Easy DIY Halloween Costumes
Pull most of these pieces from your closet, add one inexpensive item, and you're ready to rock your Halloween. We've ordered these so the easiest is listed first, and we've estimated their "assembly" times.
1 Ghost
What you need: A white flat sheet and a pair of scissors.
- Effort: Easiest
- Cost: $0–12
- Time: 5 min
Make it look good
- Drape the sheet, mark where your eyes line up, then cut. Ensures you can see out of it.
- Tack a square of black tulle behind the holes to give it a hollow-eyed look you can still see through.
- Weight or round the hem—sewing a few coins into a pocket can do it—so it hangs like a ghost.
Rather not cut your good linens? A few stores sell inexpensive versions:
Walmart Our pick
Mainstays Percale Flat Sheet, Arctic White, Twin/Twin XL · $11.84
Walmart's $11.84 Mainstays flat sheet is the one to cut Arctic white, five stars across five ratings; a twin drapes an adult with room to spare.
Any plain white flat sheet does the job, so grab the cheapest you find.
See it at Walmart →Also checked
Best if you want the easiest costume here and a sheet you don't mind cutting.
2 Witch
What you need: An all-black outfit and a pointy hat.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$10
- Time: 5 min
Spirit Halloween Our pick
Black Crooked Witch Hat · $9.99
Spirit's bent felt hat looks the most like a witch's for the money. The crooked point adds nuance, and felt holds its shape better than a knit version.
The Walmart and Target versions have stiff cones if you prefer a straight look.
See it at Spirit Halloween →Also checked
Best if you own black clothes and want a hat with a real witch shape.
3 Pirate
What you need: A billowy white shirt, dark pants, and an accessory kit.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$10
- Time: 5 min
Amazon Our pick
CICOCI Pirate Accessories Set (6 pc) · $12.99
One $12.99 kit covers the whole pirate look with a bandana, sash, eyepatch, and jewelry in six pieces, rated 4.5 stars across 514 Amazon ratings.
See it at Amazon →Checked Spirit and the costume specialists. They sell full $40-plus pirate outfits, not a cheap accessory kit.
Best if you own a loose shirt and want every piece in one cheap order.
4 Vampire
What you need: Formal black clothes and a cape, with fangs if you want them.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$12–19
- Time: 5 min
The cape
Amazon Our pick
yolsun Reversible Vampire Cape · $11.99
Amazon's reversible cape runs $11.99 with a red-and-black flip and a stand collar, rated 4.2 stars across 236 ratings. Two looks in one, under the costume-store price.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
The fangs
Amazon Our pick
COOLJOY Vampire Fangs (3 sizes) · $7.99
$7.99 buys reusable fangs you can re-mold in three sizes with molding beads, so a slipped fit gets a second try.
Cheap fangs run hit-or-miss; these hold 3.8 stars across 260 ratings, the most-reviewed budget set.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
Best if you own something formal and want fangs you can refit.
5 Deer
What you need: A brown or tan outfit and an antler-and-ears headband.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$10
- Time: 5 min
Amazon Our pick
woxafo Deer Antlers Headband · $6.98
Amazon's $6.98 headband bundles antlers and spotted ears and holds 4.4 stars across 438 ratings, the deepest review pool we found for one.
Target and Walmart stock plain hair headbands, not costume antlers.
See it at Amazon →Checked Target, Walmart, and Spirit. None carry a costume antler headband to match.
Best if you wear earth tones and want antlers and ears in one piece.
6 Cow
What you need: A black-and-white outfit and an ears-and-horns headband.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$10
- Time: 5 min
Spirit Halloween Our pick
Cow Ear Headband · $7.99
Spirit's $7.99 headband pairs ears with horns and horns are what say cow instead of generic animal.
It comes in at less than half Amazon's price, so it stays ahead even once Spirit's under-$40 shipping is added.
It's new enough to be thin on reviews, at five stars from a single rating.
See it at Spirit Halloween →Also checked
Best if you own black and white and want horns, not just ears.
7 Ladybug
What you need: A red top and black bottoms, and a wings-and-antennae set.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$15
- Time: 10 min
Amazon Our pick
Funcredible Ladybug Wings & Headband Set · $14.99
One $14.99 set gives you wings and antennae together at 4.4 stars across 135 ratings.
