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We experimentally study the transition from droplet to wave regimes in microfluidic liquid–liquid multiphase flows having large differences in viscosity. A unified approach based on periodic pattern analysis is employed to study relationships between dispersed and separated flow regimes, including dripping, jetting, capillary waves, inertial waves and core–annular flows over a wide range of flow rates and viscosity contrasts. We examine the morphology and dynamics of each flow regime based on wavelength, frequency and velocity of repeating unit cells to elucidate their connections and to develop predictive capabilities based on dimensionless control parameters. We demonstrate in particular that pattern selection is contingent upon the propagation velocity of droplets and waves at the transition. We also investigate microfluidic wave breaking phenomena with the formation of ligaments and droplets from wave crests in both capillary and inertial wave regimes. This work expands conventional multiphase flow regimes observed in microchannels and shows new routes to disperse highly viscous materials using interfacial waves dynamics in confined microsystems.