The best Halloween movies do not all need to be terrifying. Some are cozy family favorites you can watch with a bowl of candy corn and a 7-year-old. Others are the kind of horror movies that make you check the locks twice before bed. The trick is picking the right one for the room.
This list covers 25 picks across four groups: family classics, spooky comedies, all-time horror greats and modern scares. Each comes with its year and rating, so you can plan a movie night that fits your crowd. Streaming availability changes often, so we have left that out. A quick search on a service like JustWatch will show you where each title is streaming this October.
Table of Contents
How we picked these Halloween movies
We looked for films that feel like Halloween, not just films that happen to be scary. That means costumes, jack-o’-lanterns, witches, ghosts, haunted houses and small towns in October. We balanced long-loved classics with newer titles, and we tried to cover every age group.
We also skipped movies that are extremely graphic for their own sake. Plenty of fans love gore, but for most households, a great Halloween movie night is about atmosphere, fun and a few good jumps.
Family classics for all ages
These are the best Halloween movies to watch with kids, most of them rated PG or made for TV.
1. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
The Peanuts special is short, gentle and full of small jokes that land for adults too. Linus waiting all night in the pumpkin patch is one of the most quietly funny scenes in any holiday special, and it runs less than half an hour, which makes it perfect for very young viewers.
2. Hocus Pocus (1993), PG
The Sanderson sisters, played by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy, are brought back to life in Salem on Halloween night. The film was not a big hit at first, but repeated TV airings turned it into a generational favorite. Disney released a sequel, Hocus Pocus 2, in 2022.
3. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), PG
Jack Skellington, the king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas and decides to take it over. Directed by Henry Selick from a story by Tim Burton, the stop-motion musical works for both October and December, and its songs have become holiday staples.
4. Casper (1995), PG
A friendly ghost, a lonely girl played by Christina Ricci and a crumbling mansion in Maine. It is sweet more than scary, with a surprisingly emotional ending that younger viewers remember for years.
5. Halloweentown (1998), TV-G
This Disney Channel movie follows a girl who learns she comes from a family of witches and follows her grandmother, played by Debbie Reynolds, to a town where it is Halloween all year. It is pure comfort viewing for anyone who grew up in the late 1990s.
6. Monster House (2006), PG
Three kids become convinced the creepy house across the street is alive, and they are right. The animation gives it the feel of a classic 1980s kids’ adventure, with a few genuinely tense moments for older children.
7. Coraline (2009), PG
Based on Neil Gaiman’s novella and directed by Henry Selick, Coraline follows a girl who finds a hidden door to a seemingly perfect version of her life, with a terrible catch. It is beautiful and deeply unsettling, so it suits kids around 9 and up better than little ones.
8. ParaNorman (2012), PG
A boy who can talk to ghosts has to save his town from a centuries-old curse. The stop-motion studio Laika mixes real scares with warmth and humor, and the film’s message about fear and understanding gives families something to talk about afterward.
Spooky but fun: comedies and crowd-pleasers
For teenagers and mixed groups, these films bring the Halloween mood with more laughs than screams.
9. Ghostbusters (1984), PG
Four scientists start a ghost-catching business in New York City. The special effects, the theme song and Bill Murray’s deadpan delivery have kept it popular for four decades. The original PG rating is a little looser than today’s, so preview it if your kids are young.
10. Beetlejuice (1988), PG
A recently deceased couple hires a chaotic “bio-exorcist” to scare the new owners out of their house. Tim Burton’s style is all over it, and Michael Keaton’s performance is wild in the best way. A sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, arrived in 2024.
11. The Addams Family (1991), PG-13
Gomez, Morticia and Wednesday bring their gloriously gloomy family to the big screen, with Christina Ricci as a perfectly deadpan Wednesday. It is dark comedy that most teenagers will enjoy.
12. Practical Magic (1998), PG-13
Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman play sisters from a family of witches dealing with love, a curse and a very inconvenient ghost. It is more romantic than scary, and the midnight margarita scene is famous for a reason.
13. Shaun of the Dead (2004), R
Edgar Wright’s British zombie comedy stars Simon Pegg as a slacker who barely notices the apocalypse at first. It is a loving parody of zombie films and a genuinely good one at the same time.
