+
According to IMDb, the best animated series that Spider-Man has ever starred in is Spider-Man: The Animated Series, which was a cornerstone of the '90s.
This version saw Christopher Daniel Barnes as Peter Parker, with Hank Azaria, Mark Hamill, and Edward Asner featured among the cast. No animated series went deeper into Peter's psyche than this did.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018) - 8.4
- Streaming now on Fubo
According to a staggering number of votes on IMDb, the best animated Spider-Man outing ever made is the film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
The Phil Lord and Chris Miller epic starred Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) as the wall-crawler, who received aid from Peter Parker (Jake Johnson), Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), Peter Porker (John Mulaney), and more. It's thrillingly innovative and a reminder of how remarkable animation can be.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) - 8.7
- Currently in theaters
The highest-rated Spider-Man movie ever made hit theaters in 2021, and it is not likely to drop in score anytime soon. This was Spider-Man: No Way Home and it did the impossible. The movie helped wrap up the storylines for all three Spider-Man live-action franchises.
It also featured another Marvel hero in Doctor Strange and set up his next movie, while bringing the masses out to the theaters for the first time in almost two years. The reviews were high across the board and it ended up as not only the highest-rated Spider-Man movie on IMDb but also risen to be the third highest-grossing MCU movie of all time.