othing screams summer like friends, bonfires, s’mores, and laughs. But what else screams (literally) warm summer evenings? Spooky stories. These horror podcasts are perfect to inspire your next round of scary stories, whether you’re looking for a chilling retelling of history or something fictional.
Either way, you’ve come to the right place to find some unusual and haunting stories. Maybe you want to save these up for October to cultivate an extra spooky Halloween vibe -- but let’s face it, with these podcasts, it’s Halloween all the time.
Hell and High Horror
This podcast is the ultimate destination for true crime and horror lovers. The hosts Austyn and Repy are both obsessed with all things spooky, and each week they bring their own scary stories to share. It’s not all spooky and serious, though -- their banter and humor is what truly makes the podcast!
Nightmare on Film Street - A Horror Movie Podcast
If you love a good horror film, then you will love Nightmare on Film Street. Each episode of the podcast dives into a horror film, but with a comedic edge. Maybe you never really get scared but you enjoy a good laugh or discussing common horror movie tropes -- you’ll find that here, too!
The hosts have covered everything from the horrifying Nightmare on Elm Street (also the podcast's namesake) to the not-so-spooky Scooby-Doo movies. Nightmare on Film Street is more than just a podcast -- it’s a community for horror movie lovers everywhere. On their website, not only will you find four years worth of podcast episodes, but movie reviews, recommendations, interviews, and exclusive content.
Squad Ghouls
Thanks to Squad Ghouls, you will not be short on spooky stories to bring back to your own squad. Twice a week, the hosts Briana and Sara discuss haunted places, horror films, spooky arts and crafts, theme park events, and conventions.
Briana and Sara wanted to start this podcast because of their own horror-centric obsessions, but also because of the oversaturation of the true crime podcast market, and the serious lack of horror shows. If you’ve been feeling the same way, look no further, because they’ve cornered the market, and you won’t be disappointed!
The Horrorcrux Podcast
“Half haunting, half Harry Potter, all spooky!” is the best and most intriguing way that host Jessica Baziuk could have possibly described this podcast. Horror and Harry Potter lovers are sure to be sold by this concept instantly! The podcast breaks down literally every aspect of the Harry Potter series, chapter-by-chapter, detail-by-detail. Plus, there are episodes that focus on other spooky stories outside of the Potter-verse, too!
Once Upon A Scream - A Disney and Horror Podcast
This podcast is another crossover that you probably didn’t know you needed -- Disney and horror. It may seem like two topics that don’t quite mesh, but hosts Ben and Mikey find a way to make it work.
How exactly do they do that, you may be asking? Take Episode six, “Incredible Superhumans - But NO CAPES!” for example. They review the Incredibles saga while also discussing superhumans from popular horror movies. Or, check out Episode 30 “Defrosting Frozen,” where they review the movie and share their dark conspiracy theories. You get the gist!
The No Sleep Podcast
The NoSleep Podcast has 16 seasons and ten years under its belt, but it’s never too late to join the ride! It’s a fiction podcast that features spooky stories, and many of the authors have gone on to publish their work. Plus, you won’t want to miss the haunting yet enchanting atmospheric music that totally elevates the podcast.
If you love the show, you can even become a “Season Pass” holder to enjoy more exclusive content to hold you over in between seasons. But let’s face it -- with 16 seasons to catch up on, you won’t be short on spooky entertainment for quite some time.
Video Palace
This 13 part series is truly a journey. The Video Palace podcast follows a video collector, his girlfriend, and some very odd VHS tapes. You can even sign up to become a member of Shudder to unlock more exclusive, spooky Video Palace content -- you won’t regret it!
Unwell, A Midwestern Gothic Mystery
Calling all midwesterners -- we know you’ll be fascinated by this one. This dramatic fiction podcast takes place in Ohio, and has elements of family, ghosts, and conspiracy theories. It doesn’t get much spookier than that!
The show is in season three, and episodes are usually no more than 30 minutes long -- perfect for your biweekly dose of haunts, and enough to leave you wanting more. Plus, Unwell has been praised by major news outlets like The New York Times and The Verge, and has a very large and very diverse cast of actors, writers, producers, and orchestra members.
Alice Isn’t Dead
Alice Isn’t Dead follows a truck driver in search of her missing wife. The series ended in 2018, but the creators have since reunited to revisit the story, so if you love the show there is plenty of content to keep you listening for a while.
And of course, like with any successful podcast that people can’t get enough of, there’s a book. It seems like these podcasters -- and novelists! -- enjoyed telling this story as much as fans have enjoyed listening, so maybe another reunion is in the future.
Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told In the Dark: A Horror Anthology Series
Otis Jiry is a “master storyteller,” particularly of all tales spooky and scary. In its eighth season after only a few years, there’s quite a lot of mystery to unpack here. This particular podcast was inspired by another podcast produced by The Simply Scary Podcasts Network, Chilling Tales for Dark Nights.
Chilling Tales for Dark Nights has inspired multiple other podcasts, too, including Horror Hill, The Town Whispers, and Tales by Cole. The Simply Scary Podcasts Network is putting out premium horror content left and right, and there are plenty of shows to choose from!
Ghosts in the Burbs
Ghosts in the Burbs is a particularly unusual podcast mostly due to the fact that it is hosted by a children’s librarian. What other horror podcasts can say that about their work? The host and librarian Liz Sower was inspired to create the show because of her own childhood experiences with Stephen King books and Ghostbusters, and also her love of paranormal reality TV.
Sower actually came up with the idea when walking to the library for work, passing a community bulletin board where she envisioned her own message calling for ghost stories. She interviews people right in her neighborhood of Wellesley, Massachusetts. These stories come straight from the people who had chilling experiences in their own homes, which truly is the best way to hear a story of any kind.
Two Girls One Ghost
To end our roundup on a (somewhat) lighter note -- let’s face it, there’s not really a lighter note when it comes to horror podcasts, but still -- Two Girls One Ghost follows two best friends bonded by their ghostly experiences. They’ve had “contact with the other side,” and they created this podcast to tell the tales.
The podcast is in its fourth year, so it’s clear that these two have countless spooky experiences to share with each other, and with listeners! Thanks to the hosts being best friends, there is also an element of comedy to the show, which is always a fun addition to scary stories.
So, what do you think? Can you handle these haunting tales? Whether you prefer fact or fiction, a little bit of scary or a lot of scary, there’s a podcast to entertain you on this list. Let us know how these spooky stories go over at your next summer bonfire!
