I understand the concept of the multiverse, but how do multiverses differ between each other within a Megaverse? And how are they similar versus, say, a multiverse in a separate Megaverse?

How do multiverses form within a Megaverse? Do they split off like universes in the multiverse, or are they unrelated from each other?

How far do the bounds of a Megaverse go? Is the DC multiverse in the same Megaverse as Marvel? Where do the Star Wars Marvel stories fit in?

If the One-Above-All is a multiversal being, are there Megaversal beings?

Even if Marvel hasn’t laid all of this out, how do you think it should work?

What’s up everyone, I’ve been tossing around a theory about the size of the Marvel Multiverse for a while. It’s not some galaxy brain revelation, just a simple idea that needs a long explanation. I’m curious if anyone else has thought about this, agrees with me, or has a different take. I think the Multiverse has billions of universes for sure, and maybe one trillion (or just over, like 1.05 trillion) is a low possibility, like a 2% chance but that’s probably pushing it. Here’s how I got there, but first, let me lay out the big picture.

The 616 and “What If?” Universes

So, let’s start with Earth-616, the main universe, the OG. I think the first “cluster” of universes in the Multiverse came from here. After all, literally EVERYTHING is based on the 616 (Not trying to timeline how it all started, just stick with me for a sec) I’m talking about all the “What If?” universes, those alternate realities where one thing changes, and then it’s a new world.

For example, imagine a fake one: “What If The Phoenix Force Only Possessed Cyclops?” Everything before that moment (Days of Future Past, Onslaught, Heroes Reborn/Return, Secret Invasion, Siege, Schism, all that jazz) happens exactly like in 616. But when Cyclops gets the full Phoenix Force instead of the Phoenix Five (AvX, 2012), boom, a new universe is born. But we know this mechanic already, how does it add up?

“What If?” Universes Spawning More

So those “What If?” universes don’t just sit there. They spawn their own universes. So let’s say in our Cyclops-Phoenix world, he goes rogue and somehow kills Wolverine in a big fight where he’s fighting a bunch of heroes at once. Now you get a new reality: “What If Phoenix Cyclops Killed Captain America?” Or Hope Summers, or anyone you wanna choose. Each of these spins off its own universe, and they don’t just spawn one, they can make multiple, just like 616 does.

These realities keep growing after the story ends. They don’t stop when the comic closes. Imagine in the Cyclops-Phoenix universe, he keeps the Phoenix Force. By the time Infinity (2013) rolls around, he’s out there as Earth’s first line of defense against the Builders, wielding cosmic power. That universe has its own history, lore, and events, evolving like 616. It only ends if, say, a villain like Annihilus wins and wipes it out (Annihilation style).

Now think about all the actual published What If? stories (1977-2011, plus specials). Each one like What If Spider-Man Joined the Fantastic Four or What If Wolverine Was Lord of the Vampires has its own world that keeps going, spawning who knows how many of its own “What If?” branches.

Alternate Universes Galore

Then you’ve got the big alternate universes, not just “What If?” spins. I’m talking MC2, Marvel Zombies, the Ultimate Universes, Earth X, all the worlds you see in various Spider-Verse events, non-canon stuff like Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe, and one-shots. And I mean everything: comics retconned to non-canon, universes characters visit just once and never return to, like that medieval world Morgan Le Fay trapped the Avengers in (Avengers Vol. 3, late ‘90s, forgot the issue) or the Sun God’s world the Illuminati fought during Time Runs Out. Everything out there.

They all have their own realities that can spawn more. And that’s not even counting hypothetical universes that could exist. Not every universe is a “What If?”, there’s Spider-Ham’s animal world and the LEGO Marvel universe. What about a universe where everyone’s a dragon? Why not? The Multiverse gets nuts like that.

Movies, Shows, Games, and More

Now let’s go beyond comics. I like to factor every piece of Marvel media is its own universe. Every live-action or animated show or movie since The Marvel Super Heroes (1966), major ones like X-Men: The Animated Series, minor ones nobody remembers, the MCU, all of ‘em. Every game, console (Spider-Man PS4, Earth-1048), mobile (Marvel Future Fight), browser-based, MMOs (Marvel Heroes), active or shut down. And every universe they touch, like the mini-Spider-Verse arc in Ultimate Spider-Man (Season 3) or one-off alternate realities in shows, movies, or games.

I know some shows, like Ultimate Spider-Man and Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, have crossovers with murky continuity. Are they the same universe or not? Honestly, the Multiverse is so big, I say leave it to headcanon. It’s not a dealbreaker. Point is, if it’s not a 100% faithful adaptation of the 616 or another universe, it’s a new universe, spawning its own “What If?” branches.

Multiversal Perspectives

I tried to think of how The “Sacred Timeline” and the MCU time-travel logic fits my theory. Loki (2021) basically starts with “What If Loki Got Away With the Tesseract?”, right? So i figured it’s the same deal. New universe, new branches.

But here’s the main thing about all of this : everyone in the Multiverse sees it differently. The 616 Illuminati have their Bridge (New Avengers Vol. 3). The MCU has its time-travel rules (Endgame). The TVA prunes timelines their way. The Spider-Society has the Web of Life and Destiny (Spider-Verse). The Council of Reeds (Fantastic Four #570-588) has their own vibe. There’s even the Captain Britain Corps, though i haven’t read much on them so idk too many details in that regard. Regardless, every show, comic, movie, or game with multiversal stuff (incursions, one-off realities) has its own take.

