All 24 Phasmophobia ghosts, ghost behaviors, and tips

What are all the Phasmophobia ghost types? Given that you're being paid to determine which ghost is haunting someone's house, a creepy campsite, or a derelict asylum, you need to know what your options are. And, with 24 ghost types in Phasmophobia right now, you've got a lot of work to do to narrow it down.

Your Phasmophobia journal shows basic information, such as which pieces of evidence are relevant to which ghost. In fact, you can even check them off as you go to automatically remove some options. However, the horror game hides some secret ghost behaviors that can help on harder difficulties and in tougher situations, and we've got all the best Phasmophobia ghost behavior tips right here.

It's worth noting that appearance has no correlation to the type of ghost you're dealing with, and each ghost can also appear in multiple forms. If you're interested in these Phasmophobia ghost forms, we've got more information at the bottom of this guide.

Here are all of the 24 ghost types and their behaviors:

Spirit

• Strength: None
• Weakness: Smudge sticks incapacitate Spirits for longer
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Spirit Box, Ghost Writing

The Spirit is a unique ghost in that it is the only one with no real strengths. That doesn't mean it's any harder to communicate with; in fact, it arguably makes it harder since there is no real behavior to separate it from others. The main thing to note with a Spirit is that a smudge stick prevents the ghost from hunting for twice as long: 180 seconds instead of the usual 90.

Wraith

• Strength: Footsteps cannot be traced
• Weakness: 'Afraid' of salt
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Spirit Box, DOTS Projector

One of the most obvious Wraith behaviors is that it never steps in salt. This means that you can use salt to remove the option of a Wraith, provided you know the ghost has passed through the area and the salt remains untouched. However, while the journal entry suggests Wraiths are afraid of and avoid salt, this is not true; they simply don't leave footprints.

Phantom

• Strength: Looking at a phantom causes sanity to drop rapidly
• Weakness: Taking its photo makes the Phantom disappear briefly
• Evidence: Spirit Box, UV, DOTS Projector

As noted in the Phantom's journal log, it temporarily disappears if you try to take its photo. What this means in practice is that the Phantom disappears both in the environment and will not appear in the image itself, in any form, even DOTS. A good way to check for a Phantom, therefore, is to take an image as your ghost passes through the DOTS Projector, and see if it turns up in the photo itself. They also demanifest for longer during hunts, so you won't be able to see them as often as you might see other hunting ghosts.

Poltergeist

• Strength: Can throw multiple objects at once, with force
• Weakness: Powerless without anything to throw
• Evidence: Spirit Box, UV, Ghost Writing

While all ghosts can throw items as part of their standard interaction, Poltergeists are one of the only ghosts who can throw multiple items (The Twins being another), and can throw items with much more force than other ghosts. Another big giveaway is that the Poltergeist is the only ghost who can throw items with the lights on, so the best plan when things are flying is to pile up some small items in the ghost room, turn on the lights, and see what happens.

Banshee

• Strength: Weakens its target before striking
• Weakness: Can be heard through the Parabolic Mic
• Evidence: UV, Ghost Orb, DOTS Projector

As you might expect from the ghost form most renowned for being vocal, this Phasmophobia ghost type's biggest weakness is in its voice, as it can often be heard screaming through a Parabolic Mic. This item isn't available right away, but it does unlock at level 5, so it doesn't take too long to get hold of. Once you've got it, it's worth equipping it to your standard loadout, as this helpful item can be used to decipher the ghost room quickly, as well as weed out a Banshee from its unique sounds.

The main thing to keep in mind when using the Parabolic Mic, if you think a Banshee is in the room, is not to mistake it for a Myling, which makes more sounds than other ghosts. The Banshee, meanwhile, won't make more noises than usual, but has a higher chance of triggering a singing ghost event, and has two of its own unique singing events if the Banshee is female.

Jinn

• Strength: The further away you are, the faster a Jinn becomes
• Weakness: Powerless when the breaker box is off
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, UV, Freezing temps

A huge thing to note when it comes to the Jinn is that it cannot turn off the fuse box. You'll usually want your fuse box on and lights on during every investigation (turning them off to use certain items like the Spirit Box), and if the power is turned off at the source rather than a specific light, you can already disregard the Jinn as an option. That said, the Jinn is powerless when the fuse box is off, so it can be worth testing this theory if you suspect a Jinn. Turn the fuse box off for a while, and if there is no ghost action, you could again be looking at a Jinn.

Mare

• Strength: Increased chance of attack in the dark
• Weakness: Light
• Evidence: Spirit Box, Ghost Orb, Ghost Writing

A truly terrifying ghost, the Mare is most active in the dark. As we've said above, you should be turning on the lights as you investigate anyway, as they can be used by any ghost, giving away their location and even some evidence. This comes in useful for the Mare since they turn them off more frequently than other ghosts, and they are more likely to shatter them. Mares also perform long roams in a room with the lights on.

