We might have over half a year until Halloween, but there is never a time that is not perfect for scary stories. While many delve into a thrilling book or watch a bone-chilling movie, many nowadays find their best horror stories told over podcasts. Harkening back to early radio shows like The Twilight Zone, here is a list of some of the best scary podcasts on Spotify, from true crime to chilling supernatural tales.
Best Scary Podcasts On Spotify: List
1. Scare You To Sleep
Scare You To Sleep is a horror podcast created, hosted, and narrated by Shelby Scott, a horror writer who originally wanted a platform to showcase her own scary stories. However, it has since grown to accept submissions from other writers and thus has become one of the biggest and best scary podcasts on Spotify.
Some of its latest stories include one set in the Backrooms, an internet-based urban myth, and a retelling of the classic spooky novel The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, by Washington Irving.
If you are interested in bite-sized short bedtime stories, perfectly written and audio edited to “scare you to sleep,” please check this podcast out.
2. Unsolved Murders: True Crime Stories
Unsolved Murders is one of the best examples of the “true crime” genre, a rising genre among entertainment and especially podcasts. Instead of focusing on fictional tales, speaking on crimes both past and present has garnered a massive following.
Unsolved Murders focuses on telling the stories of cold cases from years ago, with its presentation and audio engineering giving an ‘old radio’ feel to the report, which gives the reports even more of a chill and a place on the best scary podcasts on Spotify.
If you want to learn more about some of the past’s most grisly unsolved murders, check this podcast out.
Looking for more true crime podcasts? Check out our full list here!
3. Old Gods of Appalachia
Old Gods of Appalachia is a horror narrative podcast, describing itself as an “eldritch fiction” story set in an alternative universe based on the Appalachian regions’ mythos. It was created by Steve Shell and Cam Collins, who both write and voice numerous characters in this story.
The premise is that ancient, incomprehensible beings have been entombed underneath the Applachians, getting interacted with humans as settlers from Europe move inside. From this base, a strange and spooky narrative has been developed, with three seasons of this story already out on Spotify.
If you are interested in a psychological, supernatural story that’s guaranteed to make you question everything, listen to this podcast.
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4. Nightmare Magazine
Nightmare Magazine is one of the most renowned horror & dark fantasy magazines being currently published, with its description proclaiming that its staff believes that “horror is for everyone.” It was founded by John Joseph Adams, a critically acclaimed horror anthology author.
It posts a full issue every month, with new features every Wednesday, and it features a huge breadth of horror, from fiction to poetry to nonfiction pieces. Alongside this, it adapts some of the published stories into a podcast run and hosted by Stefan Rudnicki.
If you’re looking for contemporary horror stories published by up-and-coming authors, check this podcast out!
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5. Magnus Archives
Magnus Archives is a narrative horror podcast that follows the titular Magnus Archives, a secret group that records statements of witnesses of supernatural events from all over. While first seeming like an anthology of unrelated strange events, a greater story is unraveled as the protagonists begin to realize the forces behind the strange events.
The podcast is produced by Alexander J Newall, and its writer and the voice of the main character is Jonathan Simms. It has up to five seasons of story and has garnered an influential and large fandom over its characters and worlds.
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6. The SCP Foundation Database
The SCP Foundation is a collaborative writing effort spearheaded by the internet for over a decade, creating a mythos centered around a world-spanning organization that aims to secure, contain, and protect the world from anomalous objects, things, and forces.
While originally starting as one creepypasta among many, its file-based style and opportunity for expansion have created one of the biggest writing communities across the internet, alongside video games, movies, and TV shows based on it.
The SCP Foundation Database has converted the exclusively text-based story into a thrilling podcast, using sound effects and great voice acting to showcase the strangeness and scariness of many of these anomalies. This makes it one of the best scary podcasts on Spotify, especially for those interested in supernatural horror.
7. No Sleep
The No Sleep podcast was inspired by the Reddit community r/nosleep, where users post horror stories. Founded by David Cummings, this podcast aims to adapt these internet horror short stories into audio experiences, creating an anthology to promote this Reddit communities’ writing.
Some of the authors featured in the podcast have gone on to publish full novels, including Dathan Auerbach and T.W. Grim. This podcast has gone on for 13 seasons and still continues to thrive. If you are interested in the best scary stories the internet has to offer, this podcast is for you.
8. Welcome to Nightvale
Welcome to Nightvale is considered the grandfather of narrative horror podcasts, taking the form of community updates for the small, yet strange, town of Nightvale. It is written by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor, and narrated by Cecil Baldwin.
It has gone on to publish books, host live shows, and much more. If you’re interested in one of the most classic narrative horror podcasts, this is one of the best scary podcasts on Spotify to check out.
If you’re looking for a scary podcast to listen to on Spotify, you’ve got your fill. From narrative horror stories that take place over seasons, to short story anthologies sourced from the internet, to true crime retellings, there is something for everyone among the best horror stories on Spotify.
