At 47%, nearly half of Halloween shoppers will begin shopping for the holiday before Oct. 1, according to the National Retail Federation survey of 7,945 consumers conducted Sept. 3-8 by Prosper Insights & Analytics.
Overall, 72% of consumers plan to celebrate Halloween in 2024, which is on par with previous years. The average Halloween spend per person is $103.63.
Early Halloween shopping has steadily increased over the past decade, according to NRF’s annual surveys. Last year, 45% of consumers started shopping for Halloween before October, 37% in 2019 and 32% in 2014.
The top reason why 2024 Halloween shoppers start before October is because they are looking forward to fall (48%), followed by to avoid the stress of last-minute shopping (38%) and Halloween is one of my favorite holidays (37%).
Younger shoppers (ages 25-34) are driving the early spending patterns, according to the NRF survey.
“Interest in early Halloween shopping continues to be dominated by the 25-34 age group, with 56% of shoppers in this group kicking off their shopping before October,” said Phil Rist, executive vice president of strategy at Prosper. “Their love of the holiday is a key factor in this trend, with nearly half of this segment sharing that they plan to shop early because Halloween is their favorite holiday.”
Overall for the 2024 season, consumers will spend $11.6 billion on Halloween-related purchases, including candy, costumes and decorations. This is a decrease from 2023, when NRF estimates that consumers spent $12.2 billion on Halloween-related goods.
This decrease should not be a concern for retailers, as many categories shifted during and after the pandemic, said Katie Thomas, lead at Kearney Consumer Institute, a part of consulting firm Kearney.
“A slight projected decline this year is unsurprising given current consumer pressures, from lingering inflation concerns to election uncertainty,” Thomas said. “When reflecting on the overall trajectory, these numbers show more of a stabilization than a decline.”
The NRF estimates the following Halloween spend by category:
- Decorations – $3.8 billion
- Costumes – $3.8 billion (Adults $1.8 billion, children $1.3 and pets $0.7 billion)
- Candy – $3.5 billion
- Greeting cards – $0.5 billion
Discount stores (at 37% of consumers) are the top destination to buy Halloween items, followed by specialty Halloween stores (33%) and online (33%). Shoppers mostly go online to find inspiration at 38%.
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