The costume stores jump to full $40-plus Miraculous Ladybug outfits, so this is the cheap path to the look.
See it at Amazon →Checked Spirit and Target. Only full $40-plus ladybug costumes, no cheap wings-and-antennae set.
Best if you own red and black and want wings without a bodysuit.
8 Scarecrow
What you need: A plaid shirt, jeans, and a hat-and-raffia kit.
- Effort: Easy
- Cost: ~$14
- Time: 10 min
Amazon Our pick
quescu 7-Piece Scarecrow Set · $13.99
The $13.99 kit is what turns plaid into a scarecrow with a straw-trimmed pointed hat plus a raffia collar, cuffs, and belt, at 4.7 stars across 79 ratings.
A bare straw hat alone looks like a farmer; the raffia poking from the cuffs is the difference.
See it at Amazon →Checked Spirit and the costume stores. They sell full scarecrow costumes, not a cheap accessory kit.
Best if you own flannel and want the raffia that sells the look.
9 Alien
What you need: A metallic, silver, or all-black outfit, with antennae and green face paint.
- Effort: A little more
- Cost: ~$18
- Time: 15 min
The antennae
Amazon Our pick
Veemoon Light-Up Martian Antenna Headband · $9.99
$9.99 buys light-up green antennae that carry the alien on their own, at 4.1 stars across 45 ratings.
The costume stores sell full alien outfits only, so this is the cheap headband route.
See it at Amazon →Checked Spirit. Full alien costumes only, no cheap antennae headband.
The face paint
Amazon Our pick
Go Ho Green Face Paint Stick · $7.98
A $7.98 green stick covers a face in one pass then blends and washes off, an Amazon's Choice pick at 4.4 stars across 1,454 ratings.
A single-color stick is better than a multi-color kit if you'll leave it mostly unused.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
Best if you'll commit to green face paint and own something metallic or black.
10 Jellyfish
What you need: A white or clear outfit, a clear dome umbrella, and battery-powered string lights, with strips of clear plastic or bubble wrap for the tentacles.
- Effort: A little more
- Cost: ~$30
- Time: 20 min
The umbrella
Target Our pick
ShedRain Clear Bubble Umbrella · $19.99
Target has the same ShedRain dome for $19.99 five dollars less than Amazon for the same brand with free shipping and 4.5 stars across 227 ratings.
The clear dome is the jellyfish's bell.
See it at Target →Also checked
The lights
Amazon Our pick
suddus 33ft Battery Fairy Lights · $12.99
$12.99 buys 33 feet of battery fairy lights. That's enough to wind through the whole dome with a remote.
4.4 stars across 7,906 ratings make it the deepest pool of any string lights we found.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
Best if you'll wire the lights into the umbrella and want the boldest costume here.
11 Clown
What you need: A baggy, colorful outfit you can pull from your closet or thrift, plus suspenders.
- Effort: Medium
- Cost: ~$11
- Time: 20 min
The makeup
The face is the costume, so this is the one buy that matters. A complete kit beats buying white, red, and black separately, and the good ones throw in the nose.
Amazon Our pick
Rubies Clown Deluxe Make Up Kit · $11.95
Rubies' kit is the most complete for the money
- an 8-color tray
- a white cream tube
- five makeup sticks
- a sponge
- a classic red nose
All for about eleven dollars. It's Amazon's Overall Pick at 4.3 stars across 735 ratings, and the colors lean bright and classic rather than horror-movie.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
The wig
A rainbow wig finishes the silhouette, but it's optional. A thrifted hat, sprayed-in color, or your own hair all work too.
Amazon Our pick
Forum Novelties Jumbo Rainbow Clown Wig · $15.81
The jumbo rainbow afro is the classic clown shape, and it's big and bright. 4.2 stars across 964 ratings, with one size fitting most adults.
See it at Amazon →Also checked
Best if you want a costume that's mostly a makeup kit plus whatever bright, baggy clothes you can dig up.
Prices checked June 14–24, 2026. Stores set their own prices and may change them — the “See it at” links go to the live listing.