Halloween statistics 2024: How much is spent each year?

Whether you don a scary outfit or just hand out sweets to trick-or-treaters, there’s no escaping Halloween. We looked into how much money is spent on Halloween from our bank accounts in the UK each year.

Halloween statistics UK: Highlights

• Halloween spending in the UK is projected to reach £776 million in 2024.
• 3 in 5 Brits (58%) plan to make a Halloween purchase, with an average planned spend of £25 per person.
• Gen Z are most likely to spend on Halloween in 2024, with 84% of this group planning to spend.
• However, millennials plan to spend the most, with an average planned spend of £43 per person.
• London is the region expected to spend the most on Halloween in 2024, with 3 in 4 (74%) planning to spend an average of £43 each.
• 3 in 5 Brits (62%) plan to spend less than £20 or nothing at all on Halloween.
• A quarter of Brits (25%) claim that Halloween is their favourite holiday.

How much do we spend on Halloween in the UK?

Brits are expected to spend £776 million on Halloween in 2024, according to a recent Finder survey. Around 3 in 5 (58%) are planning to spend some money on celebrations, decorations or costumes, with an average spend of £25 per person.

However, lots of us are still making sure to cut costs this October. While £25 is the average spend, 3 in 5 Brits (62%) plan to spend less than £20 or nothing at all for Halloween!

Which generation spends the most on Halloween?

Generation Z and millennials are the big spenders when it comes to Halloween. In 2024, 84% of gen Z and 81% of millennials are planning to put at least some money towards the event, whether that’s decorations, costumes or general celebrations.

Both generations also have a relatively high average spend per person, with the average gen Z-er spending £41 on their Halloween celebrations and the average millennial spending even more at £43.

The enthusiasm for Halloween seems to decrease with age, however, as just 29% of baby boomers and 19% of the silent generation expect to make a spooky purchase. Gen X sit somewhere in the middle, with just over half of this group (53%) planning to spend £19 each on average.

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Which region spends the most on Halloween?

Those in London are planning to spend big this Halloween, with 3 in 4 (74%) planning to spend an average of £43 each. They are joined by residents in Northern Ireland, who are also planning to spend a significant amount on Halloween this year. Three quarters (75%) are planning to splash out, with an average spend of £43.

Meanwhile, those in the North East and South West of England are least likely to engage in Halloween spending. Less than half of people in the North East are spending, with a much lower budget of just £23. Similarly, only 45% of those in the South West, with the lowest planned spend of all regions – at just £13.

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How has Halloween spending changed over time?

In 2019, it was expected that UK residents would spend £474 million on Halloween celebrations. This has increased significantly in the 5 years since, despite the recent cost of living crisis, with the UK now projected to spend 64% more in 2024, with a total of £776 million.

How much is the UK embracing Halloween?

A recent survey¹ found that a quarter of Brits (25%) claim that Halloween is their favourite holiday. However, another survey back in 2022² found that only 1 in 10 Brits (12%) believe that Halloween is celebrated because it is a ‘proper’ special occasion, while a whopping 83% of Brits think that it’s celebrated more because of commercial pressure.

Methodology

Finder commissioned Cenuswide to survey 2,000 adults from 1-4 October 2024 to find out how much adults planned to spend on Halloween in 2024.