Revenant

• Strength: Faster when hunting
• Weakness: Is slowed when you're hidden
• Evidence: Ghost Orbs, Ghost Writing, Freezing temps

The Revenant is one of the hardest ghosts to escape from, so if you think you might be dealing with this ghost type, you should be incredibly careful.

As a very fast hunter, there is no running from the Revenant if it starts a hunt. Instead, you should hide immediately, which will slow it down. To keep distance between yourself and the Revenant, tier 3 salt or incense can slow it down briefly, giving you a chance to jump into the nearest closet and turn off your torch.

The main way of identifying the Revenant outside of evidence is the noticeable difference between its roaming and hunting speed, and, if you are hidden during a hunt, its footsteps will be much slower than other ghosts. Spotting that speed difference in person, though, will likely spell your demise, so this one's easier to win against when you're playing in a team.

Shade

• Strength: Significantly harder to locate
• Weakness: Will not hunt if players are nearby
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Ghost Writing, Freezing temps

Unlike the Revenant above, the Shade is a very shy ghost, and it actually doesn't appear very often at all. While this might seem like it would make it easier to obtain evidence, you'll struggle to get EMF readings and Ghost Writing from this ghost.

Of them, Ghost Writing is the easiest, but you'll need to leave the room first. You see, a Shade doesn't perform any interactions when in the same room as the player. There is a chance that the interaction range could cause items to move from another room, but anything more substantial won't happen in front of your eyes. The Shade also only initiates a hunt when the player's sanity is under 35%. So, while you're safer in the presence of a Shade, you're also more likely to be able to write it off than be able to determine it. Set up a camera, head back out to the van, and keep your fingers crossed.

Demon

• Strength: Initiates hunts more frequently
• Weakness: Less aggressive near a crucifix
• Evidence: UV, Ghost Writing, Freezing temps

In complete contrast to the Shade, a Demon can hunt at any sanity level, and it is the most dangerous ghost type you can encounter. As such, the primary way of identifying a Demon is an early hunt. In case this happens, having a crucifix on hand is a good idea. Especially since the crucifix is the Demon's only real weakness, and works at a greater range than normal.

In order to safely obtain evidence if you think a Demon might be present, you should wait for the cooldown between hunts. While a level ten activity reading in the van doesn't confirm a hunt, you can use this to estimate when a hunt has taken place, and quickly place items in the ghost room during the 20-second downtime that follows.

Yurei

• Strength: Affects player sanity more than normal
• Weakness: Smudging the ghost room temporarily traps the Yurei
• Evidence: Ghost Orb, Freezing temps, DOTS Projector

The Yurei's unique ability revolves around the use of doors. While having open doors in the ghost room, including cupboard doors, tent doors, and more, gives the Yurei the ability to reduce the player's sanity, it's also a good way of telling if a Yurei is present.

A Yurei can only fully open or close a door. Therefore, if open doors are fully closed by the ghost and your sanity is significantly drained from the action, chances are you've got a Yurei on your hands. Especially if there's no UV print left on the door itself.

Oni

• Strength: Active while people are nearby, and drains sanity faster when manifesting
• Weakness: Disappears less when hunting
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Freezing temps, DOTS Projector

The Oni is almost the opposite ghost type to the Shade, in that it is active more frequently when at least one player is in the same room. The first thing to note, then, is not to mistake this ghost for a Poltergeist due to excessive activity. Thankfully, this increased activity doesn't relate to hunts, and the Oni will hunt at the same rate as any other ghost, so use this to your advantage to obtain the usual evidence, especially EMF level 5 while it's active.

A good tip for the Oni, especially if you're a solo player, is to use the DOTS Projector in person rather than looking through the camera in the van. Since being in the van reduces the Oni's activity levels, you're less likely to see it in its DOTS form. Finally, the Oni is more likely to appear in its full form than any other ghost form, but it cannot appear in mist form.

Yokai

• Strength: Talking increases the chance of an attack
• Weakness: Yokai can only hear nearby players during a hunt
• Evidence: Spirit Box, Ghost Orb, DOTS Projector

While the Yokai responds to the Spirit Box, it's also particularly receptive to normal voice chat. When at least one person utilizes voice chat in the same room as the Yokai, its rate of activity immediately increases, and it has a far higher chance of initiating a hunt, raising the sanity threshold to 80% instead of 50%. With that in mind, if you are talking and the ghost hunts at an unusually high 70-something sanity, you could be looking at a Yokai.

Hantu

• Strength: Moves faster in cold temperatures
• Weakness: Moves more slowly in warmer areas
• Evidence: UV, Ghost Orb, Freezing temps

While your journal tells you about the Hantu's temperature preferences, it doesn't tell you that this ghost is far more likely to switch off the fusebox, so finding it and switching it on (in Intermediate and above), or switching it back on as quickly as possible, is a great way to indicate the potential presence of a Hantu.

As for the temperatures, the Hantu moves faster the colder it is, so you may be able to use a thermometer and camera to check this behavior out.

Goryo

• Strength: Usually only appears on camera when alone
• Weakness: Rarely seen far from the ghost room
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, UV, DOTS Projector

The Goryo is a relatively tough ghost to gather evidence on due to the fact that it only appears on a DOTS Projector through a video camera. Therefore, if you have the other two pieces of evidence, don't rule out a Goryo until you've watched the DOTS through a camera while the ghost is active. It will, however, enter the DOTS state more frequently than others, so it shouldn't be too difficult to get this evidence.

If you're playing in a team, communication about this is incredibly useful. Say one player is witnessing the ghost through the naked eye and cannot see its DOTS shape, while another player can through the camera - you're near guaranteed a Goryo. Alone, of course, this is a little harder, but still doable.

Myling

• Strength: Quieter when hunting
• Weakness: Make paranormal sounds more frequently
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, UV, Ghost Writing

With the right equipment, a Myling can be fairly easy to identify, as it can be heard through a Parabolic Microphone or Sound Recorder up to 16 seconds more frequently than any other ghost. This is really the only unique behavior of the Myling, though, so it can be hard to identify without these pieces of equipment. In this case, your only other identifying factor would be that their footsteps can't be heard from as far away during a hunt, though, by this time, you might already be too late.

Onryo

• Strength: Extinguishing a flame can cause the Onryo to attack
• Weakness: Less likely to hunt when threatened
• Evidence: Spirit Box, Ghost Orb, Freezing temps

As soon as you unlock a firelight at player level 12, it's worth having one in your van by default, as it's the main way of singling out an Onryo. You see, this ghost is afraid of fire, so it won't act as often when a flame is nearby. It can, however, blow out any flame, which is another dead giveaway. You might want to run if this happens, though, as the Onryo could trigger a hunt immediately after blowing out a flame. The same goes if you put out a fire, so put your firelight down if you want to swap items.

Carrying a firelight also has the chance to prevent a hunt, as well, but you have no way of telling if your flame was extinguished from hunt prevention or the Onryo itself.

The Twins

• Strength: Either Twin can be angered and attack
• Weakness: The Twins often interact with the environment at the same time
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Spirit Box, Freezing temps

Like some other ghost journal entries, The Twins' page is mostly flavor text. There are not actually two separate ghosts, and, therefore, you can't be tricked by false evidence, such as freezing temperatures in the wrong room. They also can't hunt separately. However, The Twins instead have a chance of interacting with the environment in a wider range than normal, or performing two interactions within seconds of each other. Hearing two sounds or separate moving objects, for example, could be a giveaway that you're dealing with The Twins (or a Poltergeist!).

Raiju

• Strength: Siphons power from electronic equipment
• Weakness: Disrupts electrical devices
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, Ghost Orbs, DOTS Projector

As explained in the journal, the Raiju is an entity that connects with electricity. If you're careful, you can use this to your advantage, using it to both determine the ghost type and keep yourself safe.

The main thing to note here is that the Raiju disrupts electronic equipment, so when you're using anything electrical, any interference is a good indication you're dealing with a Raiju. However, since electricity grants the Raiju extra speed and power, your best option is actually to keep everything turned off as much as possible. Turn the generator on, but if it gets switched off, try to work without it. Use your EMF reader and Spirit Box, but turn them off whenever you're not using them. This will give you longer in the room with the ghost, giving you an improved chance to gather evidence and even complete bonus challenges.

Obake

• Strength: Reduced chance of leaving evidence when interacting with the environment
• Weakness: Shapeshifting can leave unique evidence
• Evidence: EMF Level 5, UV, Ghost Orbs

The Obake is a very interesting ghost type, and one that - in some cases - can be easily deciphered from UV evidence. As a shapeshifter, the Obake can leave behind unique evidence, as explained in the journal. What the journal doesn't tell you, however, is what this looks like. Unfortunately, it doesn't happen all the time, but there is a chance that the Obake leaves behind a six-fingered handprint, immediately giving away its identity. Even The Mimic, who can shapeshift like the Obake, won't leave this same print, so you can always guarantee that six fingers means an Obake's in the room. When looking for fingerprints on light switches, the Obake has a chance of leaving two instead of the usual one, and, similarly, leaves five fingerprints instead of four on keyboards on prison doors.

The important downside to remember about the Obake is that it only has a 75% chance of leaving UV or salt evidence, instead of the usual 100%. This means you might have to check a few times before you get a hit, and don't ever take a lack of handprint as an immediate no.

