What should our group be for Halloween?
A group decides nothing in a group chat. Answer three questions between you and this gives you one grouping — a named costume for every person, built from clothes somebody already owns — instead of twenty screenshots and no decision by the 30th.
Last updated: 24 September 2026
The twenty-four groupings
Every grouping below is one idea with a costume for each person. Answer the three questions above and this narrows to the one that fits; until then, here they all are, by group size.
The three classics — for 3
The three costumes everyone recognises from across a room, and between them they need a sheet, black clothes and a hat made from card.
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
Slowest of the 3: about 12 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Black clothes only — for 3
The cheapest trio here. All three start from clothes you already own; tape, a headband and felt do the rest.
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
Slowest of the 3: about 20 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The old rivalry and a witness — for 3
Two of you are enemies and the third is the one who saw it happen. It photographs better than a matching trio because the silhouettes differ.
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
Slowest of the 3: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Sweet, spooky and silly — for 3
For three friends who cannot agree how scary to be. It works precisely because it does not match.
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Party Clown: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
Slowest of the 3: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The haunted house — for 4
The four everyone recognises instantly. All black, one white sheet, tape and strips — between them they need almost nothing bought.
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
Slowest of the 4: about 15 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Two classic pairs — for 4
Angel and devil, witch and cat. It reads as two couples or one group, which is useful when you do not know yet who is coming with whom.
- Angel: Any all-white outfit and a halo bent from gold tinsel or a pipe cleaner · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
Slowest of the 4: about 14 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The autumn set — for 4
Colour instead of horror, for a party where half the room is not dressing scary. Photographs better in daylight than the black-clothes groups.
- Pumpkin: Anything orange, a green hat and a face cut from black paper · full build
- Cowboy: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Party Clown: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
Slowest of the 4: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The pack — for 4
Four creatures, four silhouettes. Nobody is mistaken for anybody else across a dark room, which is the usual failure with a group this size.
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Zombie: Your oldest clothes, torn a little, and eyeshadow for dark circles · full build
Slowest of the 4: about 25 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The circus — for 5
Loud colours, one ringmaster energy, and the fifth is never the spare — a circus is meant to be a crowd of different acts.
- Party Clown: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Pumpkin: Anything orange, a green hat and a face cut from black paper · full build
Slowest of the 5: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The graveyard shift — for 5
Five classic undead. It is the cheapest group on this page: sheets, black clothes, tape and a bit of eyeliner between all five.
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Zombie: Your oldest clothes, torn a little, and eyeshadow for dark circles · full build
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
Slowest of the 5: about 25 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Heaven and hell, plus a witness — for 5
Two angels, two devils and a ghost caught in the middle. The odd one out becomes the joke rather than the leftover.
- Angel — 2 of you: Any all-white outfit and a halo bent from gold tinsel or a pipe cleaner · full build
- Devil — 2 of you: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
Slowest of the 5: about 14 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The farm and the forest — for 5
One human and four things watching from the treeline. Works for a mixed group who cannot agree how scary to be.
- Cowboy: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
Slowest of the 5: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The full haunted house — for 6
Every classic monster, one each. The one group of six nobody has to explain, and the easiest to fill if a seventh person joins late.
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
Slowest of the 6: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
A coven and its cats — for 6
Three witches, two cats and a bat. Almost entirely black clothes people already own, with hats and ears doing the work.
- Witch — 3 of you: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Black Cat — 2 of you: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
Slowest of the 6: about 20 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The circus, full size — for 6
Two clowns are better than one. The brightest group here, and the one that survives being photographed indoors with bad lighting.
- Party Clown — 2 of you: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Pumpkin: Anything orange, a green hat and a face cut from black paper · full build
- Cowboy: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
Slowest of the 6: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Six ghosts, one sheet each — for 6
Six of the same costume, which is the point — a row of sheet ghosts is the single most photographed group costume there is, and it costs six old sheets.
- Ghost — 6 of you: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
Slowest of the 6: about 3 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The full haunted house — for 8
Every classic monster, one each, no repeats and no explaining. The easiest eight to fill and the easiest to extend if a ninth person appears.
