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Horror movies are one of the most profitable film genres despite budgets that often include high-end special effects and CGI scares. But budgets on these scary flicks can vary greatly and the big box office winners aren't always the movies that spend the most. Just like budgeting your paycheck, it's how you spend, not just how much you spend, that's important.
Below you can compare production budgets for the 50 top-grossing horror movies. You'll see that spending more doesn't always lead to more box office success. All numbers have been adjusted for inflation to make it easier to compare older films with newer films. Studios often don't share production budgets so these are our best estimates after comparing multiple sources.
Production budgets of the top 50 highest-grossing horror movies
| Rank Adjusted for Inflation | Movie | Year | Worldwide Box Office Gross (Adjusted for Inflation) | Production Budget (Adjusted for Inflation) |
| 1 | The Exorcist | 1973 | $2,216,070,406 |
$62,101,695 |
| 2 | Jaws | 1975 | $2,103,225,366 |
$53,619,512 |
| 3 | Jaws 2 | 1978 | $817,746,771 |
$78,290,598 |
| 4 | I Am Legend | 2007 | $779,575,492 |
$199,709,302 |
| 5 | It | 2017 | $715,933,184 |
$35,741,360 |
| 6 | Alien | 1979 | $674,050,453 |
$39,048,606 |
| 7 | The Silence of the Lambs | 1991 | $599,918,460 |
$43,515,439 |
| 8 | Hannibal | 2001 | $566,593,386 |
$140,798,587 |
| 9 | Interview with the Vampire | 1994 | $501,924,463 |
$112,254,902 |
| 10 | What Lies Beneath | 2000 | $490,619,098 |
$152,949,907 |
| 11 | Bram Stoker's Dracula | 1992 | $476,458,376 |
$88,289,157 |
| 12 | It: Chapter Two | 2019 | $469,566,806 |
$70,000,000 |
| 13 | Prometheus | 2012 | $463,118,858 |
$143,844,221 |
| 14 | Aliens | 1986 | $452,570,080 |
$41,973,046 |
| 15 | The Blair Witch Project | 1999 | $447,722,047 |
$1,081,890 |
| 16 | The Ring | 2002 | $391,339,300 |
$75,676,420 |
| 17 | Poltergeist | 1982 | $379,192,903 |
$33,337,415 |
| 18 | Sleepy Hollow | 1999 | $373,375,196 |
$126,220,472 |
| 19 | The Nun | 2018 | $365,386,113 |
$22,120,746 |
| 20 | Scream | 1996 | $358,621,591 |
$31,085,973 |
| 21 | The Conjuring | 2013 | $357,999,843 |
$22,533,825 |
| 22 | Alien 3 | 1992 | $349,845,783 |
$121,397,590 |
| 23 | Scream 2 | 1997 | $343,975,564 |
$47,895,425 |
| 24 | Resident Evil: Afterlife | 2010 | $343,499,060 |
$66,755,387 |
| 25 | A Quiet Place | 2018 | $336,714,632 |
$17,093,304 |
| 26 | The Others | 2001 | $336,241,681 |
$27,512,367 |
| 27 | Resident Evil: The Final Chapter | 2017 | $332,620,451 |
$42,358,382 |
| 28 | The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist | 2016 | $328,490,730 |
$42,358,382 |
| 29 | Hollow Man | 2000 | $324,933,581 |
$152,949,907 |
| 30 | The Haunting | 1999 | $324,907,553 |
$144,251,969 |
| 31 | Alien: Resurrection | 1997 | $320,699,782 |
$119,738,562 |
| 32 | The Amityville Horror | 1979 | $315,427,045 |
Unknown |
| 33 | Annabelle: Creation | 2017 | $311,853,441 |
$15,317,726 |
| 34 | Devil’s Advocate | 1997 | $305,348,149 |
$113,751,634 |
| 35 | Deep Blue Sea | 1999 | $297,606,647 |
$108,188,976 |
| 36 | Wolf | 1994 | $294,134,239 |
$157,156,863 |
| 37 | Annabelle | 2014 | $287,988,292 |
$7,287,638 |
| 38 | Split | 2017 | $284,659,095 |
$9,190,635 |
| 39 | Resident Evil: Retribution | 2012 | $276,926,166 |
$74,798,995 |
| 40 | The Grudge | 2004 | $276,247,184 |
$14,750,403 |
| 41 | Halloween | 1978 | $275,089,675 |
$1,272,222 |
| 42 | Scream 3 | 2000 | $275,034,652 |
$67,977,737 |
| 43 | Anaconda | 1997 | $273,400,869 |
$89,803,922 |
| 44 | A Quiet Place: Part II | 2021 | $268,842,303 |
$61,000,000 |
| 45 | Get Out | 2017 | $257,848,521 |
$5,105,909 |
| 46 | Halloween | 2018 | $256,798,829 |
$10,054,885 |
| 47 | Us | 2019 | $256,091,919 |
$20,000,000 |
| 48 | Frankenstein | 1994 | $251,465,116 |
$101,029,412 |
| 49 | I Know What You Did Last Summer | 1997 | $249,954,430 |
$33,925,926 |
| 50 | Alien: Covenant | 2017 | $243,573,537 |
$99,054,627 |
The money needed to produce a highly-acclaimed horror movie also varies widely. The top two most highly-rated horror movies according to Rotten Tomatoes have budgets of $20 million (Us) and $5 million (Get Out), a 4X difference. On the list of the 50 best horror movies below, you'll see budgets ranging from $43 million (The Silence of the Lambs) all the way down to $167,000 (The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari).
