A recent Deloitte survey finds Halloween is becoming a cherished household tradition, with shoppers embracing festive celebrations, experiences, and early-season retail trips
Natalie Martini
US retail and consumer products sector leader
Deloitte United States
Natalie Martini serves as the vice chair and US retail and consumer products sector leader for Deloitte. She is also an audit and assurance partner and has 25 years of professional experience auditing and advising large and mid-sized multinational companies across the retail, distribution, and technology industries. Martini assists public and private companies through complex transactions, including initial public offerings, carve-out audits, acquisitions, and dispositions.
Brian McCarthy
Principal | Retail strategy and business transformation
Deloitte United States
Brian McCarthy is a principal in Deloitte’s strategy and analytics practice. He has more than 15 years of retail experience spanning the retail value chain. His specific work includes merchandising, supply chain, store operations, and enabling analytics and technology.
McCarthy has advised department, specialty, mass, and grocery retailers through growth strategy and business transformation engagements, including merchandising and supply chain transformation, assortment, organizational structure design, process redesign, inventory management, and capacity planning.
Stephen Rogers
Managing Director | Deloitte Services LP
Deloitte United States
Steve Rogers is the firm managing director of Deloitte’s Consumer Industry Center. He leads a team that conducts research to uncover new ways of thinking, working, and leading within the consumer industry through data- and evidence-driven analysis.
Lupine Skelly
Firm Enterprise Solutions Associate Director, Strategic Market Insights and Thought Leadership | Deloitte Services LP
Deloitte United States
Lupine Skelly is a firm strategic market insights and thought leadership associate director at Deloitte Services LP’s Consumer Industry Center and serves as the retail, wholesale and distribution research leader. She brings more than 15 years of retail market research experience to her work of uncovering actionable insights into emerging trends across the retail industry. Her research focuses on consumer behavior and how it relates to key retail events (such as back-to-school and holiday seasons), helping business leaders understand evolving market signals.
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Halloween has materialized into a household tradition for many, with 92% of surveyed US households planning to participate in at least one Halloween activity in 2026.
Despite mixed economic sentiment, the 2026 Deloitte Halloween Survey finds consumer spending intentions haven’t wavered. Most retail shoppers expect to match or exceed last year’s Halloween spend, budgeting for an average of US$285 per household. And most of these shoppers say they can comfortably afford their planned Halloween celebrations.
Surveyed consumers expect most of their Halloween-related shopping activity to be concentrated in a tight late-summer or early-fall window and skew heavily toward in-store, everyday retail formats rather than specialty or online channels. However, the most enthusiastic Halloween shoppers—those kicking off their spending before mid-August—plan to spend more on average and have the broadest participation across all activities and retail categories.
Download the full survey findings
Key takeaways
Casting a wide spell on households
For a traditionally smaller holiday, Halloween draws outsized participation, with 92% of surveyed households planning to participate and families with kids engaging across more categories. They plan to participate in six Halloween activities (like handing out treats and decorating their home or yard), versus four for households without kids.
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Shoppers not spooked to spend on Halloween
Households plan to spend an average of $285 across retail categories, events, activities, and dining (US$219 on retail spending and US$66 on experiences). Despite mixed economic sentiment, 34% of surveyed consumers plan to spend more than they did in 2025. Seventy-one percent of spenders say they can comfortably afford their planned Halloween celebration.
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An early start summons monster spending
The earliest Halloween shoppers get a jump on their spending before mid-August and plan to spend 1.7x more on average across all activities and retail categories, compared with late shoppers. These early shoppers are also more enthusiastic about décor, costumes, and hosting, creating opportunities for retailers to cater to this group in a more targeted manner.
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Methodology
The 2026 Deloitte Halloween Survey was conducted online using an independent research panel, between August 18 and August 26, 2026. The nationally representative survey polled 1,500 US households with respondents over 18 years, who were knowledgeable about household Halloween plans and spending. The quota-controlled sample reflects key demographic and household characteristics. It covers Halloween participation and expected spending, including households with no planned Halloween spending. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points for the full sample.
Natalie Martini
Natalie Martini
US retail and consumer products sector leader
Deloitte United States
Natalie Martini serves as the vice chair and US retail and consumer products sector leader for Deloitte. She is also an audit and assurance partner and has 25 years of professional experience auditing and advising large and mid-sized multinational companies across the retail, distribution, and technology industries. Martini assists public and private companies through complex transactions, including initial public offerings, carve-out audits, acquisitions, and dispositions.
Brian McCarthy
Brian McCarthy
Principal | Retail strategy and business transformation
Deloitte United States
Brian McCarthy is a principal in Deloitte’s strategy and analytics practice. He has more than 15 years of retail experience spanning the retail value chain. His specific work includes merchandising, supply chain, store operations, and enabling analytics and technology.
McCarthy has advised department, specialty, mass, and grocery retailers through growth strategy and business transformation engagements, including merchandising and supply chain transformation, assortment, organizational structure design, process redesign, inventory management, and capacity planning.
Stephen Rogers
Stephen Rogers
Managing Director | Deloitte Services LP
Deloitte United States
Steve Rogers is the firm managing director of Deloitte’s Consumer Industry Center. He leads a team that conducts research to uncover new ways of thinking, working, and leading within the consumer industry through data- and evidence-driven analysis.
Lupine Skelly
Lupine Skelly
Firm Enterprise Solutions Associate Director, Strategic Market Insights and Thought Leadership | Deloitte Services LP
Deloitte United States
Lupine Skelly is a firm strategic market insights and thought leadership associate director at Deloitte Services LP’s Consumer Industry Center and serves as the retail, wholesale and distribution research leader. She brings more than 15 years of retail market research experience to her work of uncovering actionable insights into emerging trends across the retail industry. Her research focuses on consumer behavior and how it relates to key retail events (such as back-to-school and holiday seasons), helping business leaders understand evolving market signals.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Editorial (including production and copyediting): Rithu Thomas, Preetha Devan, Arpan Saha, and Anu Augustine
Design: Molly Piersol
Cover image by: Sofia Laviano; Adobe Stock
Knowledge services: Viswa Teja Vanapalli
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