92 Best Halloween Costumes of All Time to Inspire Your 2023 Look
It'll be hard to top these unique ideas.
As the weather begins to chill and pumpkin spice everything begins to pop up in stores (pies, candles, etc.), Halloween enthusiasts will slowly begin plotting their strategy to take the gold when it comes to this year’s costume contest. If you happen to be someone who actively dreads this time of year due to the pressure that comes with cooking up an out-of-the-box costume that will wow everyone, not to worry! We’ve compiled an ultimate list of the best Halloween costumes that will put you in the festive spirit and help you snag the trophy for yourself.
We've included scary getups, unique couples costumes and plenty of group ideas for families (or your trio of friends). You'll find inspiration from celebrity Halloween costumes from years' past on here (we're looking at you, Heidi Klum!) that you can recreate with the click of a button. But you'll also see a lot of clever homemade ideas that can be whipped up in a pinch. Many touch upon pop culture, including your favorite movie and TV characters, while others have nothing to do with that and are just plain cute.
So, keep scrolling and get ready to make 2023 the year you officially retire those kitten ears.
Queen of Hearts Costume
How iconic is the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland? The best part is, you just need a deck of cards and an awesome red dress to DIY this costume. To make the collar, wrap a large piece of paper around your neck so you can trim it down to the right size. Then, staple cards from a deck all around the paper collar, layering them for a fanned-out effect.
Starbucks Family Costume
We seriously can't get enough of this adorable family look (have you seen the cake pop?!). Adults can get away with just some green aprons, while you can go sweeter for the kids.
Get the Starbucks costume tutorial at Arin Solange at Home »
Mona Lisa Halloween Costume
We can't help but laugh at this one. It's the perfect last-minute idea if you have an old frame lying around (or if you can grab one from your local thrift store).
Run DMC Costume
The iconic hip hop group knew how to rock their Adidas. Grab a friend and some tracksuits to recreate this classic (and easy!) getup.
Raggedy Ann and Andy Costumes
Couples can easily pull off this rag doll look. All you need is a couple of yarn wigs, red face paint and plaid and polka dot clothing.
Smurfette Costume
Ashanti flawlessly recreated the look of the only girl in Smurf village. Grab a pair of blue tights, a white dress, yellow wig and white gloves, and you can too!
Selena Wuintanilla Costume
Selena was the Queen of Tejano Music. Honor her legacy with one of her most famous outfits.
Marge and Homer Simpson Costume
You can bring this animated TV couple to life with a bit of yellow body paint and items you probably have hiding in your closet. To make this a group costume, have the kids dress as Lisa and Bart.
Nina from Black Swan Costume
Padma Lakshmi's rendition of the star of the 2010 thriller Black Swan will never get old. To pull this off you'll need a black corset, feathers and some serious makeup skills.
Don Alejandro from The Legend of Zorro Costume
The sword toting hero of The Legend of Zorro has a getup that will make the ultimate Halloween costume. The best part: Other than the accessories, you can basically dress in all black.
Cyborg Costume
This isn't your average robot. Part human, part technology, this cyborg costume will make you the center of attention.
Willy Wonka Costume
One of the sweetest looks to arrive at Heidi Klum's annual Halloween party was Zac Posen's version of Will Wonka. Beyond the khaki pants that you may already have in your closet, you'll need a royal purple blazer, bow tie and brown hat. Golden ticket not required.
Holly Golightly Costume
Audrey Hepburn's character Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's is always a great option for Halloween. Not only is it timeless, but it also doesn't require too much fuss to put together.
DIY Mermaid Halloween Costume
Use cupcake liners in a creative way to DIY this mermaid costume! To make the tail, you'll need a green apron, green and gold metallic cupcake liners and hot glue.
First, you'll want to fold the cupcake liners in half. Start by adding a line of hot glue to the straight folded part of a cupcake liner and attach at the bottom of the apron. The rounded part should be facing down.
Then, continue to fill out the entire width of the apron and alternate the cupcake liner colors. Next, you'll want to continue by adding another layer, making sure that they overlap the first line. Continue until the entire apron is covered.
To complete the look, throw on a colorful pink wig and dress up with a green shirt and leggings.
DIY Houseplant Halloween Costume
This adorable plant costume is too cute not to make this Halloween. Take a grass cloth basket and cut a hole in the bottom for hips and legs to fit through.
Download a leaf template and trace onto green paper. Trim and fold in half. Next, you'll want to get craft wire and cut at different lengths. Create stems by threading with green straws, dabbing hot glue as you thread to hold in place. Once you finish threading, you can hot glue the leafs to the end of the stems.
To attach the stems, hot glue them to the inside of the basket and reinforce with duct tape if needed. Avoid attaching on the sides.
Then, make the shoulder straps by cutting green ribbon and attach to the inside front and back of the basket with velcro tape or safety pins.
As for finishing touches, bend the stems around you for a realistic look!
DIY Bird Halloween Costume
They can fly door-to-door collecting candy on Halloween night with these amazing DIY wings.
First, take coffee filters and cupcake liners and fold in half. With leftover cardboard boxes, cut out two oval wings. Start with one wing and attach the coffee filters with tape, making sure that they overlap to create a feathered look. Next, add in a few white and metallic cupcake liners to add texture and create depth to the wing.
Create a tube out of cardboard that fits the circumference of your arm. Fasten to the back of the wing and secure with duct tape. Cover with more cupcake liners and coffee filters to hide where it attaches. Now, all that is left to do is the second wing!
Beetlejuice and Lydia Halloween Costume
If you're planning to take on Halloween as a couple, draw inspiration from Bella Hadid and The Weeknd's flawless portrayal of Beetlejuice and Lydia.
Beyonce's Coachella Backup Dancers Halloween Costume
We'll never get over Beyoncé's iconic Coachella performance, and if you can't be Queen Bey for Halloween, this group costume is definitely a close second. Grab some friends, yellow bodysuits and white knee-high boots, and you'll never be out of formation.
Maleficent Halloween Costume
Halima Aden's fierce version of Disney's Maleficent was a very memorable moment from Heidi Klum's 20th annual Halloween party.
Lite Brite Halloween Costume
A good throwback never gets old! This fun interpretation of the classic light box and peg toy is sure to brighten up your Halloween night.
Yaa Bofah is an editorial fellow at Good Housekeeping. She is a freelance illustrator and created original cover art for The Fashion Bomb Daily’s first e-book series. She enjoys supporting philanthropic endeavors and being an advocate for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Cameron (she/her) is a staff writer for Good Housekeeping, where she covers everything from holidays to food. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, where she received a B.A. in magazine journalism. In her spare-time she can be found scrolling TikTok for the latest cleaning hacks and restaurant openings, binge-watching seasons of Project Runway or online shopping.
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