Best UK True Crime Podcasts 2026: Ranked by Real Chart Data
Updated September 2026 · Based on CastFox data covering 23 Apple Podcasts chart snapshots in 78 countries (2026-02-24 to 2026-09-19) and 5M+ indexed podcasts
Search best true crime podcasts UK and you mostly get one blog copying another. This list is built from the chart instead. CastFox scrapes the Apple Podcasts charts every day in 78 countries, and the 20 shows below are the ones that held the UK True Crime chart across 23 separate snapshots between February 24 and September 19, 2026, scored on how consistently they charted, how high they averaged, and how many countries they reach.
The first thing the data shows is that the UK true crime chart is dominated by shows with global audiences. RedHanded sits at an average UK rank of 1.3 across every snapshot we took, and Casefile True Crime averages 3.7, but both of them chart in more than 50 countries. The genuinely domestic end of the chart is smaller and easy to spot by reach: Crime Next Door from BBC Sounds charts in 12 countries and Crime World in 23, the two narrowest figures on this list, while BBC Radio 4's Intrigue charts in 44. Around them sit the American shows that British listeners play anyway, from Crime Junkie and Morbid to Dateline NBC and 20/20. The category has settled into five recognizable shapes: British and Irish shows, serialized investigations, weekly case breakdowns, true crime with comedy and chat, and the broadcast newsroom shows.
Each card below shows the real cover art, the host, what the show is, why it earned its place in 2026, and who it is best for, plus the chart numbers behind the ranking: how many of the 23 UK chart snapshots it appeared in, its average UK rank, its best rank, and how many countries it charted in on the most recent scrape. Click through to CastFox for the full profile with audience estimates, chart history in every country, reviews and contact details. You can monitor any of these shows in CastFox as their rankings move.
The 20 best UK true crime podcasts of 2026 at a glance
| # | Podcast | Hosted by | Avg UK rank | Best rank | Countries charting | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Casefile True Crime | Casefile Presents | 3.7 | #2 | 74 | 420 |
| 2 | Crime Junkie | Audiochuck | 7.2 | #3 | 77 | 528 |
| 3 | Morbid | Ash Kelley & Alaina Urquhart | 11.4 | #6 | 71 | 884 |
| 4 | RedHanded | RedHanded | 1.3 | #1 | 57 | 647 |
| 5 | Dateline NBC | NBC News | 17.1 | #5 | 68 | 852 |
| 6 | Rotten Mango | Stephanie Soo | 26.7 | #20 | 78 | 560 |
| 7 | My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark | Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts | 17.3 | #11 | 64 | 1,000 |
| 8 | MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories | Ballen Studios | 12.3 | #7 | 57 | 540 |
| 9 | In The Dark | The New Yorker | 30.6 | #3 | 77 | 70 |
| 10 | Criminal | Vox Media Podcast Network | 37.8 | #16 | 70 | 403 |
| 11 | The Binge Crimes: What Happened to the Harrisons? | Sony Music Entertainment | 24 | #3 | 53 | 154 |
| 12 | Intrigue | BBC Radio 4 | 20.2 | #2 | 44 | 127 |
| 13 | Last Podcast On The Left | The Last Podcast Network | 26.8 | #16 | 51 | 1,000 |
| 14 | Betrayal Season 6 | iHeartPodcasts | Glass Podcasts | 27.9 | #6 | 52 | 177 |
| 15 | Serialously with Annie Elise | Annie Elise & Audioboom Studios | 29.1 | #13 | 49 | 439 |
| 16 | The Binge Cases: What She Buried | Sony Music Entertainment | 28.5 | #13 | 32 | 190 |
| 17 | Crime World | Crime World | 21.4 | #11 | 23 | 1,000 |
| 18 | Crime Next Door | BBC Sounds | 13.2 | #2 | 12 | 105 |
| 19 | True Crime with Kendall Rae | Mile Higher Media & Audioboom Studios | 42.3 | #25 | 46 | 301 |
| 20 | 20/20 | ABC News | 44 | #25 | 47 | 60 |
Jump to a Show
- #1. Casefile True Crime
- #2. Crime Junkie
- #3. Morbid
- #4. RedHanded
- #5. Dateline NBC
- #6. Rotten Mango
- #7. My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
- #8. MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories
- #9. In The Dark
- #10. Criminal
- #11. The Binge Crimes: What Happened to the Harrisons?
