We Were Three
From Serial Productions and This American Life producer Nancy Updike: a woman's father and brother die two weeks apart from Covid, and she uncovers what she wasn't told.
Podcasts Like We Were Three
If you loved We Were Three, here are the best podcasts to try next. Matched by case type, storytelling style, and community ratings from our database of Institutional failure, Investigative shows.
Why listeners love We Were Three
A short, devastating Serial Productions series about institutional and family silence during Covid — not a traditional crime story, but a natural fit for listeners of We Were Three's sister shows. It follows a serialized format — each season covers one case in depth, building suspense across episodes.
Binge Factor
7/10
Community-rated compulsive listenability
Format
Serialized
One story told across multiple episodes
Style
Personal, reflective, profound
Presentation approach
Episode Length
35-45 min
Typical episode duration
Host Style
Solo narrator
Presentation format
Verdict
Good if you want a short, devastating story about institutional failure rather than a crime in the traditional sense
Our editorial rating
Recommendations
12 podcasts like We Were Three
A Moment In Crime
NZ Herald crime reporter Anna Leask revisits a major New Zealand case each month with the reporting behind it.
Fur and Loathing
Brazen series on a 2014 chemical attack at a furry convention.
Crime Next Door: The Beast of Birkenhead
BBC’s Olivia Graham revisits the 1986 Diane Sindall murder and the 2025 quashing of Peter Sullivan’s conviction. Sullivan quashed 13 May 2025; killer unknown.
Gone South
Narrative series about crime in the American South, now widening to other regions.
The Missing Cryptoqueen
BBC journalist Jamie Bartlett tracks down Dr Ruja Ignatova, who persuaded millions to invest in OneCoin before vanishing without a trace.
You Didn't See Nothin
Pulitzer Prize and Peabody Award-winning series in which Yohance Lacour revisits a violent Chicago incident from 25 years earlier that shaped his path into journalism.
Spotlight: Snitch City
The Boston Globe Spotlight Team exposes one police department's rampant abuse of confidential informants — a top critical pick of 2025.
Pipeline
The Crime Desk's investigation into four professional divers sucked hundreds of feet into a Caribbean oil pipeline in 2022 — and the failing safety standards that put them there.
Murdaugh Murders Podcast
Journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell broke the Murdaugh family saga before it became a national story, and kept reporting it deeper than anyone else.
The Trial of Erin Patterson
The Crime Desk's courtroom coverage of the Erin Patterson 'mushroom murders' trial — one of the biggest cases of the decade.
S-Town
From Serial Productions: a man convinced his Alabama town is covering up a murder pulls host Brian Reed into a story that becomes something else entirely.
Crime Story
CBC's Kathleen Goldhar brings journalistic integrity and a conversational edge to white-collar scandals, high-profile trials, and under-the-radar Canadian stories.
How they compare
| Podcast | Format | Country | Binge |
|---|---|---|---|
| We Were Three (original) | Serialized | United States | 7/10 |
| A Moment In Crime | Episodic | New Zealand | — |
| Fur and Loathing | Serialized | United States | — |
| Crime Next Door: The Beast of Birkenhead | Serialized | United Kingdom | — |
| Gone South | Serialized | United States | — |
| The Missing Cryptoqueen | Serialized | United Kingdom | 9/10 |
| You Didn't See Nothin | Serialized | United States | 9/10 |
| Spotlight: Snitch City | Serialized | United States | 9/10 |
| Pipeline | Serialized | United Kingdom | 9/10 |
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Frequently Asked Questions
What podcasts are similar to We Were Three?
The best alternatives to We Were Three are podcasts that share its Institutional failure, Investigative focus and serialized format. We've matched alternatives based on case types, storytelling format, and community ratings from our database.
Why do people love We Were Three?
We Were Three is known for its personal, reflective, profound approach to Institutional failure and Investigative. It scores 7/10 on our binge factor rating, reflecting how compulsively listenable listeners find it.
How long are episodes of We Were Three?
Episodes of We Were Three are typically 35-45 min long. It follows a serialized format, covering one story across multiple episodes.
Where can I listen to We Were Three?
We Were Three is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify. You can find it by searching the show name on any of those platforms.
What is the best episode of We Were Three to start with?
New listeners are recommended to start with Episode 1. As a serialized podcast, it's best to start from the beginning of a season.