5 best streaming apps for horror fanatics

There are so many streaming apps available that it can be tough to sift through everything and find what’s best for your needs. Every service has a selection of horror movies on tap, but horror aficionados looking for a deep cut from the 1970s might not be able to find a good pick on something as mainstream as Netflix.

While Netflix is still a solid streamer with a good selection of horror movies, there are other apps with a better selection from the past and present. Don’t get me wrong, there’s stuff I like from every streaming service, but these are my suggestions to horror fans looking for apps with the biggest and most diverse horror libraries.

1 Tubi

Hope you don’t mind ads

Tubi

Tubi is one of the most underrated streaming services today. The service is completely free of charge, but that comes with the caveat of having to deal with ads. There’s no way to pay extra and remove them, so you have to be okay with them as you can’t avoid them. If you’re fine with that, you can dig into the long library of content, including a wide range of horror. Tubi has a selection of TV shows and movies to browse through, and the app is available on all major streaming devices like the Apple TV 4K and Roku. You can also download the app on your iOS and Android devices.

Navigating the app is simple enough as you just have to head over to the horror tab to find out what’s on offer. Classics like the original Carrie and Hellraiser are here, and you also have some modern choices like 2018’s Halloween at the time of this writing. With this being a service that doesn’t cost a penny, there’s really no reason not to give it a try. There are some downsides with streaming quality, the notable one being that movies and TV cap out at 1080p, so Tubi doesn’t take advantage of your 4K display if you have one.

2 Shudder

It’s hard to go wrong here

Shudder

Shudder

is a streaming service made specifically for horror fans. The only genre you’ll find on the service is horror, and the service has a deep selection of films to choose from.The nice part about the service is that while it’s not free of charge, it only costs $5.99 to get started. That price makes it much cheaper than other services that constantly see price hikes, like Max and Netflix. Shudder is a nice choice for horror fans because of the mix of original and well-known movies.

Some Shudder originals you might not have known came from the service including When Evil Lurks and Late Night With the Devil, the latter example being distributed by Shudder in the United States. On the TV show side of things, there are four seasons of Creepshow, a series based on the 1982 classic of the same name. Shudder has a week-long free trial that lets you get a taste of the service, and it’s certainly worth installing if you’re a horror fan.

3 Peacock

An underrated horror selection

Peacock

Peacock has a nice selection of horror films, and if you’re a fan of the Blumhouse horror movies, this is where you’ll find many of them. Blumhouse and Peacock are both under the Comcast umbrella, and that’s part of the reason you’ll sometimes get treats like day-and-date releases for theatrical movies like Five Nights at Freddy’s and Halloween. This is also the service for you if you’re a fan of the old-school Universal Monsters that date back to the 1930s.

At the time of this writing, you can find recent releases like Abigail along with classics like John Carpenter’s adaptation of The Thing both available on the service. Peacock is available for $7.99 a month, but you have to fork over $13.99 if you want to omit ads.

4 Screambox

Good for United States viewers

Screambox

Screambox is another streaming service that focuses entirely on horror fans, but it’s only available in the United States as of right now. That’s good news for anybody stateside, but it means people in other parts of the world have to check out some of the other apps on the list. It’s available on Android, iOS, Samsung Smart TVs, and Roku, so you can get it just about anywhere you download your streaming services.

Perhaps the best thing about the service is that some titles are available free of charge if you’re okay with watching ads here and there. If you want to ditch the ads, you can subscribe for $6.99 a month for Screambox Premium, so it’s still an affordable service when compared to some of the other heavy hitters. Another cool part of Screambox is that you can watch it on your web browser and use the live TV feature to check out something new or just have it on as background noise. The ad-supported tier doesn’t have all the content the Premium tier does, but there’s still a wide range of movies to check out for free.

5 Shout! TV

Another free streamer

Shout! TV

Physical media collectors might be familiar with the Shout! Factory name as the team frequently releases new versions of beloved movies. One prominent example is the 4K remaster of the entire original Halloween franchise, starting with the first entry and going until 2002’s Halloween: Resurrection. As it turns out, the company has its own streaming service called Shout! TV that includes many horror classics along with countless other genres.

Like many of the other services on the list, Shout! TV is available for free as long as you watch a few ads. If you want to get rid of the ads, you have to upgrade to the ad-free option for $3.99, so it’s still not something that’ll break the bank. You can watch Shout! TV through your web browser or download an app on your Android or iOS device along with all the major streaming devices. A big downside is Shout! only has North American rights for many of its titles, so viewers outside of the United States or Canada could run into issues watching some of the content.