America’s Best Halloweentowns [2024]

Whether you’re one of the shoppers buying Halloween decor items in August or you think spooky season should stay firmly in October, Halloween is always a fun time of year. Between pumpkin patches, haunted houses, and trick or treating, there are so many seasonal activities to celebrate with. Are some cities better for getting spooked than others, though?

To find out where the best Halloweentowns are in the United States, the FinanceBuzz team compared over 75 of the biggest U.S. cities using factors like the availability of candy stores, the number of haunted locations (both “real” and artificial), online search volume for Halloween-related terms, and more to measure each city’s spooky spirit.

Key findings

• Toledo, Ohio is the best Halloweentown in the U.S.
• Three Ohio cities ranked within the top ten, making Ohio one of the best states for getting a Halloween fix.
• Following Ohio, California has two cities in the top ten — Riverside and Oakland

How we chose these metrics and cities

• Candy stores (per capita): While just about everyone can find affordable Halloween candy at big chain retailers, stores that specialize in selling sweet treats feel just a little more festive and make it easier to find unique and memorable candy to give to trick-or-treaters.
• Costume shops (per capita): For some people, a mass-produced costume bought off the rack is all they need, but for those looking to take things up a notch, access to dedicated costume shops can help them put together an unforgettable costume.
• Halloween parties and events (per capita): Halloween is a communal holiday, so cities with lots of Halloween-themed parties and events better represent the Halloween spirit.
• “Real” haunted locations (per capita): For some people nothing beats the thrills and chills that come with exploring buildings and locations with a real-life haunted history at Halloween.
• Haunted house attractions (per capita): For many, visiting a haunted house is an essential part of Halloween, and cities with more haunted attractions make it easier for people to experience the fun.
• Pumpkin patches (per capita): Halloween isn’t just about spooks and scares, it’s also about fun and creativity. That’s why visiting a pumpkin patch and finding the perfect pumpkin to turn into a jack-o-lantern is a quintessential part of Halloween.
• Fall weather: Lots of Halloween activities including pumpkin patches and trick-or-treating involve the outdoors, and cities with a comfortable climate in the fall months make it easier for people to get out and celebrate.
• Halloween Spirit: Cities with the highest search volume for holiday-specific terms such as “Halloween parties” and “Halloween costumes” indicate that people who live in those cities are more enthusiastic about Halloween.

The top Halloweentowns in the U.S.

After calculating all those factors for nearly 80 of the biggest cities across America, we were able to identify the top 20 cities in the country when it comes to celebrating Halloween.

The majority of America’s top Halloweentowns are located in the Midwest and Northeast regions of the country — areas that tend to have the traditional “fall chill” in the air that many associate with Halloween. Still, despite a lack of traditional fall weather, cities located in the South and on the West Coast have enough Halloween spirit to make up a little more than a quarter of the top 20.

A detailed breakdown of America’s top 10 Halloweentowns

1. Toledo, Ohio

Centrally located between the cities of Detroit, Cleveland, Indianapolis, and Columbus, citizens of Toledo have relatively easy access to events and activities in and around all those cities as well as Toledo-specific ones. As a result, Toledo ranks in the top five overall for the number of pumpkin patches and Halloween parties and events per capita, and is top 10 for haunted houses per 100,000 people. Toledo also has the third-highest average search volume of any city on Google Trends when it comes to Halloween-related searches.

2. Riverside, California

Located near Los Angeles, Riverside is the top-ranking city in the country when it comes to the number of Halloween parties and events per capita. It also ranks second in the number of costume shops per 100,000 people. Combined with top 10 rankings when it comes to climate comfort and the number of haunted houses per capita, it’s no surprise that Riverside ranks this high on our list.

3. Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City has 6.2 haunted house attractions for every 100,000 people in the city, the highest rate of any city. SLC also has the third-most costume shops per capita and ranks in the top 10 when it comes to the number of candy stores per 100,000 people.

4. Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland searches for Halloween-specific terms on Google at a volume that is just slightly lower than Toledo’s, but one that is still high enough to rank as the fourth-highest of any city. Cleveland also ranks very highly when it comes to the number of costume shops, pumpkin patches, and Halloween parties and events relative to the population that are available in and around the city.

5. Oakland, California

Oakland has 28.2 candy stores for every 100,000 people, a rate that is the fourth highest of any city, and the sixth-highest rate of per capita costume shops. What really sets Oakland apart, however, is the fact that there are 5.3 “real” haunted locations in the city for every 100,000 people, a rate that only trails New Orleans (11.5 per 100,000) among major American cities.

6. Cincinnati, Ohio

No matter which city it is, Ohioans seem to love Googling Halloween topics. Cincinnati is the third Ohio city in the top 10, and also the third to rank among the top 10 cities in the country when it comes to average search volume for Halloween search terms. Beyond Google Trends volume, Cincy has high per capita numbers of candy stores and pumpkin patches.

7. Baltimore, Maryland

One of America’s spookiest writers, Edgar Allan Poe, called Baltimore home at various points in his life, including famously and mysteriously passing away in the city. The city seems to have embraced its haunting history, as Baltimore ranks third when it comes to haunted house attractions and also has the third-most “real” haunts on a per capita basis of any city in the country.

8. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

No city spends more time looking up Halloween-related terms online, as Pittsburgh’s average search volume for terms like “Halloween parties” and “trick-or-treating” is 75.8/100, the highest of any city in the country. Pittsburgh also boosts its Halloween bonafides thanks to a bevy of candy stores — ranking fifth in the country with 25.1 stores per 100,000 people.

9. Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Despite having one of the lowest average search volumes for Halloween-related terms in the country (47.2/100, third-lowest in the country) and an overly-hot fall climate, Fort Lauderdale still managed to be named a top 10 Halloweentown thanks in large part to having 46.7 candy stores and 21.7 costume shops per 100,000 people, both of which are the highest rates of any city in the country.

10. Providence, Rhode Island

Providence is one of the older cities in the country and is relatively close to even bigger metropolitan areas such as Boston and New York City. With those things in mind, it isn’t that surprising that Providence has the fourth-most “real” haunts per capita of any city in the country. Providence also ranks in the top 10 cities in the country when it comes to the number of costume shops per 100,000 people.

Full Halloweentown rankings

Tips for scaring up savings this Halloween

You don’t have to break the bank when you’re buying a costume and purchasing Halloween candy. There are plenty of ways to spend smart:

• Travel to a Halloweentown and earn points. If you’re not feeling the Halloween spirit where you live, equip your wallet with one of the best travel credit cards and earn points during your travels to redeem for future trips.
• Build credit with your spooky spending. Whether you’re going all out with your costume or decking out your home, using one of the best credit cards for large purchases will lend to smarter spending.
• Set a Halloween budget ahead of time. Setting a budget in advance for however you choose to celebrate will ensure you don’t overspend — and you don’t have to use a spreadsheet to do so. Use one of our recommended budgeting apps to get started.

Methodology

FinanceBuzz collected data on over 75 of America's biggest cities. We found data for eight factors relating to Halloween and the fall season in each city.

Factors were compared using a dynamic formula that assigned each city a score of 0-5 relative to every other city. Those factor scores were then weighted to assign each city a final value out of 100, with higher scores indicating cities with more Halloween spirit.

For each factor, a weight of 2.50 serves as the baseline, with weights above 2.50 having a larger impact on a city's total score and those below 2.50 having a lesser impact. The weights and sources for the individual metrics used are as follows:

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