Sometimes, there’s nothing better than dimming the lights, hiding under the covers and throwing on a good horror movie.
But without a nostalgic video rental store to drive to for all your fright night needs, your best bet is subscribing to a streaming service. If horror is the genre you find yourself craving the most, it’s worth checking out Hulu, Shudder, Netflix and AMC+.
Below, we go into some detail about each streaming service, breaking them down based on the 3 most important decision factors: content, cost and device compatibility.
1. Hulu
With over 45 million subscribers as of April 2022, it’s clear that Hulu is doing something right. Hulu does a great job at creating their own original, award-winning content, but they also do a great job at partnering with the right people to secure the best content for their audience. The horror genre is no exception.
Horror Content
Whether you’re looking for a slasher flick, a paranormal film, elevated horror — you’ll find it all on Hulu. In fact, every year around Halloween-time, Hulu will host “Huluween”, where they offer up a ton of chilling classics, spine-crawling episodes and eerie Originals.
You’ll find some classics like Drag Me To Hell, The Feast, Black Swan and Jennifer’s Body, but you’ll also find new favorites like Us, Titane and Agnes.
Fresh is a well-received, brand-new Hulu Original which centers around a woman meeting a charming man in a supermarket and proceeding to date him…until she realizes his tastes are more Hannibal-esque than high society. It’s worth a watch — just make sure you save the steak dinner for another night.
To check out some more of the best horror content on Hulu right now, click here.
Cost
Hulu offers two different plans. The first plan costs $6.99/month and gives you full access to Hulu’s library but includes ads. If you don’t want to have to sit through ads during your viewing, you can opt for the ad-free plan, which costs $12.99/month.
Device Compatibility
Of course, all of Hulu’s great perks wouldn’t matter if the streaming service wasn’t compatible with your device.
Here are all the devices compatible with Hulu:
- TV streaming media players: Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and TV Stick, Chromecast and Roku
- Smart TVs: LG, Samsung, Android TV, Vizio, and Roku TV
- Mobile devices and tablets: Android (phones and tablets), iOS phones, Echo Show, and iPads
- Game consoles: Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox 360, PlayStation 4 & 5
- Desktop browsers: Most Mac and PC browsers
- Desktop operating systems: Windows 10 (dedicated app)
2. Shudder
Of course, we can’t talk about horror without mentioning Shudder. Shudder is the streaming service for all things creepy and suspenseful. Like Hulu, it’s got both a great collection of well-known films as well as its own original horror content.
Horror Content
All types of horror-related titles can be found in Shudder’s collection of over 400 Zombie movies, slashers, suspense movies, and more. One of the service’s main attractions is its growing library of original content, but new releases are not uncommon. In addition to on-demand content, you can also access some themed live channel feeds.
Some popular titles include: Anything for Jackson, Creepshow, Kandisha, Halloween, Knife + Heart, Scare Me and They Look Like People.
Cost
When it comes to Shudder, wherever you live, there are no ads and the cost is the same — this goes for the US, but also Canada, the UK and Ireland as well. You can either pay $5.99/month, or subscribe for a year for $56.99 and save a few dollars.
| Shudder 7-Day Free Trial $5.99 / month | 630+ titles Also includes 41 series and 7 podcast Famous thrillers 1 simultaneous stream | SIGN UP |
Device Compatibility
Shudder currently has apps for iOS, Android, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV. You can also get Shudder on the Xbox Series S and X and on all Xbox One consoles.
According to Shudder’s support site, the service is “working hard to expand the devices available for streaming Shudder,” and “additional gaming systems and Smart TV Apps are definitely on the horizon.” So if Shudder is speaking to you but their device compatibility is too limited for you, make sure to circle back in the future.
3. Netflix
Netflix likely needs no introduction. The media giant has over 220 million subscribers, which gives it the ability to produce and put out non-stop content — including tons of stuff for the horror community.
Horror Content
With a library of over 15,000 titles, you’ll get a lot more than just horror with your Netflix subscription. That said, even if you’re only looking for a never-ending stream of great horror content, you won’t be disappointed.
Netflix has a recent history of producing some very popular originals in the horror genre, like the critically-acclaimed TV series The Haunting In Hill House, The Babysitter, In The Tall Grass, Hush and the horror trilogy Fear Street adapted from R.L Stine’s infamous teenage fiction series.
Cost
Netflix starts at $9.99/month for the Basic subscription, which comes with one stream. To get more streams, you’ll need to upgrade to another plan. The Standard plan costs $15.49/month and comes with two streams, and the Premium plan costs $19.99/month and comes with 4 streams.
Device Compatibility
Netflix has apps for all of the following devices:
- Living room devices: Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Roku, Chromecast, Xiaomi Mi Box, TiVo
- Smart TVs: Televisions based on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Roku, Hisense, LG, Panasonic, Phillips, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba
- Mobile devices and tablets: Android, iOS, Windows Phone
- Game consoles: PlayStation, Xbox, Wii
- Desktop browsers: Most Mac and PC browsers
4. AMC+
Want to know a little secret? AMC+ is an underrated yet fantastic streaming service if you’re looking for horror content. In fact, since AMC owns Shudder, you’ll get access to Shudder’s entire library of horror films and shows in addition to all the other content from AMC’s networks. Not a bad deal, if you ask us.
Horror Content
You’ll find tons of great stuff on AMC, from true crime shows, to suspense, Zombie films, slasher flicks… they’ve got it all. Of course, they’re highly known for being the forces behind The Walking Dead, so you’ll get early access to the latest episodes of the series with your subscription.
You’ll find all of Shudder’s library on AMC+, including AMC’s own collection. Some current popular horror series and movies on the platform include: Creepshow, Channel Zero: The Dream Door, Cursed Films II, The Cellar and The Twin.
Cost
AMC+ offers one ad-free subscription tier which costs $8.99/month, and you can also take advantage of their 7-day free trial to try it out before taking the plunge.
You can also add AMC as an add-on if you have a subscription to Sling TV, YouTube TV, DirecTV, Dish or Comcast Xfinity. It’s also available as a subscription on Apple TV, Amazon Prime and the Roku Channel.
Device Compatibility
Device support will vary based on how you subscribed to AMC+.
If you subscribed directly from AMC, you can watch on the following devices:
If you subscribed through Apple, Amazon Prime or Roku, the list of supported devices will depend on their system. You can see a full list of their supported devices by selecting which one you’ve signed up through:
If you subscribed directly through your TV provider, you’ll need to contact your TV provider’s support team to find out which devices are supported.
Tara Khudairi is a freelance content writer and copywriter based in Toronto. Since 2014, she has contributed to brands and blogs alike to tackle popular topics relating to technology, personal finance, entertainment, travel and lifestyle. Whether it’s the latest streaming service or cryptocurrency, she’s passionate about making the complex simple. When she’s not busy typing away, you’ll find Tara watching Netflix’s latest true crime doc or a classic 90’s horror flick.
