The Best Horror Podcasts to Binge Listen for a Scare


October 26, 2022
Do you love a good scare? These hair-raising horror podcasts will surely get your heart racing with their spooky stories, terrifying characters, and goosebumps-inducing atmospheres.

The horror genre is changing. Not long ago, the best horror stories were primarily found in books and long-form audio. But now, with the huge spike in podcast popularity, great horror is no longer the exclusive territory of novels. With series such as Lore and PseudoPod, fans of the spooky genre can find the scariest, most terrifying tales in podcast format. It doesn’t have to be Halloween for you to hit play on frightening horror fiction. If you’ve been looking for your next favourite chilling listen, look no further. Here are the best horror podcasts to add to your library if you dare. And you might want to leave your nightlight on!
Product list
  • Lore cover art

    • Lore

    • 5 out of 5 stars 3 ratings
    • Lore is likely the one you’ve been recommended at least a dozen times. And after listening to an episode or two (if you can practice restraint and not binge-listen), it’s easy to understand why. Hosted by Aaron Mahnke, Lore is a bi-weekly horror podcast featuring historical tales that have lived on in infamy and lesser-known stories that are just as spooky and unsettling. From episodes about the legendary Jersey Devil to stories of serial killers such as H.H Holmes or terrifying historical tales of Dracula’s castle, Lore has something to offer all sorts of classic horror fanatics. But beware, as the podcast’s tagline says, “sometimes the truth is more frightening than fiction.”
  • PseudoPod cover art

    • PseudoPod

    • 5 out of 5 stars 1 rating
    • One of the oldest podcasts on this list, PseudoPod, has become well known as a masterclass in short storytelling in the horror genre. The first episode went live on August 11, 2006. Featuring a wide variety of terrifying tales of ghosts, monsters, demons, and any other scary being that comes to mind, this podcast offers new listeners lots of possibilities for fresh nightmares to spook them. And with more than 700 episodes to date, there are plenty of heart-racing stories to dive into from talented writers just waiting to be discovered. A new episode drops each week, taking listeners into a new world of the unknown.
  • Don't Go Out There Horror Movie Review Podcast cover art

    • Don't Go Out There Horror Movie Review Podcast

    • Not rated yet
    • Fun and insightful, Don’t Go Out There brings listeners deep into the minds behind some of the most iconic horror films of all time. Hosted by friends Nicoh Chen, Michael Settle, Bryan Hathaway, and Dustin Franklin, this podcast features interviews with the creators and stars of horror films throughout the years as well as discussions of the hosts’ fave cult classics and reboots, including A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Stepfather. Horror movie buffs will love the back-and-forth banter and exclusive interviews with legends of the genre. Full of wit and humour, Don’t Go Out There makes for an entertaining and educational listen.
  • The Know Fear Cast cover art

    • The Know Fear Cast

    • Not rated yet
    • Fans of the Don’t Go Out There Horror Movie Review Podcast will feel right at home with The Know Fear Cast. The purpose of the show is to analyze the things that scare us and keep us up at night. Hosted by friends Matt, Mel, and Lisa, the podcast discusses all things horror: ghosts, haunted houses, zombies, monsters, and an assortment of scary movies, books, rituals, and more. You’ll find episodes about creepy kids’ toys, exorcisms, the occult, and Jaws. What makes The Know Fear Cast extra special: exclusive interviews with creators in the horror genre, like authors Andy Davidson and Paul Tremblay.
  • Something Scary cover art

    • Something Scary

    • Not rated yet
    • Just like the title suggests, Something Scary is chock-full of scary stuff. Each week hosts Blair and Steffany have a different chilling or creepy story to share, ranging from urban legends and sci-fi stories to real-life American horrors, such as macabre cemetery celebrations and murders. You'll also find terrifying tales about the Moon and its connection to the occult and monsters, cases to support the power of evil curses, and many more supremely scary stories in the selection of more than 200 episodes. New episodes drop each week, and the 30-minute run time makes for a fun and spooky listen to keep you entertained on the go.
  • Disturbed: True Horror Stories cover art

    • Disturbed: True Horror Stories

    • Not rated yet
    • If you’re looking for a truly dark horror podcast, look no further than Disturbed. Kidnappings. Serial Killers. Satanic rituals. Cults. Each episode features a new story of real and terrifying encounters with the most nightmarish beings. But here’s what makes Disturbed truly unique: listeners can call into the show to tell their story, which host Chad then narrates. So, don’t be fooled—while the stories might sound too horrifying to be true, they are. With each episode accompanied by a haunting musical score, this is one horror podcast you won’t want to miss. This weekly podcast covers a wide range of scary topics, making it an interesting listen that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat.
  • Horror Hill: A Horror Anthology and Scary Stories Series Podcast cover art

    • Horror Hill: A Horror Anthology and Scary Stories Series Podcast

    • 5 out of 5 stars 2 ratings
    • Telling expertly crafted scary stories is the specialty of Horror Hill, a spinoff of the popular Chilling Tales for Dark Nights podcast and YouTube channel. In each episode, host Erik Peabody, an accomplished voice actor and audiobook narrator, breathes life into some of the spookiest tales you’ll ever hear from talented independent writers across the genre. From devious ghosts to sinister sea creatures to evil espionage, Horror Hill has something to grip and chill horror fans of all stripes. Each episode of this chilling series runs for approximately one hour, giving the hosts enough time to pull you into the storylines.

