Halloween Costume Party Ideas: 15 Frightfully Fun Ways to Celebrate

When leaves start to fall and sweater weather returns, you know the spooky season is right around the corner. If you’re in the mood for some hocus pocus this year, plan on hosting a costume party. 

Whether you want to turn your spot into an elaborate horror house for an adults-only party or prefer a kid-friendly pumpkin fest, a Halloween costume party is a perfect fit.

Here, you’ll find easy DIY Halloween decorations and costumes you can throw together in minutes. For those who put their heart and soul into this season, we’ve also included over-the-top ideas that will have guests talking about your costume party for years to come.

15 Spooktacular Halloween Costume Party Ideas 

Ready to have the best Halloween party in years? With these spooky and fun Halloween costume party ideas, you’re sure to plan an event to remember. From scary and haunted to magical and silly, get ready for a frightfully good time!

1. Make a Statement With an Inflatable Costume

Go big this year with an inflatable costume like a tyrannosaurus rex, skeleton, or panda bear. It’s a great idea for people who plan on trick-or-treating in cooler weather since you can wear as many layers as you want underneath.

2. Make It a Masquerade

Design: Kate Ahn Design

Plan an elegant Halloween bash with a fabulous masquerade party. Make it a Great Gatsby bash by adding Art Deco decor and asking guests to attend in their best flapper attire. Be sure to set out the bubbly and have a plenty of bootlegger cocktails. Invite guests in style with the Mod Halloween Invitation that includes a mask and retro-inspired background.

3. Host a Best Costume Contest

No Halloween party is complete without a costume contest. Choose a few guests to serve as the judging panel and let them crown a winner. Get everyone involved by tossing votes into a top hat and letting the crowd choose their favorite.

4. Host a Monster Mash

Design: Mint Parcel

Host a monster mash party and ask guests to come in their best monster costume. For an adult Halloween party, make it as terrifying as possible with bloody and gory designs. 

For something less frightful, dress up as Disney monsters and villains. Get guests ready for the monster-sized bash with an invite like this Monster Mash Invitation.

5. Serve Spooky Cupcakes

Satisfy all those vampires’ sweet tooths with Halloween cupcakes featuring seasonal favorites like ghosts and pumpkins. Eyeballs, cobwebs, and bats make great cupcake toppers for a haunted look.

6. Choose a Costume Theme

Design: Kid Collective

For a wickedly good time, ask guests to dress up in a specific costume theme. You can make the night all about movies like “Harry Potter,” “Star Wars,” or “Barbie.” Alternatively, choose a costume theme like dressing as Beyonce through the years or a Taylor Swift era.

Other fun Halloween party themes include Charlie Brown or the Nightmare Before Christmas. Make it clear if you want people to come in couples’ Halloween costumes, group costumes, or individual outfits.

To get folks in the spirit, send out this Spooky Season invitation featuring gliding ghosts, black bats, and pretty pumpkins. The supported backside has plenty of room for adding details on what types of costumes guests should wear to match the party theme.

7. Make “Poison” Candy Apples

Get guests into a spooky mood with “poison” candy apples — a haunted take on the classic seasonal caramel apples. For bonus points, place them in a large wicker basket and dress up as the wicked witch in “Snow White” to pass them around.

8. Host a Killer Party

Design: Claudia Owen

Make the night all about murderous villains by asking guests to dress in costume as a movie character killer. Chucky, Ghostface, and Michael Myers are classic favorites for this horrifying theme. Set the tone for a night of frights with the Crime Scene Invitation featuring blood spatter and spooky hues.

9. Play Halloween Games

Keep the fun going all night with Halloween party games for grown-ups and kids. Set up a scavenger hunt to have guests look for themed objects. Or have a contest to see who can wrap up their partner as a mummy the fastest using toilet paper.

10. Host a Graveyard Bash

Design: Patrice Horvath Design

Want to make things really spooky? Plan a Halloween costume party where everyone attends as a skeleton. Make it cute and fun with colorful themes or keep it traditional with black and white Halloween decorations. Use the Graveyard Bash Invitation featuring festive skulls to ask guests to join the celebration.

11. Curate a Haunted Playlist

Set the mood for a frightful fete or a silly soiree with a Halloween playlist. Choose a curated list using Spotify or make your own mash-up of songs to create the vibe you want. Spooky soundtracks are ideal for a haunted house tour and children’s songs are perfect for a quick get-together before you head out to trick-or-treat.

12. Invite a Psychic to Tell Your Future

Design: Make and Tell

Give guests entertainment they won’t soon forget with psychic readings or tarot card sessions. Build the theme by asking guests to attend as witches and warlocks. Serve cocktails with dry ice for a spooktacularly smoky libation. Invite guests to a magical evening with this mystical Crystal Ball Invitation.

13. Set the Scene With Halloween Decorations

Whether you’re planning a horrifically fun evening or a kid-friendly fall-themed bash, decorating the space sets the mood. For a touch of terror, add skulls, bloody knives, and monster statues to the event space. 

For something less scary, decorate with pumpkins, glitter bats, and candy corn. Colorful eyeballs, creative cobwebs, and friendly ghosts create a festive atmosphere.

14. Host a Day of the Dead Celebration

Design: Signature Greenvelope

While Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a cultural holiday that is not the same as Halloween, the celebrations of this Mexican tradition kick off on November 1. To honor departed loved ones, altars are built, candles are lit, and food is shared between friends and family. 

If you want to observe this important celebration, consider traditional dishes like tamales, pozole, sugar skull cookies, and pan de muerto. Use an invite like the Marigolds & Sugar Skulls Invitation with a cheerful and colorful vibe that’s perfect for a familial celebration. 

You can also research other traditions from Slavic and Filipino communities that celebrate the evening with similar celebrations of the dead. These are often called All Saints Day or Dziady in the case of Slavic celebrations. 

15. Say Thanks With Spooky Party Favors

Tell guests how much you loved their Halloween costume ideas and festive attitudes by sending them home with party favors. Head to a local party supplies store and grab Halloween-themed gift bags. Pack them with holiday sweets like candy corn, Sour Patch Kids, and Tootsie Pops.

Have a Happy Halloween With Frights and Fun

With these Halloween party ideas for costumes, decorations, games, and more, you’re sure to have a spooktacular time. Whether you want a Halloween bash that scares the pants off your friends or prefer a cute and fall-inspired theme, there’s something kids and grown-ups are sure to love.

Once you choose a Halloween costume party theme, browse our collection of digital invites to find a design that matches your vibe. Customize the invitation template by playing with the color scheme and adding elements like haunted music. When you’re ready, hit send and the invite goes to all of your guests via email or text. All that’s left to do is count down the days until the big bash!