The Mimic

• Strength: Incredibly hard to decipher, can mimic powerful and dangerous traits
• Weakness: Also leaves Ghost Orbs
• Evidence: Spirit Box, UV, Freezing temps

The Mimic is actually one of the hardest Phasmophobia ghosts to determine due to its ability to mimic other ghosts. This means you might see behaviors of other ghosts, making you think you've solved the investigation, and you may still be wrong.

There's no real way to get around this other than paying extra close attention to the evidence, as The Mimic cannot copy the evidence of other ghosts. For example, the Mimic can copy the Poltergeist's behavior of throwing multiple items, but will not show Fingerprint evidence. It does, however, have freezing temperatures as one of its evidence options, which isn't one of the Poltergeist's, so if you find your ghost is throwing multiple items but is also showing up freezing temperatures, for example, you may just have a Mimic on your hands.

The Mimic's weakness, however, is that it always leaves Ghost Orbs, despite this not being one of its own types of evidence. This means you have up to four methods of finding The Mimic, but the journal does not count it, so be careful and just keep it in mind whenever Ghost Orbs appear.

Moroi

• Strength: Gets stronger as your sanity decreases
• Weakness: Weakened by incense for longer periods
• Evidence: Spirit Box, Ghost Writing, Freezing temps

The terrifying truth about the Moroi is that it has the chance to become the fastest ghost in Phasmophobia. This ghost can 'curse' players when it is heard through a Spirit Box, Parabolic Mic, or Sound Recorder, instantly doubling the player's sanity drain. The only way to remove this curse is by taking sanity medication, as entering a lit room has no effect. This alone can give you an indication that a Moroi is present.

However, you'll want to act quickly, as the Moroi gets stronger the lower your sanity is, and this increased strength materialises in increased hunt speed. The Moroi's speed increases relative to the player's decreasing sanity.

Deogen

• Strength: You can't hide from a Deogen
• Weakness: Moves very slowly
• Evidence: Spirit Box, Ghost Writing, DOTS Projector

The Deogen is quite similar to the Phantom, and you could find yourself deciding between the two if you have Spirit Box and DOTS evidence. If you're struggling to find remaining evidence, a hunt could be your answer - just make sure you have a Smudge Stick on you if possible.

In a hunt, the Deogen and the Phantom are polar opposites, with the Deogen being visible for longer than other ghosts, while the Phantom is invisible for longer. If you can get a good hunt going, then, perhaps even risking the life of one player if you're not alone, you might get a better idea of which ghost you're dealing with.

Also, there is a chance that the Deogen breathes heavily through the Spirit Box instead of providing a standard answer, so this is another way of telling. However, there is only a small chance of this happening within certain parameters, so don't count on it.

Thaye

• Strength: Becomes active as soon as you enter the location
• Weakness: Weakens over time, becoming slower and less aggressive
• Evidence: Ghost Orb, Ghost Writing, DOTS Projector

The Thaye's ability is that the ghost ages consistently throughout the investigation, specifically when a player is in the room with it. The rarest but most obvious way of using this to your advantage is using a Ouija Board, since the age given will increase over time. Of course, the odds of having both an Ouija Board and Thaye in your investigation are low.

Instead, you have to pay close attention to the ghost's interactions if you believe you could be dealing with a Thaye, as its increasing age weakens it over time. This translates to slower movement speed during hunts, more infrequent hunts due to a decreasing sanity threshold, and reduced activity. They're also very active when you first enter, so a combination of that and steadily decreasing activity could indicate the presence of a Thaye.

Ghost forms

This is slightly different from ghost types, as this refers to the various appearances each ghost can take on. To avoid making it too easy to determine the ghost type, any ghost can take on any form, so seeing a ghost won't help you identify it. This information is simply for interest and to better gauge ghost activity.

Full form

When a ghost manifests fully, it looks human (ish) and can come in multiple forms, from an elderly woman to a child. Again, this doesn't have any bearing on which type of ghost you're looking at, but it does seem to match the gender, relative to the ghost's name.

Shadow form

In Shadow form, the ghost appears as a black, shadowy silhouette with a grey outline. Sometimes this form can appear more opaque than others.

Ghost form

This is the most traditionally ghostly form, and, while it does appear to be more physical than a classic ghost, it is a grey-white, shimmery form.

Mist form

This is the most unusual ghost form, and you might go a while before realizing it's actually the ghost. Manifesting as a simple ball of mist, this ghost form floats towards the player, so it's easy to mistake it for your breath in freezing temperatures. The telltale sign is that, once it reaches the player, it makes a high-pitched gasp sound and disappears.

Now you're well acquainted with the strengths and weaknesses of these hostile Phasmophobia ghosts, get more acquainted with more of the items you'll need to identify them, like the Phasmo Ouija Board, and what it means when you find dirty water during a Phasmophobia investigation.