Halloween shopping start in the United States in 2024, by age

With specialty stores peppered throughout the country, American consumers can shop for Halloween-themed goods at any time of year. Nevertheless, in 2024, consumers of all ages in the United States were most likely to begin shopping for Halloween in September and October. While consumers over the age of 54 were most likely to wait until October (roughly 75 percent of respondents), Gen Z shoppers' responses were a little more mixed.

Who celebrates Halloween?

The majority of Americans planned to celebrate Halloween in 2024, and the holiday has only grown in popularity since 2020. According to data collected in 2023, most consumers in the United States celebrated by passing out candy, decorating their homes and yards, and dressing up in costumes. Some consumers even threw parties and purchased costumes for their pets, and consumers with children enjoyed taking them out for trick-or-treating.

Halloween spending has increased

In 2023, planned Halloween expenditures were at an all-time high. Consumers appeared to be more enthusiastic about the holiday than ever after a brief dip in both celebrating and spending in 2020 and 2021, likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2024, spending figures dropped again slightly. While spending at the individual level has only increased modestly, inflation has made all kinds of celebrations more expensive and had a stark impact on holiday shopping behavior overall.