    • Marigold

    • An Investigation of an American Haunting
    • 3.5 out of 5 stars 3 ratings
    • Even the scariest stories about hauntings can be relatively straightforward: house, ghost, family, priest, cleansing, gone. But rarely are ghost stories as multilayered and complex as they are in Marigold. At its heart, this Audible Original podcast series is about a woman named Anne who has always felt the presence of something unnatural in her home. Enter the unnamed Interviewer, who’s determined to figure out what’s going on, even if it’s darker than Anne or anyone could have imagined. Like the haunted house at its center, Marigold is a story with many intriguing doors to open.
  • Jim Harold's Campfire cover art

    • Jim Harold's Campfire

    • 5 out of 5 stars 1 rating
    • Yes, fictional tales can be terrifying. But there's nothing quite as chilling as stories based on real-life events. Much like what you'll hear on Disturbed, Jim Harold’s Campfire tells stories based on actual eerie occurrences reported by everyday folks. Featuring interviews with the very people who experienced these frightening encounters with ghosts, monsters, and the unexplained, Campfire reminds us that, sometimes, the scariest beings are right among us. With episodes like “I’ll Never Sleep on the Couch Again” and “Encounter with a 9-Foot Bat,” this podcast is sure to keep you up all night.
  • Alice Isn't Dead cover art

    • Alice Isn't Dead

    • Not rated yet
    • There’s something inherently spooky about trucking across America all alone. Think about driving through dark, desolate towns late at night as your eyes play tricks on you or struggling to stay focused while you’re the only person on the road for miles, or so you think. Alice Isn’t Dead taps into these real fears, and it does so very effectively. The podcast follows the story of a truck driver searching for her presumed dead wife, who encounters creepy towns, chilling conspiracies, and serial killers along the way. While at its heart a horror podcast, Alice Isn’t Dead touches on hard-hitting themes of isolation, alienation, and loneliness, giving this terrifying listen a sense of humanity.
  • Limetown cover art

    • Limetown

    • Not rated yet
    • Many fans of horror fiction find themselves drawn to the world of true crime. Fans of true crime podcasts will love Limetown, a fictional drama horror podcast series. This disturbing audio drama follows Lia Haddock, a radio reporter, as she tries to uncover a mystery that devastated a small town in Tennessee. Over three hundred people disappeared from Limetown and were never heard from again. Lia takes a deep dive into this mystery. This popular podcast was adapted into a TV show of the same name, starring Jessica Biel and Stanley Tucci. This exceptionally well-written series brings a fictional town to life with all the twists and turns needed to keep you up at night.
  • The Magnus Archives cover art

    • The Magnus Archives

    • 5 out of 5 stars 4 ratings
    • If you need a regular fix of horror fiction podcasts, look no further than The Magnus Archives. New episodes drop weekly, making this an ideal series to get hooked on. The Magnus Archives is centred around the fictional Magnus Institute, an organization dedicated to researching weird goings-on. Jonathan Sims hosts the series, and Rusty Quill produces it. It features an exciting combination of guest actors, short stories, and serial plots. If you’re a horror fan, you won’t want to miss this multi-award-winning show that won the Best Fiction Award at The People’s Choice Podcast Awards in 2022.
  • Welcome to Night Vale cover art

    • Welcome to Night Vale

    • 5 out of 5 stars 4 ratings
    • Another spooky podcast that you won’t want to miss is Welcome to Night Vale. Unlike many other series, you don’t have to listen to every episode to enjoy it. You can hit play on episodes at random because, after all, it’s recorded in the style of an ongoing radio show. New episodes drop twice a month. Each installment brings listeners creepy and compelling updates from the fictional smallish desert town of Night Vale. In this eerie town, every conspiracy theory seems to be true. Tune in to the next episode, and you’ll be on the edge of your seat in no time.
  • Knifepoint Horror cover art

    • Knifepoint Horror

    • 5 out of 5 stars 2 ratings
    • Right now, there are countless great horror podcasts for listeners to get hooked on. But it hasn’t always been this way. Knifepoint Horror is a true veteran of the genre. Its first episode launched in 2010. This spooky storytelling podcast brings you tales of supernatural suspense - all written, produced and narrated by Soren Narnia. Listeners are treated to new episodes sporadically, each averaging nearly an hour in length. The last podcast on our list, Knifepoint Horror, has become a horror genre hit for its use of the first-person narrative, minimalist production, and eerie sound effects.