[8][10] Major stories have included the development of a romantic relationship between Cecil and Carlos;[11] the stranding of several characters, including Carlos, in a "desert otherworld";[12] the invasion of Night Vale by the corporation StrexCorp, from the rival town of Desert Bluffs, and StrexCorp's eventual expulsion from Night Vale;[13] the 2014 mayoral elections, with subsequent terrorist activities by failed mayoral candidates The Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your Home and Hiram McDaniels;[14] and the complications surrounding McDaniels's subsequent imprisonment and trial.

The series's fourth anniversary in June 2016 coincided with a two-part climax to the most recent storyline: the invasion of Night Vale by mysterious strangers, led by a demonic beagle puppy accidentally summoned from Hell by Chad Bowinger, a former radio intern.

More recent plot points include the resolution of the Blood Space War, the aging of Lee Marvin, the town being brought back into the normal flow of time, and the whereabouts of the missing Delta flight 18713.

It is told primarily from the viewpoints of Night Vale citizens Jackie Fierro and Diane Crayton, both minor characters on the podcast, who investigate two mysteries that bring their lives closer together.

[22][23][24] In the March 15, 2017 episode of the podcast, Fink announced a second novel, titled It Devours!, which follows Carlos and his team of scientists investigating the Joyous Congregation of the Smiling God.

In the September 15, 2019 episode of the podcast it was announced that the third Night Vale novel, The Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives In Your Home, would be released on March 24, 2020.

[28] The Daily Dot's Gavia Baker-Whitelaw compared the podcast to being "caught somewhere between Weird Twitter and 'Tales of the Unexplained'" and said that it is "well worth a listen—although possibly not after dark, if you live in a small town yourself".

Club said the show is "really well done, offering a surrealist/absurdist (and occasionally existentialist) take on community radio, with dispatches from the small, delectably nightmarish desert town of Night Vale.

"[31] In July 2013, Welcome to Night Vale was ranked second on the top ten audio podcasts list on iTunes, behind radio program This American Life.

Max Sebela, a creative strategist for Tumblr, stated that the fan following began to "spiral out of control" beginning on July 5, with that week having "20,000-plus posts about 'Night Vale,' with 183,000-plus individual blogs participating in the conversation, and 680,000-plus notes".

[36] On October 15, 2015, producers Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor were interviewed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Cecil Baldwin appeared for a Community Calendar public service message for Night Vale.

In December 2017, it was announced that Gennifer Hutchison, a writer and producer on Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad, is adapting Welcome to Night Vale for television.

In 2023, Fink and Cranor announced on Patreon that despite writing a pilot episode, a key figure departed production and thus the show was postponed indefinitely.