14. What We Do in the Shadows (2014), R
A mockumentary about vampire roommates in New Zealand arguing over chores, from Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. It later inspired a popular TV series, but the original film is short, sharp and endlessly quotable.
All-time horror greats
These are the horror movies that shaped the genre. Most are rated R and are best for adults and older teens.
15. The Exorcist (1973), R
William Friedkin’s story of a girl possessed by a demon was a cultural event when it opened, with reports of audience members fainting in theaters. It still feels intense more than 50 years later.
16. Halloween (1978), R
John Carpenter made one of the most profitable independent films of its era on a small budget, and in doing so helped create the modern slasher movie. Jamie Lee Curtis became a horror icon as Laurie Strode, and Carpenter’s simple piano theme still gives people chills.
17. The Shining (1980), R
Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novel follows a family snowed in at an isolated hotel as the father, played by Jack Nicholson, slowly loses his mind. It is more about dread than jump scares, and it rewards repeat viewing.
18. Scream (1996), R
Wes Craven’s clever slasher plays with horror movie rules while still delivering real scares. It revived the genre in the 1990s and launched a long-running franchise.
19. Trick ‘r Treat (2007), R
This anthology of connected stories takes place on a single Halloween night in a small Ohio town. It was barely released in theaters but has become a cult favorite, and it may be the most purely “Halloween” movie on this list.
Modern scares
Horror has had a creative boom over the past 15 years. These newer films are some of the best.
20. The Conjuring (2013), R
James Wan’s haunted house story, based on the case files of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, is old-fashioned in the best way. It spawned one of the biggest horror franchises in history.
21. Get Out (2017), R
Jordan Peele’s debut follows a young Black man visiting his white girlfriend’s family, where something is very wrong. Sharp, funny and frightening, it won the Academy Award for best original screenplay.
22. A Quiet Place (2018), PG-13
John Krasinski directs and stars in a story about a family surviving in near silence, because creatures hunt by sound. The PG-13 rating makes it one of the better options for teenagers who want real tension without heavy gore.
23. Hereditary (2018), R
Ari Aster’s debut is a family drama that turns into something truly disturbing, anchored by a remarkable performance from Toni Collette. It is not for the faint of heart.
24. Talk to Me (2023), R
Australian brothers Danny and Michael Philippou made this story about teenagers who use an embalmed hand to contact spirits, treating possession like a party game until it goes horribly wrong. It became one of the breakout horror hits of its year.
25. Sinners (2025), R
Ryan Coogler’s film stars Michael B. Jordan as twin brothers who return to their Mississippi hometown in the 1930s to open a juke joint, only to face a supernatural threat. It blends horror, music and history, and it was one of the most talked-about films of 2025.
A short history of Halloween movies
Horror movies are almost as old as cinema itself, but the modern Halloween movie season really begins with the Universal monster films of the 1930s. Dracula and Frankenstein, both released in 1931, turned Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff into stars and gave Halloween costumes some of their most lasting characters.
The holiday itself became a setting in 1978, when John Carpenter’s Halloween showed how much fear could come from an ordinary suburban street on Oct. 31. Made on a budget of roughly $300,000, it earned tens of millions of dollars and started a wave of imitators. The 1980s slasher boom followed, with franchises such as Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street filling theaters every fall.
By the mid-1990s, the genre felt tired, until Scream made fun of its rules and brought audiences back. In the 2010s, studios like Blumhouse showed that low-budget horror movies with strong ideas could become huge hits, and directors such as Jordan Peele and Ari Aster pushed the genre into more ambitious territory. Today, a new Halloween movie or two arrives in theaters almost every October, and horror is one of the most reliable genres at the box office.
