This is a full list featuring all World of Warcraft expansions in order starting from its original release in 2004.
Ever since its release, World of Warcraft (WoW) has become the king of MMORPGs and remained the most popular MMORPG until recent times.
Without further ado, here are all World of Warcraft expansions in order, including the original game.
World of Warcraft (2004)
The original World of Warcraft began in 2004 with a level cap of 60.
It was the first MMORPG to achieve widespread popularity and become a cultural phenomenon, with millions of players still playing WoW to this day.
The base game of World of Warcraft featured 2 continents, Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms.
The original races back in 2004 were: Humans, Dwarves, Gnomes, and Night elves for the Alliance, and Orcs, Trolls, Tauren, and the Forsaken for the Horde.
The original classes were: Druid, Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior.
The Burning Crusade (2007)
The first expansion for World of Warcraft, The Burning Crusade, was released in 2007 and raised the level cap to 70.
At the time of release, The Burning Crusade became the fasted selling PC game of all time, selling around 2.4 million copies on the first day alone.
The Burning Crusade (TBC) introduced the new continent of Outland which was accessible through a portal. The Burning Crusade also added 2 new playable races: Blood elves for the Horde and Draenei for the Alliance.
Wrath of the Lich King (2008)
The second expansion for World of Warcraft, Wrath of the Lich King, was released in 2008 and raised the level cap to 80.
This expansion added the new continent of Northrend which was located on the north side of the original map.
Of all World of Warcraft expansions, Wrath of The Lich King is often considered to be the best WoW expansion as this was also where World of Warcraft peaked in terms of players. (Source: Time)
During the Wrath of the Lich King (WotLK) expansion, WoW reported 12 million active accounts and as you can imagine, WotLK ended up beating The Burning Crusade into becoming the fastest-selling PC of all time back then.
The first Hero Class was introduced, the Death Knight which started at level 55 instead of the usual level 1.
Cataclysm (2010)
The third expansion for World of Warcraft, Cataclysm, was released in 2010 and raised the level cap to 85.
This expansion brought back the original continents of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms but they were both significantly changed as a result of the Cataclysm.
Deathwing, the main antagonist and one of the five Dragon Aspects, caused the Cataclysm which reshaped the world and plunged it into chaos.
Two new playable races were introduced: Goblins for the Horde and Worgen for the Alliance.
Despite breaking records in terms of sales, Cataclysm is often considered to be one of the worst WoW expansions as it was during this time when many players started to leave the game.
Mists of Pandaria (2012)
The fourth expansion for World of Warcraft, Mists of Pandaria, was released in 2012 and raised the level cap to 90.
This expansion introduced the new continent of Pandaria which was located in the South of Azeroth between Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms.
Mists of Pandaria also marked the first time that a Panda race was playable in any video game. Alongside the addition of the Pandaren race, a new Monk class was also added to the game.
Pandarians were the first race in World of Warcraft to be able to choose between Horde or Alliance after they completed their initial starting land.
While the expansion was generally well-received, it was also during this time that WoW’s player base began to decline rapidly.
Warlords of Draenor (2014)
The fifth expansion for World of Warcraft, Warlords of Draenor, was released in 2014 and raised the level cap to 100.
This expansion took players to the planet of Draenor which was the homeworld of the Orc race.
Draenor was a harsh world that was filled with many dangers and it was up to the players to help the Orc race survive and thrive in this hostile environment.
Warlords of Draenor focused a lot on PvP, introducing player-built upgradeable Garrisons and tons of other PvP-related changes. There was also a focus on improving existing textures and animations.
Legion (2016)
The sixth expansion for World of Warcraft, Legion, was released in 2016 and raised the level cap to 110.
This expansion is set after the events of Warlords of Draenor and takes place on the Broken Isles which is located off the coast of Azeroth.
Legion introduces a new enemy faction called The Burning Legion which is led by the demon lord Sargeras.
To combat this new threat, players can join one of two new factions: The Army of the Light or The Argussian Reach.
Alongside all the cool new updates, Legion also added the new hero class of Demon Hunter.
Battle For Azeroth (2018)
The seventh expansion for World of Warcraft, Battle For Azeroth, was released in 2018 and raised the level cap to 120.
This expansion is set after the events of Legion and sees the Horde and Alliance at war with each other.
Battle For Azeroth takes players to two new continents: Kul Tiras and Zandalar. Nazjatar was added later in patch 8.2.0 which is the home of the Naga.
There are also a ton of new features such as Island Expeditions, Warfronts, and Heritage Armor.
Battle for Azeroth also introduced 10 new Allied Races which start at level 20.
Shadowlands (2020)
The eighth World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, was released in 2020 and put the level cap back to 60.
This expansion is set after the events of Battle For Azeroth and sees players venturing into the realm of the dead known as the Shadowlands.
The main antagonist of this expansion is Sylvanas Windrunner who has taken control of The Maw which is a prison for souls that have been corrupted.
Players must venture into the Shadowlands to free these souls and stop Sylvanas from taking over the world.
There are a bunch of new zones in Shadowlands including Bastion, Maldraxxus, Ardenweald, Revendreth, and a few more.
Players can also choose to boost one character to level 50 which will allow them to jump right into the new content.
Dragonflight (2022)
The Dragonflight expansion was announced on April 19, 2022, and features a ton of new changes to World of Warcraft.
Get your gaming equipment ready to start playing because not only does the Dragonflight wow expansion increase the level cap to 70, but it also adds a new dragon race called the Dracthyr and an entire new Evoker class.
Players can also master the art of Dragon riding, which is unlike the regular flying ability previously seen in World of Warcraft.
Dragonriding is a new form of aerial movement and players can fully customize their dragons to their liking.
A new continent called The Dragon Isles is also added in the Dragonflight expansion.
World of Warcraft Dragonflight is expected to launch at the end of 2022 or early 2023.
That’s the complete list of all World of Warcraft expansions in order. With Dragonflight releasing in 2022/2023, we can probably expect a new World of Warcraft expansion after Dragonflight to come sometime in 2025/2026.
