Sitting around the campfire and need a scary story, but don’t know any or not good at telling them? Leave it to the professionals! Below are the best spooky podcasts Spotify has to offer that will creep out your entire crew.
1. Jim Harold’s Campfire
Jim Harold’s Campfire wins the award on this list for longest playing show. He has been producing spooky stories since 2009 and the experience shows in the high-quality in this podcast.
Spotify features his latest shows with new casts being published weekly. What is so interesting about this podcast is that he doesn’t narrate other people’s stories. Instead, listeners call in and share their own creepy stories themselves. I have listened to A LOT of scary podcasts, and I haven’t heard one like this!
Listening to someone tell their own story, rather than hearing it narrated by someone else, definitely raises the level of believability and the scare-factor! Why this is perfect for around the campfire is that there is no music or special effects, just someone sharing their story, so it feels as if they could be your buddy sitting around the fire telling it to you themselves.
Each episode is over 90 minutes and shares multiple stories per podcast. To see all of the recent episodes from Jim Harold’s Campfire, click here.
2. Chilling Tales for Dark Nights
If you prefer a more cinematic experience, Chilling Tales for Dark Nights is for you! Written by professional authors and read by voice actors with special effects and background music, these podcasts take the campfire spooky story up a notch.
Each podcast features multiple scary stories read by different narrators. With 50 episodes, each containing several stories, Chilling Tales for Dark Nights could be your go-to channel for all night campfire tales.
To see the entire playlist of episodes on this channel, click here.
3. Nightmare Society
If you’re looking for true stories (or at least stories they claim to be true…with a scary story does it really matter?) look no further than the Nightmare Society. Their list of creepy campfire tales range from around 15 minutes to about 30 minutes long.
The stories are layered with light ambient music and special effects, such as the sound of a car passing by, making it more realistic. What is really nice about their podcast is that you don’t have to fast forward through an opening segment or any advertisements, they just start right in with the story. This will maintain the spooky mood if you want to go right from one podcast to the next.
Stories are read in a first-person point of view and the narrator’s voice is low and steady, well-suited for telling campfire tales.
To see the entire collection from the Nightmare Society, click here.
4. Dr. NoSleep
For more short stories, all 10 minutes or less, that will creep out everyone at your campfire, try Dr. NoSleep. Find classic stories, such as the Lady in the White Dress, and stories taking place at a lake or in the forest. The narrators voice lends itself well to telling scary stories around a campfire and the podcast intro is very short, getting you to the story quickly.
There is a long list of different stories available on the Dr. NoSleep channel, and it appears that new ones are being added frequently.
To see the entire collection from Dr. NoSleep, click here.
5. Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told in the Dark
Another podcast featuring multiple scary stories per episode is Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told in the Dark. With some episodes being over 2 hours long, this podcast will last longer than some pieces of your firewood.
The podcast features stories from many authors, giving you a variety of styles and themes. For me, this had the classic campfire story feel as there isn’t ambient music in the recording. The narrator’s voice sounds like something from an old radio show and is perfect for setting a creepy tone for your campfire. It is simple yet perfect.
To hear the entire playlist from Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told in the Dark, click here.
6. Scary Stories
If you’re looking for something a little different to listen to around your campfire, this is the podcast for you! What feels like a scary campfire story combined with a guided meditation, Scary Stories seems to try to calm your nerves only to rattle them later.
The narrator’s voice is soothing and comforting, yet the stories she is reading are scary folk tales. What is really different about this podcast is that the psychology behind where these tales came from and why they scare us is discussed which is creepy in itself. The ambient music layered behind the podcast adds to the disharmony and unnerving combination of relaxation and terror.
Each episode is around 30 minutes long and is updated regularly. To see the entire playlist of Scary Stories podcasts, click here.
7. Scary Stories & Rain
For another unique campfire story experience, give Scary Stories & Rain a listen! This podcast layers rain sounds behind the reading of spooky stories. Varying in length, but around 35-55 minutes each, Scary Stories & Rain feature a minimalist, campfire-style tale told in first-person.
The narrator’s voice is low and steady, perfect for a spooky story around the campfire. To see the entire collection of Scary Stories & Rain, click here.
8. Horror Hill
Horror Hill is a weekly published podcast featuring voice actor Jason Hill reading spooky stories from several talented contributing authors. Each cast is around an hour and a half, offering plenty of chilling moments per episode!
The podcast is delivered in seasons and episodes and some can be listened to in succession, or by themselves. Jason Hill’s voice lends itself well to spooky campfire stories and also does voices of characters at times.
This podcast may contain language for a mature audience. To see the entire collection of stories fro Horror Hill, click here.
9. Something Scary
With multiple short, spooky stories per episode, Something Scary offers many 30 minute casts that will creep you out. What is different about this podcast is that she doesn’t read the same ghost stories we have heard many times over. Instead, she reads unique stories that are listener-submitted, and even some from classic authors such as Edgar Allan Poe.
These are creepy stories made even more spooky with the addition of well-done special effects and sounds, it feels a little more cerebral that your average scary story podcast.
To hear all of the casts from The Something Scary Podcast, click here.
10. Spooky Boo’s Scary Story Time
What is fun about Spooky Boo’s Scary Story Time is that all of the unique stories take place in the fictional town of Sandcastle, Northern California. These are campfire stories you won’t hear anywhere else!
With a minimalist storytelling style, Spooky Boo’s is perfect for a classic campfire story feel. There is no music or special effects layered into the audio. The narrator doesn’t overkill trying to make her voice sound spooky, but the scary tales from Sandcastle contrasted with her pleasant voice are unnerving.
There are many episodes and they are added to regularly with each cast between around 10-30 minutes long. To see the entire collection from Spooky Boo’s Scary Story Time, click here.
11. Kowabana
The Kowabana podcast features Japanese scary stories read in a minimalist way with occasional ambient sounds. Every week a new creepy story from Japan is translated and read by the narrator.
Stories range from 30 minutes to 45 minutes long and there is an extensive list of casts with new ones being added regularly. If you’re looking for stories your friends at the campfire have probably never heard before, Kowabana is the podcast for you!
To see the list of casts from Kowabana, click here.
12. Real Scary Podcast
Sometimes, talking about a scary story is as creepy as simply hearing it be told. This is the case for the Real Scary Podcast.
Each episode the narrator discusses what they claim are true stories of horror and the paranormal in a cast that ranges from 30 minutes to 50 minutes long. You will hear the story, but also research the author has done on the tale, adding little details that raise the creepy factor!
The audio is minimalist and perfect to listen to around a campfire. This was one of my favorites to stumble across because the backstory and research adds to the richness of the stories.
To see the entire list of stories from the Real Scary Podcast, click here.
13. Scary Stories-Around the Fire with Uncle Guts
If you are looking for the most well-known campfire stories, the Uncle Guts album is what you are after. This is an album on Spotify, not a podcast, so there are only 6 very short stories with no more being added, but these are the stories everyone has heard over and over (and still loves to hear).
Classics such as The Monkey’s Paw, the Hitchhiker, and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow are included. These don’t have the same level of scare-factor as the other scary stories I’ve listed from Spotify, but sometimes you are just in the mood for some well-loved folklore or urban legends and this album fits the bill!
The narrator’s voice is layered over scary music and sound effects, and the stories are told in a way that make them appropriate for adults or children to listen to.
Listen to Scary Stories-Around the Fire with Uncle Guts here.
14. S’More Scary Stories
This is a newcomer, but already has 11 episodes with short stories to enjoy! What makes S’More Scary Stories unique is that the podcast asks listeners to write in with true, creepy events that they claim to have really happened to them and the narrator retells these true tales.
While there is no proof that any of these listener-submitted tales are true, what is certain is that these are stories that you won’t hear anywhere else on the web, and the guests at your campfire will get to hear a unique, spine-chilling story that they haven’t heard a million times over.
The narrator has a steady voice and can tell a good tale, and the casts are layered over ambient music to help set the mood.
To hear all of the “true stories” from S’More Scary Stories, click here.
15. Scary Story Podcast
The Scary Story Podcast offers a creepy story in under 10 minutes! Most of the stories are told in the style of first-person accounts of events. As of today, the podcast features just under 50 different short, scary stories, and the collection is still being added to.
