Costumes stay Halloween's biggest category as US spending holds at 13.5 billion dollars

US consumers are expected to spend 13.5 billion dollars on Halloween this year, and costumes remain the largest single category in that total at 4.4 billion dollars, ahead of decorations at 4.3 billion and candy at 4.1 billion, according to the National Retail Federation's annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.

The ranking is notable because participation runs the other way. Almost every Halloween shopper buys candy, at 96 percent, while 71 percent buy a costume. Costumes carry a far higher ticket, so a smaller group of buyers produces the bigger category. Costume spending is split between 2 billion dollars on adults, 1.5 billion on children and 0.92 billion on pets, the last of those up from 0.86 billion a year ago.

Overall spending is close to flat against last year's record 13.1 billion dollars, with average spending per person at 115.14 dollars against 114.45 in 2025. Participation is steady at 74 percent of consumers planning to celebrate, against 73 percent last year and 68 percent in 2019. Half of those celebrating, 50 percent, plan to dress up.

The behavioural detail is where the retail interest sits. Faced with higher-than-expected prices, 34 percent of consumers say they will look for items they can reuse in future years or repurpose for other occasions, 31 percent will comparison shop and 26 percent will hunt for coupons or sales.

"Consumers continue to make Halloween a spending priority, but they are also approaching the season with affordability in mind," said Allison Zeller, vice president of industry and consumer insights at the NRF. "This year's results show that shoppers are being thoughtful and strategic, looking for ways to maximise value throughout the season."

The selling window has also stretched. Forty-nine percent of consumers start shopping in September or earlier, level with last year but up from 34 percent in 2016. Among those early shoppers, 42 percent say they simply look forward to autumn, while 23 percent are spreading out their budgets and 21 percent were pulled in by promotions.

Where they buy is shifting at the margins. Discount stores lead at 39 percent, down from 42 percent last year, followed by specialty Halloween and costume shops at 32 percent and online at 27 percent, a sharp fall from 31 percent in 2025. Local and small businesses are at 13 percent, nearly double the 7 percent recorded in 2016.

Almost half of shoppers, 47 percent, are using AI tools somewhere in their Halloween shopping, mostly for brainstorming ideas while planning, at 34 percent, and for recommendations during product research, at 32 percent. Online searches remain the leading source of costume inspiration at 32 percent, but that is down from 37 percent last year and is the lowest level in a decade. Physical stores are the second source for costumes at 26 percent and the leading source for decorations at 31 percent.

Among costume choices, 4.8 million adults plan to dress as a witch and 4.2 million as a vampire, followed by Batman, Spider-Man and a ghost. For children, Spider-Man leads at 4.6 million, ahead of a generic superhero, a princess, a witch and a ghost. For pets, the pumpkin holds at 11.6 percent, ahead of the hot dog and the ghost.

The 2026 survey polled 7,889 consumers between 1 and 9 September, with a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.

This article was created with the assistance of an AI tool and edited by a FashionUnited editor.