- #12. Intrigue
- #13. Last Podcast On The Left
- #14. Betrayal Season 6
- #15. Serialously with Annie Elise
- #16. The Binge Cases: What She Buried
- #17. Crime World
- #18. Crime Next Door
- #19. True Crime with Kendall Rae
- #20. 20/20
Rising this month · How we ranked these · How to pick the right show · FAQ
The 20 Best UK True Crime Podcasts to Listen To in 2026
British and Irish Shows on the UK Chart
#12. Intrigue
Hosted by BBC Radio 4
About this show: BBC investigative journalist Jane McMullen asks why thousands of grieving families are still fighting for answers twenty-five years after the deadliest terror attack in history, tracing two young Saudis who arrived in San Diego in early 2000.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the strongest BBC show on this chart and the one that reads most like broadsheet investigative journalism, and its reach figures show an audience concentrated in Britain. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 20.2, best #2, charting in 44 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: British listeners who want BBC-standard reporting rather than a retelling.
#17. Crime World
Hosted by Crime World
About this show: Crime World covers criminals, drugs and the sins of the underworld, with in-depth investigations and a current series on how Gerry "The Monk" Hutch almost got elected.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is one of the two most domestically focused shows on this chart. Its reach figure is the second narrowest here, which is exactly what a show made for these islands looks like in the data. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 21.4, best #11, charting in 23 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want Irish and British organized crime reported from close range.
#18. Crime Next Door
Hosted by BBC Sounds
About this show: BBC Sounds tells gripping true crime stories from neighbourhoods across the UK, now in its thirteenth series, with past series covering state terrorism, a global religious group and a suspected suicide pact that turned out to be something else.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the most domestically focused show on this list by some distance, and it is the clearest answer for anyone who wants British cases rather than British listeners. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 13.2, best #2, charting in 12 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: UK listeners who want cases from streets they recognize.
Serialized Investigations and Documentary Seasons
#1. Casefile True Crime
Hosted by Casefile Presents
About this show: An anonymous narrator works through one criminal case at a time in a documentary format built on factual accuracy, with a premium tier that adds ad-free episodes a week early and the bonus show Behind the Files. The show's own line for itself is that fact is scarier than fiction.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the highest-scoring show on this chart because it does two things at once: it has never missed a snapshot we took this year, and it is among the widest-reaching shows in the whole genre. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 3.7, best #2, charting in 74 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want researched, case-by-case documentary rather than hosts talking to each other.
#9. In The Dark
Hosted by The New Yorker
About this show: Madeleine Baran hosts The New Yorker's award-winning investigative journalism series, which has examined the Jacob Wetterling abduction and the six trials of Curtis Flowers across its seasons.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the most journalistically serious show on this chart and the one that has changed real cases. Its best UK rank this year sits far above its average, which is what a seasonal release pattern looks like in chart data. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 30.6, best #3, charting in 77 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want accountability journalism rather than case retellings.
#10. Criminal
Hosted by Vox Media Podcast Network
About this show: Phoebe Judge hosts a show about people who have done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. It was named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times and is part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the quietest show on this list and the most consistently well made, and it proves that a true crime episode does not need a murder to hold you. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 37.8, best #16, charting in 70 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who find the genre's louder shows exhausting and want something closer to an essay.
#11. The Binge Crimes: What Happened to the Harrisons?
Hosted by Sony Music Entertainment
About this show: Investigative reporter Amy Dempsey Raven follows a house on Pitch Pine Crescent where three people died in less than five years, each death explained away by the authorities while the family knew something was wrong.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the limited-series model working as intended: a single case reported out over a season, with a best rank far above its average because the audience arrives when a season drops. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 24, best #3, charting in 53 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who prefer one long case to a weekly rotation.
#14. Betrayal Season 6
Hosted by iHeartPodcasts | Glass Podcasts
About this show: Andrea Gunning hosts first-hand accounts of broken trust and shocking deception every Thursday, from double lives to dark discoveries, following the aftermath as much as the act.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the one show on this list where the subject is the damage rather than the crime, and each new season lifts it back up the chart. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 27.9, best #6, charting in 52 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners drawn to the human aftermath of deception rather than to police work.
