McFarlane Toys Figures: Size Classes, Lines and Sets

What McFarlane Toys makes

McFarlane Toys makes action figures, statues, vinyl figures and building sets. In our data the catalog covers 7-inch and 5-inch action figures, one 12-inch figure, 1:6 and 1:10 statues and dioramas, a collector vinyl figure and licensed building sets.

McFarlane Toys' own About page says the company was founded by Todd McFarlane, the creator of Spawn, and lists action figure lines across Marvel, DC Multiverse, Spawn, Transformers, Warhammer 40,000, NBA, NFL and The Walking Dead. Our Amazon data shows some of those and some others, like My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer and The Seven Deadly Sins. The licensed lines appear here only as the listings name them.

The grid above shows McFarlane listings first. Below, I go size class by size class, because that's how I'd shelve them.

McFarlane figures by size class

McFarlane figures sort by size more cleanly than most makers' figures. The title nearly always says the size: 7", 5", 12" or a scale like 1:10.

7-inch figures: the main line

The 7-inch figures are the core of McFarlane in our data. Most list 22 points of articulation, and nearly all list a base. Examples:

• DC Multiverse: Batman Beyond (Neo Gothic) with extra hands, detachable wings, a base and an art card; Speed Metal Barry Allen (Build-A Wave 9) with four lightning effects, a base, an art card and build-a-figure legs
• My Hero Academia: Izuku Midoriya (two faces, two sets of hands, two lightning effects, base), Shoto Todoroki (fire and ice pieces), Stain (katana), Mirio Togata, Endeavor and Hawks (movable wings)
• Spawn: Raven Spawn with an axe, a scythe with chains and a base
• The Seven Deadly Sins: Escanor with the Divine Axe Rhitta and a base

Most of the My Hero Academia 7-inch figures say window box. That's a box with a clear front.

The build-a-figure legs on the Barry Allen listing work like the core charge at the shop. You buy the part you came for, you hand over a piece toward the next job, and eventually somebody finishes the whole engine. In this case, a different figure.

Who it suits: someone building a shelf of one size, with bases included so nothing tips. Many 7-inch listings sit in the lowest two price tiers of our data, so it's also the entry-level way in. Who should skip: someone with a 6-inch shelf who wants everything to line up. A 7-inch figure is a little taller, and a row shows it.

5-inch carded figures

The 5-inch figures are a smaller, simpler line. Our data has My Hero Academia Tenya Iida and Stain (Basic Wave 2), Shoto Todoroki (Wave 4, Season 3 variant), and Demon Slayer Muzan Kibutsuji and Nezuko Kamado (Wave 1). All five are listed as carded, meaning they come on a card with a plastic bubble. None lists a joint count or a base.

Who it suits: someone who wants a lot of characters in a small space, or a collector who likes figures that stay sealed on the card for display. All five sit in the lowest price tier. Who should skip: someone mixing them with the 7-inch line. Two inches is a lot of difference on one shelf.

12-inch figure

One listing in our data is 12-inch: My Hero Academia Bakugo. A 12-inch figure is twice the 6-inch class and well over the 7. It needs its own spot.

McFarlane statues and vinyl

McFarlane also sells posed pieces that don't move. Our data has five statues and one vinyl.

1:10 dioramas and 1:6 pieces

The 1:10 listings are dioramas, posed figures with a setting, based on comic book covers named in the title: Wolverine and Magneto (X-Men #1) and Venom (The Amazing Spider-Man #316). The Spider-Man listing is a 1:6 diorama (The Amazing Spider-Man #301). Every one lists a base.

The DC Direct The Joker by Jason Fabok is a 1:6 PVC statue at 11.3 inches, with a base. That's the one McFarlane statue in our data with a stated height.

Who it suits: a collector who wants one comic-cover moment on the shelf. Who should skip: someone who wants to pose. These hold the cover's pose and only that.

Collector vinyl

The DC Direct Batman Collector Vinyl (Todd's Mods) is listed at 4.5 inches and labeled Limited Edition. A vinyl figure is a stylized, chunky figure with few or no joints. If you like that style, our sofubi page covers vinyl figures across makers.

