Halloween 2025: Your Ultimate Shopping and Decorating Guide

Whether you’re going full haunted house or keeping it cozy and whimsical, 2025 is shaping up to be a monster of a year for Halloween style. We’ll walk you through the top Halloween costume trends, home decor ideas, shopping tips and DIY tricks to make your Halloween the envy of the block.

2025 Costume Trends to Watch

Costuming is getting more creative this year. People are leaning into self-expression, nostalgia and mashups rather than just picking something spooky. Below are some standout trends.

Quick tips:

• Combine a trend such as castlecore with something from pop culture for added flair.
  
  
• Incorporate light-up or glow elements, such as LED lights, to take your costume to the next level after dark.
  
  
• Pick base elements for your costume that you’ll reuse later, such as boots or a cape, so you can get additional use out of it beyond Halloween.

Decorating Your House: Trends and Tips for 2025

Going beyond simple pumpkins and spiders, 2025 decor is all about mood, storytelling and design-forward touches.

Top Decor Trends and Themes

1. Smoky and moody palettes: Swap bright orange for deeper, more sophisticated shades such as aubergine, umber, oxblood, deep green and bone.
   
   
2. Retro revival: Blow molds, paper-mache figures, vintage pumpkins and nostalgic ceramic ghosts are making a comeback.
   
   
3. Magical gardens: Think moons, crystals, witchy botanicals, candles, apothecary jars and natural textures.
   
   
4. Storybook surrealism: This theme is whimsical, a bit twisted and invites visitors down the rabbit hole.
   
   
5. Layered textures and mixed materials: Mixing opposites adds richness. Try a combination of velvet, rough linen, weathered wood, wrought iron and matte metal.
   
   
6. Over-the-top yard displays: The front yard is a Halloween centerpiece. Fill yours with oversize skeletons, interactive props, animatronics and immersive scenes.

Decorating Tips and Tricks

1. Start early: Set up your base lighting, silhouettes and large elements in late September or early October so you have time to tweak and add details.
   
   
2. Layer light sources: Use uplights, spotlights, string lights, flicker LEDs and blacklights to build depth.
   
   
3. Use silhouettes and shadows: Backlit cutouts, such as bats and tree branches, look astonishing in fog or twilight.
   
   
4. Interactive elements: Motion sensors, fog machines, hidden sounds and wind chimes will surprise your guests.
   
   
5. DIY hacks: Turn ping-pong balls into eyeballs for string lights, spray paint faux branches black, turn old tin cans into jack-o-lanterns and repurpose other standard household items into spooky decor.
   
   
6. Choose a theme and stay consistent: Mixing too many styles can feel chaotic. Pick a mood, such as gothic, vintage or whimsical, and let it guide all your choices.
   
   
7. Don’t forget small touches: Moss, vintage books, apothecary jars, dried botanicals, thematic tableware, creepy pillows and scented candles amplify the ambiance.

Where to Shop

The stores below drop new items early and often. Turn to them to build out your Halloween look.

Specialty Halloween and Prop Shops

• Spirit Halloween is still the go-to for costumes, props and animatronics.
  
  
• Distortions Unlimited offers a huge variety of costumes, animatronics and props, many of which are brand new this year.
  
  
• HalloweenCostumes.com, as you may have guessed from its name, offers a huge selection of costumes for both adults and kids.

Home Decor Chains and Boutiques

• Anthropologie’s Halloween line is chic and on-trend, featuring gorgeous wreaths, ceramics and textiles.
  
  
• At Home is excellent for large, budget-friendly decor and themed collections.
  
  
• Kirkland’s Home has Halloween decor offerings for nearly every taste.
  
  
• Lowe’s and Home Depot are go-to retailers for inflatables, lighting, yard props and functional hardware.
  
  
• World Market has eclectic, globally inspired decor pieces.

General Retail and Discount Finds

• HomeGoods, TJ Maxx, Hobby Lobby, Target and Michaels offer seasonal lines, accent pieces, crafts, filler decor and more.
  
  
• Etsy has one-of-a-kind props, handmade wreaths, custom costumes and other niche finds.
  
  

Shopping tips:

• Monitor early sales, because many stores launch Halloween collections in August or September.
  
  
• Use curbside pickup or buy online and pick up in-store to avoid shipping delays.
  
  
• Shop clearance sales after Oct. 31 to build out your stash for next year.
  
  
• For big-ticket animatronics or inflatables, compare specs such as sound, movement and weather-resistance, not just price.

Sample Decorating and Costume Pairings

To stay true to your chosen Halloween theme, match your costume to your home’s decor. Here are a few themed combos you could try:

Timeline and Planning Checklist

Here’s a simple timeline to keep your Halloween game running on time: