Best Horror Movies of All Time

Last Updated on 1 October 2024

The following list is the Official Definitive List of the 800 best horror movies of all time. The list has been updated and expanded since my original list in 2020. Many more lists have arisen online, tastes have changed a little, and some of the original lists were updated.

In 2020, I found 19 different ranked lists online of “best horror movies of all time”, but thought it could be better. In 2024 I found 72 different ranked lists and pulled them all into Excel and merged them all to get this definitive overall compilation. Here is a comparison of the two lists.

See my Methodology page for the research process that was used, including links to all 72 lists that were averaged. Below is a checklist you can print to track which ones you’ve seen, followed by the ranked list with links to IMDb.

Greatest Horror Movies – Viewing Checklist Download

Psycho (1960)
The Shining (1980)
Alien (1979)
The Exorcist (1973)
Halloween (1978)
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
The Thing (1982)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Get Out (2017)
Jaws (1975)
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Hereditary (2018)
Carrie (1976)
Nosferatu (1922)
The Fly (1986)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Scream (1996)
Let the Right One In (2008)
Evil Dead II (1987)
Suspiria (1977)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Poltergeist (1982)
The Wicker Man (1973)
The Witch (2015)
It Follows (2014)
28 Days Later (2002)
Don’t Look Now (1973)
The Innocents (1961)
The Conjuring (2013)
The Babadook (2014)
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
The Birds (1963)
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
The Descent (2005)
The Evil Dead (1981)
Frankenstein (1931)
It (2017)
Eyes Without a Face (1960)
The Omen (1976)
A Quiet Place (2018)
Train to Busan (2016)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
The Ring (2002)
Audition (1999)
Paranormal Activity (2007)
Midsommar (2019)
Repulsion (1965)
The Cabin in the Woods (2011)
Freaks (1932)
Hellraiser (1987)
REC (2007)
The Haunting (1963)
Peeping Tom (1960)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
Aliens (1986)
Misery (1990)
King Kong (1933)
Candyman (1992)
Saw (2004)
The Sixth Sense (1999)
Ringu (1998)
Dracula (1931)
Us (2019)
Diabolique (1955)
Deep Red (1975)
The Others (2001)
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Insidious (2010)
Eraserhead (1977)
Videodrome (1983)
The Strangers (2008)
The Host (2006)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Godzilla (1954)
The Orphanage (2007)
Lost Highway (1997)
Re-Animator (1985)
Kwaidan (1964)
The Night of the Hunter (1955)
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
Cat People (1942)
Vampyr (1932)
The Devil’s Backbone (2001)
The Invisible Man (2020)
Possession (1981)
American Psycho (2000)
Raw (2016)
The Vanishing (1988)
Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
Martyrs (2008)
Drag Me to Hell (2009)
Black Christmas (1974)
The Wailing (2016)
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
Near Dark (1987)
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Jacob’s Ladder (1990)
Friday the 13th (1980)
Sinister (2012)
Carnival of Souls (1962)
Dead Alive (Braindead) (1992)
House (1977)
Halloween (2018)
Talk to Me (2022)
Zombieland (2009)
The Invisible Man (1933)
Onibaba (1964)
One Cut of the Dead (2017)
Don’t Breathe (2016)
Child’s Play (1988)
Barbarian (2022)
X (2022)
Funny Games (1997)
Cure (1997)
House of Wax (1953)
Häxan (1922)
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
Gremlins (1984)
Horror of Dracula (1958)
Under the Skin (2013)
M3GAN (2022)
Dead of Night (1945)
Hour of the Wolf (1968)
Se7en (1995)
Black Sunday (1960)
The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
Goodnight Mommy (2014)
What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (2018)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
Ready or Not (2019)
Double Blind (2023)
Who Took Johnny (2014)
