Shudder Review: Low Price, Huge Horror Library—Worth It (2024)
We've tested Shudder for 5+ years and we're pleased to say that the horror streaming service is a value-packed horror buffet.
Is Shudder good?
You bet your chainsaw Shudder is good. Owned by AMC but curated by horror fans, the on-demand streaming service offers a blend of classic and contemporary horror movies, shows, and podcasts—including many exclusives and originals. It also has Shudder TV, a live channel with three themed streams.
Real horror fans should sign up for Shudder directly instead of as an add-on because Shudder’s native app offers the best experience. Direct signup is also the only way to get Shudder’s annual subscription deal, a 14% discount over the monthly rate, which is a fantastic deal. I’ve had the annual subscription for five years and it’s totally worth it.
To borrow a favorite phrase from the late horror film critic Chas Balun, Shudder really “delivers the gross-eries.” Learn why in our Shudder review.
Shudder deals and promotions: free trial, discounted annual plan, and more
Shudder has a free seven-day trial, and the annual Shudder subscription saves you 14% ($12 a year). Here are other ways to save money on Shudder:
- 30-day free trial codes: Look for codes in Shudder’s Blu-ray and DVD releases.
- Amazon Prime Video Channels: Prime puts its Channels (streaming services) on sale a few times a year (Prime Day and holiday sales). That’s how I first tried Shudder—at 50% off for three months.
- AMC+: Includes Shudder, the best of AMC, BBC America, IFC, and Sundance TV for only $8.99 monthly. Watch for deep discounts from Prime Video, too.
Shudder plans and pricing
Data as of post date.
Shudder has one plan and serves it a few different ways. The three best ways are direct from Shudder or as part of AMC+. Both services have monthly and annual subscription options.
We recommend subscribing to Shudder directly because the Shudder app offers the best experience for real horror fans with its fun design, curated categories, and three live channels. Also, remember that a direct subscription is the only way to get a discounted annual Shudder subscription.
Other ways to get Shudder include a YouTube TV add-on, YouTube Primetime Channel, and Amazon Prime Video Channel—all of which cost $6.99 monthly and have no annual option.
Shudder vs. the competition
In this table, Shudder is clearly superior to other horror streaming services in terms of price and library size—but inferior in resolution. What you don’t see in the table is Shudder’s library quality and excellent user experience. We’ll discuss this in more detail later.
For more info on Shudder’s rival horror merchants—like Screambox, Arrow Player, and Full Moon Features—head over to our Best Horror Streaming Services review.
| Service | Price | Free trial | Library size (estimated) | Streams | Resolution (up to) | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Best overall Shudder |
$6.99/mo. or $71.88/yr. | 7 days | 650+ | 1 | Up to 720p | View Plan |
|
Close second Screambox |
$6.99/mo. or $59.99/yr. | 7 days | 400+ | 3 | Up to 1080p | View Plan |
|
Must-have for cult movie fans Arrow Player |
$6.99/mo. or $69.99/yr. | 30 days | 600+ | Unavailable | Up to 4K | View plan |
|
Best for schlock Full Moon Features |
$6.99/mo. or $59.99/yr. | 7 days | 500+ | 3 | Up to 1080p | View Plan |
Data as of post date and subject to change.
Shudder movies and shows
Shudder’s library is the largest of any horror streaming service, with 650+ movies (we’ve seen the total climb to 700+), including many exclusives and originals.
The Shudder library also includes 40+ series (28 exclusive or original) and 7 podcasts (4 exclusive or original).
Also, Shudder is the streaming horror equivalent of Baskin-Robbins, with way more than 31 horror flavors:
Horror subgenres on Shudder
- Action
- Animation
- Anthology
- Asian
- Body horror
- Cannibal
- Classic
- Comedy
- Cosmic
- Creature/monster
- Demonic
- Exploitation
- Extreme
- Eurocult
- Folk
- Found footage
- Giallo
- Gothic
- Haunted house
- Nature/animal
- New French Extremity
- Occult
- Paranormal
- Post-apocalyptic
- Psychological
- Queer horror
- Sci-fi
- Slasher
- Splatter
- Supernatural
- Survival
- Vampire
- Werewolf
- Zombie
- . . . and more!
