Most audiences go to the movies in search of a thrill. While genres such as action and drama can offer excitement in their own right, no type of film is more thrilling than a horror film. Horror generates a visceral reaction rarely found in other kinds of movies – producing a primal fear that twists the viewers’ stomachs into knots.

The type of horror films with the biggest audience impact has changed over the years. The artistic experiments of the 1970s gave way to the Jason, Freddy, and Michael Myers-driven slasher craze of the 1980s. The films of the 1990s differentiated themselves by adopting an increased self awareness of tropes developed in the 80s with popular movies like “Scream” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer.” Audiences then flocked to darker, more gruesome movies like “Saw” and “Hostel” in the mid-2000s.

And while violence remains a feature of many new releases, the genre has continued to evolve with franchises such as the Purge films. (A new installment, a prequel called “The First Purge,” is being released July 4.)

24/7 Wall St. has looked at user and critic online ratings of horror films to determine the best of the genre.

Click here to see the 100 best horror films of all time.
Click here to see the 100 worst horror films of all time.

Regardless of new trends, fans also love sequels to popular titles. For instance, there have been 12 films in the Friday the 13th series. There are 10 entries in the Halloween series, and an 11th is due for release this October. Yet while most of these sequels manage to make a profit, only one in every five movies on the list of best horror movies is a sequel. The films that are most loved by audiences are the initial, most impactful, releases of the franchise.

Modern audiences also appear to prefer more recent releases to older classics. Of the 100 films listed, 65 came out in 2000 or later. Only 20 were released prior to 1990. While this may be upsetting to some diehard horror fans, it also illustrates the ever-changing nature of an ever-popular genre.

To determine the best horror movies of all time, 24/7 Wall St. created an index based on each film’s Rotten Tomatoes average critic rating, Rotten Tomatoes average audience rating, and Internet Movie Database average user rating. To be considered, each film needed to have at least 10,000 total user votes between IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, as well as 10 approved Tomatometer critic reviews, and be categorized as “horror” on IMDb. We averaged the user ratings from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb, weighted by the number of votes for each. The combined user rating was then averaged with the Rotten Tomatoes critic rating. Domestic box office gross data comes from reporting service Box Office Mojo and is not adjusted for inflation.

Certain films that were considered as being too far outside the genre were removed from consideration.

100. Daybreakers (2009)
> Directed by: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
> Starring: Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Sam Neill
> Domestic box office gross: $30.10M

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99. The Jacket (2005)
> Directed by: John Maybury
> Starring: Adrien Brody, Keira Knightley, Daniel Craig
> Domestic box office gross: $6.30M

98. The Omen (1976)
> Directed by: Richard Donner
> Starring: Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, Harvey Stephens
> Domestic box office gross: $4.27M

97. Let Me In (2010)
> Directed by: Matt Reeves
> Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Chloë Grace Moretz, Richard Jenkins
> Domestic box office gross: $12.13M

96. The Purge: Anarchy (2014)
> Directed by: James DeMonaco
> Starring: Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo, Zach Gilford
> Domestic box office gross: $71.96M

95. Predator 2 (1990)
> Directed by: Stephen Hopkins
> Starring: Danny Glover, Gary Busey, Kevin Peter Hall
> Domestic box office gross: $30.67M

94. Tremors (1990)
> Directed by: Ron Underwood
> Starring: Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward, Finn Carter
> Domestic box office gross: $16.67M

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93. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012)
> Directed by: Timur Bekmambetov
> Starring: Benjamin Walker, Rufus Sewell, Dominic Cooper
> Domestic box office gross: $37.52M

92. The Lost Boys (1987)
> Directed by: Joel Schumacher
> Starring: Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Dianne Wiest
> Domestic box office gross: $32.22M

91. Final Destination 2 (2003)
> Directed by: David R. Ellis
> Starring: A.J. Cook, Ali Larter, Tony Todd
> Domestic box office gross: $46.96M

90. Scream 2 (1997)
> Directed by: Wes Craven
> Starring: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette
> Domestic box office gross: $101.36M

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89. Mother! (2017)
> Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
> Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris
> Domestic box office gross: $17.80M

88. Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
> Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
> Starring: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Wentworth Miller
> Domestic box office gross: $60.13M

87. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
> Directed by: George A. Romero
> Starring: Duane Jones, Judith O’Dea, Karl Hardman
> Domestic box office gross: $0.09M

86. Blade: Trinity (2004)
> Directed by: David S. Goyer
> Starring: Wesley Snipes, Kris Kristofferson, Parker Posey
> Domestic box office gross: $52.41M

85. Underworld Awakening (2012)
> Directed by: Måns Mårlind, Björn Stein
> Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Michael Ealy, India Eisley
> Domestic box office gross: $62.32M

84. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
> Directed by: George A. Romero
> Starring: David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger
> Domestic box office gross: $5.10M

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83. AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)
> Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
> Starring: Sanaa Lathan, Lance Henriksen, Raoul Bova
> Domestic box office gross: $80.28M

82. What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
> Directed by: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi
> Starring: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Cori Gonzalez-Macuer
> Domestic box office gross: $3.33M

81. Hostel (2005)
> Directed by: Eli Roth
> Starring: Jay Hernandez, Derek Richardson, Eythor Gudjonsson
> Domestic box office gross: $47.33M

80. Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)
> Directed by: James Wan
> Starring: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey
> Domestic box office gross: $83.59M

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79. The VVitch: A New-England Folktale (2015)
> Directed by: Robert Eggers
> Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie
> Domestic box office gross: $25.14M

78. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
> Directed by: Tobe Hooper
> Starring: Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger
> Domestic box office gross: $30.86M

77. The Purge (2013)
> Directed by: James DeMonaco
> Starring: Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder
> Domestic box office gross: $64.47M

76. The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
> Directed by: Alexandre Aja
> Starring: Ted Levine, Kathleen Quinlan, Dan Byrd
> Domestic box office gross: $41.78M

75. Evil Dead (2013)
> Directed by: Fede Alvarez
> Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas
> Domestic box office gross: $54.24M

74. Pandorum (2009)
> Directed by: Christian Alvart
> Starring: Dennis Quaid, Ben Foster, Cam Gigandet
> Domestic box office gross: $10.33M

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73. Event Horizon (1997)
> Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
> Starring: Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill, Kathleen Quinlan
> Domestic box office gross: $26.67M

72. From Hell (2001)
> Directed by: Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes
> Starring: Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, Ian Holm
> Domestic box office gross: $31.60M

71. Poltergeist (1982)
> Directed by: Tobe Hooper
> Starring: JoBeth Williams, Heather O’Rourke, Craig T. Nelson
> Domestic box office gross: $76.61M

70. Saw III (2006)
> Directed by: Darren Lynn Bousman
> Starring: Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, Angus Macfadyen
> Domestic box office gross: $80.24M

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69. 30 Days of Night (2007)
> Directed by: David Slade
> Starring: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Danny Huston
> Domestic box office gross: $39.57M

68. Annihilation (2018)
> Directed by: Alex Garland
> Starring: Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson
> Domestic box office gross: $32.73M

67. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
> Directed by: Alexander Witt
> Starring: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Eric Mabius
> Domestic box office gross: $51.20M

66. Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
> Directed by: Russell Mulcahy
> Starring: Milla Jovovich, Ali Larter, Oded Fehr
> Domestic box office gross: $50.65M

65. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
> Directed by: Tommy Wirkola
> Starring: Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton, Peter Stormare
> Domestic box office gross: $55.70M

64. Life (2017)
> Directed by: Daniel Espinosa
> Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds
> Domestic box office gross: $30.23M

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63. Evil Dead II (1987)
> Directed by: Sam Raimi
> Starring: Bruce Campbell, Sarah Berry, Dan Hicks
> Domestic box office gross: $5.92M

62. A Quiet Place (2018)
> Directed by: John Krasinski
> Starring: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds
> Domestic box office gross: $186.59M

61. The Fly (1986)
> Directed by: David Cronenberg
> Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Geena Davis, John Getz
> Domestic box office gross: $40.46M

60. Carrie (1976)
> Directed by: Brian De Palma
> Starring: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving
> Domestic box office gross: $33.80M

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59. It Follows (2014)
> Directed by: David Robert Mitchell
> Starring: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi
> Domestic box office gross: $14.67M

58. Drag Me to Hell (2009)
> Directed by: Sam Raimi
> Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Ruth Livier
> Domestic box office gross: $42.10M

57. Army of Darkness (1992)
> Directed by: Sam Raimi
> Starring: Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert
> Domestic box office gross: $11.50M

56. Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010)
> Directed by: Eli Craig
> Starring: Tyler Labine, Alan Tudyk, Katrina Bowden
> Domestic box office gross: $0.22M

55. Don’t Breathe (2016)
> Directed by: Fede Alvarez
> Starring: Stephen Lang, Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette
> Domestic box office gross: $89.22M

54. Orphan (2009)
> Directed by: Jaume Collet-Serra
> Starring: Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Fuhrman
> Domestic box office gross: $41.60M

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53. The Birds (1963)
> Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
> Starring: Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Jessica Tandy
> Domestic box office gross: $11.40M

52. Blade II (2002)
> Directed by: Guillermo del Toro
> Starring: Wesley Snipes, Kris Kristofferson, Ron Perlman
> Domestic box office gross: $82.35M

51. Pi (1998)
> Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
> Starring: Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, Ben Shenkman
> Domestic box office gross: $3.22M

50. Alien: Resurrection (1997)
> Directed by: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Winona Ryder, Dominique Pinon
> Domestic box office gross: $47.75M

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49. Gremlins (1984)
> Directed by: Joe Dante
> Starring: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton
> Domestic box office gross: $148.17M

48. Paranormal Activity (2007)
> Directed by: Oren Peli
> Starring: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Mark Fredrichs
> Domestic box office gross: $107.92M

47. The Evil Dead (1981)
> Directed by: Sam Raimi
> Starring: Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Richard DeManincor
> Domestic box office gross: $2.40M

 

46. Alien: Covenant (2017)
> Directed by: Ridley Scott
> Starring: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup
> Domestic box office gross: $74.26M

45. Dracula (1992)
> Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
> Starring: Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins
> Domestic box office gross: $82.52M

44. Sinister (2012)
> Directed by: Scott Derrickson
> Starring: Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, James Ransone
> Domestic box office gross: $48.09M

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43. Silent Hill (2006)
> Directed by: Christophe Gans
> Starring: Radha Mitchell, Laurie Holden, Sean Bean
> Domestic box office gross: $46.98M

42. The Conjuring 2 (2016)
> Directed by: James Wan
> Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Madison Wolfe
> Domestic box office gross: $102.47M

41. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
> Directed by: Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez
> Starring: Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, Joshua Leonard
> Domestic box office gross: $140.54M

40. Grindhouse (2007)
> Directed by: Robert Rodriguez, Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino
> Starring: Kurt Russell, Rose McGowan, Danny Trejo
> Domestic box office gross: $25.03M

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39. Planet Terror (2007)
> Directed by: Robert Rodriguez
> Starring: Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Josh Brolin
> Domestic box office gross:

38. Dark Shadows (2012)
> Directed by: Tim Burton
> Starring: Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Eva Green
> Domestic box office gross: $79.73M

37. Final Destination (2000)
> Directed by: James Wong
> Starring: Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith
> Domestic box office gross: $53.33M

36. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
> Directed by: Wes Craven
> Starring: Heather Langenkamp, Johnny Depp, Robert Englund
> Domestic box office gross: $25.50M

35. Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
> Directed by: Roman Polanski
> Starring: Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon
> Domestic box office gross: N/A

34. Saw II (2005)
> Directed by: Darren Lynn Bousman
> Starring: Donnie Wahlberg, Beverley Mitchell, Franky G
> Domestic box office gross: $87.04M

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33. Warm Bodies (2013)
> Directed by: Jonathan Levine
> Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer, John Malkovich
> Domestic box office gross: $66.38M

 

32. Resident Evil (2002)
> Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
> Starring: Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Ryan McCluskey
> Domestic box office gross: $40.12M

