The best mystery podcasts to listen to in 2023

We’d be doing a disservice to all of you if we didn’t include the first smash-hit podcast there ever was. While the first legendary season of Serial follows the story of a high school murder and a (potential) false conviction, each subsequent season tells a completely different story. The first and third seasons are must-listen podcasts, but you can probably skip the second. The show officially finished in 2018, but since 2020 the feed has been filled with similar podcasts that are also worth a listen. You can also check out our list of podcasts like Serial for even more recommendations.

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Next up is another one of the best murder mystery podcasts, this time focusing on a killing spree that started in 1979. A fictionalized version was included in the excellent Netflix original series Mindhunter, but if you aren’t familiar with it, 28 children and adults were murdered over a two-year period, and cops were eager to pin the murders on the first suspect they find. But is he the real killer? More than 40 years later, this mystery podcast tries to find out.

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Homecoming is one of the best fictional mystery podcasts out there, eventually getting picked up by Amazon for a Prime Original series starring Julia Roberts. The podcast series is also a star-studded affair, featuring Catherine Keener, Oscar Isaac, and David Schwimmer among others. It’s better if you go into the story cold, but without spoiling too much it’s about a caseworker at an experimental facility for soldiers returning home from war. The story unfolds over two seasons, and you’ll be at the edge of your proverbial seat. This one is a Spotify-exclusive podcast.

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S-Town is short, but it’s one of my favorite mystery podcasts of all time. On the surface, it’s a (true) investigative podcast about a reporter looking into some wild allegations that a curious man has about his podunk town in Alabama. However, along the way, the two develop a special relationship, and the mystery only deepens. The series finished years ago and at just eight episodes it’s ripe for the binging.

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Up and Vanished is hosted by the same person as Atlanta Monster above, and it’s another murder mystery podcast in the same vein as Serial. Each of the three seasons follows a different murder, re-interviewing witnesses and digging up old leads. Unfortunately, there are long gaps between seasons, so don’t expect a season four any time soon.

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This Australian murder mystery podcast covers the real-life murders of three Aboriginal Australians in the titular town of Bowraville. The host attempts to solve the cold case more than 30 years later, and the result has been called Australia’s Serial. If you’re on the fence, it’s short at just five episodes long, so you can binge the whole thing over a few long commutes.

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This is perhaps the strangest mystery podcast on the list, but as the title implies, it’s about 90s fitness guru Richard Simmons. It’s a low-stakes dive into the recent disappearance of Richard Simmons from public life, presented in a Serial-style narrative format. It’s an interesting and entertaining series that doesn’t take long to finish and brings up some interesting issues about the celebrity culture we have today.

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Want a mystery podcast with a bit of sci-fi horror and a lot of weirdness? Spines is a radio drama from ZoomDoom Stories about a woman who wakes up surrounded by what appears to be the remnants of a cult ritual. The first few episodes will be confusing, but watching (or hearing?) the mystery unfold over the full 24 episodes is an experience you won’t soon forget. If you want more, check out the follow-up series Mirrors.

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We have one more radio drama to include in our list of the best mystery podcasts, and this one was also adapted into an (ill-fated) Netflix original series. Presented as a found-footage narrative, it follows archivist Dan as he restores tapes that a young woman made in the 90s in a mysterious apartment complex. There are elements of horror, sci-fi, mystery, and the paranormal throughout the three-season series.

Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts