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All 7 Harry Potter books, ranked worst to best

ByBryce Olin|
LONDON - FEBRUARY 28: Part of a collection of 550 first edition Harry Potter books are displayed on February 28, 2008 in London. Bloomsbury Auctions are selling the collection, known as 'The Property of a Gentleman', in their Children's and Illustrated Books, Original Artwork, Private Press and Limited Editions' two day sale on February 28 and 29, 2008 in London. The collection of Harry Potter books range from Finnish, Gaelic, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Welsh and six different Indian dialects to Hebrew, Turkish, Polish,Indonesian, ancient Greek and Latin. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)
LONDON - FEBRUARY 28: Part of a collection of 550 first edition Harry Potter books are displayed on February 28, 2008 in London. Bloomsbury Auctions are selling the collection, known as 'The Property of a Gentleman', in their Children's and Illustrated Books, Original Artwork, Private Press and Limited Editions' two day sale on February 28 and 29, 2008 in London. The collection of Harry Potter books range from Finnish, Gaelic, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Welsh and six different Indian dialects to Hebrew, Turkish, Polish,Indonesian, ancient Greek and Latin. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)
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Harry Potter books, ranked

The Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling are some of the most popular books in the world. The book series began with Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 1997, known as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the U.S. In the two decades since the books series began, more than 500 million copies have been sold worldwide, according to Scholastic.

There are seven books in the series, but which book is best? We ranked the Harry Potter books from worst to best.

Harry Potter books in order

  • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone / Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1997)
  • Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998)
  • Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999)
  • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000)
  • Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003) 
  • Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005)
  • Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007)

Let’s get the ranking of the Harry Potter books started with the worst of the seven, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Harry Potter Series: Classic Editions Illustrated by Mary GrandPré. Image courtesy Scholastic
Harry Potter Series: Classic Editions Illustrated by Mary GrandPré. Image courtesy Scholastic

7. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the second book of the series. It was published in 1998, one year after the release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is not bad, but it is the worst of the Harry Potter books, and I don’t think that’s particularly debatable. It’s more about every other book just being better.

In the book, Harry, Ron, and Hermione try to figure out who opened the Chamber of Secrets and unleashed a monster on the school. After Hermione is petrified, Harry, Ron, and Professor Lockhart venture into the Chamber of Secrets to save Ginny Weasley, who has been possessed by the soul of Tom Riddle, unleashed from his diary.

Aside from the diary being destroyed and it helping lead Dumbledore to his ultimate conclusion that Voldemort made horcruxes to preserve pieces of his soul should he be killed, there isn’t much in here that contributes to the future of the series. Ron and Hermione do return to the Chamber of Secrets and use the basilisk fangs to destroy Helga Hufflepuff’s cup much later on.

We also get a good moment at the end of this book when Harry Potter tricks Lucius Malfoy into giving Dobby a sock, thus freeing the house elf from servitude.

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