If you’ve noticed more Halloween decorations and candy on store shelves, there’s a good reason for that: Americans are expected to spend an average of $82.93 per person celebrating Halloween this year, or a total of $8.4 billion.
Every year, the National Retail Federation checks with consumers to find out how much we plan to spend on upcoming holidays. This year’s Halloween survey shows that our spending has hit a record high after plummeting during the recession.
As you might imagine, the biggest slice of the predicted total goes to costumes, at $3.1 billion. Candy is a close second at $2.5 billion, and people expect to spend almost as much on decorations at $2.4 billion.
People also plan to spend $390 million on greeting cards, which are apparently a thing.
By the way, while 47% of adults said that they planned to dress in costumes, 16% said that they plan to dress their pets in costumes.
HALLOWEEN SPENDING TO REACH $8.4 BILLION, HIGHEST IN SURVEY HISTORY [NRF]
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist