Scientific study reveals scariest horror movie – with one 2026 title breaking heart rate record
Published on 09/10/2026 - 10:33 GMT+2 Halloween is creeping up and many of you will be wondering: “What should I be watching to get in the mood for the big night?” Well,...
Published on 09/10/2026 - 10:33 GMT+2
Halloween is creeping up and many of you will be wondering: “What should I be watching to get in the mood for the big night?”
Well, if you're sticking to rigorous scientific research, we can reveal what the scariest films are – with no accounting for taste or your tolerance for jump scares.
The Science of Scare Project, now in its seventh year, tracks the pulses of hundreds of volunteers, who watch hours of English-language horror movies whilst fitted with heart rate monitors.
Their scientific study establishes a Scare Score system, which combines both heart rate (measured in beats per minute - BPM) and heart rate variability (HRV - measured in milliseconds), which measures the time in between each beat of your heart. Peak heart rate is also taken into consideration, with the highest point proving to be a valuable indicator and leading to an overall ranking of the scariest horror movies.
Scroll down for the Top 20 scariest films according to the study.
This year, 15 new contenders, including breakout hits Obsession and Backrooms, challenged horror favourites, while not yet cracking the Top 20. A24's paranormal podcast horror film Undertone is scientifically the scariest movie of 2026 and took the overall position of 33 in the rankings.
Most notably for this year’s study, Resident Evil broke a jump-scare record held by the film which has remained at the Number 1 spot for the last four years - with Zach Cregger‘s 2026 release recording a heart rate peak of 134 BPM.
For general reference, a normal resting heart rate for both adult women and men typically falls between 60 and 100 beats per minute (healthiest being between 70 and 80).
However, the top spot still belongs to Scott Derrickson’s 2012 supernatural horror film Sinister.
The film raised viewers’ average heart rate by 34%, from 64 to 86 BPM, with its most terrifying moment reaching 131 BPM. Its combination of sudden shocks and lingering dread earned it a Scare Score of 96/100.
Here’s the list of the 20 scariest horror movies according to the study:
- Sinister
- Host
- Skinamarink
- Insidious
- The Conjuring
- Hereditary
- Smile 2
- Smile
- The Exorcism of Emily Rose
- Talk To Me
- Hell House LLC
- The Conjuring 2
- It Follows
- The Dark and the Wicked
- The Descent
- Paranormal Activity
- The Babadook
- A Quiet Place 2
- The Autopsy of Jane Doe
- Insidious 2
Check out the full rankings and methodology in detail here.
As we’ve previously noted when it comes to the Science of Scare’s findings, the results are largely dominated by modern horror films which employ jump scares. It tracks considering the methodology is centred around heartbeats; however, many dreadheads and gorehounds consider the ubiquitous cattle-prod tactic to be cheap and an overused ploy to illicit easy frights. They’re great for a quick adrenaline rush, but many would argue that the jump scare startles rather than actually scares.
Do heart rate modulations necessarily equate to a film being the scariest? It's a valuable metric, but not necessarily synonymous with films that manage to burrow under your skin and set up camp. Those are the long-term scariest.
Still, if the Science of Scare’s study gets people watching the very underrated The Autopsy of Jane Doe, who are we to grumble?