The Lighthouse (2019)
Day of the Dead (1985)
The Changeling (1980)
Nope (2022)
The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
Dead Ringers (1988)
Pulse (Kairo) (2001)
Green Room (2015)
Saint Maud (2019)
Interview with the Vampire (1994)
The Fog (1980)
The Lost Boys (1987)
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Fright Night (1985)
The Blue Elephant (2014)
Final Destination (2000)
Phantasm (1979)
The Nun (2018)
Army of Darkness (1992)
The Mummy (1932)
The Conjuring 2 (2016)
Let Me In (2010)
The Beyond (1981)
The Phantom Carriage (1921)
Split (2016)
Trick ‘r Treat (2007)
The Wolf Man (1941)
Curse of the Demon (1957)
Under the Shadow (2016)
The Grudge (2004)
Predator (1987)
10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
The Mist (2007)
The Last House on the Left (1972)
The Cremator (1969)
Mandy (2018)
Holy Spider (2022)
Johnny Got His Gun (1971)
Tragedy Girls (2017)
A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
Pet Sematary (1989)
Creepshow (1982)
The Devils (1971)
Event Horizon (1997)
The Dead Zone (1983)
It (1990)
Host (2020)
The House of the Devil (2009)
Oculus (2013)
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000)
The Love Witch (2016)
Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010)
Pearl (2022)
I Walked With a Zombie (1943)
Annihilation (2018)
Bone Tomahawk (2015)
The Black Phone (2021)
The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
The Skin I Live In (2011)
Kill List (2011)
Fright Night (1985)
The Brood (1979)
Blood and Black Lace (1964)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)
Thirst (2009)
Santa Sangre (1989)
The Witches (1990)
Tremors (1990)
Hush (2016)
Gerald’s Game (2017)
Evil Dead Rise (2023)
Grindhouse (2007)
Infested (2023)
I Saw the Devil (2010)
The Fly (1958)
Cronos (1992)
Orphan (2009)
It Chapter Two (2019)
God Told Me To (1976)
Scream VI (2023)
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
The Amityville Horror (2005)
Wolf Creek (2005)
Inside (2007)
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
Village of the Damned (1960)
The Menu (2022)
Deliverance (1972)
Halloween II (1981)
Faust (1926)
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
In the Mouth of Madness (1995)
His House (2020)
1408 (2007)
Ginger Snaps (2000)
Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
From Dusk till Dawn (1996)
I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
The Amityville Horror (1979)
Candyman (2021)
You’re Next (2011)
Lake Mungo (2008)
Come and See (1985)
The Tenant (1976)
Inland Empire (2006)
The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)
What Lies Beneath (2000)
The Endless (2017)
Salem’s Lot (1979)
The Invitation (2015)
Fresh (2022)
When a Stranger Calls (1979)
House on Haunted Hill (1959)
Jennifer’s Body (2009)
Black Swan (2010)
The Purge (2013)
Smile (2022)
It Comes at Night (2017)
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Session 9 (2001)
Godzilla Minus One (2023)
Harpoon (2019)
They Live (1988)
Black Sabbath (1963)
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
Doctor Sleep (2019)
Ju-on: The Grudge (2002)
Terrifier 2 (2022)
Frailty (2001)
The Devil Rides Out (1968)
The Black Cat (1934)
The Blob (1958)
The Loved Ones (2009)
Cape Fear (1991)
Orphan: First Kill (2022)
Cloverfield (2008)
The Substance (2024)
Crawl (2019)
Trouble Every Day (2001)
The Blackening (2022)
We Are What We Are (2013)
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971)
Black Cat (1968)
Ma (2019)
Martin (1977)
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
The Hitcher (1986)
Climax (2018)
Suspiria (2018)
Scream 2 (1997)
The Howling (1981)
The Innocents (2021)
Tenebrae (1982)
Parasite (2019)
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Better Watch Out (2016)
Wait Until Dark (1967)
Evil Dead (2013)
Ganja & Hess (1973)
Longlegs (2024)
La Llorona (2019)
Tumbbad (2018)
Jeepers Creepers (2001)
The Old Dark House (1932)
High Tension (2003)
The Amusement Park (1975)
Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
