We all know that feeling when we’re out alone at night, and our mind starts playing games with us. You can be in the safest neighborhood on Earth, but your mind will still plant the thought of “what if?” in your mind. For some, though, these thoughts unfortunately came true. It’s hard to imagine the terror for a regular person, but the famous serial killers on this list were genuinely terrifying. You can get chills running down your spine by just reading about them. Imagine living at the time and in the area when they were active. No horror movie can even come close.
While most of these famous murderers were active in the ‘80s and ‘90s, it’s still terrifying to think of. Most of us witness scary things at some point in our lives, but the terror of not having any remote communication tools and being alone in a dark alley is nothing compared to the worries of today. Some terrifying people are still around, but at least if something happens, we have significantly advanced infrastructure around. Phones, law enforcement, and GPS trackers greatly increase our safety, whichever of the scary travel destinations we choose.
It’s hard to wonder just what made them act in a way that they did. What makes a regular person a murderer? That is the question you’d have to spend hours of research on to answer. And to make matters worse, some of the most prolific serial killers looked like your regular Joe, a friendly neighbor you break bread with on BBQ weekends. You’d think you might have overheard some chilly conversations at some point if they were so close, but you couldn’t be more wrong.
Take your time and explore this terrifying list of famous serial killers. We warn you, though, it’s no easy read. So, prepare yourself for some extreme gut-wrenching. Share this list with those also interested in serial killers and chilly stories. Most important of all, stay safe.
#1 John Wayne Gacy, The Killer Clown
In the 1970s, John Wayne Gacy led an apparently everyday life as a successful Chicago businessman and a respected member of his community. But it wasn’t long before he was dubbed The Killer Clown due to his participation in charity and fundraising events where he would dress as a clown to entertain children. Gacy was arrested in 1978 after the police found the bodies of 33 young men and teenagers buried in the walls and basement of his home. He was convicted and executed by lethal injection in 1994.
73points
#2 Gary Ridgway, The Green River Killer
With 49 victims (and many others suspected but never confirmed), the Green River Killer is the most prolific serial killer in the U.S. after Samuel Little. Most of Ridgway’s victims were sex workers and women in vulnerable circumstances, including teenage runaways. The press gave him his nickname after his first victims were found in the Green River around Seattle.
67points
#3 Ted Bundy
Ted Bundy was handsome, charismatic, and well-liked on the outside. But this facade merely masked a sadistic and sociopathic personality that would lead him to kill women and young girls during his reign as a murderer from 1974 to 1978. After years of denial, he confessed to killing more than 30 victims, but it’s believed that he may have actually killed more than 36 people across seven states. Ted Bundy was so cold-hearted that even one member of his last defense team described him as “the very definition of heartless evil.”
66points
#4 Jeffrey Dahmer, The Milwaukee Cannibal
Who has never heard of him? Famous for eating and preserving body parts, Jeffrey Dahmer was caught after one of his victims managed to escape and lead the police back to his home. There, the police officers found some severed heads and proceeded with the arrest. Dahmer was later sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 17 boys and men. He was beaten to death in 1994 by a fellow inmate who swore God told him to do it.
65points
#5 Luis Garavito, The Beast
Active in Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela in the ’90s, Luis Garavito confessed to killing at least 193 boys and teenagers, most of whom were homeless and came from poor neighborhoods. Despite his confession, which already makes him an incredibly prolific murderer, he’s suspected of killing more than 300 children. The Beast was charged with a 40-year sentence (the maximum allowed by Colombian law at the time), but this was later reduced to 22 years for helping the police find some of the bodies. He’ll be eligible for parole in 2023.
64points
Who Are the Most Notorious Serial Killers of All Time?
There is no unit of measurement to weigh just how notorious serial killers were. It’s sickening to call one more “merciful” and the others more notorious. And we can only assume the level of their tortures. There are some creepy pics around, but we believe that an average person's brain just couldn’t comprehend the absolute nightmare the victims had to endure. However, one thing that might show who was the most flashy with their “methods” is the popularity of their names across social media, even after all these years.
Some of the most popular notorious serial killers include names like:
- Jack the Ripper
- Jeffrey Dahmer
- Harold Shipman
- H.H. Holmes
- Pedro Lopez
- Ted Bundy
Digging into it, we could probably find even more names who made their mark in this category. But honestly, the fact that there are even categories is beyond sickening. The level of cruelty is so high that even if someone escaped their attacker, that scary experience would be so hard to believe you’d think they’re making it up. So we’ll leave it up to you to decide who was the most cruel on this list.