- A Field in England (2014)
- All the Colors of Giallo (2019)
- All About Evil (2010)
- An American Werewolf in London (1981)
- Anthropophagous (1980)
- Bad Moon (1996)
- The Babadook (2014)
- The Beyond (1981)
- Bird Boy: The Forgotten Children (2018)
- Black Roses (1988)
- Bloody Muscle Bodybuilder in Hell (1995)
- Brain Damage (1988)
- Calvaire (2004)
- Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
- Cemetery of Terror (1985)
- Children of the Corn (1984)
- Chopping Mall (1986)
- City of the Living Dead (1980)
- Darlin’ (2019)
- Day of the Dead (1985)
- The Deadly Spawn (1983)
- Deep Red (1975)
- Evil Dead Trap (1988)
- Frankenhooker (1990)
- Ginger Snaps trilogy (2000–2004)
- Halloween (1978)
- Hellraiser (1987)
- Hellraiser 2: Hellbound (1988)
- The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
- The House of the Devil (2010)
- The Howling (1981)
- Inside (2007)
- Intruder (1989)
- The Love Witch (2017)
- Maniac (1980)
- Martyrs (2008)
- Nekromantik (1987)
- Phantasm franchise**
- Phenomena (1985)
- Pieces (1982)
- The Prowler (1989)
- Re-Animator (1985)
- Summer of 84 (2018)
- Sweetie You Won’t Believe It (2022)
- Tenebrae (1982)
- Tetsuo the Iron Man (1989)
- The Slumber Party Massacre (1982 and 2022)
- The Stylist (2021)
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
- They Look Like People (2016)
- Things (1989)
- Tourist Trap (1979)
- Train to Busan (2016)
- Undead (2005)
- The Void (2017)
- The Wailing (2016)
- Wilczyca (1983)
- Yummy (2019)
- Zombie (1982)
Data as of post date and subject to change.
** Except Phantasm II
Shudder original and exclusive movies
Shudder shines in its exclusive and original content—34% of its library is either exclusively licensed to, or created by, Shudder.
It’s virtually all great stuff, especially The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs, where one of the all-time greatest horror hosts guides you through horror classics and not-so-classics through one marathon, six seasons, and 10 specials.
- The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (2023)
- Arcadian (2024)
- Amigo (2019)
- At Midnight I’ll Take Your Soul (1964)
- Attachment (2022)*
- Blood Quantum (2020)*
- Blood Relatives (2022)*
- Brooklyn 45 (2023)*
- Calvaire (2004)
- Color Out of Space (2020)
- Deadstream (2022)*
- Deep Red (1975)
- The Devil’s Bath (2024)
- Divinity (2023)
- Etheria Film Night 2024 (2024)
- Exhuma (2024)
- Faces of Death (1980)
- Fried Barry (2021)*
- The Furies (2019)*
- Hellbender (2022)*
- Horror Noire (2021)*
- Host (2020)*
- Huesera: The Bone Woman (2023)*
- Humane (2024)*
- In Search of Darkness Part III (2022)
- Influencer (2022)*
- Infested (2024)*
- The Innocents (2021)*
- Kids vs. Aliens (2023)*
- Kuso (2017)*
- Late Night with the Devil (2024)
- Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on The Exorcist (2020)*
- Luz (2018)
- Mad God (2021)*
- Mute Witness (1995)
- The Noonday Witch (2016)*
- One Cut of the Dead (2019)*
- Perpetrator (2023)
- Piranha (1978)
- Psycho Goreman (2020)*
- Revenge (2015)*
- Saloum (2021)*
- Satan’s Slaves (2017)*
- Scare Package (2020)*
- Scare Package II: Rad Chad’s Revenge (2022)*
- Sharknado (2013)
- Shrew’s Nest (2014)*
- Skinamarink (2023)*
- Skull: The Mask (2020)*
- Slash/Back (2022)*
- Sons of Steel (1988)
- Sorry About the Demon (2023)*
- Speak No Evil (2022)
- Starry Eyes (2014)
- Sweetie, You Won’t Believe It (2022)†
- Terrified / Aterrados (2017)*
- They Live in the Grey (2022)*
- This is GWAR (2022)*
- V/H/S 85 (2023)*
- V/H/S 94 (2021)*
- V/H/S 99 (2022)*
- What Josiah Saw (2022)
- When Evil Lurks (2023)
- A Wounded Fawn (2022)*
- The Witch in the Window (2018)*
- You’ll Never Find Me (2024)
- Zombie (1979)
Data as of post date and subject to change. * Denotes Shudder exclusive or original.
