13 Truly Scary Halloween Costumes For Kids

Ghost costumes sure have come a long way from a white bed sheet and two holes for eyes. Your kid will look ghastly when they wear this enchanted ghost costume, which comes with a hooded dress and chains. If you want to add to the eeriness, you’ll have to find a wig elsewhere, but really, you could put some child-safe powder on your kid’s head and call it a night. While the costume is creepy on its own, adding some makeup (especially large dark circles around the eyes) will make your child look like they’ve risen from the grave — which is probably exactly what they’re hoping for.

Blame it on killer dolls like Annabelle and Chucky, but dolls definitely take a turn for the terrifying as kids get older. That’s what makes this broken doll costume so perfectly scary. The costume, which includes a dress, leggings, and a hair bow, has a great vintage-spooky vibe. The cracked pattern in the arms and legs add to the effect that your kid is no ordinary doll. If your kid decides to add some makeup, you can either make it pretty, or pretty petrifying. Be sure that your child practices their poses so that they truly look like a broken doll that’s potentially possessed.

If your child is a die-hard fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas, then they obviously need to dress up as the Pumpkin King protagonist. The officially-licensed costume has everything your kid will need for their terrifying transformation, from a mask and gloves, to Jack’s signature pin-stripe suit complete with jacket, bow tie, and pants. The mask pulls over their head so that your kid will look the part of the ruler of Halloween Town from every angle.

Getting your tween to wake up in the mornings for school is already like trying to wake the dead. So, why not suggest this dead zombie costume to dress up in for Halloween? This zombie costume is a mix of both the classic and the contemporary, thanks to its more modern gruesome face mask and dangling fabric strips that are reminiscent of zombie films from the past. The costume comes with a hooded pullover shirt, pants, vinyl chest piece and full-face mask. What it doesn’t come with, though, are gloves, which you’ll want to buy to complete the look. After all, you don’t want your zany zombie to be cold while they’re trick-or-treating, would you?

You swear that your kid would lose their head if it weren’t attached to them. That’s what makes this spooktacular headless costume so funny, too. Obviously, the costume is a wink and a nod to the legend of the Headless Horseman. But, your kid won’t need a horse when they can walk around pretending to hold their own head. All they’ll need to do is slip on the harness, which holds the neck and head in place. The black robe with the severed neck goes on top to hide the harness and make it look like they’ve met an ill-timed fate. The costume doesn’t come with a knife, but you can buy a prop one separately if you want to.

When it comes to clowns, people probably fall into one of two camps: Clowns are either cool or creepy. And this killer clown costume for teens definitely falls into the latter category. Maybe it’s the black-and-white costume that is devoid of all the joyful colors you imagine when you think about clowns. Or perhaps it’s that vintage ruffled collar that connotes something creepy. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s the frightening face mask complete with black eyes, nose, stringy hair, and, um, that big red bloody gash on the forehead that ups the frightening factor. You be the judge.

You know the sound as soon as you hear it. The theme song from the Halloween films is enough to send a chill down your spine — and have you looking over your shoulder to ensure that Michael Myers isn’t doing that super slow walk to get you. While he might be more of an old-school bad guy, your kid might want to dress up as him for Halloween, thanks to the resurgence of the Halloween films. The Michael Myers costume, which comes with the jumpsuit and infamous mask, is enough to give everyone a good fright. For an added effect, play the music as your kid goes door-to-door, because it will be all tricks, and a lot of treats, too.

If you’re scouring websites looking for scary costumes for 10-year-olds, you can’t do better than this disturbing clown costume with insanely long arms. The jumpsuit has attached false hands to make it look like the arms are super long, which can be controlled by plastic poles inside the costume. (Don’t worry, there are slits in the sleeves so your child will have the use of their hands, especially to unwrap a candy or two while they’re trick-or-treating.) There’s even a sound chip in the collar that plays spooky music, so your kid will have musical accompaniment while they’re walking around.

Move over, Pirates of the Caribbean. This undead pirate costume has nothing on Captain Jack Sparrow. The costume is an illusion of sorts, since the skeleton head sits atop your own nugget’s noggin. But don’t worry, they’ll be able to see through the eye holes in the rib cage. It comes with the twill jacket, belt, gloves, and skeleton head, so you’ll want to find some dark colored pants and shoes to make your child look like a proper undead pirate.

Your child will be a scream when they walk around as the “Prom Scream” come Halloween. Forget about fashion, because your child will lose their head when they wear the headless pink dress covered in some suspicious red splotches. The dress comes with an attached sash and a tiara, too. There are side slits in the dress so that your child will have use of their arms and hands. While this qualifies as one of those truly scary costumes for 11-year-olds, it’s also a parent’s dream, too. Why? Well, your child can bundle up underneath the dress, ensuring that they’ll stay warm while they go door-to-door filling their treat bag.

Pumpkins play such an important part of the Halloween festivities. And while some jack-o-lanterns are scary, nothing compares to this pumpkin bobble head costume. The costume consists of an evil pumpkin mask, patchwork dress robe with an attached belt, scarecrow gloves, and a brown hood. If you’re worried about the weight of the pumpkin head, it’s made from Styrofoam, so it shouldn’t be heavy.

Your child can reign over the underworld when they wear this skeleton king Halloween costume. Inside the package you’ll find a costume composed of a printed shirt, a mask with a detachable crown, and a cape with a chain enclosure and a faux fur collar that comes off. As for the rest of the costume (like the pants, shield, sword, gloves, and shoes), welp, you’ll have to go through your child’s dresser to help them complete the costume. But once you do, though, your child will feel like royalty when they wear this costume that is certain to scare anyone who dares to be out on Halloween night.

Who says that scary can’t be stylish? With this punk skeleton costume, your kid will be rocking out with the scariest of souls. Not only does it come with a clip-in hair piece, it also has the dress, the tights with rips in them, and choker necklace, too. It’s got a bit of an ‘80s punk vibe, which some parents might totally love. You might want to spray some color into your kid’s hair to match the dress and paint their nails black. When you’re looking for scary costumes for 13-year-olds, this one — with its tattered tulle dress design — will make your child the most sensational skeleton at the Halloween party.