Honorable mentions
Twenty-five picks only go so far. If you have already seen the list above, these are worth adding to your queue:
- Hocus Pocus 2 (2022), PG, the long-awaited return of the Sanderson sisters
- Hotel Transylvania (2012), PG, an easy family comedy about Dracula’s hotel
- Frankenweenie (2012), PG, Tim Burton’s black-and-white stop-motion tale of a boy and his dog
- Corpse Bride (2005), PG, a gothic animated romance
- Goosebumps (2015), PG, a lively adaptation of the R.L. Stine books
- Poltergeist (1982), PG, a haunted suburban house that still scares adults
- The Others (2001), PG-13, an elegant ghost story starring Nicole Kidman
- A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), R, the film that introduced Freddy Krueger
- The Babadook (2014), unrated in the U.S., a grief-soaked Australian horror movie
- Us (2019), R, Jordan Peele’s follow-up to Get Out
- Weapons (2025), R, a mystery about a classroom of missing children that became one of last year’s biggest horror hits
Any of these could easily swap into the main list depending on your taste. That is the fun of Halloween movie debates: nobody fully agrees, and everyone has a favorite they will defend.
Picks for tweens and young teens
The hardest group to plan for is often kids between about 10 and 13. They are too old for cartoons and too young for most R-rated horror. For them, the best Halloween movies are ones with real tension but limited gore: Coraline, ParaNorman, Monster House, Goosebumps, Ghostbusters and A Quiet Place are all good options.
Watching a scarier horror movie together, with a parent in the room, can also be a nice rite of passage. Pause when needed, talk about how the filmmakers create suspense, and let kids decide when they have had enough.
How to choose the right Halloween movie
Start with the youngest or most easily scared person in the room. A great horror movie can ruin the night if a 10-year-old ends up sleeping in your bed for a week.
Ratings are a useful guide, but they do not tell the whole story. A PG film from the 1980s can include language or scares that would earn a PG-13 today, and some PG-13 films are more frightening than R-rated ones. Parent guides from services such as Common Sense Media describe what is actually in each movie.
Think about the mood too. A big group with snacks and chatter works well with comedies and crowd-pleasers. A small group willing to turn off the lights and put away phones can handle something slower and more atmospheric.
Perfect double features
Pairing two films can make a night feel like an event. A few combinations that work well:
- Hocus Pocus and Practical Magic, for a witchy night with laughs
- Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas, for stop-motion fans
- Halloween and Scream, to see how the slasher changed over 20 years
- Get Out and Sinners, two modern horror films with a lot to say
- Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice, a 1980s double bill for the whole family
Start with the lighter film and end with the scarier one, so anyone who wants to leave can bow out halfway.
Why we love being scared
It seems strange that people would choose to feel afraid, but researchers who study “recreational fear” say it makes sense. A scary movie triggers the body’s fight-or-flight response, with a racing heart and a rush of adrenaline, but in a completely safe setting. When the fear passes, many people feel a sense of relief and even energy.
Watching horror movies with friends can also bring people closer. Screaming together, laughing at yourself afterward and talking about the ending all create shared memories. Some studies have suggested that horror fans may even have coped slightly better with real-world anxiety, perhaps because they practice handling fear in a controlled way.
Not everyone enjoys it, and that is fine. The best Halloween movies list above includes plenty of options with more charm than terror.
Tips for a great movie night
A few small touches can turn an ordinary evening into a Halloween tradition:
- Turn off the overhead lights and use lamps, candles or string lights
- Make themed snacks, such as popcorn with candy corn or “mummy” hot dogs
- Let each person vote for one film, then draw the final pick from a hat
- Keep blankets ready for hiding behind
- Plan a lighter movie or cartoon for younger kids before the grown-up film
If you are hosting, check the running time. Many classic Halloween movies are under two hours, which leaves room for a second film or a costume contest.
Best Halloween movies: common questions
What is the most popular Halloween movie?
Hocus Pocus is one of the most-watched Halloween movies every October, especially among families, while Halloween (1978) remains the defining horror film of the season.
What are good Halloween movies for young kids?
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, Casper, Halloweentown and The Nightmare Before Christmas are gentle choices. Coraline and ParaNorman suit slightly older kids.
What are the scariest Halloween movies?
The Exorcist, Hereditary and The Shining are often named among the scariest films ever made.
Is Hocus Pocus scary for kids?
It is rated PG and has some mild scary moments, but most children over about 7 enjoy it.
Where can I stream these movies?
Availability changes often. Check a streaming search site such as JustWatch for current options.
Pick one family classic and one real scare, and you have a Halloween night sorted. For more entertainment stories, see our entertainment section and our guide to why K-dramas are so popular.