Shows on Shudder
Standouts among Shudder’s non-exclusive/original series include the first two seasons of Chucky (third season is exclusive to Peacock for now), Hannibal (all three seasons), and Preacher.
- The 101 Scariest Horror Movie Moments of All Time*
- A Discovery of Witches*
- Behind the Monsters*
- Beyond the Dark
- Blood Machines*
- The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula*
- The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Titans*
- Channel Zero
- Chucky (first two seasons)
- The Core*
- Creepshow*
- Cursed Films II*
- Deadhouse Dark*
- Deadwax*
- Doomsday
- Dracula
- Eli Roth’s History of Horror*
- Elvira’s 40th Anniversary, Very Scary, Very Special, Special*
- Hammer House of Horror
- Hannibal
- Holliston
- Horror’s Greatest (coming August 27)
- The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs*
- Moloch
- Nick Antosca Talks Channel Zero
- NOS4A2
- Orphan Black
- Orphan Black: Echoes (pilot only)
- Queer for Fear: The History of Queer Horror*
- Slasher: Flesh & Blood*
- Slasher: Ripper*
- Snowpiercer
- Stan Against Evil
- The Terror: Infamy
- Trickster
- True Horror*
- The Walking Dead: World Beyond
Data as of post date and subject to change. * Denotes Shudder exclusive or original.
Podcasts on Shudder
Joe Bob Briggs has a podcast, too: The Last Drive-In: Just Joe Bob. It’s not a traditional podcast, which we’d love to see, but something better. When a film leaves Shudder, the service has to pull down the corresponding The Last Drive-In episode. With Just Joe Bob, you get audio-only episodes to sync with your own copy of the film.
Another fantastic Shudder podcast is Horror Noire: Uncut, which has six episodes of content that didn’t make it into the Horror Noire documentary. The doc—and the Horror Noire anthology film are also Shudder originals.
- Congeria
- Darkest Night
- Deadly Manners
- Eli Roth’s History of Horror Uncut*
- Horror Noire Uncut*
- The Last Drive-In: Just Joe Bob*
- She Kills*
- Video Palace*
Data as of post date and subject to change. * Denotes Shudder exclusive or original.
Live TV on Shudder
Shudder’s titles stream live 24/7, and ad-free, on the app’s Shudder TV tab. You can choose from three different channels: It Came from Shudder (exclusives and originals), Psychological Thrillers (tense mind-scramblers), and Slashics (slasher movies).
Unfortunately, on some devices—like our Android phone, you can’t change channels. Shudder TV plays whichever feed you last watched on the last device you used to watch the service. (So, if you were watching Slashics, you can’t switch to Psychological Thrillers.)
Shudder specs and features
As streaming service features go, Shudder is a mixed bag. Aesthetically, it’s superb, blending nostalgia with modern design. Functionally, it’s smooth—but not as intuitive in some areas (like watchlist location). But we wish it had offline viewing, more user profiles, and more streams.
Shudder simultaneous streams
Shudder allows only one stream at a time, but we were able to stream on three devices at once. (Obviously, we can’t guarantee you the same results.)
Shudder app
Again, Shudder’s native app is the best Shudder experience. It has the most features, a fun interface and user experience, and it’s the cheapest way to subscribe if you go with the annual subscription.
The Shudder app is also compatible with many devices. So whether your streaming box of choice is a Roku or an Amazon Fire TV Stick, you’ll have easy access to the app, too.
Unfortunately, the Shudder app does not support downloading titles for offline viewing. Gaaaaaaahhh. Why? (Arrow Player, Full Moon Features, and Screambox do support downloads.)
Shudder compatible devices
| Shudder | |
|---|---|
| Amazon Echo Show and Fire Cube/Stick/TV | ✔ |
| Android phones, tablets | ✔ |
| Android TV | ✔ |
| Apple TV devices | ✔ |
| Chromecast, Chromecast with Google TV | ✔ |
| iPhones, iPads | ✔ |
| NVIDIA SHIELD TV Pro | ✔ |
| PC, Mac web browsers | ✔ |
| Playstation 3, 4, 5 | — |
| Roku Ultra, Express, Premiere, Stick, TV | ✔ |
| Samsung smart TV (select models) | ✔ |
| Xbox 360, One, and Series X | S | ✔ |
Data as of post date and subject to change.
As you can see, there is no shortage of device options with Shudder—ditto for its rivals. You probably already own at least one of these Shudder-compatible devices.
Shudder video and audio quality
We tested the Shudder mobile app on a Windows 10 laptop and a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3. We also tested the Shudder apps for the Xbox One on a 55” LG smart TV and the Shudder app for Roku Ultra on a 55″ Samsung smart TV (the QN90A). We also tested Shudder’s Prime Video Channel through the Prime Video app on Xbox One.
Shudder streams in full HD as long as your internet connection is strong. If your connection is laggy, the adaptive video resolution will scale down to a rez your connection can handle. In all of our tests, we seemed to stay around standard HD (720p). But you might experience different results.
David Dastmalchian as Jack Delroy in Late Night with the Devil. (Video screenshot from Shudder)
Shudder interface and playback features
| Live | On-Demand | |
|---|---|---|
| Pause | — | ✔ |
| Rewind | — | ✔ |
| Fast-forward | — | ✔ |
| 10-second jump | — | ✔ (back-only on PC) |
| Onscreen volume control | ✔ | ✔ |
| Subtitles | ✔ | ✔ |
| Commercials | — | — |
Shudder customer satisfaction
In our On-Demand Customer Satisfaction survey, we rated 12 top on-demand streaming services on overall customer satisfaction, price, reliability, and user experience. Shudder cleaned up with top ratings on 12 of 14 questions—an amazing feat for a niche horror streaming service, especially since its competition included the likes of Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu, MaxTM, Netflix, Paramount+ and Peacock.
"We love all horror movies and are always pleased with the variety of fills offered by Shudder."
Shudder review FAQ
How much is Shudder a month?
Shudder costs $6.99 a month or $71.88 a year ($5.99 monthly, which is about a 15% discount).
Is Shudder worth it?
Shudder is absolutely worth it. It has the largest catalog of any horror streaming service, with classics, cult favorites, and loads of exclusive and original content. Real horror fans should get the annual Shudder subscription, which is $71.88 a year (or $5.99 monthly—a 14% discount). Sign up for a free 7-day trial to check it out.
Is Shudder free with Prime?
Shudder is not free with Amazon Prime, but you can subscribe to Shudder through Amazon Prime Video. It’s the same price ($6.99 monthly) and has the same free 7-day trial—but you’ll get three simultaneous streams (Shudder allows only one). That said, we recommend subscribing to Shudder directly for the best experience.
Which is better: Shudder or Screambox?
Shudder is better than Screambox in terms of quality, quantity, and user experience—but Screambox is almost as good. Read our Screambox review to learn more.
Is it Shudder hard to cancel?
It’s pretty easy to cancel your Shudder subscription. If you subscribed through Shudder, click on “My Account” while signed into the Shudder app. Then, under “Membership Settings,” click “Cancel Membership.”
If you subscribed to Shudder through a third party (Amazon, the Apple App Store, Google Play, iTunes, PayPal, Roku, or YouTube TV), you’ll have to have to cancel Shudder through those services via a browser. The steps are similar.
Is Shudder free?
No. But you can try Shudder free for seven days. After that, it’s $6.99 a month or $71.88 a year for an annual subscription (a 15% discount, dropping your payment to $5.99 a month).
Methodology
CableTV.com’s TV experts have hundreds of hours’ experience researching and testing Shudder. In our research, we look at other horror streaming services, comparing them based on price, catalog, features, and more. We then present the data, along with expert recommendations, to our readers in these reviews. To learn more about our process, see our How We Rank page.