Production budgets of the 50 best horror movies
| Rotten Tomatoes Rank | Rotten Tomatoes Rating | Movie | Year | Production Budget
(Adjusted for Inflation) |
| 1 | 93% | Us | 2019 | $20,000,000 |
| 2 | 98% | Get Out | 2017 | $5,105,909 |
| 3 | 99% | The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari) | 1920 | $167,144 |
| 4 | 96% | A Quiet Place | 2018 | $17,093,304 |
| 5 | 97% | Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horror (Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens) (Nosferatu the Vampire) | 1922 | Unknown |
| 6 | 98% | King Kong | 1933 | $26,763,130 |
| 7 | 96% | Psycho | 1960 | $7,442,532 |
| 8 | 91% | The Invisible Man | 2020 | $7,000,000 |
| 9 | 98% | The Bride of Frankenstein | 1935 | $9,380,000 |
| 10 | 98% | The Babadook | 2014 | $2,242,350 |
| 11 | 100% | Frankenstein | 1931 | $4,865,897 |
| 12 | 90% | The Lighthouse | 2019 | $4,000,000 |
| 13 | 89% | Hereditary | 2018 | $10,054,885 |
| 14 | 98% | Let the Right One In | 2008 | $5,820,132 |
| 15 | 95% | It Follows | 2015 | $2,173,191 |
| 16 | 95% | Freaks | 1932 | $6,002,193 |
| 17 | 97% | Night of the Living Dead | 1968 | $9,116,588 |
| 18 | 97% | Aliens | 1986 | $41,973,046 |
| 19 | 96% | The Silence of the Lambs | 1991 | $43,515,439 |
| 20 | 96% | Rosemary's Baby | 1968 | $22,375,573 |
| 21 | 96% | Halloween | 1978 | $1,272,222 |
| 22 | 98% | Eyes Without a Face | 1962 | Unknown |
| 23 | 95% | Repulsion | 1965 | $1,630,000 |
| 24 | 95% | Pan's Labyrinth | 2006 | $25,615,100 |
| 25 | 100% | Host | 2020 | Unknown |
| 26 | 90% | The Witch | 2016 | $3,706,358 |
| 27 | 92% | The Cabin in the Woods | 2012 | $34,522,613 |
| 28 | 94% | Possessor: Uncut | 2020 | Unknown |
| 29 | 94% | The Invisible Man | 1933 | $6,784,393 |
| 30 | 86% | It | 2017 | $35,741,360 |
| 31 | 95% | Don't Look Now | 1973 | $6,585,598 |
| 32 | 92% | Relic | 2020 | Unknown |
| 33 | 98% | The Friends of Eddie Coyle | 1973 | Unknown |
| 34 | 95% | The Birds | 1963 | $29,538,029 |
| 35 | 94% | Young Frankenstein | 1974 | $13,715,508 |
| 36 | 98% | The Vanishing (Spoorloos) | 1988 | $274,668 |
| 37 | 88% | Ready or Not | 2019 | $6,000,000 |
| 38 | 93% | Godzilla (Gojira) | 1954 | $1,782,669 |
| 39 | 92% | Drag Me to Hell | 2009 | $36,640,000 |
| 40 | 96% | A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night | 2014 | $1,167,098 |
| 41 | 95% | House of Wax | 1953 | $10,045,467 |
| 42 | 95% | The Fly | 1958 | $4,659,878 |
| 43 | 94% | Dracula | 1931 | $5,932,877 |
| 44 | 83% | Midsommar | 2019 | $9,000,000 |
| 45 | 93% | Carrie | 1976 | $7,740,845 |
| 46 | 95% | Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (Nosferatu the Vampyre) | 1979 | $5,595,961 |
| 47 | 95% | The Evil Dead | 1981 | $1,090,476 |
| 48 | 94% | The Innocents | 1961 | $12,200,000 |
| 49 | 95% | Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn | 1987 | $8,199,488 |
| 50 | 98% | The Loved Ones | 2012 | $4,603,015 |
Low-budget vs high-budget horror movies
Which delivers more scares? A high-budget horror movie full of expensive special effects and well-known actors or a low-budget slasher film shot on a shoestring budget?
Below you'll find horror movies made for less than $2 million, followed by a list of some of the most expensive horror films ever made — those costing over $100 million to make.
Low-budget horror movies (under $2 million budget)
| Movie | Production Budget
(Adjusted for Inflation) |
| Friday the 13th | $1,872,862 |
| Godzilla (Gojira) | $1,782,669 |
| Repulsion | $1,630,000 |
| Halloween (1978) | $1,272,222 |
| A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night | $1,167,098 |
| The Evil Dead (1981) | $1,090,476 |
| The Evil Dead | $1,090,476 |
| The Blair Witch Project | $1,081,890 |
| The Invitation | $1,058,960 |
| Paranormal Activity | $797,130 |
| Texas Chainsaw Massacre | $685,775 |
| The Vanishing (Spoorloos) | $274,668 |
| The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari) | $167,144 |
| Night of the Living Dead | $114,000 |
High-budget horror movies (over $100 million budget)
| Movie | Production Budget (Adjusted for Inflation) |
| I Am Legend | $199,709,302 |
| Wolf | $157,156,863 |
| What Lies Beneath | $152,949,907 |
| Hollow Man | $152,949,907 |
| The Haunting | $144,251,969 |
| Prometheus | $143,844,221 |
| Hannibal | $140,798,587 |
| Sleepy Hollow | $126,220,472 |
| Alien 3 | $121,397,590 |
| Alien: Resurrection | $119,738,562 |
| Devil’s Advocate | $113,751,634 |
| Interview with the Vampire | $112,254,902 |
| Deep Blue Sea | $108,188,976 |
| Frankenstein | $101,029,412 |
A final word
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