Dive Brief:
- On average, Americans plan to spend $162 on Halloween this year, down 16% from $192 in 2025, according to a LendingTree survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers released on Wednesday.
- Along with shrinking budgets, the share of shoppers planning to make Halloween purchases has fallen from 90% last year to 80% this year.
- Among consumers planning to shop for Halloween, nearly two-thirds (61%) said they would skip some purchases, including candy (35%), decorations (31%) and costumes (29%). Furthermore, nearly a quarter (24%) anticipate paying for their Halloween purchases with debt, according to the survey.
Dive Insight:
Though many consumers are spooked about affording their Halloween purchases, some consumers are more financially strained than others. Roughly four in 10 (43%) Gen Zers said they’re likely to take on Halloween debt this year, followed by 35% of millennials. By contrast, only 14% of Gen Xers and 2% of baby boomers said the same, the survey found.
Among those who have taken on debt to fund their Halloween fun, 51% said they regret overspending. Those respondents cited pressure to keep up appearances and higher-than-anticipated prices as the top two reasons why they exceeded their budget, per the report.
Indeed, prices have increased leading up to Halloween, including in holiday staples like children’s toys. Toy prices rose 4.2% between August and September, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. Compared to a year ago, toy prices jumped 6.6% in September, per the index’s unadjusted figures.
Many holiday shoppers have taken advantage of discounts and started shopping early to stretch their budgets. Nearly half (45%) of respondents to an Ibotta survey said their finances are insecure, and over 70% said they are focusing on saving money this year.
Though seven in 10 shoppers said they can easily afford their Halloween purchases, roughly four in 10 (42%) anticipate the economy deteriorating in the year ahead, according to a Deloitte survey of 1,500 U.S. shoppers. More than half of shoppers are buying their Halloween items at grocery stores and 40% are shopping at discount stores for the holiday, that survey found.
Similarly, another survey by the National Retail Federation found that nearly four in ten (39%) consumers cited discount stores as their top destination for Halloween products.