28 Weeks Later (2007)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary (2002)
The Unknown (1927)
Freaky (2020)
Upgrade (2018)
Who Can Kill a Child? (1976)
30 Days of Night (2007)
Soft & Quiet (2022)
Dashcam (2021)
Stopmotion (2023)
Mother! (2017)
Phantom of the Paradise (1974)
Ghostbusters (1984)
Island of Lost Souls (1932)
Stree (2018)
Revenge (2017)
The Wolf House (2018)
The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
Arrebato (1979)
World War Z (2013)
Wrong Turn (2003)
Theater of Blood (1973)
Ravenous (1999)
The Night House (2020)
Opera (1987)
Saw II (2005)
Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
A Dark Song (2016)
Unfriended (2014)
Donnie Darko (2001)
Scary Movie (2000)
The Perfection (2018)
Silent Hill (2006)
Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)
The Fall of the House of Usher (1928)
Relic (2020)
Warm Bodies (2013)
Slither (2006)
Infinity Pool (2023)
My Bloody Valentine (1981)
May (2002)
Signs (2002)
The Visit (2015)
Alien: Romulus (2024)
You Won’t Be Alone (2022)
Frankenweenie (2012)
Dressed to Kill (1980)
Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)
The Bad Seed (1956)
Thelma (2017)
Oddity (2024)
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016)
The Coffee Table (2022)
The Human Centipede (First Sequence) (2009)
The Platform (2019)
Terrified (2017)
The Invitation (2022)
The Nightmare (2015)
V/H/S (2012)
The Crow (1994)
Bones and All (2022)
Freddy vs. Jason (2003)
Saw X (2023)
Kill, Baby… Kill! (1966)
Scanners (1981)
Final Destination 3 (2006)
The Legend of Hell House (1973)
Zodiac (2007)
Frankenstein (1994)
House of Usher (1960)
Mama (2013)
Zombie (1979)
Scream (2022)
Son of Frankenstein (1939)
Demons (1971)
I Am Legend (2007)
The Seventh Victim (1943)
The Thing from Another World (1951)
When Evil Lurks (2023)
Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)
In Fabric (2018)
Starry Eyes (2014)
Tigers Are Not Afraid (2017)
The Dark and the Wicked (2020)
The Frighteners (1996)
Angst (1983)
It’s Such a Beautiful Day (2012)
The Meg (2018)
The Terminator (1984)
We Are Still Here (2015)
The Day of the Beast (1995)
The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
Halloween Kills (2021)
Skinamarink (2023)
The Haunting (1999)
Speak No Evil (2022)
Hatching (2022)
Tetsuo, The Iron Man (1989)
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)
Slumber Party Massacre II (1987)
Antichrist (2009)
Altered States (1980)
Ichi the Killer (2001)
Alice, Sweet Alice (1976)
Attack the Block (2011)
Society (1989)
Cemetery Man (1994)
Christine (1983)
Our Father, the Devil (2021)
Them! (1954)
Happy Death Day (2017)
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)
Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)
Planet Terror (2007)
Annabelle (2014)
Coraline (2009)
Nanny (2022)
Angel Heart (1987)
Sator (2021)
Phenomena (1985)
The Ritual (2017)
Funny Games (2007)
The Monster Squad (1987)
A Page of Madness (1926)
Boxing Helena (1993)
Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
Overlord (2018)
Bird Box (2018)
The Exorcist III (1990)
The Final Destination (2009)
The People Under the Stairs (1991)
The Craft (1996)
Sisters (1972)
Saw III (2006)
The Devil’s Rejects (2005)
Ghostbusters (2016)
Nightcrawler (2014)
Soft Liquid Center (2023)
Bride of Chucky (1998)
Crimson Peak (2015)
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006)
Bacurau (2019)
Pumpkinhead (1988)
Fear Street: Part Two – 1978 (2021)
Stir of Echoes (1999)
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (1971)
Seconds (1966)
Shutter Island (2010)
Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
The Devil’s Advocate (1997)
Malignant (2021)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Prey (2022)
The Blob (1988)
Thesis (1996)
Van Helsing (2004)
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)
Sputnik (2020)
Death Proof (2007)
Fear Street: Part Three – 1666 (2021)
The Faculty (1998)
Pi (1998)
Drácula (1931)
Beau Is Afraid (2023)
November (2017)
Violation (2020)
Manhunter (1986)
The Last House on the Left (2009)