#16. The Binge Cases: What She Buried
Hosted by Sony Music Entertainment
About this show: Journalist Justine van der Leun reports out the story of Kwaneta Harris, a woman incarcerated in Texas who wrote to her seven years ago, and finds it more tangled than she expected.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the most reported of the binge seasons here, built on years of correspondence rather than a case file, and it charts on the strength of each release. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 28.5, best #13, charting in 32 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want the reporter's own uncertainty left in the story.
Weekly Case Breakdowns
#2. Crime Junkie
Hosted by Audiochuck
About this show: Ashley Flowers unpacks infamous and underreported cases with her best friend Brit Prawat every Monday, covering cold cases, missing persons and the people working to get them solved.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the most reliable weekly habit in the genre and the show most people on this chart started with, and its Monday cadence is what keeps it near the top all year. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 7.2, best #3, charting in 77 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want one well-told case a week without a documentary time commitment.
#15. Serialously with Annie Elise
Hosted by Annie Elise & Audioboom Studios
About this show: Annie Elise, who built the true crime YouTube channel 10 to Life to more than 1.5 million subscribers, covers the overlooked details other shows skip: the timelines, the red flags and the social media trail.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the strongest example on this chart of a YouTube true crime audience moving across to audio, and it holds its position without a network behind it. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 29.1, best #13, charting in 49 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who always end up googling the details after an episode ends.
#19. True Crime with Kendall Rae
Hosted by Mile Higher Media & Audioboom Studios
About this show: Kendall Rae brings her YouTube true crime series to audio, taking an approach she describes as empathetic and victim-first, aimed at raising awareness for victims and their families.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the most victim-centred show on this chart, and it holds its place without the archive depth most shows at this level have. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 42.3, best #25, charting in 46 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want the genre handled with care for the people in the cases.
True Crime With Comedy and Chat
#3. Morbid
Hosted by Ash Kelley & Alaina Urquhart
About this show: Ash Kelley and Alaina Urquhart, an autopsy technician and a hairstylist, cover true crime, creepy history and anything spooky, describing the result as a heavy dose of research with a dash of comedy.
Why it made the list in 2026: It has one of the deepest back catalogues on this list and still holds a place near the top of the chart, which is rare for a show that long-running. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 11.4, best #6, charting in 71 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want research and banter in the same episode and plan to binge the archive.
#4. RedHanded
Hosted by RedHanded
About this show: RedHanded covers serial killers famous and obscure, hauntings, possessions, disturbing mysteries and bizarre whodunits, and makes no secret of following whatever tickles its creepy fancy.
Why it made the list in 2026: It owns this chart. No other show in the genre holds a UK average this close to first place across every snapshot we took in 2026, and it does it with a conversational format rather than a produced one. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 1.3, best #1, charting in 57 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: British listeners who want the macabre end of the genre delivered as conversation.
#6. Rotten Mango
Hosted by Stephanie Soo
About this show: Stephanie Soo runs deep dives into the psychology of killers and lesser known criminals from around the world, holding back very little in the telling.
Why it made the list in 2026: It has the widest international footprint of any show on this chart, and its focus on cases from outside the United States and Britain is a large part of why. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 26.7, best #20, charting in 78 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want cases from outside the usual American and British rotation.
#7. My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
Hosted by Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts
About this show: Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark have shared weekly true crimes and listener hometown stories since January 2016, covering serial killers, cold cases and survivor accounts with comedy running through them.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the show that made true crime comedy a format, and it still holds a strong UK average with one of the largest episode counts on this list. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 17.3, best #11, charting in 64 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want the genre's original comedy format and a very large archive.
#13. Last Podcast On The Left
Hosted by The Last Podcast Network
About this show: The Last Podcast Network covers the horrors of the world both imagined and real, from demons and slashers to cults and serial killers, with new episodes available a week early and ad-free on SiriusXM Podcasts+.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the darkest of the comedy shows here and the one with the deepest cult and paranormal coverage, and its episode count is among the largest on the list. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 26.8, best #16, charting in 51 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want horror and the occult alongside the crime, delivered with jokes.
Storytelling and Broadcast Newsroom Shows
#5. Dateline NBC
Hosted by NBC News
About this show: NBC News publishes current and classic episodes of its long-running television newsmagazine as audio, mixing true crime mysteries, documentaries and investigations, with a Dateline Premium tier for ad-free listening.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the broadcast newsroom show with the widest reach on this list, and its archive means there is always another case waiting. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 17.1, best #5, charting in 68 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who trust a network newsroom and want an effectively bottomless back catalogue.