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
Slowest of the 8: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Four pairs — for 8
Angel and devil, vampire and werewolf, witch and cat, ghost and mummy. It reads as one group of eight or four couples, which is useful when half of you are coming with someone.
- Angel: Any all-white outfit and a halo bent from gold tinsel or a pipe cleaner · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
Slowest of the 8: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The circus, full size — for 8
The brightest eight here, and the one that survives being photographed indoors under bad lighting.
- Party Clown — 2 of you: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Pumpkin: Anything orange, a green hat and a face cut from black paper · full build
- Cowboy: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Angel: Any all-white outfit and a halo bent from gold tinsel or a pipe cleaner · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
Slowest of the 8: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The graveyard shift — for 8
Doubling up on purpose. Two of each of the cheap ones, and between the eight of you the shopping list is sheets, tape and eyeliner.
- Ghost — 2 of you: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton — 2 of you: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Mummy — 2 of you: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Zombie: Your oldest clothes, torn a little, and eyeshadow for dark circles · full build
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
Slowest of the 8: about 25 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Ten of the sixteen — for 10
One each, no repeats, everything built from clothes people already own. The safest ten because nobody has to coordinate with anybody.
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
- Zombie: Your oldest clothes, torn a little, and eyeshadow for dark circles · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
Slowest of the 10: about 25 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Five pairs — for 10
Five couples that also read as one group. The pairs make the photos, the group makes the entrance.
- Angel: Any all-white outfit and a halo bent from gold tinsel or a pipe cleaner · full build
- Devil: Anything red, black jeans, and horns made from red card on a headband · full build
- Vampire: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
- Werewolf: A flannel shirt, a fluffy scarf and a headband with ears · full build
- Witch: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Black Cat: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Cowboy — 2 of you: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
Slowest of the 10: about 22 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
The circus and the graveyard — for 10
Half of you bright, half of you dead. It is the group for a party where nobody agreed on a tone, and it stops the room splitting into two halves.
- Party Clown — 2 of you: Your brightest clothes, all at once, plus lipstick dots on the cheeks · full build
- Fairy: Any light dress, flowers pinned in your hair, and a stick wrapped in ribbon · full build
- Pumpkin: Anything orange, a green hat and a face cut from black paper · full build
- Cowboy: Jeans, any checked shirt, boots and a bandana. The hat is the only thing most people need to find · full build
- Ghost: An old white sheet and a marker. The classic for a reason · full build
- Skeleton: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Mummy: An old white sheet torn into strips, and safety pins · full build
- Zombie: Your oldest clothes, torn a little, and eyeshadow for dark circles · full build
- Bat: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
Slowest of the 10: about 30 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Everyone in black — for 10
Ten people, one wardrobe rule, two of each costume. The cheapest group on the site and the one that needs the least planning.
- Skeleton — 2 of you: All black clothes, white tape for the ribs, eyeliner for the face · full build
- Black Cat — 2 of you: All black clothes, a headband with card ears and a belt for the tail · full build
- Bat — 2 of you: A black hoodie and an old black umbrella cut into wings · full build
- Witch — 2 of you: A black dress, your cosiest cardigan and a hat made from black card · full build
- Vampire — 2 of you: A black coat worn as a cape, a white shirt, red lipstick. Done · full build
Slowest of the 10: about 20 minutes. Everyone else is quicker.
Why this works better than deciding in the chat
The failure is never the costumes, it is the agreeing. Pick the grouping first and the individual costumes second, and the whole thing takes one message instead of a fortnight. Name a rail on The Costume Rack, send the link, and each person claims their costume from the grouping — everyone sees who has taken what, so two of you only match on purpose.
If somebody drops out or joins late
Nothing has to be redone. A rail holds twelve, so a late arrival claims whatever is still unclaimed, and a grouping that loses a person still reads as the same idea — a haunted house with five monsters is a haunted house. If you end up at a different number, the pages for 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10 each go deeper on that size.
Going on your own instead?
Answer three questions about yourself and get one costume split into a checklist, or start from what is already in your wardrobe.