As part of the ‘Big 3’ anime, Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto franchise has earned its status as a classic series for its epic storyline, an inspiring hero, complex power structure, themes songs that have become cultural touchstones, etc. While anime fans who have already been fan of the series since its inception have followed the show(s) in continuity, many old and new anime watchers may not presently have the attention span to follow this grand saga that boasts a hefty amount of filler episodes.
While fillers are often considered non-canon or useless, some of them are actually important despite not being in compliance with the canon storyline. Hence, this article will provide a comprehensive list on all the Naruto and Naruto Shippuden episodes that one must watch or skip to save up on their time while getting the full experience of the series.
Note: Episode names are put under double quotations, while arc names are italicized.
Naruto
The Naruto series, which chronicles the young eponymous hero’s younger days and Sasuke’s defection from Konoha, has 220 episodes in total. However, within the 220 episodes, 91 of the episodes are fillers.
| Season | Episode number | Episode name or arcs | Skip or watch? |
| One | 26 | “The Tenth Question: All or Nothing!” | Skip |
| Two | 97 | “Kidnapped! Naruto’s Hot Spring Adventure!” | Skip |
| Three | 101 | “Gotta See! Gotta Know! Kakashi-Sensei’s True Face!” | Watch |
| Three | 102-106 | Land Of Tea Escort Mission arc | Skip |
| Three | 136-141 | Land Of Rice Fields Investigation Mission arc | Watch |
| Four | 142-147 | Mizuki Tracking Mission arc | Skip |
| Four | 148-151 | Bikochu Search Mission arc | Watch |
| Four | 152-157 | Kurosuki Family Removal Mission arc | Watch |
| Four | 159 | “Bounty Hunter from the Wilderness” | Skip |
| Four | 160 | “Hunt or Be Hunted?! Showdown at the O.K. Temple!” | Skip |
| Four | 162-167 | Cursed Warrior Extermination Mission arc | Watch |
| Four | 169-173 | Kaima Capture Mission arc | Watch |
| Four | 174 | “Impossible! Celebrity Ninja Art – Money Style Jutsu!” | Skip |
| Four | 175 | “The Treasure Hunt is On!” | Skip |
| Four | 176 | “Run, Dodge, Zigzag! Chase or Be Chased!” | Skip |
| Four | 177 | “Please, Mr. Postman!” | Skip |
| Four | 178-183 | Star Guard Mission arc | Skip |
| Five | 184 | “Kiba’s Long Day!” | Skip |
| Five | 185 | “A Legend from the Hidden Leaf: The Onbaa!” | Skip |
| Five | 186 | “Laughing Shino” | Skip |
| Five | 187-191 | Peddlers Escort Mission arc | Watch |
| Five | 192 | “Ino Screams! Chubby Paradise!” | Skip |
| Five | 193 | “Viva Dojo Challenge! Youth Is All About Passion!” | Skip |
| Five | 194 | “The Mysterious Curse of the Haunted Castle” | Skip |
| Five | 195 | “The Third Super-Beast!” | Watch |
| Five | 196 | “Hot-Blooded Confrontation: Student vs. Sensei” | Watch |
| Five | 197-201 | Konoha Plans Recapture Mission arc | Watch |
| Five | 202 | “The Top 5 Ninja Battles” | Skip |
| Five | 203-207 | Yakumo Kurama Rescue Mission arc | Skip |
| Five | 208 | “The Weight of the Prized Artifact!” | Skip |
| Five | 209-212 | Gantetsu Escort Mission arc | Watch |
| Five | 213-215 | Menma Memory Search Mission arc | Watch |
| Five | 216-220 | Sunagakure Support Mission arc | Watch |
Naruto Shippuden
As opposed to Naruto, the Shippuden saga boasts a good total of 192 filler episodes out of the 483 episodes. The 22 seasons in Naruto Shippuden follows the titular blond ninja go through multiple trainings and character development to finally achieve his dream of becoming the Hokage of Konohagakure.
| Season | Episode number | Episode name or arcs | Skip or watch? |
| Three | 57-71 | Twelve Guardian Ninja arc | Watch |
| Five | 90-112 | Three-Tails Appearance arc | Skip |
| Seven | 144-151 | Six-Tails Unleashed arc | Watch |
| Eight | 170 | “Big Adventure! The Quest for the Fourth Hokage’s Legacy – Part 1″ | Skip |
| Eight | 171 | “Big Adventure! The Quest for the Fourth Hokage’s Legacy – Part 2” | Skip |
| Nine | 176-196 | Past Arc: Locus of Konoha arc | Watch |
| Eleven | 223-242 | Paradise Life on a Boat arc | Skip |
| Twelve | 257-260 | Sasuke and Naruto Flashbacks arc | Skip |
| Twelve | 271 | “Road to Sakura” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 279-281 | “White Zetsu’s Trap” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 280 | “Aesthetics of an Artist” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 281 | “The Allied Mom Force!!” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 284 | “The Helmet Splitter: Jinin Akebino!” | Watch |
| Thirteen | 285 | “The user of the Scorch Style: Pakura of the Sand!” | Watch |
| Thirteen | 286 | “Things You Can’t Get Back” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 287 | “One Worth Betting On” | Skip |
| Thirteen | 288 | “Danger: Jinpachi and Kushimaru!” | Watch |
| Thirteen | 289 | “The Lightning Blade: Ameyuri Ringo!” | Watch |
| Thirteen | 290-295 | Power arc | Skip |
| Fourteen | 303 | “Ghosts from the Past” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 304 | “The Underworld Transfer Jutsu” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 305 | “The Vengeful” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 306 | “The Heart’s Eye” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 307 | “Fade into the Moonlight” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 308 | “Crescent Moonlight” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 309 | “The A-Rank Mission: Food Fight” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 310 | “The Fallen Castle” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 311 | “Prologue of Road to Ninja” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 312 | “The Old Master and the Dragon’s Eye” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 313 | “Rain Followed by Snow, with Some Lightning” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 314 | “The Sad Sun Shower” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 315 | “Lingering Snow” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 316 | “The Reanimated Allied Forces” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 317 | “Shino vs. Torune!” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 318 | “A Hole in the Heart: The Other Jinchuriki” | Watch |
| Fourteen | 319 | “The Soul Living Inside the Puppet” | Skip |
| Fourteen | 320 | “Run, Omoi!” | Skip |
| Fifteen | 347 | “Creeping Shadow” | Watch |
| Fifteen | 348 | “The New Akatsuki” | Watch |
| Sixteen | 349-361 | Kakashi’s Anbu arc | Watch |
| Eighteen | 376 | “The Directive to Take the Nine-Tails!” | Skip |
| Eighteen | 377 | “Naruto vs. Mecha Naruto” | Skip |
| Eighteen | 389 | “The Adored Elder Sister” | Watch |
| Eighteen | 390 | “Hanabi’s Decision” | Watch |
| Ninteen | 394-413 | The New Chunin Exams arc | Skip |
| Twenty | 416 | “The Formation of Team Minato” | Watch |
| Twenty | 417 | “You’ll Be My Backup” | Watch |
| Twenty | 422 | “The Ones Who Will Inherit” | Watch |
| Twenty | 423 | “Naruto’s Rival” | Watch |
| Twenty | 432-450 | The Infinite Tsukuyomi arc | Skip |
| Twenty One | 464-468 | Shinobi History arc | Watch |
| Twenty One | 469 | “A Special Mission” | Watch |
| Twenty One | 480-483 | Childhood Days arc | Watch |
This makes the full list of Naruto and Naruto Shippuden filler episodes and arcs. If there are any more episodes from the series that you think are skippable, let us know in the comments below!
