Turns out the scariest thing this Halloween might be the prices.

Answer: 57%

Questions:

• Do you think spending money on holidays like Halloween a “want” or a “need”?
• What are some creative or low-cost ways people can still enjoy Halloween without spending much money?
• Do you think people feel pressure to spend money on holidays like Halloween? Where does that pressure come from?

Click here for the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the Numbers (Empower):

• Candy crush: 57% of Americans say the rising price of chocolate is changing how much they spend on Halloween candy. More than a third (35%) say candy is more expensive this year (46% Boomers).
• Spooky spending: The average American plans to spend $296 on Halloween this year—but Millennials and Gen Z are spending double ($522 and $435 respectively) while Gen X and Boomers will spend the least ($325 and $89, respectively).
• Trick-or-Treat tradeoffs: More than half (52%) are cutting back on Halloween spending overall due to inflation, though 39% say they overspend each year, with Millennials (52%) and Gen Z (48%) most likely surpass their budgets.

About the Author

Dave Martin

Dave joins NGPF with 15 years of teaching experience in math and computer science. After joining the New York City Teaching Fellows program and earning a Master's degree in Education from Pace University, his teaching career has taken him to New York, New Jersey and a summer in the north of Ghana. Dave firmly believes that financial literacy is vital to creating well-rounded students that are prepared for a complex and highly competitive world. During what free time two young daughters will allow, Dave enjoys video games, Dungeons & Dragons, cooking, gardening, and taking naps.