The spookiest time of year has arrived! The third most popular holiday in America - Halloween- is next week! U.S. households are posed to spend big money this year (at least $9 billion this year) on Halloween-related expenses with at least 76% of people saying they're set to spend $50 or less on the upcoming holiday.
People love Halloween for lots of different reasons. Whether that's because of all the free candy, or dressing up in costumes for parties, or trips to local haunted houses, everyone has their tradition that they observe on the most spook-tacular day of the year!
Experts say the average U.S. household is expected to spend at least $86.79 on Halloween expenses including candy, costumes and decorations, which means, for the average consumer, the holiday can get expensive pretty quick.
Fortunately, WalletHub has conducted a study to help us find the cities where people can get the most bang for their buck on Halloween! The study looked at the 100 largest U.S. cities and compared people's Halloween experiences based on 20 key metrics. They data points range from how many costume shops are in town, to the average price of a ticket to a Halloween Party and even the share of potential trick-or-treat stops (unfortunately, we didn't get any data on which houses are handing out the big candy bars this year).
California ranks among the best places for Halloween thanks to hosting several great cities for trick-or-treaters. Anaheim, California and Santa Ana, California ranked #1 and #2 respectively for the highest percentage of potential trick-or-treat stops. Irvine, California boasts the lowest crime rate and San Diego, California is ranked as having the best weather forecast for Oct. 31.
But if you live in cities like Washington D.C., St. Petersburg, Florida or St. Paul, Minnesota, you might have to order your costume online as WalletHub found those cities had the fewest costume shops per capita.
Kids in cities like New Orleans, Louisiana, St. Petersburg, Florida, and Birmingham, Alabama probably have the toughest time trick-or-treating as WalletHub found they had the lowest percentage of potential trick-or-treat stops there.
Jorge Ruiz-Menjivar, an assistant Professor of Family and Consumer at the University of Florida says, Halloween gives parents the chance to teach their children about finance and the trading and exchanging of goods.
"You can teach the principle of a trading in a “sweet” stock market. Your child(ren) can have the chance to understand this concept by having them trade candies of their preference," said Menjivar. "How many gummy candies are they willing to trade for that chocolate coated peanut butter candy or vice versa?
The free candy is also a good chance for parents to teach kids about self-control and impulsivity.
"Behavioral economics teaches that self-discipline is an instrumental factor in achieving financial success. When it comes to sweets, kids might have a hard time controlling the amount of candies they intake," Menjivar said. "A simple activity to teach the concept of self-control is to have kids make a candy consumption plan. Most importantly, it is to have them track and monitor their consumption over time."
If you're looking to save a few bucks on Halloween (maybe you're already saving money for the holiday season), Menjivar said the best thing for people to do is to make a budget plan and stick to it.
"Start with the question of “how much money are you willing to spend this Halloween?" Menjivar said. "Be realistic and remember that Thanksgiving and Black Friday are around the corner, you don’t really want to use all your savings now”. Then list potential expenses during this holiday, e.g., are you going to a free event or will you have to pay a cover? Are you buying a new costume or going to make your own? Make a realistic plan based on your budget constraints."
Experts also say that cities who want to provide a great experience for kids and adults on Halloween should make it easy to close streets off in neighborhoods where there is a high concentration of trick-or-treaters. Law enforcement should also go to schools and present the essentials of staying safe on Halloween to kids.
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