2023 Best Horror Movie Apps for Streaming
Don’t let the exorbitant cost of cable keep you from watching your favorite horror movies and TV shows this Halloween. In this guide, we select the best video streaming services for die-hard horror fans.
In our house, October is for enjoying horror films. Whether it’s something gory and macabre, silly and quirky, eerie and unnerving, the horror genre is as diverse as the ghosts, ghoulies, and homicidal lunatics that go bump in the night.
I like using Amazon Prime‘s free trial option to test out add-on premium channels. I usually cancel before the trial ends after watching what I wanted to see, and I rotate through the big premium ones every few months, signing up for a month, then canceling. Since we’re in the midst of our October, it’s worth looking into genre-specific horror channel add-ons.
There are dozens of streaming services, some of which are solely dedicated to horror films, while others simply have a fantastic horror genre library to relish. From the vast catalogs of Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to Shudder, a provider specifically built for horror fans, here’s where to go this Halloween season to stream your favorite disturbing content:
Shudder
Best Horror Streaming Service
AMC’s Horror-specific streaming service with the largest selection. Shudder is a great place to find a variety of scary movies and shows, but the service does not support offline downloads on mobile devices. Learn More
- lots of cult as well as bigger movies
- enticing interface and design
- Inexpensive
- There are no ads.
It’s probably relatively small compared to the gigantic Tubi library, but the films are much easier to navigate and handpicked here, and it also has an ever-expanding selection of original programming that is only steadily improving. Shudder, as a service, does pretty much what you’d expect it to do.
Overall, it’s a difficult collection of assets to surpass. Perhaps the only criticism leveled at Shudder is that, like all streaming services, the library is constantly changing, and it has grown significantly larger and smaller at various points over the last few years. But, at this point, that’s a minor quibble—at the end of the day, it’s still the best horror streamer on the market today.
Price: $5.99 per month
Midnight Pulp
Free Streaming horror channel
Midnight Pulp is a relatively new addition to the streaming world. Midnight Pulp, which is viewable in a free ad-supported format or an commercial-free premium subscription, is a must-see for fans of horror, exploitation, and other genre fare. Some titles are only available to premium subscribers, but the great majority of the library can be viewed for free.
For those who are unfamiliar, Midnight Pulp is a streaming website that concentrates on showcasing the stranger and pulpier side of media. Indeed, their tagline is “Streaming All Things Strange.” Midnight Pulp lives up to the hype, providing viewers with a plethora of old and extremely bizarre tv shows And movies.
Midnight Pulp has old and cheesy horror films, such as Basket Case. It contains a plethora of long-forgotten old-school anime, such as Golgo 13. It even has the Toriko anime film. There’s a lot on this streaming video service that you won’t find on Netflix or Amazon Prime. What helps make the site so awesome is that it makes you feel like you’re at a late-night screening of old pulpy films.
Any fan of cult cinema or films that aren’t mainstream owes it to themselves to try Midnight Pulp. It’s free to watch, but if you upgrade to the premium model (1st month free! ), you’ll have access to their entire library of films. Do you want to run a Takashi Miike marathon? Midnight Pulp is the place to be.
Price: Free
HBO Max
Wide Range of Good horror movies
With so many of the major streaming services concentrating on volume, direct-to-VOD films, and public domain content in their horror collections, it’s easy to appreciate HBO Max’s comparative focus on curation and better quality titles—they simply don’t stuff their catalog with as much low-rent trash as other services, making HBO Max one of the best horror selections to find excellent titles while browsing.
This streaming site is home to the Spanish mystery horror series 30 Coins, as well as the kooky comedy-horror series Los Espookys. HBO Max also includes the zombie-horror film 28 Days Later, as well as Doctor Sleep, Annabelle: Creation, and The Shining. There will be no second season, but you also can catch the 1st season of the multiple Emmy-winning Lovecraft Country.
Price: Starts at $9.99 per month
ShoutFactoryTV
Schlocky Horror Movie App
Shout Factory is best known for home video releases. With the release of ShoutFactoryTV in 2015, the company decided to enter the world of streaming media. ShoutFactoryTV occupies a unique position in the world of streaming media, both in terms of the type of media it focuses on (cult classics) and the variety of ways it makes its content available. Learn More
They make no attempt to conceal their focus: cult hits. This includes both current cult favorites and offerings from previous decades. Shout Factory TV is not the place to go if you want to see the latest blockbuster. If, on the other hand, you’re looking for Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Elvira, Shout Factory TV has you covered.
If you want to try out the ad-free channel on Amazon Prime Video or Roku Premium, you can do so for 7 days for free. We’re always on the prowl for bargains, but we’ve never seen much in the way of sales on Shout Factory TV, which isn’t surprising given that $2.99 per month is already a steal.
Price: $2.99 per month
Fear Factory
Streaming App for Cult Horror Movies
Fear Factory is another third-party streaming service that is only be available through Amazon, similar to Horror TV. Don’t mix up it with fearfactory.com, the website of a heavy metal band; if you google fear factory, that’s pretty much all you’ll find, with nothing to do with this movie streaming service. Learn More
They just have an insane amount of cult and B horror movies.
Price: $2.99 per month
Starz
Best streaming services for mainstream Horror Movies
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Evil Dead, Night of the Living Dead, Piranha 3D, Oculus, Scream 4, and the John Carpenter classic The Thing are among the titles in Starz’s library. A subscription also includes the television show Ash vs Evil Dead, featuring Bruce Campbell. Learn More
- Starting price is significantly lower than that of other streaming services.
- A large library of over 1,400 films and TV shows is available (more than HBO/Showtime combined)
Starz acknowledges that this service is not meant to replace a massive wall-to-wall streaming platform. Instead, Starz functions as an add-on to larger tentpole platforms such as Amazon Prime and Netflix. As a consequence, Starz’s lack of original content and TV shows is balanced by its low price and highly connective app.