#8. MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories
Hosted by Ballen Studios
About this show: John Allen, better known as MrBallen, tells true crime and mystery stories in a straight story format, with new episodes released early and ad-free for SiriusXM Podcasts+ subscribers.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the purest storytelling show here. There is no co-host, no banter and no case file, only the telling, and that has kept it high on the UK chart all year. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 12.3, best #7, charting in 57 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want a single voice telling a story and nothing else in the way.
#20. 20/20
Hosted by ABC News
About this show: ABC News publishes true crime mysteries, newsmaker interviews and investigative reports, with a 20/20 After Show, the True Crime Vault and a 20/20 True Crime+ tier for ad-free and early listening.
Why it made the list in 2026: It is the second broadcast newsroom show on this list and the one with the most add-on feeds, which is how a weekly television programme keeps a daily chart position. Chart record: 23 of 23 UK snapshots, average UK rank 44, best #25, charting in 47 countries on the latest scrape.
Best fit for: Listeners who want network television investigations in audio form.
Rising This Month: UK True Crime Podcasts Climbing the Charts (September 2026)
These are the UK true crime shows moving up fastest in CastFox rankings. We compare each show's average UK chart position across the 3 most recent snapshots (2026-09-04 to 2026-09-19) with the 3 snapshots before that. A show that was outside the top 100 in the prior window is marked as new to the top 100. This section is refreshed every month; the main list above changes more slowly because it rewards consistency.
The Poisoned Wife New to the top 100
Hosted by The Australian. The Poisoned Wife new to the UK top 100, now averaging #5.3, with a best UK rank of #4 so far in 2026 and a top-100 position in 23 countries on the latest snapshot.
Blink | Jake Haendel's Story New to the top 100
Hosted by Sony Music, Corinne Vien, Jacob Haendel. Blink | Jake Haendel's Story new to the UK top 100, now averaging #6.7, with a best UK rank of #2 so far in 2026 and a top-100 position in 6 countries on the latest snapshot. Jacob Haendel has been handed a death sentence. He has a terminal progressive disease that's eating away at the white matter of his brain. In six months, he'll be dead. As the months progress, Jake slips into a coma,...
Buried Evidence New to the top 100
Hosted by The Crime Desk. Buried Evidence new to the UK top 100, now averaging #34.7, with a best UK rank of #26 so far in 2026 and a top-100 position in 8 countries on the latest snapshot.
Death of an Artist New to the top 100
Hosted by Pushkin Industries. Death of an Artist new to the UK top 100, now averaging #43.3, with a best UK rank of #37 so far in 2026 and a top-100 position in 36 countries on the latest snapshot. You’ve heard of Jackson Pollock but you may have never heard of Lee Krasner. Krasner was an artist, Pollock’s wife, and the woman who made him famous. She also changed everything about the landscape of modern art. This...
COERCED: The Devotion & Death of Mica Francis Miller New to the top 100
Hosted by LUNASHARK®. COERCED: The Devotion & Death of Mica Francis Miller new to the UK top 100, now averaging #46.3, with a best UK rank of #22 so far in 2026 and a top-100 position in 15 countries on the latest snapshot.
How We Ranked These: CastFox Methodology
CastFox scrapes the Apple Podcasts charts every day in 78 countries and stores every position in the top 200 of every genre. For this list we took the 23 2026 snapshots of the UK True Crime chart between 2026-02-24 and 2026-09-19, and scored every show that appeared in the top 100 of any of them.
- Consistency (50% of the score): the number of snapshots in which the show appeared in the UK top 100. Every show on this list scored 23 out of 23, which is the filter that removes one-week spikes.
- Average UK rank (30%): the mean of the show's UK chart positions across those snapshots. Lower is better.
- Global reach (20%): the number of tracked countries in which the show was in the genre top 100 on the most recent snapshot. This is what separates a show with a large UK following from a show with a global one.
There are no paid placements and no editorial overrides. A few shows on this list would not be our personal picks; they are here because the chart data put them here, and we would rather show you what people are actually listening to than what we think they should be. Chart position is not the same as audience size, so treat the ranking as a measure of sustained popularity rather than a download count. For a deeper look at what chart data can and cannot tell you, read how podcast audience demographics are calculated.