They’re all right because we see them use their theories to navigate the Multiverse or solve their problems in different ways. It’s like everyone’s got their own map, and they all work. There’s probably more groups out there we haven’t even thought of, each with their own Multiverse take. It’s just a way to keep it all ambiguous, as far as “Why does this work here, but these people do things differently in this story”. We’re talking billions of universes where everyone’s doing different stuff across them, okay? Let’s not bog ourselves down with too much logic, i think it’s okay to just say everyone has their own lens on it. Like i said, we see different perspectives and applications of multiverse mechanics and logic all over the place. There’s no true way to pin all that down anyway

How I Got My Numbers

So, how’d I land on tens to hundreds of billions, with a slim chance of a trillion? It’s about the potential for each universe to spawn more. I’m counting:

• All published “What If?” stories and their branches.

• Every known alternate universe (616, 1610, Zombies, etc.).

• One-offs, forgotten or otherwise (like that medieval world or Sun God’s).

• Every movie, show, game, and book universe, plus their branches.

• Hypothetical “What If?” realities that haven’t been written but could exist.

It sounds wild, but the Multiverse is infinite, right? If 616 can spawn new universes, why can’t every other reality do the same? I’ll say however, I’m assuming each universe has the potential to be just as generative as 616, though I get some might be “sterile” (not branching) or get pruned by stuff like the TVA or other cosmic forces. We don’t know how fast each universe grows, so I figure despite the potential they all branch at different rates. Some a ton, some barely, maybe some never.

My In-Universe Perspective

I know Marvel focuses on “important” universes (616, MCU’s 199999, Ultimate’s 1610) to keep stories manageable. So i just want to say I’m not talking publishing or what gets spotlighted. I mean the actual Multiverse, as if we lived in it—an in-universe perspective. Not what’s “canon” or “marketable,” but what’s out there, published or not. And yeah, it’s infinite, so more are always being made, but I’m guessing what exists right now, not capping what could be. I’m not trying to say “this is all there is, and ever will be” or something like that.

What Do You Think?

So, that’s my theory. I’m throwing out tens to hundreds of billions of universes, maybe a trillion at a stretch. It’s a lot, but it feels right for a Multiverse this crazy. Has anyone else thought about this? Agree with my logic? Got a different number or take, i know my both my estimate and my overall logic about all of this could be wrong for any number of reasons so I’d love to hear anything you guys have to say.

How many universes do you think are out there right now?

TL;DR: I think the Marvel Multiverse has billions of universes—tens to hundreds of billions, maybe a trillion (2% chance)—because every 616 “What If?”, alternate reality, movie, show, and game spawns its own branching universes, each potentially making more. It’s infinite, but I’m guessing what’s here today, in-universe.

What’s your take?

Sorry if this question has been asnwered hunred of times, but I just gotta ask on how this works.

So a single universe can have multiple timelines, but those timelines are not considered other universes right? In D&W we see that Wolverine is the "Anchor being" but that Wolverine didnt actually die in his Wades timeline, he died in the "Logan movie" timeline in the future right? But that still counted for the destruction of the whole universe so all the timelines were about to get destroyed by the time ripper right?

But then we saw multiple versions of Wolverine from other timelines/universes, does that mean they would have been erased as well?

It feels like even the writers dont really know when to use the word "universe" and "timeline" and its a mess.

So l have a concept that explains how and why mutants and vampires can suddenly exist in the MCU after Secret Wars — without forcing them into the story like "they're here now, deal with it."

At the end of Secret Wars, the multiverse is collapsing. To prevent total destruction, the MCU version of the Illuminati - maybe Strange, Reed, Professor X, Black Panther, secretly merge fragments of other universes into Earth-616. This includes timelines where mutants, vampires, and other supernatural legacies exist.

But to avoid global panic or continuity collapse, the Illuminati create a magical-psychic veil — a combination of: -Magic (Dr. Strange) -Memory Alteration (Professor X) -Advanced Tech (Black Panther, Reed Richards) -Geographic ley lines replaced (Namor)

This veil tricks Earth-616 into believing these people and histories were always part of the world. The X-Men didn't arrive - they were always here. Blade, Ghost Rider, the FF... all seamlessly stitched into the fabric of 616's rewritten timeline.

And here's the twist: Each "Prime" version of a character is a survivor of another timeline who was merged into this new continuity. They retain subconscious memory echoes of their past universe - dreams, déjà vu, unexplained instincts — but consciously live as if they've always been part of 616. This opens the door for emotional depth, identity crises, and stories about fractured memory and false history.

The Prime Merge is both: -a world-saving solution to stop multiversal collapse, and -a narrative tool to explain how new legacies can suddenly exist in the MCU.

Most people never question it. Only the Illuminati remember the truth, a secret after Secret Wars.

This makes room for mutants and supernatural beings to exist without retcons, and gives us long-term drama: What happens if the veil breaks? What if the truth is revealed? Will the Illuminati work to restore the Multiverse?

Okay here is something I been wondering about the Marvel multiverse, which is confusing. I read on the wiki site that the multiverse was created by "The one above all", who is the most powerful entity in the Marvel universe. However I read that it was really the celestials that did after some kind of celestial war took place and shattered the universe into different pieces. Man I don't which one sounds right?