How is it possible that Halloween is only a couple weeks away? If you’re like me, you usually wait until the night or at most the week before to complete your child’s costume. Here’s the roundup of our 10 favorite, super easy and super cheap (or FREE) halloween costumes for your littles.
We’ve also rounded up 10 costumes to buy that are $30 or less if you’re just too tired to even think about making a costume. See below for a bonus of our favorite group costumes for your family or your kiddo’s whole friend group.
11 Best & cheapest DIY halloween costumes for children.
#1 Most important tip: shop second hand.
Shopping second hand can look like visiting consignment sales or second hand stores in your area. You can also find great deals on Facebook Marketplace. This is our most important tip. No matter what costume you’ve decided on for your little one, you’re sure to find the best deal by shopping second hand. I found Canaan’s costume last year (a little lion outfit) at a kids consignment sale in our area a couple months beforehand. I think it cost me $5-7. You can’t beat that!
DIY Costume #2: New Yorker.
I actually went as this one year when I was older. (Yep, that’s right. I still trick-or-treated in high school. The rule in our house had always been: if you still put effort into a costume, you can go. Plus I had younger siblings so I could kind of play it off. But letsbehonest, it was all about the candy).
Anyway this costume is great for adults, but is especially funny on a little one. It’s kind of a sarcastic, tongue in cheek costume. Assuming your little guy or girl has black pants and a black shirt, and you have an old phone he or she can hold (or you can glue onto his or her costume, you are good to go!). Slick his hair back or pull hers into a tight ponytail and you’re good to go.
DIY Costume #3: Cowboy / cowgirl.
Does your little one have a flannel shirt and jeans? How about a bandana bib (or a regular bandana)? Cowboy hats can be found plentifully second hand (or maybe you have friends who could give you a hand-me-down cowboy hat from their kiddos). Throw some rope over his / her shoulder as a lasso and you’re good to go.
DIY Costume #4: Little old lady / man.
Disguise the youngest person in your family as a little old lady or a little old man. Simply pick an outfit out of your little one’s closet that helps them channel their grand (or great-grandparents). A skirt that’s a little too long paired with a cardigan, high socks and sneakers for your little lady or some high-waisted pants with suspenders and a sweater for your little man.
Don’t forget the little walker and a gray wig to complete the ensemble. Take it one step further for your little gentleman and turn him into the old man from the film Up by tying a couple balloons onto his walker and making him a soda cap pin for his vest.
DIY Costume #5: Jedi.
There are tons of tutorials out there on how to make a jedi costume for your little one. We like this one because it includes options based on how far you want to take the idea: https://www.allthingswithpurpose.com/cheap-luke-skywalker-costume-ideas/
Don’t have a toy lightsaber? Here is a quick tutorial on how to make a lightsaber out of a pool noodle on the cheap: https://family.disney.com/craft/how-to-make-a-star-wars-inspired-lightsaber-from-pool-noodles/
DIY Costume #6: Bunch of grapes.
This is one of those sweet costumes that is so fast to throw together. This can be done easily even if it’s 1 hour before trick-or-treat time. Dress in all neutral colors (or purple or green depending on your favorite type of grape) and blow up a bunch of purple or green balloons. You can glue, tape or safety pin them onto shirt and pants and … voila! Your kiddo is a bunch of grapes!
This probably goes without saying, but if you choose to attach the balloons with safety pins, be sure to blow the balloons up and tie them off first, then safety pin through the little tied-off end of the balloon and not through the blown up part.
DIY Costume #7: Gumball machine.
Find an old hat you no longer want to wear (or get a cheapie from a thrift store). Use hot glue to attach multicolored pom poms all over the hat. Dress your kiddo in a red shirt and black pants. Use a piece of black felt or poster board to cut out a sign saying “25 cents” and secure to the shirt using safety pins, tape or glue.
DIY Costume #8: Clark Kent.
Wouldn’t your little guy look so adorable dressed as Superman’s alter ego? This costume is super simple. Dress him in a basic white button-down shirt, black pants, a tie and glasses without lenses. Have him wear a Superman tee underneath his button down shirt and unbutton it enough to show let the superman symbol show through. Make sure to comb his hair just so to achieve that perfect Clark Kent persona.
DIY Costume #9: Harry Potter.
Dressed your little guy in a basic black robe, cardigan or sweater vest and pair with jeans, glasses with no lenses, and a gryffindor colored scarf. Make sure to paint Harry’s signature lightning bolt scar on his forehead and (if he’s old enough to not chew it) send him with a wand for the full Wizard effect.
Want to make your own wand? This tutorial is helpful: https://boxycolonial.com/diy-harry-potter-wands/
DIY Costume #10: Scuba diver.
Dress your kiddo in all black, spray paint a couple empty 2 liter bottles and tie them on his or her back. Throw some scuba goggles on their his or her head. Voila, you’ve officially transformed him or her into a Scuba diver in 15 minutes flat!
DIY Costume #11: Bubble bath.
This one is so cute since many little guys and girls love bath time (and it’s super easy). Have your little guy or girl wear all white: shirt, pants and hat (if desired). Blow up mostly white, and a couple pastel pink, blue or purple balloons. Glue, tape or safety pin them onto shirt and pants and hat!
This probably goes without saying, but if you choose to attach the balloons with safety pins, be sure to blow the balloons up and tie them off first, then safety pin through the little tied-off end of the balloon and not through the blown-up part. Then for extra good measure, glue or tape a rubber ducky on top of one of the balloons so there is no question about your bubbly persona.
10 Best kid costumes to buy.
Not looking to make a costume this year? Here are 10 options that are all $30 or less and can be in your hand quickly by grabbing them at your local Target or with Amazon Prime free 2-day shipping (and all the parents said hallelujah).
Costume #1: Stormtrooper.
Costume #2: Ghostbusters.
Costume #3: Wonder Woman.
Costume #4: Ninja.
Costume #5: Fireman.
Costume #6: Rainbow unicorn.
Costume #7: The incredibles.
Costume #8: Captain America.
Costume #9: Moana.
Costume #10: Superman.
4 Group costume ideas.
Bonus: Looking for a cute, coordinated group costumes for your family or for your kiddos and their friends? Here are some of our favorites.
Wizard of Oz.
Dorothy, Lion, Tin Man, Scarecrow (you get the picture). Here are a couple great examples of what this group costume can look like:
S’mores.
For the graham crackers: make little sharpie dots on brown cardboard. Sling them over your shoulders with string or ribbon.
For the chocolate: paint cardboard or a posterboard brown and letter “hershey’s” on top. Use the same method as above to make it into a “sandwich board”.
For the marshmallow: secure white pillows around your littlest one to make him or her the sweetest little marshmallow.
Salt & pepper shakers.
All you need for this one is a white shirt with an “S” on it, a black shirt with a “P” on it and two gray hats.
The whole gang from Star Wars.
Check out this rundown of costumes for the whole group:
