How Old Are the Main Characters in Each Season of Stranger Things? (2024)

Stranger Things is Netflix's most iconic TV series to date. The show skyrocketed the careers of its entire cast, especially its younger members. The audience has seen these characters — and the actors and actresses who portray them — grow up together with the series.

The characters in Stranger Things are roughly divided into three main groups: the teenagers, the children, and the adults. Most of the adults are unaware of the weird things happening in town, except Jim Hopper and Joyce Byer. While the characters might seem young, especially Eleven, they have powerful abilities that help them bring balance to the world.

Eddie Munson Was About to Graduate from High School

Eddie Munson appeared in the fourth season of Stranger Things and quickly became a fan-favorite character. The archetypical rebellious teenager, Eddie had a terrible reputation. When Chrissy went missing, everyone assumed Eddie was behind the girl's murder.

The show never states Eddie's age, but some of his friends comment that he was supposed to graduate from high school in 1984, so he could be around 19 years old. However, since Eddie went to middle school with Chrissy, and it's unlikely perfect cheerleader Chrissy missed a year, it might just be a rumor.

Billy Hargrove Died a Hero

Max's older step-brother, Billy, entered the series as one of the main antagonists. He was a bully and extremely mean to Max thanks to the pain he had suffered from his abusive father. In the third season, Billy becomes a vessel for the Mind Slayer and obeys its orders.

However, in his final moments, Max reminds Billy of who he used to be before enduring his father's violence. This affects Billy, who decides to change his behavior. He faces the Mind Slayer and dies in the process, protecting Max and her friends. Before dying, Billy apologizes to Max. Sadly, Billy was only 18 years old.

Robin Buckley Was Introduced in the Third Season

Robin is introduced in Season 3 of Stranger Things as Steve's coworker in the ice cream parlor Scoops Ahoy. In the beginning, the two have a rocky relationship, but they become friends throughout the season. Robin quickly became a member of the gang and one of the best LGBTQ+ characters on TV.

According to the podcast series Rebel Robin: Surviving Hawkings, Robin's birthday is on March 10, 1968, which would make her 17 years old in the third season and 18 in the fourth one. Likely, Robin will probably be a high school graduate in the fifth season of Stranger Things.

Jonathan Byers Is Bill's Older Brother

Will's older brother, Jonathan, becomes involved in all the mysteries surrounding Hawkins from the very first season. Even though he doesn't believe that his mother is communicating with his brother at first, he soon realizes Joyce was right all along thanks to Mike's older sister, Nancy.

Jonathan is in high school throughout Stranger Things. Together with Nancy, he becomes an intern at The Hawkins Post. The two teenagers have a love for journalism that turns out to be handy in uncovering the secrets of the government and the mysteries in their town. Because of the show's timeline, Jonathan is likely to be 18 in the last two seasons.

Joyce Byers Is One of the Few Adults in Stranger Things

There isn't any information about Joyce's age in Stranger Things. However, she's the mother of a 16-year-old in the first season of the show, so she's likely in her late thirties or early forties. What's more, she and Jim Hopper discuss that they were in school together, so they are more or less the same age, and he was born between 1941 and 1942.

This adds up since Winona Ryder herself was born in 1971, making her 45 years old in the first season of Stranger Things, which is only around 4 years older than her character. Either way, she's supposed to be a middle-aged woman, so she's definitely not in her early 30s.

Nancy Wheeler Is Mike's Big Sister

Nancy becomes involved in Hawkins' mysteries because of the disappearance of her best friend, Barb. Investigating the incident, she encounters Jonathan, who has also lost his little brother. The two bond over this and find the source of these tragedies, finally finding Will in the Upside Down.

Nancy goes through high school throughout Stranger Things. The show begins in 1983, while Nancy started high school in 1982. By the fourth season, which is set in 1986, Nancy is already around 18 years old and about to graduate from high school. In fact, she was already accepted into Emerson College in Massachusetts.

Jim Hopper Is the Other Adult in Stranger Things

First the careless Chief of Police from Hawkins, Jim Hopper becomes Eleven's dad, Joyce's lover, and one of the greatest fighters in Stranger Things. Jim puts everything on the line to protect Eleven and stop the experimental government as well as the monsters from the Upside Down.

The series doesn't say Jim's age, but just like Joyce, he's clearly in his forties. The book Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town, which explores Hopper's past, states that Jim was 35 in 1977, which would mean he was born around 1941 and 19412. This would mean Hopper is 44 years old in the fourth season of Stranger Things.

Steve Harrington Is the Group's Baby-Sitter

Steve might spend most of his time with children, but he is a young adult. He is one year older than Nancy, Jonathan, and Robin. In fact, he graduated from high school in the third season of Stranger Things. However, Steve is a little bit lost in life, and he didn't get accepted into any colleges, so he's still hanging around town.

While Steve was a terrible boyfriend to Nancy in the first season, he grew up a lot as a character. Eventually, Nancy and Steve break up and the latter learns to be a better person. Now he spends most of his time unveiling Hawkins' secrets with his best friends Robin and Dustin.

Lucas, Dustin, Max, Will, and Mike Are the Youngest Characters

Lucas, Dustin, Will, and Mike grew up together in Hawkins. They have been friends since they were little children and share roughly the same classes. They're also mostly the same age, only separated by a few months. Max arrives in the second season, and being the same age, befriends the group.

The group of children was only 12 years old in the first season, which shows these characters' courage, outstanding abilities, and intelligence. By the fourth season, the oldest ones are 15 years old, including Max, who might not grow older if she doesn't survive Vecna's attack.

Eleven Is Way Too Young For All She Has to Carry on Her Shoulders

Eleven, born Jane Ives and called El by her friends, is the main character of Stranger Things. She was born in a governmental facility as an experiment with special abilities. She was kidnapped as a baby and grew up in Hawkins National Laboratory, trained by Dr. Brenner.

When Eleven was only 8 years old, she demonstrated extraordinary power, restoring Henry's (later known as Vecna) abilities but sending him to the Upside Down when he murders everyone in the lab. When Eleven was only 12 years old, she accidentally created a door to the Upside Down and managed to escape the laboratory, encountering Mike, Lucas, and Dustin.

Stranger Things

TV-14

Horror

Fantasy

Sci-Fi

Where to Watch

• stream
• rent
• buy

Not available

Not available

*Availability in US

When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces and one strange little girl.

Release Date

July 15, 2016

Cast

Winona Ryder , David Harbour , Cara Buono , FInn Wolfhard , Millie Bobby Brown

Main Genre

Drama

Seasons

5 Seasons

Creator

Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer

Production Company

21 Laps Entertainment, Monkey Massacre, Netflix