Dominic Genetti
Jacksonville Journal-Courier, Ill. (TNS)
Consumer spending for this Halloween is expected to be in the billions in various categories, but one category in particular is coming up just shy of that billion-dollar mark, yet it’s expenditures are still projected to be hundreds of millions of dollars.
It’s pet costumes.
According to the National Retail Federation, consumers are expected to spend $860 million to dress up their faithful companions, all the while the main elements in celebrating All Hallows’ Eve, such as human costumes, decorations and, of course, candy are estimated to have expenditures exceeding $3 billion.
“Pets continue to join in on Halloween celebrations, with consumers planning on spending $0.86 billion on costumes for their furry friends. Popular costumes for pets include a pumpkin (9.8%), a hot dog (5.4%), a bumblebee (4%), a ghost (3.1%) and a superhero (3.1%),” the National Retail Foundation writes.
The top 10 most popular pet costumes are:
1. Pumpkin
2. Hot Dog
3. Bumblebee
4. Tied: Ghost or Superhero
5. Bat
6. Dog
7. Witch
8. Spider
9. Batman
10. Cat
And it’s abundantly clear that Halloween enthusiasts like to get a jump start as Oct. 31, usually kicks off the holiday decorating season. The National Retail Federation says early Halloween shopping was at 49% this year, a two percent jump since last year, which makes it the highest early Halloween shopping percentage since records began being kept in 2015 — back then early Halloween shopping was 34%.
Here are a few other 2025 Halloween highlights from the National Retail Federation:
- 79% of shoppers anticipate prices will be higher this year, specifically because of tariffs.
- Top holiday activities include handing out candy (66%), dressing up in costume (51%) and decorating the home or yard (51%).
- Total spending on candy is expected to reach $3.9 billion.
- 2.3 million children plan on dressing up as Spider-Man and 1.9 million as a princess this year.
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© 2025 the Jacksonville Journal-Courier (Jacksonville, Ill.). Visit www.myjournalcourier.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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