Demons (1985)
Border (2018)
Night of the Creeps (1986)
Cabin Fever (2002)
Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)
The Stepford Wives (1975)
The Sentinel (1977)
Exhuma (2024)
Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023)
Urban Legend (1998)
The Entity (1982)
Noroi (2005)
Ghostbusters II (1989)
Influencer (2022)
Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
Rare Exports (2010)
Krampus (2015)
The Haunting in Connecticut (2009)
Hostel (2005)
Dead Silence (2007)
Knock at the Cabin (2023)
From Beyond (1986)
Malum (2023)
Old (2021)
Don’t Torture a Duckling (1972)
As Above, So Below (2014)
Duel (1971)
The House that Jack Built (2018)
Child’s Play 2 (1990)
The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967)
The ‘Burbs (1989)
Here Comes the Devil (2012)
Scary Movie 3 (2003)
The Funhouse (1981)
Cube (1997)
Werewolf By Night (2022)
Beast (2017)
The Girl with All the Gifts (2016)
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
Cam (2018)
Friday the 13th: Part 3 (1982)
Magic (1978)
Frenzy (1972)
Fear Street: Part One – 1994 (2021)
Lovely Molly (2011)
The Village (2004)
Berberian Sound Studio (2012)
Jeepers Creepers 2 (2003)
The Addiction (1995)
The Nun II (2023)
Dumplings (2004)
Les Vampires (1915)
Sick (2022)
Night of the Demons (1988)
Color Out of Space (2020)
Hannibal (2001)
Hell Night (1981)
Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
The Eye (2002)
The Devil’s Candy (2015)
The Woman in Black (2012)
Alien: Covenant (2017)
I Saw the TV Glow (2024)
Perfect Blue (1997)
The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (2023)
Backcountry (2014)
Prometheus (2012)
A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)
Insidious: The Red Door (2023)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Strange Darling (2023)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
Sleepaway Camp (1983)
Werewolves Within (2021)
Children of the Corn (1984)
Pet Sematary (2019)
The Cat and the Canary (1927)
The Leopard Man (1943)
Taxidermia (2006)
Dog Soldiers (2002)
The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
Shrew’s Nest (2014)
The Wicker Man (2006)
Bedevilled (2010)
Halloween (2007)
Halloween II (2009)
Battle Royale (2000)
The Cell (2000)
Piggy (2012)
Antebellum (2020)
Jaws 2 (1978)
Sissy (2022)
Maniac (1980)
Firestarter (1984)
REC 2 (2009)
Lights Out (2016)
Species (1995)
Come to Daddy (2019)
Shin Godzilla (2016)
The Happiness of the Katakuris (2001)
Be My Cat: A Film for Anne (2015)
Starfish (2019)
House of 1000 Corpses (2003)
Blackfish (2013)
Paranormal Activity 3 (2011)
Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
The Boy (2016)
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
Hounds of Love (2016)
Mad God (2021)
The Forever Purge (2021)
Pitch Black (2000)
Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)
Arachnophobia (1990)
Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991)
Hollow Man (2000)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Truth or Dare (2018)
Tales from the Crypt (1972)
Thir13en Ghosts (2001)
Prince of Darkness (1987)
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Julia’s Eyes (2010)
Housebound (2014)
Shivers (1975)
May the Devil Take You (2018)
One Hour Photo (2002)
V/H/S/2 (2013)
Night of the Comet (1984)
The Queen of Black Magic (2019)
The Hidden (1987)
Impetigore (2019)
The Lords of Salem (2012)
Messiah of Evil (1974)
Witchfinder General (1968)
House on Haunted Hill (1999)
Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974)
Creep (2014)
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998)
Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)
Asylum (1972)
Halloween H2O: 20 Years Later (1998)
Deathgasm (2015)
Fear (1996)
M (1931)
Manichitrathazhu (1993)
Personal Shopper (2016)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
The Stepfather (1987)
Titane (2021)
Happy Death Day 2U (2019)
Room 237 (2012)
Insidious: The Last Key (2018)
Relaxer (2018)
Werckmeister Harmonies (2001)
The Last Man on Earth (1964)
Hocus Pocus (1993)
The Uninvited (1944)
