Pumpkins, spiderwebs, superhero suits – these are the staples of a good Halloween. But what do the latest Halloween spending statistics tell about how Brits celebrate this holiday?
UK Halloween Spending Statistics & Facts
- Halloween spending in the UK is estimated to total £687 million in 2022. (Finder)
- Spending on Halloween has increased rapidly in the past few years; in 2001, Halloween spending stood at a measly £12 million. (Beam)
- The UK is still far behind the US, where spending in 2021 reached around £8.6 billion. (Investopedia)
- The biggest Halloween spenders are parents with children under 5 (85% of the total spending). (Beam)
- Young millennials also like the holiday, with 77% of the age group spending money on Halloween. (Real Business)
- People in South East and East Anglia were the least likely to spend money on Halloween, according to statistics from 2017. (Mintel)
- In 2017, 25% of those who spent money on Halloween splashed out between £10 and £25; 17% spent between £26 and £50. (Mintel)
- The rich and the famous in London have gotten into Halloween spirit, with the wealthiest neighbourhoods spending up to £40,000 for a party. (The Daily Telegraph)
Sweet treats and pumpkins
- The vast majority (80%) celebrate Halloween by buying sweets to hand out. (Savvy)
- Out of all the money spent, 40% goes towards sweet treats. (Mintel)
- One in five Brits planned to give out treats to trick-or-treaters in 2021. (YouGov)
- Haribo controls 46.8% of Halloween sweet sales. (IRI)
- Snickers is the most popular sweet treat in the UK for trick-or-treating. (Parkdean Resorts)
- Brighton spent the most money on Halloween candy out of the UK cities, with an average of £18.6. (Statista)
- Scottish cities have significant differences in their love of Halloween sweets; the people of Edinburgh splashed £16 on average, while Glasgow only spent £4.6. (Statista)
- In 2020, Halloween home baking went up by 31% from the previous year to reach £2.1 million – primarily due to lockdown restrictions inspiring people to bake at home for the holiday. (conveniencestore.co.uk)
- A quarter of Brits said they bought a pumpkin for Halloween in 2021, which would have cost them on average £1.47. (Finder)
- In 2019, Asda sold the biggest Halloween pumpkins, Monster Pumpkins, for £5 each. (Birmingham Live)
Halloween costumes
- The average family of three spends £122.55 on Halloween costumes. (RAJA UK)
- Halloween costumes for men cost £33.10 on average, while women need to spend £67.80. (RAJA UK)
- Americans spend nearly half a billion dollars on pet costumes on Halloween, and even in the UK, retailers are stocking pet outfits to meet demand. (The American Retail Federation)
- Most people (37.1%) said they’d buy Halloween costumes from a supermarket, and only 9.5% head down to an independent fancy dress shop. (Webloaylty)
- You need to be careful with what costume you wear if you drive, as costumes that limit the ability to drive safely can lead to a £100 on-the-spot fine. (MotorEasy)
Last-minute Halloween planning
- Halloween is the UK’s third most profit-generating holiday after Christmas and Easter. (Eventbrite)
- 88% of Halloween shoppers start planning the holiday a couple of weeks before, but 10% admit they will leave it all to the last minute. (Savvy)
- When looking for ideas for the holiday, 73% of shoppers say they look for supermarkets, but the importance of social media is steadily growing. (Savvy)
- While Brits like to spend money on Halloween, 63.2% believe it’s not an actual festival but purely a commercial opportunity! (Webloyalty)