Halloween, the spookiest night of the year, once again will bring out the ghouls, ghosts, and witches in all their frightening glory. To celebrate, our market research company is shining a spotlight on the intriguing statistics that defined this haunting holiday.
From the top costume choices to the candy favorites that made trick-or-treating a sweet success, here are our favorite Halloween statistics for 2024.
Top Halloween Statistics [Editor's Choice]
- Spending for Halloween 2024 is expected to reach $11.6 billion dollars.
- Spirit Halloween will open 1,525 new locations this fall.
- Up to 97% of Americans will be giving out Halloween candy.
- Up to 94% of Americans are planning to celebrate Halloween in 2024.
For further analysis, we broke down the data in the following ways:
Spending | Candy | Celebrations and Costumes
Overall Halloween Spending Habits💸
- Spending for Halloween 2024 is expected to reach $11.6 billion dollars.
While this is still a massive figure, it’s a bit of a drop from last year’s spending which was $12.2 billion dollars. This year, shoppers are planning to spend $103.63 dollars on festive items, which is also down from last year’s $108.24 dollars.
- Up to 94% of Americans are planning to celebrate Halloween in 2024
With most everyone celebrating in some way, it’s a good thing a certain classic costume retailer is opening new locations across the country (you have to keep reading to find out)...
- 47% of shoppers are getting their Halloween shopping done early this year.
This is up 10% from five years ago, and signals consumers are wanting to avoid chaotic last-minute shopping trips. The biggest fans of Halloween spending are those aged 25 to 34, with 56% of them starting their shopping before October even hits. That’s dedication.
- It’s believed that the global market size of Halloween costumes will expand at a compound annual growth rate of 0.5% from 2023 to 2030.
And to the most fun part: what costumes will be popular this year? Based on some of the movie releases this year, popular costume themes may include Beetlejuice, Wicked, Deadpool, and Wolverine.
- Spirit Halloween will open 1,525 new locations this fall.
A Halloween institution! It’s believed the new locations will be hiring a total of 50,000 seasonal employees to cover needs.
- A brave 72% of consumers would consider buying a haunted house
Looks like they haven't seen enough horror movies. Speaking of haunted houses, the annual revenue for haunted house tours and related festivities is over $300 million. 80% of these attractions are hosted by charity organizations. - IT: Chapter One was one of the highest-grossing horror movies of all time at $123.4 million dollars
Other eerie money-makers throughout the years include The Sixth Sense ($672 million), The Exorcist ($441 million), and The Nun ($365 million). Earnings aside, some of the scariest horror movies based on the viewer's heart rate include Sinister (86 BPM), The Conjuring (86 BPM), and Paranormal Activity (82 BPM).
Let's be real, the candy was always the best part about celebrating Halloween as a kid (and we think it still is). But when it comes to which house has the best candy, that's a whole other level.
Whether you enjoy chocolates or sugary candies, everyone has a staunch opinion on which sweet treat is number one. Check out these candy-related Halloween statistics we found…
- Up to 97% of Americans will be giving out Halloween candy.
That’s the spirit! And of that figure, two thirds say they give out two or three pieces of candy to trick-or-treaters. Common candy favorites include gummies, lollipops, and chocolate.
- In the past, Halloween candy spending has gone over $3 billion dollars
Each year, the typical household will shell out $25 on Halloween candy - equating to over $2 billion dollars. But where's the best spot to buy all this candy? Wal-Mart comes out as the most popular location to grab treats, with Target following closely behind. - Preferred candy varies from state to state
No shocker here, but Reese's was number one for many states...but not all. In Arizona, Skittles comes out as number one. Michigan loves its Starbursts, and Montana goes crazy for Hot Tamales. - Cotton candy was invented by a...dentist?!
It's true. A more niche Halloween treat, cotton candy was created by dentist William Morrison in 1897. However, the sweet treat went by the name of "Fairy Floss"--not cotton candy--in its early days. - Tootsie Pops take between 364 to 411 licks to finish
There was always at least one of these in our trick-or-treat bags. Believe it or not, Tootsie Roll Inc. actually has licking machines to test how many licks it takes to get to the soft center.
Halloween Celebration Statistics🎭
Whether you prefer a laid-back Halloween, handing out candy at home, or heading out to a costume party, there are many different ways to celebrate the day.
- Up to 94% of Americans are planning to celebrate Halloween in 2024
With most everyone celebrating in some way, it’s a good thing more Spirit Halloween locations are in the works!
- 47% of people wear costumes to celebrate the day
We already gave you some ideas for costumes. Let's not forget parties, though. Below are a few fun themes that everyone can enjoy:- Murder mystery
- Nightmare Before Christmas
- Pumpkin carving
- Horror movie night
- Americans spend roughly $804 million on pumpkins
Ready to hit the patch? The average price of a pumpkin comes out at around $5, which is up by 11% in 2022. - Trick-or-treating goes way back to the 1600s
Referred to as "guising" back in the day, children in Scotland and Ireland would dress in costume and ask neighbors for candy. Adaptations of this now-classic tradition began in the US in the early 1900s.
Final Thoughts
Do you feel Halloween-ready yet from these Halloween statistics? A chance to get festive each year, this holiday provides those who celebrate with the opportunity to dress up and eat plenty of candy.
While down slightly, spending stats for Halloween this year are high and will likely continue to be so for the years to come. While some Americans may be cutting costs by recycling costumers or reducing decorations, the spirit of this classic holiday is still very much alive!
Sourcing
- Good Housekeeping
- Mercattours
- WFSB
- MarketSplash
- Visual.ly
- Mental Floss
- Daily Hive
- Consolidated Credit
- Real Simple
- Retail Dive
- Store Brands
- Cognitive Market Research
- Scripps News
- 103 the Peak
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Lark Allen
As a Content Marketing Specialist, Lark has a strong background and passion for creative, professional, and journalistic writing. She is also a self-proclaimed music freak and 90s enthusiast.
Learn more about Lark, here.
