Which US Cities Are Best For Halloween?

In fact, spending on tricks and treats is expected to reach almost $12 billion, according to the personal financial sites WalletHub, which compared the 100 largest U.S. cities across 20 key metrics.

They range from costume stores per capita to the crime rate to the share of potential trick-or-treat stops. The top 10 are: New York City; Jersey City; Miami; Las Vegas; Chicago; Los Angeles; Washington; Anaheim; Boston and Gilbert, Arizona.

Halloween Facts:

$11.6 Billion: Projected Halloween spending in 2024.
$3.8 Billion: Halloween costume spending in 2024.
$3.5 Billion: Halloween candy spending in 2024.
34 percent: Share of parents who think 13 or 14 is old enough to trick-or-treat alone.
More than half: Share of parents who help themselves to some of their children’s Halloween haul.
$400 Million: Annual revenue generated by the Halloween attraction industry in ticket sales, with 80 percent of haunted attractions being run by charities.

“Halloween holds a big place in American popular culture, and we collectively spend billions of dollars celebrating every year,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst. “At the same time, it’s also a holiday that comes with a certain amount of risk, given that children visit strangers’ houses in the dark. The best cities for Halloween are those that provide the safest conditions for celebrating, along with an abundance of activities, Halloween-related stores and good weather.”

“New York City is the best place to be on Halloween, boasting the second-most Halloween costume shops and the most candy stores per capita,” Lupo continued. On top of that, New York has the highest population density in the country, and it’s the third-most walkable city, which means it’s easy to go trick or treating and get a lot of candy.”