How to Pick the Right UK True Crime Podcast for You
You want the best UK true crime podcasts 2026 has put on the chart
Start at the top. RedHanded holds an average UK rank of 1.3 across all 23 snapshots, which is the most dominant position any show has on this chart, and Casefile True Crime is the highest-scoring show overall once global reach is counted. If you only add two feeds this year, add those. Our global true crime list ranks the same genre on the US chart for comparison.
You want the best British true crime podcasts, not American shows charting in Britain
Three shows here are made by British and Irish teams for this audience: Intrigue from BBC Radio 4, Crime Next Door from BBC Sounds, and Crime World. The chart data makes them easy to identify. Crime Next Door charts in 12 countries and Crime World in 23, the two narrowest reach figures on this list, and Intrigue in 44.
You want the best true crime podcasts about UK cases
Crime Next Door is the clearest answer: its own description is gripping true crime stories from neighbourhoods across the UK, and it is now on its thirteenth series. Crime World covers criminals, drugs and the underworld on this side of the Atlantic. Intrigue is British-made rather than British-subject: the current season follows BBC investigative journalist Jane McMullen through the aftermath of the deadliest terror attack in history.
You want the best Scottish and Irish true crime podcasts
Be honest about what the chart holds. Crime World is the one show in this top 20 built around Irish organized crime, and its current series asks how Gerry "The Monk" Hutch almost got elected. No Scotland-specific show reached the UK top 20 on consistency this year, so the nearest fit is Crime Next Door, which works case by case across UK neighbourhoods. The CastFox Ireland chart lists more Irish shows updated daily.
You want something that fits a commute
Criminal and Crime Next Door are the two tightest regular listens here, both built around a single case per episode. Last Podcast On The Left and My Favorite Murder run long and loose, which suits a drive or a long walk rather than a train change.
You want to pitch these shows rather than just listen to them
Chart position is the wrong starting point for that. A show two hundred places down with the right audience will do more for you than a top-10 show that never books outside guests. Use the CastFox guest finder to filter by topic and audience, then read our pitch template. If you are buying ads instead, our true crime sponsor report lists the brands already active in the genre.
Want the next 180 UK true crime podcasts?
This list is the top 20. The CastFox UK chart page shows the top 50 British podcasts updated daily, and PodcastGPT can find shows on any specific topic across 5M+ podcasts.
See the daily top 50 → Search by topic →Frequently Asked Questions About the Best UK True Crime Podcasts
What is the best true crime podcast in the UK in 2026?
By CastFox's chart-consistency score, Casefile True Crime is the best true crime podcast on the UK chart in 2026. It appeared in all 23 UK True Crime chart snapshots between February and September at an average UK rank of 3.7, and it held a top-100 position in 74 of the 78 countries CastFox tracks on the latest scrape. Crime Junkie is second and Morbid is third. RedHanded has the best UK rank on the chart at an average of 1.3, better than Casefile's 3.7, but it charted in 57 countries on the latest scrape rather than 74, and that reach gap is what puts it fourth overall.
How is this list ranked?
Each show's score combines three things from CastFox's daily Apple Podcasts chart data: how many of the 23 UK True Crime chart snapshots it appeared in the top 100 of (50% of the score), its average UK rank across those appearances (30%), and how many of the 78 tracked countries it charted in on the latest scrape (20%). There are no paid placements and no editorial overrides.
Are these British podcasts or American shows charting in the UK?
Both, and that is what the chart actually looks like. The clearly British and Irish shows in this top 20 are Intrigue from BBC Radio 4, Crime Next Door from BBC Sounds and Crime World, and the rest are American, Australian or global productions that British listeners play anyway. We rank what UK listeners play rather than filtering by where a show is produced, and each card shows how many countries the show charts in so you can tell the difference at a glance.
Where can I find the best UK crime podcasts on Spotify?
Every show on this list publishes an open RSS feed, so all 20 are on Spotify as well as Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts and the other major apps. Our ranking uses Apple Podcasts chart data because Apple publishes a public chart in all 78 countries we track and Spotify does not, but the shows themselves are the same on either app. Search the show name, or open its CastFox profile from the cards above for every listening link.
Are these UK true crime podcasts free to listen to?
Yes. Every show here publishes a free feed. Several of them sell ad-free or early-access subscription tiers on top of it, including Casefile Premium, Dateline Premium, 20/20 True Crime+ and the SiriusXM Podcasts+ tiers that carry Morbid, MrBallen and Last Podcast On The Left, but the main feed does not cost anything.