There is no music layered with the stories, just the narrators voice making this a perfect, classic campfire story podcast.
The narrator for Scary Story Podcast has a great voice for this type of storytelling and the short stories are quite enjoyable…in a creepy and mysterious way.
To see the entire list of episodes from the Scary Story Podcast channel, click here.
16. Bigfoot Collectors Club
If there are only adults sitting around your campfire and you don’t mind the occasional curse word, you should bring up Bigfoot Collectors Club. With a combination of narrated stories and radio-style interviews, this podcast covers all things paranormal, obviously including Bigfoot.
Ghosts, UFO’s, and mysterious disappearances, the Bigfoot Collectors Club brings on guests such as mediums and witch doctors to comment on listener-submitted stories, or guests with first-hand creepy or supernatural stories.
At over an hour long, some of these podcasts also narrate, in class campfire tale style, stories of real disappearances in the woods who some attribute to Bigfoot. The hosts have done their research and these are creepy to listen to on your couch, let alone in a forest where you are more likely to hear a twig snap not far from camp…
The Bigfoot Collectors Club is published weekly and, with their well-researched stories, quality hosting, and interesting commentary, it will not disappoint. To see the entire catalog of podcasts, click here.
17. Fort Fritz: Campfire Tales
Another radio show style podcast, Fort Fritz: Campfire Tales covers real stories of murder and all things mysterious. These casts don’t just read the news reports. They dig into them, offering details you won’t hear elsewhere and that will send a chill up your spine.
The voices of the 3 narrators are layered over haunting music, adding to the spooky vibe. With many episodes and under 15 minutes, you will be able to dive into many creepy stories in one night.
Fort Fritz: Campfire Tales, though short, has no fluff to fast-forward through and gets right to the scary tales and tidbits. To see the entire list of episodes, click here.
18. Camp Monsters from REI
If you want that old-time, campfire story experience, Camp Monsters is for you! This podcast covers all things backwoods creature, from The Jersey Devil to the Ozark Howler.
Hear the old lore that has been passed down through generations about mysterious and terrifying monsters you wouldn’t have been able to look up in your schoolbooks. The podcasts don’t stop there, adding reporting from modern incidents some attribute to these same, chilling creatures making you feel like they may not just be legends.
The narrator’s voice is perfect for describing spooky beasts from the forests of North America and bringing a creepy vibe to your campfire. Each episode is under 30 minutes and may have you question whether or not you should just pack up your tent and head back to the safety of home!
To see the entire list of episodes from REI’s Camp Monsters, click here.
19. Classic Ghost Stories
To round out our list of chilling campfire podcasts on Spotify, Classic Ghost Stories must be added.
This podcast is simple, yet incredibly effective at bringing out a creepy vibe. Talented narrator, Tony Walker, reads the classics, bringing us stories from as far back as the 1800’s.
Just because they are old, don’t think that it means that they are dull! These are stories you probably have never heard, but should. The authors he has chosen to feature were incredible writers who could put down a chilling tale!
With a new cast produced each week, there are many stories to choose from, and each episode ranges from under 15 minutes to just under an hour. This podcast will make you feel sophisticated while simultaneously creeping you out!
To see the entire list of episodes from Classic Ghost Stories, click here.
Bonus: Hillbilly Horror Stories
I would do you a diservice is I didn’t mention Hillbilly Horror Stories!
Hosted by comedian Jerry Paulley and his wife, Tracy, the duo brings us both creepy tales of unsolved crimes, ghosts, the paranormal that will both freak you out and make you laugh at the same time.
There is no other podcast like Hillbilly Horror Stories, and to see the entire list of episodes, click here.
* As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Cooking with a tripod over a fire feels a little like I should be camping next to my covered wagon. It’s old school, rustic, and pretty darn fun. But, if you’re going to cook over an open fire, make sure you get one that’s sturdy! This Lodge tripod is the model that I use and I don’t think it will every give out on me or need replaced. Get yours here and start your campfire cooking adventure now!
Cat is a nature lover who wants to help you make the most of your family and friend time in the great outdoors by offering helpful tips about fire pits, backyard activities, and camping. Learn more about Cat here.