31. Halloween (1978)
> Directed by: John Carpenter
> Starring: Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tony Moran
> Domestic box office gross: $47.00M

30. Pitch Black (2000)
> Directed by: David Twohy
> Starring: Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, Vin Diesel
> Domestic box office gross: $39.24M

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29. Alien 3 (1992)
> Directed by: David Fincher
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Charles S. Dutton, Charles Dance
> Domestic box office gross: $55.47M

28. Blade (1998)
> Directed by: Stephen Norrington
> Starring: Wesley Snipes, Stephen Dorff, Kris Kristofferson
> Domestic box office gross: $70.09M

27. 1408 (2007)
> Directed by: Mikael Håfström
> Starring: John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack
> Domestic box office gross: $71.99M

26. Dawn of the Dead (2004)
> Directed by: Zack Snyder
> Starring: Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Mekhi Phifer
> Domestic box office gross: $59.02M

25. Insidious (2010)
> Directed by: James Wan
> Starring: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins
> Domestic box office gross: $54.01M

24. 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
> Directed by: Dan Trachtenberg
> Starring: John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Gallagher Jr.
> Domestic box office gross: $71.90M

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23. Scream (1996)
> Directed by: Wes Craven
> Starring: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette
> Domestic box office gross: $103.05M

22. The Mist (2007)
> Directed by: Frank Darabont
> Starring: Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden
> Domestic box office gross: $25.59M

21. From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
> Directed by: Robert Rodriguez
> Starring: Harvey Keitel, George Clooney, Juliette Lewis
> Domestic box office gross: $25.75M

20. Split (2016)
> Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
> Starring: James McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy, Haley Lu Richardson
> Domestic box office gross: $138.29M

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19. The Ring (2002)
> Directed by: Gore Verbinski
> Starring: Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox
> Domestic box office gross: $129.13M

18. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994)
> Directed by: Neil Jordan
> Starring: Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas
> Domestic box office gross: $105.26M

17. It (2017)
> Directed by: Andy Muschietti
> Starring: Bill Skarsgård, Jaeden Lieberher, Finn Wolfhard
> Domestic box office gross: $327.48M

16. Sleepy Hollow (1999)
> Directed by: Tim Burton
> Starring: Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson
> Domestic box office gross: $101.07M

15. The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
> Directed by: Drew Goddard
> Starring: Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison
> Domestic box office gross: $42.07M

14. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
> Directed by: Tim Burton
> Starring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman
> Domestic box office gross: $52.90M

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13. The Others (2001)
> Directed by: Alejandro Amenábar
> Starring: Nicole Kidman, Christopher Eccleston, Fionnula Flanagan
> Domestic box office gross: $96.52M

12. Cloverfield (2008)
> Directed by: Matt Reeves
> Starring: Mike Vogel, Jessica Lucas, Lizzy Caplan
> Domestic box office gross: $80.05M

11. Get Out (2017)
> Directed by: Jordan Peele
> Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford
> Domestic box office gross: $176.04M

10. The Thing (1982)
> Directed by: John Carpenter
> Starring: Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, Keith David
> Domestic box office gross: $13.78M

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9. The Exorcist (1973)
> Directed by: William Friedkin
> Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Linda Blair
> Domestic box office gross: $232.91M

8. Saw (2004)
> Directed by: James Wan
> Starring: Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell, Danny Glover
> Domestic box office gross: $56.00M

7. The Conjuring (2013)
> Directed by: James Wan
> Starring: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston
> Domestic box office gross: $137.40M

6. Zombieland (2009)
> Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
> Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson
> Domestic box office gross: $75.59M

5. World War Z (2013)
> Directed by: Marc Forster
> Starring: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, Daniella Kertesz
> Domestic box office gross: $202.36M

4. I Am Legend (2007)
> Directed by: Francis Lawrence
> Starring: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan
> Domestic box office gross: $256.39M

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3. Psycho (1960)
> Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
> Starring: Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles
> Domestic box office gross: $32.00M

2. Alien (1979)
> Directed by: Ridley Scott
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt
> Domestic box office gross: $78.90M

1. The Shining (1980)
> Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
> Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd
> Domestic box office gross: $44.02M

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