Halloween movies: the best ones and where to watch them
Updated October 8, 2026
There are scary movies, and then there are Halloween movies: the ones set on the night of October 31st or steeped in its spirit of pumpkins, costumes and haunted houses.
Here are the best-known ones, ranked by viewer rating, with the service you can stream each one on today.
Top 30 by viewer rating
Psycho (1960)
When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.
Stream on:
Netflix
Peacock
AMC+
The Thing (1982)
A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.
Stream on:
Prime VideoAMC+
Coraline (2009)
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Stream on:
Hulu
HBO MaxPeacock
Donnie Darko (2001)
After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
Stream on:
Prime VideoHulu
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas…
Stream on:
Disney+
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.
Stream on:
Disney+Hulu
The Exorcist (1973)
When a mysterious entity possesses a young girl, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Corpse Bride (2005)
In a 19th-century European village, a young man about to be married is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious corpse bride, while his real bride waits bereft in the land of the living.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Halloween (1978)
Fifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween Night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.
Stream on:
AMC+
Shudder
The Conjuring (2013)
Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse. Forced to confront a powerful entity, the Warrens find themselves caught in the most terrifying case of their lives.
Stream on:
HBO Max
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
An alien is left behind on Earth and saved by the 10-year-old Elliott who decides to keep him hidden in his home. While a task force hunts for the extra-terrestrial, Elliott, his brother, and his little sister Gertie form an emotional bond with their new…
Stream on:
Starz
Ghostbusters (1984)
After losing their university jobs, three parapsychologists start a ghost-catching business in New York City and uncover a supernatural threat that could destroy the world.
Stream on:On other subscription services
Beetlejuice (1988)
A newly dead New England couple seeks help from a deranged demon exorcist to scare an affluent New York family out of their home.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Scream (1996)
A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a masked killer who targets her and her friends by using scary movies as part of a deadly game.
Stream on:
Hulu
Paramount+PeacockStarz
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Teenagers in a small town are dropping like flies, apparently in the grip of mass hysteria causing their suicides. A cop's daughter, Nancy Thompson, traces the cause to child molester Fred Krueger, who was burned alive by angry parents many years before…
Stream on:
HBO MaxAMC+
The Conjuring 2 (2016)
Lorraine and Ed Warren travel to north London to help a single mother raising four children alone in a house plagued by malicious spirits.
Stream on:
HBO Max
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren encounter what would become one of the most sensational cases from their files. The fight for the soul of a young boy takes them beyond anything they'd ever seen before, to mark the first time in U.S. history…
Stream on:
HBO Max
It (2017)
In a small town in Maine, seven children known as The Losers Club come face to face with life problems, bullies and a monster that takes the shape of a clown called Pennywise.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Skeptical young detective Ichabod Crane gets transferred to the hamlet of Sleepy Hollow, New York, where he is tasked with investigating the decapitations of three people – murders the townsfolk attribute to a legendary specter, The Headless Horseman.
Stream on:
Paramount+
Gremlins (1984)
After receiving an exotic small animal as a Christmas gift, a young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet, which unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous creatures on a small town.
Stream on:
HBO Max
The Addams Family (1991)
When a man claiming to be long-lost Uncle Fester reappears after 25 years lost, the family plans a celebration to wake the dead. But the kids barely have time to warm up the electric chair before Morticia begins to suspect Fester is fraud when he can't recall…
Stream on:
Paramount+
Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Welcome to Hotel Transylvania, Dracula's lavish five-stake resort, where monsters and their families can live it up and no humans are allowed. One special weekend, Dracula has invited all his best friends to celebrate his beloved daughter Mavis's 118th…
Stream on:
HuluParamount+
Insidious (2011)
A family discovers that dark spirits have invaded their home after their son inexplicably falls into an endless sleep. When they reach out to a professional for help, they learn things are a lot more personal than they thought.
Stream on:
AMC+
It Chapter Two (2019)
27 years after overcoming the malevolent supernatural entity Pennywise, the former members of the Losers' Club, who have grown up and moved away from Derry, are brought back together by a devastating phone call.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)
When the old-old-old-fashioned vampire Vlad arrives at the hotel for an impromptu family get-together, Hotel Transylvania is in for a collision of supernatural old-school and modern day cool.
Stream on:
HuluParamount+
The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
Five friends set out for a weekend at a remote cabin in the woods, expecting nothing more than fun and relaxation. As night falls, they discover that something far more unsettling is at work and that nothing about their getaway is what it seems.
Stream on:
HBO MaxAMC+
Crimson Peak (2015)
In the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds… and remembers.
Stream on:
Netflix
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
Several years after the tragic death of their little girl, a doll maker and his wife welcome a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage into their home, soon becoming the target of the doll maker's possessed creation—Annabelle.
Stream on:
HBO Max
Dracula Untold (2014)
Vlad Tepes is a great hero, but when he learns the Sultan is preparing for battle and needs to form an army of 1,000 boys, he vows to find a way to protect his family. Vlad turns to dark forces in order to get the power to destroy his enemies and agrees to go…
Stream on:
Prime Video
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
In October of 1994 three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, while shooting a documentary. A year later their footage was found.
Stream on:
HBO Max
How we made it: we picked the best-known Halloween movies (at least 1,000 votes on TMDB) and ranked them by average rating. For each one we show which subscription services carry it, using JustWatch data.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Halloween movie?
Based on TMDB viewers' average rating, right now it's “Psycho” (1960), with 8.4/10.
Where can I stream Halloween movies?
Right now, the services with the most titles from this list are HBO Max (14), AMC+ (6), and Hulu (6). Each movie in the list shows where you can stream it.
How can I tell if a movie is too scary before watching it?
In the MisPelis app you can ask the AI, from any movie's page, whether it's really scary or if an animal dies, before you hit play.
Movie data and images from TMDB. Streaming availability from JustWatch. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB. TMDB · JustWatch