Starz is valuable it if you’re willing to sign up while the service produces better and better content. If you don’t want to start from scratch with Starz, take advantage of the free trial period. You should have all the data you need in seven days to decide if a subscription is right for you.
Price: $8.99 per month
Screambox
Best of Scary Movie Apps
Screambox has a unique selection of horror films that you won’t find anywhere else in a low-cost, no-frills service, but it lacks most genre favorites. Screambox is home to a wide range of niche horror films and series, many of which are available in high definition. The service allows for content downloads, but there are some limitations. Learn more
- A limited number of films and television shows are available.
- Popular and classic horror films are absent.
- No ads
For fans of a lot of blood and gore, Screambox has a category called Extreme, which contains a plethora of gore and blood that you won’t find on other platforms. Screambox’s library is more curated and smaller than that of most other video streaming services.
There isn’t much overlap with the movies on Shudder, and watching films on both platforms can broaden your horror horizons. Both services have edgy, interesting horror-themed movies to scare you this Halloween.
Price: $4.99 per month
FrightPix
Free horror streaming service
Roku set top box owners who enjoy scary movies now have a new scary movie channel to explore. FrightPIX scary movie network is ad-supported and free to watch. It appears to be stocked with independent B-movies.
However, some of the scary movies available from the company feature well-known actors. The channel has over 100 feature-length horror films and promises to add 30 new films each month. The stream covers a wide range of horror genres, allowing you to find exactly the type of scary movie you’re looking for.
- Home Sweet Home
- The Expelled
The selection is adequate at best, but the most noticeable flaw was the number of commercials. There had to be at least ten commercial breaks in one movie, some of which were right smack in the middle of a climatic scary scene. All of the tension that has been built up is thrown out the window.
Price: Free
Monsters & Nightmares
Best for Streaming classic horror movies
Definitely check out Monsters & Nightmares, Magnolia Selects’ premium genre channel featuring the best goosebumps and thrills. Monsters & Nightmares has a frightful movie for every day of October, whether you’re looking for a bloody good time, something a little out there, or just a good old spine tingling suspense. Learn More
Subscribe to Monsters & Nightmares to stay up to date on the latest horror, psychological thrillers, and nightmare-inducing films! Every month, new content is added, so take your pick and get ready for all the eerie, haunting, horrifying mayhem you can manage!
Price: $2.99 per month
Netflix
Best for a Wide Range of Horror Films
Netflix has an incredible selection of content, with new titles arriving on the platform every month. Netflix has been churning out some truly excellent originals in the genre. You have His House, which tells an enlightening but horrifying story about an immigrant. The Babysitter is on its way to becoming an all-time classic in the horror-comedy genre. We recommend The Conjuring and The Conjuring 2 if you want to learn more about that terrifying universe.
Netflix’s vast library includes many well-known, niche, and foreign-language horror movies and shows. Higher-priced plans include HD and 4K streaming support.
Price: starting at $8.99 per month
Peacock
Fans of Universal’s Monster Movies will enjoy this.
Peacock, which launched in 2020, has quickly become one of the most enjoyed streaming services and the go-to platform for NBC/Universal content. As the summer comes to an end and autumn approaches, the streaming platform has added even more horror movies to their roster, including a collection of Universal’s classic monster movies. The provider has not only added terrifying and thrilling classics, but it will also be the exclusive streaming home of new titles such as the return of Michael Myers in Halloween Kills, that will be released in theaters and on Peacock.
Peacock has a sizable collection of over 130 terrifying horror titles. It’s home to the Universal Classic Monsters collection, as well as some recent horror films among its impressive library of over 13,000 hours of programming. Peacock has tons of Halloween-worthy movies and TV – from your beloved spooky episodes and go-to horror films to never-before-seen thrills and chills.
- The Invisible Man (1933)
- Night of the Living Dead (1963)
- Child’s Play (1988)
Price: starting at $4.99 per month
Tubi
Endless Supply of Great and cheesy Horror Films
Tubi has a large library of horror series and films, but none of them are available in full HD. In terms of a library so vast that it’s essentially endless. I tried scrolling to the bottom of the horror genre on Tubi, and it just kept reloading indefinitely. It appears to dwarf any other streamer’s horror library, with thousands of titles at the very least.
From classics like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Fog, The Changeling, and Candyman to modern classics like The Invitation, Train to Busan, and The Descent, there’s something for everyone.
Price: Free
Horror TV
Classic B Horror movies streaming
Horror TV is a relatively unknown service that is best accessed via Amazon Channels. I was initially impressed with this service because it appears to have a selection of premium movies. Nevertheless, you get what you pay for, and the catalog currently has only 69 horror movies and no TV series for $1.99 per month. Learn More
- Tucker & Dale Vs Evil
- Troll Hunter
There’s a few movies for B-rated fans, a handful of classic horror movies, and a variety of decent premium horror films, so there is something for everyone on this service. With only $1.99 per month and a 7-day free trial, it’s worth checking out what’s on offer.
Price: $1.99 per month
Final Word
My grandfather was a big fan of scary movies. He couldn’t get enough of B-movies with cheesy special effects and bad acting, with titles like “Leprechaun” and “Dolly Dearest” Genuine guilty pleasures. I guess his enthusiasm rubbed off on me because I developed a taste for the macabre as a teenager. I was obsessed with films such as “Candyman” and “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” That childish delight in monsters, ghosts, killers, and demons carried over into adulthood. I’m always on the lookout for the next great scare. It’s enjoyable to remember my grandpa in this manner – watching a good horror flick. These top horror films are now available to thrill seekers on tons of streaming services.