11 Best Streaming Services for Horror Fans
There’s nothing quite like watching a scary movie in a dark room, hiding under a blanket as goosebumps run up and down your arms… If you’re always on the lookout for a great scare, we have a list of horror streaming services that you will love. Thrill seekers can enjoy tons of flicks that will have them screaming in fear.
Best for Horror
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The Streamable’s Choice
Shudder
An exclusively horror-themed streaming service, Shudder is only a good value if you are a fan of scary and suspenseful movies. While it’s lacking in the classic titles and popular content department, the inexpensive cost makes up for it. Plus, you can discover new, unheard of content to watch during the Halloween season.
For example, they have the Shudder Essential collection, which contains almost 30 films like “Carrie,” “Night of the Living Dead,” “Poltergeist,” “The Ring,” “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “Invasion of the Body Snatchers,” as well as a Shudder Originals section and other collections like A Good Scare, Horror Noire, Only On Shudder, Vengeance is Hers, and Queer Horror. Other titles include “Good Manners,” “Dolls,” “Kandisha” (Shudder Originial), “They Remain,” “The Boy Behind the Door,” “Color Out of Space,” “Blind Sun,” and “The Machine.”
You can also add Shudder as a “channel” within Amazon Prime Video, allowing you to see all your favorite flicks alongside the larger Prime Video catalog.
Pros:
- A good amount of horror films and shows
- Affordable
- No ads
Cons:
- Missing a couple of classic suspense and horror films
- Not all content is available in 1080p
- No offline downloads on mobile platforms
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Amazon Prime Video
Available on most platforms for a reasonable price, Prime Video has premium streaming features and even lets you purchase or rent shows and movies along with its subscription content library. However, one of the main drawbacks is that compared to its competitors, it doesn’t have nearly as many high-quality shows.
Horror titles to stream include “A Quiet Place,” “Jennifer’s Body,” “Alien,” “Jeepers Creepers,” “Take Shelter,” “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,” “The Thing,” “Bad Samaritan,” “The Mimic,” and “The Exorcism of Emily Rose.” Some Amazon Original series to check out are “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” “Them,” and “Panic.”
There are also tons of horror channels that we have included on our list that you can add to the Amazon Prime Video subscription. We recommend Shudder, Monsters and Nightmares, Full Moon Features, and Screambox. There is also Horror TV, Fear Factory, XL TV, and AMC+.
According to one study, Prime Video has the largest horror library of any service.
Pros:
- An array of great original content
- 4K and HDR streaming
- Supports offline downloads, multiple viewer profiles, and audio descriptions
- Lets you rent or buy movies and TV shows
Cons:
- Losing third-party content to other services
- Not as many high-quality shows as competitors
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Max
With an impressive on-demand library, HBO Max has 4K streaming, offline downloads, multiple profiles, and more. Some horror titles that are worth checking out would be “Friday the 13th,” “The Purge,” “The Conjuring” franchise, “The Shining,” “Mama,” the first two “Ghoulies” movies, and all of the original “Godzilla” movies through the mid-seventies.
Pros:
- Large catalog of popular shows and movies
- Warner Bros. 2021 movies are available to stream on the same day as theatrical releases
- Ad-free tier lets subscribers download content for offline viewing
Cons:
- Pretty pricey
- Ad-supported tier doesn’t support offline downloads
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Free Option
Dark Matter TV
Viewers have access to thousands of titles such as William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill“(1959), “The Love Witch”, “Rabid” (1977), and “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
Pros:
- Free
- Variety of content including podcasts
- Has international and Español content
Cons:
- Has ads
- Limited amount of genres
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Netflix
Known for its insanely popular originals, there’s a reason why it is the top most-used streaming service ever. Some trending horror titles include “Pet Sematary” “Gremlins,” “Final Destination,” “Death Note,” “It Follows,” and “Dark Shadows.” Like its competitor HBO Max, Netflix also has “The Conjuring.”
Pros:
- Top-quality original programming
- No ads
- Offline downloads on mobile
- Gives the option to rent physical media
- Free mobile games
Cons:
- Expensive subscription price
- Doesn’t offer free trial
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Free Option
Peacock
Peacock’s library provides lots of popular horror titles. For instance, there is “Jigsaw,” “Open Grave,” “Land Of The Dead,” “Body Bags,” “My Friend Dahmer,” “Sleepaway Camp,” “Daybreakers,” “Nosferatu The Vampyre,” “The House Of The Devil,” “The Cabin in the Woods,” and “The Amityville Haunting.”
Pros:
- Free plan has no major limitations
- Well-known movies and network shows
- Different tiers and flexible pricing
Cons:
- Premium tier is ad-supported and doesn’t support offline downloads
- The movie library is constantly changing
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STARZ
Starz has a video streaming service with a content library that extends beyond its cable channel. Its extensive range of movies is impressive, but its limited lineup of originals does not compare well with what competitors have to offer. As of recent, Starz is focusing on developing more original content.
Popular horror movies to stream are “Child's Play,” “Saw,” “Shaun of the Dead,” “Rosemary's Baby,” “Silent Hill,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “Hannibal,” “Oculus,” “Paranormal Activity,” and lots more.
Pros:
- Tons of movies
- Can download content for offline viewing on mobile
- Supports four simultaneous streams per account
Cons:
- Not as many quality original shows compared to other services
- Limited accessibility options
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Paramount+ with SHOWTIME
Showtime offers a small lineup of high-quality original programming, a decent collection of movies, and access to live streams of Showtime channels. Stream horror titles like “The Witch,” “Sinister,” “It Comes at Night,” “Under the Skin,” “The Woman in Black,” “Climax,” and “Tusk.”
Pros:
- Lineup of original shows are decent
- Supports offline downloads
- Includes live Showtime channel feeds and some fights
Cons:
- Not cheap
- Offline downloads on phones limited to 720p resolution
- Doesn’t support audio descriptions and closed captioning
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Hulu
Hulu’s library of horror movies is decent with mainstream titles like “It,” “Pet Sematary,” “Children of the Corn,” “Blair Witch,” as well as “The Lodge,” “Run,” and “Bad Hair.”
Pros:
- Varied selection
- Available on nearly every media streaming device
Cons:
- Most horror titles also available on other platforms
- The base on-demand plan includes ads
- Only premium account members get offline downloads
- Less high-quality originals than Netflix and other competitors