The Boxer’s Omen (1983)
Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
Till Death (2021)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
Stoker (2013)
The Burning (1981)
Inferno (1980)
The Guest (2014)
The Rite (2011)
Open Water (2003)
War of the Worlds (2005)
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
The Rental (2020)
In the Earth (2021)
Requiem (2006)
The Ring Two (2005)
The Night Stalker (1972)
Piranha (1978)
Carrie (2013)
Scream 3 (2000)
The Day of the Triffids (1963)
Goosebumps (2015)
We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)
Escape Room (2019)
Mother Joan of the Angels (1961)
Spiral (2021)
Apostle (2018)
Final Prayer (2013)
Final Destination 5 (2011)
Prevenge (2016)
Red Rooms (2023)
The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
The Eyes of My Mother (2016)
Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
Puppet Master (1989)
Bug (2006)
XX (2017)
Chup (2022)
Beauty and the Beast (1978)
Toy Story of Terror (2013)
Paranormal Activity 4 (2012)
The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales (1960)
Dead & Buried (1981)
She Dies Tomorrow (2020)
The Man Who Laughs (1928)
The Wolfman (2010)
Gothika (2003)
Dead of Night (1974)
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (2023)
In My Skin (2002)
Memento Mori (1999)
Angel Dust (1994)
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012)
The Face of Another (1966)
The First Purge (2018)
Anaconda (1997)
The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014)
The Exorcist: Believer (2023)
The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
Demon (2015)
Saw IV (2007)
Saw 3D (2010)
The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933)
American Mary (2012)
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
The Devil (1972)
Wolf (1994)
Blue Velvet (1986)
13 Ghosts (1960)
Godzilla (2014)
Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
Haunt (2019)
Hide and Seek (2005)
The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
The Third Part of the Night (1971)
A Monster Calls (2016)
Brand Upon the Brain! (2006)
Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015)
The Stuff (1985)
The Omen (2006)
Martyrs (2015)
The Purge: Election Year (2016)
Cujo (1983)
Kotoko (2011)
Saw V (2008)
The Boy Behind the Door (2020)
This Is the End (2013)
When Evil Lurks (2023)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)
Chronicle (2012)
Eve’s Bayou (1997)
The Harbinger (2022)
Birth/Rebirth (2023)
Helter Skelter (2012)
Friday the 13th (2009)
Sleep (2023)
The ABCs of Death (2012)
A Bay of Blood (1971)
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
They Look Like People (2015)
The Lodge (2019)
Enys Men (2022)
Watcher (2022)
Beetlejuice (1988)
Saloum (2021)
Morgiana (1972)
Spontaneous (2020)
Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris (1999)
We’re All Going to the World’s Fair (2021)
High Life (2018)
Bramayugam (2024)
Silver Bullet (1985)
Burnt Offerings (1976)
Buzzard (2014)
Evolution (2015)
The Crazies (2010)
Ghost Ship (2002)
Caché (2005)
Lamb (2021)
Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
Scream 4 (2011)
Twins of Evil (1971)
Carrie (2002)
Saw VI (2009)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
Final Destination 2 (2003)
Killing Ground (2016)
An American Crime (2007)
The Skeleton Key (2005)
Scream of Fear (1961)
Little Otik (2000)
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (1996)
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)
Guilty of Romance (2011)
Red Dragon (2002)
Troll Hunter (2010)
Piranha 3D (2010)
Blade (1998)
Censor (2021)
Images (1972)
Resident Evil (2002)
Retribution (2006)
Baskin (2015)
Chime (2024)
The Mummy (1999)
Flatliners (1990)
Clearcut (1991)
Megan Is Missing (2011)
The Seventh Curse (1986)
Cold Fish (2010)
This Night I’ll Possess Your Corpse (1967)
Dr. Caligari (1989)
Blind Beast (1969)
Dante’s Inferno (1911)
The Lure (2015)
Timecrimes (2007)
Gamera 2: Attack of Legion (1996)
Sick of Myself (2022)
Brainscan (1994)
Encounter of the Spooky Kind (1980)