McFarlane building sets

McFarlane building sets are licensed construction sets with minifigures. Our data lists them with piece counts and minifigure counts:

• The Walking Dead: Prison Tower (459 pieces, 2 minifigures), Prison Boiler Room (176 pieces, 2), Daryl Dixon with Chopper (2 minifigures), Dale's RV
• Five Nights at Freddy's: Parts & Service (209 pieces), Control Module (280), Backstage (153), Corn Maze (39 pieces, set 25202), The Show Stage (3 minifigures), Pirate Cove
• Rick and Morty: Smith Garage Rack (109), You Shall Now Call Me Snowball (109), Evil Rick & Morty (99), You Can Run But You Can't Hide (43), Ants in My Eyes Johnson's Electronics (41)
• Others: Principal's Office from South Park (101), Mr. Universe Van from Steven Universe (317), Chaotic Casino from Cuphead

The sets don't state an age in our data, and they don't state compatibility with other bricks, so we don't claim it. Theo saw the piece counts and did what he does. "Thirty-nine pieces is a warm-up. Four hundred fifty-nine is a weekend. Both still come with an instruction booklet, which is homework I'd assign." Our building toys section covers brick sets in general.

Best McFarlane figures, by what's in the box

People search for the best McFarlane figures. We don't rank characters, because the best one is the one you want on your shelf. What we can do is sort the 7-inch listings in our data by how much the box lists:

• Most parts listed: Izuku Midoriya (two faces, two sets of hands, two lightning effects, base) and Speed Metal Barry Allen (four lightning effects, build-a legs, base, art card)
• Wings and extras: Batman Beyond (Neo Gothic) with detachable wings and extra hands; Hawks with movable wings
• One signature accessory: Escanor with the Divine Axe Rhitta, Stain with a katana, Shoto Todoroki with fire and ice pieces
• Weapons: Raven Spawn with an axe and a scythe with chains
• Base only: Mirio Togata and Endeavor

If you're buying a gift and don't know the character, pick from the top of that list. More parts means more ways to pose it, and the person opening it gets to decide what it's doing.

Waves, variants and repeat characters

McFarlane titles often name a wave, and some characters show up more than once. In our data, Shoto Todoroki has a 7-inch figure and a 5-inch Wave 4 Season 3 variant. Stain has a 7-inch Wave 3 figure and a 5-inch Basic Wave 2 figure. Those are different figures in different size classes, not the same figure in two boxes.

A wave number is the batch the figure was released in. It's useful for finding the figure again, and for the build-a parts, which come split across figures from one wave. Our data shows build-a legs with the Wave 9 Barry Allen, so the other parts of that build would come with other figures. The listing doesn't name them, so check before you count on finishing the build.

How to pick a McFarlane figure

My one opinion for this page: with McFarlane, buy inside one size class. The data shows why. The 7-inch figures list bases and about 22 joints; the 5-inch carded figures list neither; the 12-inch and 1:6 pieces are their own scale again. Mixed on one shelf, they don't line up and they don't match in detail. Pick one class and stay in it.

The rest of the checklist:

1. Size class in the title. 7", 5", 12", 1:6, 1:10.
2. Base. Listed on almost every 7-inch figure and every statue.
3. Accessories. Effects, hands, weapons, art cards, build-a parts.
4. Packaging. Window box or carded. Matters if you keep figures boxed.
5. Wave and variant. "Wave 4", "Season 3 variant", "Neo Gothic" mark which figure you're getting.

Straight up: the art card in a DC Multiverse box is the only paperwork in figure collecting I don't mind filing. It goes in a binder, sorted by wave. The binder lives on the one shelf I never dust, because nothing on it stands up.

Mixing McFarlane with other makers

McFarlane's 7-inch class sits a little above the 6-inch class most other makers use. If your shelf is mostly 6-inch figures, like the ones on our Marvel Legends list, expect McFarlane figures to stand slightly taller. NECA and Hasbro are the other big action figure makers in our data. For the statues, our statues page compares 1:6 and 1:10 pieces across makers.

Small parts

Check the age label on the listing. Toys with small parts are a choking hazard for children under 3. Building sets are made of small parts, and figure accessories like hands, effects and weapons are small too. Keep them off the floor and away from young children.

McFarlane Toys facts we could confirm

McFarlane Toys' About page says the company was founded over 30 years ago by Todd McFarlane, the creator of Spawn, and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, with offices in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Montreal. It lists lines including Marvel, DC Multiverse, Spawn, Transformers, Warhammer 40,000, NBA, NFL and The Walking Dead.

Pick the size class first. The character will still be there when you get back.