How much will Americans spend on Jack-o’-Lanterns this Halloween?

Americans are expected to spend $377.23 million on pumpkins for carving into jack-o-lanterns in 2019

Last updated: 20 September 2019

Halloween is just around the corner but America’s love for this spooky holiday appears to be waning. In 2019, Finder estimates that 145 million Americans (roughly 44% of the population) will be buying a pumpkin to make homemade jack-o-lanterns, which is down slightly from 147 million (45%) in 2018.

With Americans forecast to spend $8.8 billion on All Saints’ Day, according to the National Retail Federation, 2019 will be roughly $200 million shy of the $9 billion they spent in 2018.

The cost of a pumpkin is also down, with prices falling for the third straight year. In 2019, the cost of the average pumpkin is $2.60, down from $3.89 in 2018 — a 33% decline. This precipitous fall in the cost of a pumpkin, coupled with a declining number of Americans planning to carve a jack-o-lantern, means that Americans will be spending approximately 377.23 million on pumpkins in 2019. This is a drop of more than $200 million from the $575.26 just a year ago.

Here’s how the total adds up:

Average price of a pumpkin	$2.60
Percentage of Americans planning to carve pumpkins	44%
Number of Americans that plan to carve pumpkins	145,089,009
Total jack-o-lantern expenditure	$377,231,423

Source: finder.com, United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Retail Federation

Time to get spooky

Thankfully, there should be enough supply to meet the demand for everything pumpkin-related this fall, with pumpkin production up on last year, when diseases, rain and cool temperatures damaged crops.

Overall, Halloween 2019 is expected to be an expensive day with the National Retail Federation predicting total spending on Halloween to reach a record of $8.8 billion.

How can you save money at Halloween?

“A DIY costume can definitely help with savings if you use material and clothing you already have. And let’s be honest, something as simple as bedsheets can make you the perfect ghost or superhero. You might even end up having the most creative costume due to your innovation,” says Allan Givens, PR Coordinator at finder.com.

“Be sure to set a budget before venturing to the shops to ensure you’re conscious of over-spending. Do some research and see what stores are offering the best deals on candy. Some candy you have laying around from the year before might still be good. Dark chocolate can have a shelf life of two years in foil when kept in a cool dry place. If you are hosting a party don’t hesitate to reuse decorations from the year before or craft some up.

How to choose the ideal pumpkin for carving

Comparing the cost of a jack-o-lantern over time

Let’s take a closer look

The average price of a pumpkin has dropped by 33.16% in 2019, to $2.60 from 2018’s $3.89. The proportion of Americans planning to carve pumpkins has only declined one percentage point, from 45% to 44%. This lower price average coupled with 44% of American’s 2019 population resulted in a decrease of 34.42% in total jack-o-lantern expenditure.

	2019		2018		2017
	Figures	YoY difference (%)	Figures	YoY difference (%)	Figures	YoY difference (%)
Average price of a pumpkin	$2.60	-33.16%	$3.89	-5.58%	$4.12	N/A
Percentage of Americans planning to carve pumpkins	44%	N/A	45%	N/A	46%	N/A
Number of Americans that plan to carve pumpkins	145,089,009	-1.89%	147,882,426	-1.42%	150,007,007	N/A
Total jack-o-lantern expenditure	377,231,423	-34.42%	$575,262,637	-6.92%	$618,028,870	N/A

Source: finder.com, United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Retail Federation

Jack-o-lantern fun facts

80% of the pumpkin supply in the United States is available in October.
Jack-o-lanterns are believed to have originated in Ireland in the 19th century.
The world’s largest jack-o-lantern was carved into the Guinness World Records on October 31, 2010, by Scott Cully in Bronx, New York, weighing 1,810.5 pounds (821.23kg).

Other money statistic pages…

- The average price of pumpkins ($2.60) was calculated using the average advertised retail price per pumpkin recorded each week in September by the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service.
- 44% of Americans are expected to carve pumpkins this Halloween, based on the National Retail Federation’s Annual Halloween Spending Survey, conducted in 2019 by Prosper Insights & Analytics.
- A conservative estimate was used to calculate the number of pumpkins carved, as some people will carve more than others. So we used 44% of the total American population, of 329,747,748 as at September 2019, (source: United States Census Bureau Population Clock), which equates to 145,089,009.12, then multiplied by $2.60 to total $377,231,423.

For media inquiries:

Allan Givens
Public Relations Manager
203-818-2928
allan.givens@finder.com

Nicole Gallina
Communications Coordinator
347-677-4931
nicole.gallina@finder.com

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How much will Americans spend on Jack-o’-Lanterns this Halloween?