The X-Files Books in Order
The X-Files contains 60 books, published between 1994 and 2024: 43 in the 5 main-line series and 17 related titles. The first book is Goblins (1994) and the newest main-line book is Perihelion (2024). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 60
- Published
- 1994–2024
- Confirmed
- 14 of 60 titles
- Pages on record
- 8,487 in 43 of 60 books
- Reading time
- 141–212 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 8,487 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 43 of 60 titles with a page count on record.
The X-Files is catalogued as a tie-in line to the X-Files television programme, gathering 60 books published between 1994 and 2024. Fox Mulder and Dana Scully are the characters the books return to, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and government investigators among the recorded subjects. No single writer holds the line: Ellen Steiber is credited on 5 books, Kevin J. Anderson on 4, Everett Owens and Les Martin on 3 each, and Charles L. Grant, Gayle Lynds, Brian Lowry and Sarah Stegall on 2 each. The listing splits into X-Files, X-Files: Junior, X-Files: Young Adult, X-Files: Origins, X-Files Classics, graphic novels, an anthology and non-fiction. Goblins (1994) opens the run and Perihelion (2024) closes it.
How many The X-Files books are there?
The X-Files has 60 books, released between 1994 and 2024. 43 of them belong to the 5 main-line series (X-Files: Young Adult, X-Files: Junior, X-Files and others), and 17 related titles sit outside it: non-fiction, graphic novels and collections.
The X-Files Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 60 The X-Files books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 11994–3/4
- 219952771/4
- 319951601/4
- 41995–1/4
- 51995–1/4
- 61995–3/4
- 719953043/4
- 81995–1/4
- 91995–3/4
- 1019952743/4
- 1119961342/4
- 1219961511/4
- 1319962621/4
- 1419962561/4
- 151996–1/4
- 161996–1/4
- 171996–1/4
- 181996–1/4
- 191996–1/4
- 2019961001/4
- 2119961021/4
- 2219971002/4
- 2319971402/4
- 2419971281/4
- 2519971522/4
- 2619972571/4
- 2719971601/4
- 281997–2/4
- 2919971281/4
- 30The X-Files Confidential: episode guide to series oneX-Files Non-Fiction #51997 · 200 pages · confirmed 1/419972001/4
- 3119972683/4
- 3219971372/4
- 3319971601/4
- 3419971272/4
- 3519971282/4
- 361997971/4
- 371998–1/4
- 3819983403/4
- 3919981231/4
- 4019981281/4
- 4119981923/4
- 4219981182/4
- 4319981242/4
- 441999–2/4
- 4519991442/4
- 4619991232/4
- 4719991352/4
- 4820001442/4
- 492000–2/4
- 5020012881/4
- 5120082423/4
- 522013–2/4
- 5320132002/4
- 542014–2/4
- 5520142802/4
- 5620153603/4
- 5720163603/4
- 5820173573/4
- 5920173073/4
- 6020243203/4
Where to start with The X-Files
Start with Goblins (1994), the earliest published book in the 5 main-line series.
What is the newest The X-Files book?
Perihelion (2024) is the newest book in the 5 main-line series.
Is there a new The X-Files book coming?
No next The X-Files book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
The X-Files at a glance
- Still running
- The X-Files is still running, with a main-line title published as recently as 2024.
- Release pace
- The X-Files books have appeared more than one a year on average.
- Length
- 8,487 pages across the 43 of 60 books with a recorded length, a median of 160 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most The X-Files books, 47 of 60, were published in the 1990s.
- Attribution
- Of the 60 titles, 9 are credited to Les Martin, 6 to Ellen Steiber, 5 to Kevin J. Anderson and 4 to Stefan Petrucha. A further 23 writers are credited. 10 titles carry no credit.
What the The X-Files books are about
44 of the 60 The X-Files books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: science fiction is tagged on 16 of 44. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Science fiction 16 of 44 books
- Children's fiction 15 of 44 books
- Mulder, fox (fictitious character) 14 of 44 books
- Dana Scully (Fictitious character) 11 of 44 books
- Fox Mulder (Fictitious character) 11 of 44 books
- Scully, dana (fictitious character) 10 of 44 books
- X-files (Television program) 8 of 44 books
- United States 7 of 44 books
- Government investigators 6 of 44 books
- Comics & graphic novels, crime & mystery 4 of 44 books
- Detective and mystery comic books, strips 4 of 44 books
- Fantasy 4 of 44 books
Series that include The X-Files books
Each series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- X-Files: Junior books in order 11 books
- X-Files books in order 10 books