Halloween candy up in price 1.8% from last year

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - We’re closing in on the spookiest day of the year.

Fortunately, experts say we won’t be spending too much more than last year.

“It is the candy buying holiday of the year, and so a lot of consumers are concerned how much are they going to spend to make that last second run to fill up the bowl of candy on the front porch,” said Ben Meadows, Assistant Professor of Economics at the Collat School of Business at UAB.

The 2024 Halloween Spending Report by LendingTree shows overall, Halloween spenders expect to shell out an average of $172 on things like activities, decorations, costumes, and candy.

“It’s not an expensive item, so when we’re talking about percentage terms, these are not big movements, but month-over-month candy is, according to the September CPI report, candy is down 0.3%,” he said.

That would mean a bag of candy worth $10 is down by three cents from the previous month.

Meadows said while you’re saving a few cents, you are spending more than last Halloween.

“If you’re talking about from a year ago, candy is up by a little bit, 1.8%, but again, these are not really large numbers when you think about how small of a price candy is,” he added.

That same $10 bag of candy you’re buying now would’ve cost $9.82 last year.

“For many consumers, if they did not buy Halloween candy last year or the years previous, they will get a little bit of sticker shock because all accumulated effects of inflation have built year by year by year,” said Meadows.

Lending Tree’s spending report shows 60% of people plan to purchase candy for the holiday. If you’re one of them, you better hurry because you only have a few hours left.

For those of you who aren’t worried about trick-or-treaters knocking and you just want to munch on some sweets, feel free to wait until after Halloween. Some stores will put the candy on a major discount.

Another tip to help save money on Halloween: You can always shop at thrift stores for some interesting Halloween costumes at a cheaper price, and dollar stores for some DIY decor.

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