Haunted houses ranked | Halloween Horror Nights 2025 at Universal Studios Hollywood (California)
Here is my personal ranking of all eight haunted houses from Halloween Horror Nights 2025 at Universal Studios Hollywood, including “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” “Terrifier,” and everything in between.
Halloween Horror Nights 2025 (HHN) is upon us and with it comes eight fully themed and realized haunted houses full of scares and surprises at Universal Studios Hollywood near Los Angeles, Calif. Here are a full rundown of the houses and my personal rankings. It’s always good to keep in mind everyone’s experience can vary widely, as each walk through a haunted house can be quite different simply based on timing.
(See our separate coverage if you’re looking for rankings of Orlando Halloween Horror Nights haunted houses over on the east coast.)
What I personally look for in a haunted house is attention to detail in all the design elements. I love it when the environment is fully immersive. I appreciate it when lighting instruments, speakers, and the stuff we’re not supposed to see are hidden well. I am a poor judge of scare factor as I’m not a jumpy person, which is what a traditional haunted house typically uses to scare its guests.
Now, without further ado, here are my official haunted house rankings for Halloween Horror Nights 2025 at Universal Studios Hollywood from least to most favorite, along with our videos inside each haunted house:
#8.) ‘Fallout‘
Official Description: Face your fears in post-apocalyptic LA. You’ll be attacked by raiders alongside Lucy. You’ll confront the bounty hunter, The Ghoul. You’ll even encounter Maximus with the Brotherhood of Steel.
My review: If you’re someone who likes a good façade at the entrance to a haunted house, you’ll be disappointed with this one. There is simply a banner letting you know it’s the entrance to the “Fallout” haunted house. As someone who isn’t familiar with the TV show, I wasn’t entirely sure what was going on. It features a variety of locations, but it wasn’t always clear how they are connected to telling a story. It also felt like the shortest length of all the haunted houses. One of the pros for this haunted house is that it takes place inside a real building as opposed to under a temporary tent. The indoor air conditioning is appreciated on a hot SoCal night.
#7.) ‘Poltergeist‘
Official Description: Restless spirits have overrun the infamous house atop a cemetery from the classic film, and they’re drawn to you. You’ll be lured up into the house by the TV’s glowing whisper and cross into another world. Enter a surreal landscape, where your sense of wonder will soon shift to horror as you’re menaced by the rage-fueled Beast. Don’t get lost in the light.
My review: The façade for this haunted house is quite impressive as you walk through a scaled replica of the iconic “Poltergeist” house. Overall, I like this one a lot. It’s down toward the bottom of my list because there are more black hallways than I’d like and some of the puppets are a bit cheesy. But the final section walking through the vertical caskets in the cemetery full of scareactors is quite impressive and makes for one of my favorite overall scenes in any of the haunted houses at 2025’s Halloween Horror Nights.
#6.) ‘WWE Presents: The Horrors of The Wyatt Sicks‘
Official Description: Enter the eerie arena of The Wyatt Sicks, where you’ll go through an ominous doorway into the maniacal minds of Uncle Howdy, Rambling Rabbit, Mercy the Buzzard, Abby the Witch and Huskus the Pig.
My review: Not knowing much about these WWE characters, this haunted house gave me “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” vibes. It features some mirror and invisible wall effects that are well utilized, and the house is full of performers around every corner. It’s not clear to me what the relationship is between the characters other than they all seem to have a screw loose in their heads.
#5.) ‘Jason Universe‘
Official Description: Come face to face with the iconic horror villain Jason Voorhees. Step into the terrifying world of this silent killer. Flee through the woods and into his sinister shack. Enter the summer camp where his gruesome legend began. Jason is back and nothing can save you now!
My review: Even if you’ve never seen the “Friday the 13th” films, everyone knows the iconic hockey mask worn by Jason Vorhees. A Halloween Horror Nights haunted house featuring such a horror staple automatically makes this a can’t-miss. There are some funny kills including marshmallow skewers down the throat. I also enjoy how some of the victims are urban explorers who are caught by Jason. It’s refreshing to not simply be walking through a single “Friday the 13th” movie and instead be getting a sort of “best of” for Jason.
#4.) ‘Terrifier‘
Official Description: Nothing can prepare you for this grisly haunted house based on all three of Damien Leone’s “Terrifier” films. Try your luck against the sadistic Art the Clown in his twisted funhouse. Witness Art’s gleefully grotesque handiwork of torture. You’ll be left literally dripping with terror and drenched with fear. It’s a whole new level of gore!
My review: As one of the most anticipated haunted houses of Halloween Horror Nigths 2025, the kills don’t disappoint in “Terrifier.” This haunted house features the same sort of demented humor fans have grown to love from the “Terrifier” films. Although I enjoyed this house, there is one thing that bothered me considerably. Art the Clown’s mask is distracting. Unlike the Art makeup seen on the character running throughout the park, Art is wearing a full mask in the house, entirely covering the performer’s face. This immediately takes me out of it every time Art appears. The excessive use of masks at Halloween Horror Nights in recent years is a general complaint I have. But it felt even more disappointing here knowing there is a better option strolling through the park.
#3.) ‘Scarecrow: Music by Slash‘
Official Description: At an abandoned Depression-era farm, vengeance takes root. The only harvest that will be reaped is you. Features and original score by Slash.
My review: It doesn’t get much more traditional than scarecrows and harvest during the fall season. This horrific twist on autumn staples simply feels like Halloween. You’ll never look at an ear of corn the same way again after experiencing this haunted house. The music by Slash does add good energy that you might not expect in a rustic setting.
Speaking of rustic, one odd choice during this season’s event is the placement of this maze near “Jason Universe” and “The Horrors of the Wyatt Sicks.” These three haunted houses are all located on the Lower Lot of the theme park, but all three of them have an organic, rustic feel and often feature barns. Having three mazes with similar aesthetics near each other feels like an odd choice and repetitive when going through one right after the other.
#2.) ‘Monstruos 3: The Ghosts of Latin America‘
Official Description: La Muerte leads you into the shadows, where three ghostly legends are ready to haunt your every step. The darkness is calling.
My review: The Monstruos tradition at California’s Halloween Horror Nights never disappoints. Even before entering the haunted house, our narrator stands in front of the façade beginning the tale. My favorite portion is La Llorona, featuring oversized puppets and props. The location of this haunted house has the added benefit of surrounding buildings in the park adding to its scale with fitting architecture.
#1.) ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s‘
Official Description: You wouldn’t last one night at Freddy’s, let alone five. You’re about to be hunted by deadly animatronics Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy as you flee through creepy, abandoned hallways.
My review: “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is the exact sort of haunted house I believe people have come to expect from Halloween Horror Nights. It features an iconic movie property, places you inside convincing settings, and features Hollywood-level effects. Even if you’re not familiar with the franchise, the first scene immediately places you in a kid’s restaurant we’ve all grown up with some version of. The animatronic characters featured in the movie are recreated beautifully here and truly give you a sense of walking directly into the film. I also enjoy the media created to play on the monitors throughout the haunted house. This haunted house is firing on all cylinders.
In addition to the haunted houses, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood offers “Terror Tram: Enter the Blumhouse” where you’ll get to walk on the famed Universal Studios backlot, the returning live stunt show “The Purge: Dangerous Waters,” a projected anime short in the DreamWorks Theatre entitled “Chainsaw Man – The Chaos,” plus scare zones and more.
For more Attractions Magazine coverage the event, check out our event guide, our picks for the best HHN food this year, and our backstage tour with creative director John Murdy.
Jeff DePaoli is an event producer living in Los Angeles. He is the producer and host of “That Halloween Podcast” and works throughout the year with Halloween events including Midsummer Scream and Creep It Real OC, as well as the event he founded, Wicked New England. Learn more and claim free gifts at DePodcastNetwork.com.
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