#6 Richard Ramirez, The Night Stalker
Richard Ramirez’s murderous rampage in California in the 1980s earned him the reputation as one of the most famous American serial killers. He was arrested in 1985 and was convicted, among other crimes, for the murder of 13 people, for which he never showed any remorse. In 2021, Netflix released a documentary about him featuring first-person interviews, footage, reenactments, and original photos related to the case.
63points
#7 Andrei Chikatilo, The Butcher Of Rostov
Frustrated by his chronic impotence, Andrei Chikatilo turned to violence to relieve his deep self-hatred. In 1978, he began to lure women and children from bus stops and train stations to abuse and murder them. He was finally caught by the Soviet police only several years later and was executed in 1994 for 52 murders, despite claiming he’d committed 56 killings.
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58points
#8 Harold Shipman, Dr. Death
Just by that nickname, you can imagine where this is going. Dr. Harold Shipman, a British general practitioner from Nottingham, is widely considered one of the worst serial killers in modern history by number of victims. Convicted of 15 murders, police estimate the actual number adds up to 250 people who died under his care between 1975 and 1998. He hanged himself in his cell in 2004.
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57points
#9 The Zodiac Killer
A killer with no name. The Zodiac Killer is the pseudonym of an unidentified person who left behind a series of unsolved murders committed in Northern California in the late 1960s. The Zodiac Killer was the first to use his nickname in a series of threatening letters and cards he mailed to regional newspapers. The Zodiac Killer’s case has captured the country’s attention and inspired amateur detectives to try and crack the case.
49points
#10 Edmund Kemper, The Co-Ed Killer
Edmund Kemper, noted for being 6 feet 9 inches tall and having an IQ of 145, is responsible for killing his grandparents at the age of 15. After spending several years in a maximum security facility, his killing spree continued. He ended up killing his mother, her best friend, and several college students, for which he requested the death penalty during his trial. He instead received eight life sentences.
49points
#11 Pedro Rodrigues Filho, The Brazilian Dexter
Brazilian convicted serial/spree killer known for pursuing and killing exclusively criminals as a teenager, between the age of 14 and 19, in particular an entire gang in response to the murder of his pregnant girlfriend. Officially sentenced for 71 murders but claiming to have killed over 100 drug dealers, r**ists, and murderers, he served 34 years in prison before his release in 2007. In 2011, Filho was imprisoned again on charges of inciting riot and deprivation of liberty while initially imprisoned and sentenced for to a further eight years of prison, before being released again in 2018 after seven years on good behavior. His victims included 47 prisoners (primarily r**ists) whom he murdered inside the prisons in which he was imprisoned.
Since his second release from prison in 2018, after announcing himself to be reformed from his self-declared vigilantism as a youth, and committed to not committing any more crimes, Filho is considered a Brazilian celebrity and YouTuber, maintaining a YouTube channel, commentating on modern crimes while educating the public that criminal acts are not something to be proud of.
Following Filho's initial planned 2003 release, author Jeff Lindsay began publishing a novel series about a fictional American serial killer of killers inspired by Filho, named Dexter Morgan.
Unknown
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#12 Rodney Alcala, The Dating Game Killer
American serial killer and s*x offender who was sentenced to death in California for five murders committed in the state between 1977 and 1979, and received an additional sentence of 25 years to life after pleading guilty to two homicides committed in New York in 1971 and 1977. While he has been conclusively linked to nine murders, Alcala's true number of victims remains unknown and could be much higher - authorities believe the actual number is as high as 130. Prosecutors have said that Alcala "toyed" with his victims, str**gling them until they lost consciousness, then waiting until they revived, sometimes repeating this process several times before finally killing them. One police detective described Alcala as "a killing machine," and others have compared him to Ted Bundy.
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28points
#13 Belle Gunness, Hell's Belle
Norwegian-American serial killer who was active in Illinois and Indiana between 1884 and 1908. Gunness is thought to have killed at least fourteen people, most of whom were men she enticed to visit her rural Indiana property on the promise of marriage, while some sources speculate her involvement in as many as forty murders. Gunness seemingly died in a fire in 1908, but it is popularly believed that she faked her death. Her actual fate is unconfirmed.
