U.S. consumers are scaling back Halloween spending as high living costs and record cocoa prices weigh on household budgets. Market research firm NielsenIQ found Halloween candy sales fell 6.7% in the month through Oct. 17 versus a year earlier, and an earlier 11.7% drop in mid-September erased the preseason gains seen in the previous two years.
Chris Costagli, a vice president and food thought leader at NielsenIQ, said high gas prices had heightened affordability concerns, dampening demand for Halloween treats. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. reached $4.29 as of Friday, up nearly 40% from the previous year.
“I think what you’re seeing now is a consumer that’s spending so much additional money on fuel and housing and clothing and food,” Costagli said. “Some of the decisions they’re making about Halloween candy, it’s not necessarily because, ‘I notice it’s more expensive than last year,’ it’s, ‘I can’t afford it this year because I’ve paid so much more for so many other things. I just don’t have the financial means to buy it this year.’”
Small bags of candy were the only size category showing growth through mid-October, Costagli noted, while large and extra-large bags saw the biggest sales declines. Candy and gum prices have climbed 44% over five years, according to government data, far outpacing the 22.5% increase in prices for all food eaten at home.
High cocoa costs are a central factor. Global cocoa prices hit a record $10,710 per metric ton in January 2025 after poor weather in West Africa, which supplies 70% of the world’s chocolate, and speculative trading on futures markets. Prices fell to $3,241 per metric ton by March but began rising again in the spring, partly because the Iran war disrupted fertilizer supplies from Africa. The El Niño weather pattern is also expected to hurt production.
Sally Lyons Wyatt, a global executive vice president and food industry adviser at market research firm Circana, said consumers are responding to higher grocery prices by making smaller, more frequent shopping trips and buying products only when they intend to use them. That pattern, she said, may mean shoppers are waiting until closer to Halloween to buy candy. “I do believe we will still see softness overall with candy, but I don’t think Halloween is doomed,” she said.
The National Confectioners Association, whose members include Mars, Smarties Candy Co. and Ferrara Candy Co., said in a statement that it remains optimistic. “We are just now entering the peak period for Halloween and consumer enthusiasm remains incredibly strong,” the group said.