Nearly two-thirds of shoppers plan to skip some purchases this year — and the cuts land squarely on Halloween staples such as costumes and candy, according to a new LendingTree survey.

The finding signals that discretionary trimming has reached categories once considered recession-proof in seasonal retail. Candy and costumes anchor the Halloween economy, and shoppers now rank them among the items they intend to drop.

What does the survey actually say?

LendingTree asked shoppers about their purchase intentions for the year. The headline result: about 66% of respondents — just under two out of every three — said they plan to forgo some purchases altogether.

The items on the cutting list include:

• Halloween costumes
• Candy
• Other staple purchases shoppers previously treated as routine

The survey frames these cuts as part of broader household budget decisions for the year, not as a reaction to Halloween-specific pricing alone.

Why does this matter for marketers?

Halloween sits among the highest-volume seasonal spending events on the U.S. retail calendar, driven largely by confectionery and costume sales. When a majority-adjacent share of shoppers says it will skip purchases in those exact categories, the pressure falls on brands to defend volume with sharper value messaging, smaller pack sizes or promotions timed to the weeks before October 31.

The takeaway in plain words: consumers are now drawing a hard line on seasonal treats, and the brands that treat Halloween spend as guaranteed will likely see it disappear.