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28points
#14 Pedro López
Colombian serial killer and child r**ist who murdered a minimum of 110 young girls from 1969 to 1980 and claimed to have murdered over 300 victims across Colombia, Peru and Ecuador. Released from a Colombian mental facility in 1998, his whereabouts are currently unknown. López became known as the Monster of the Andes in 1980, when he purportedly led police to 53 graves in Ecuador of girls between 9 and 12 years of age.
Unknown
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What is the Top 10 of the Most Prolific Serial Killers?
Even when the criminal confesses their crimes, it might be hard for authorities to confirm all the details. It might be even more challenging in the case of worst serial killers, as most of them seek one thing and one thing only—fame. When caught, their options are limited, and the only thing left to satisfy themselves is increasing their notoriety. In the case of Donald Henry “Pee Wee” Gaskins Jr., just before his execution, he claimed to have murdered 110 people. However, only 15 of those have been confirmed, and his claim was discredited by law enforcement and journalists.
The Top 10 of the most prolific serial killers with the highest known number of victims are:
- 1. Luis Garavito, proven 193 victims - estimated at more than 300.
- 2. Pedro López, proven 110 victims - estimated at more than 300.
- 3. Javed Iqbal, proven 100 victims.
- 4. Mikhail Popkov, proven 78 victims - estimated at more than 83.
- 5. Daniel Camargo Barbosa, proven 72 victims - estimated at 180.
- 6. Pedro Rodrigues Filho, proven 71 victims - estimated at more than 100.
- 7. Kampatimar Shankariya, proven 70 victims - estimated at more than 70.
- 8. Yang Xinhai, proven 67 victims.
- 9. Samual Little, proven 60 victims - estimated at 93.
- 10. William Unek, proven 57 victims.
With numbers like these, it’s chilly to go out, even to get groceries. Fortunately, none of the mentioned above are active anymore; some died of natural causes, some were imprisoned, and others were even executed. But that didn’t stop any horrifying facts from coming out from these cases.
#15 Aileen Wuornos
American serial killer. In 1989–1990, while engaging in street p***titution along highways in Florida, she sh*t dead and robbed seven of her male clients. Wuornos claimed that her clients had either r**ed or attempted to r*pe her, and that all of the homicides were committed in self-defense. Wuornos was sentenced to death for six of the murders and on October 9, 2002, after 12 years on Florida's death row, was executed by death row.
26points
#16 Karl Denke, The Forgotten Cann**al
German serial killer and cann**al who killed and cann**alized dozens of homeless vagrants and travelers from 1903 to 1924. He is often regarded as The Forgotten Cann**al. Denke also kept a ledger recording his murders. He is also believed to have sold the flesh of his victims as meat to unsuspecting customers (advertised as pork).
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26points
#17 Ed Gein, The Butcher Of Plainfield
American murderer and body snatcher. Gein's crimes, committed around his hometown of Plainfield, Wisconsin, gathered widespread notoriety in 1957 after authorities discovered he had exhumed corpses from local graveyards and fashioned trophies and keepsakes from their bones and skin. Gein also confessed to killing two women. He was found legally insane and was remanded to a psychiatric institution. He died at Mendota Mental Health Institute of respiratory failure.
Unknown
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#18 Elizabeth Bathory
Hungarian noblewoman and alleged serial killer from the family of Báthory, who owned land in the Kingdom of Hungary. Báthory and four of her servants were accused of torturing and killing hundreds of girls and women between 1590 and 1610. Her servants were put on trial and convicted, whereas Báthory was confined to her home. She was imprisoned within Castle of Csejte.
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25points
#19 Albert Fish, The Brooklyn Vampire
American serial killer, r**ist, child mo**ster, and cann**al who was a suspect in at least five murders during his lifetime. He confessed to three murders that police were able to trace to a known homicide, and he confessed to stab**ng at least two other people. Fish once boasted that he "had children in every state", and at one time stated his number of victims was about 100. However, it is not known whether he was referring to rapes or cannibalization, nor is it known if the statement was truthful.
24points
#20 Irina Gaidamachuk, The Satan In A Skirt
Russian serial killer who killed 17 elderly women in Sverdlovsk Oblast between 2002 and 2010. She would pretend to be a social worker to gain access to the homes of the women, where she would kill them with an axe or hammer, then rob the victim for whatever money she could find.
Unknown
Report24points