How Much Do Americans Spend on Halloween?

Just behind Christmas, Halloween is the United States’ second-biggest commercial holiday. Pop-up stores like Spirit Halloween make a killing on costume sales, and year-rounder Party City can expect to bag one-quarter of its total annual revenue during Halloween season alone.

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And it’s not just costumes. Pumpkin patches, corn mazes and month-long horror movie binges are the norm for this time of year. See if you spend more or less than the average person on your festivities.

Last updated: Oct. 27, 2021

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Americans are expected to spend more this Halloween than any other year — $10.14 billion, up from $8.05 billion in 2020. About $3 billion of that will be spent on candy alone; which translates to about $30.40 that each person is spending on candy.

For context, $30 could buy you a jumbo bag of pumpkin-shaped Reese’s peanut butter cups, a theater box of Skittles, six full-size Snickers bars, 3 pounds of candy corn, 12 ounces of assorted Laffy Taffy and a pack of Hershey’s kisses.

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Americans are expected to spend a hefty $3.3 billion on costumes this year; with the average person spending $33.59. This is compared to only $2.6 billion spent on costumes in 2020.

The most popular costumes include princesses for kids, witches for adults and pumpkins for pets.

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Around 52% of Americans planned on decorating their homes this Halloween season, reported the National Retail Federation. The NRF’s Halloween Data Center estimates that $3.2 billion total will be spent on decorations, with per-person spending at $32.10.

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According to Finder.com, the cost of a pumpkin is up: The average gourd will run you $4.83, as compared to $4.18 in 2020 and $4.04 in 2019.

But pumpkin carving is a time-honored tradition that plenty of Americans won’t be missing out on. As a whole, the country is projected to spend $708 million on these popular winter squashes.

This year, the average person is expected to shell out $102.74 in Halloween-related costs, according to the NRF. This is compared to $92.12 in 2020 and $86.27 the year before.

Americans are planning on spending their $103 predominately on home decorations, costumes and candy.