Published on February 27, 2022

15 Halloween Fundraising Ideas for Schools

Looking for ideas to do a fundraiser around Halloween? Here are 15 of the best fundraising ideas for PTAs and PTOs that will help you achieve your goal.
2 kids in a pumpkin patch

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Pumpkin Carving 

Set up a few stations for pumpkin carving at your next big event! For the price of the pumpkin, the artists get access to a full set of tools and anything else they’ll need to create their masterpiece! Also include a way for them to take the pumpkin seeds home with them if they want to turn them into a tasty and healthy snack when they have time.

See also: GUIDE: How to Run a Fundraiser Campaign

pumpkin carving contest fundraiser

Costume Contest 

Charge an admission fee for the students to participate in a costume contest or charge a fee per vote for the students to pick a winner! If a bunch of them want to participate, the teachers can narrow down the field in their classrooms by having their students vote for the top 3 costumes that they want to go up against the other classes. The winner of the costume contest wins a pizza party or another group prize for their entire class!

Costume Dance 

Have the students dress up in their costumes to attend a school dance! Charge for tickets and don’t forget to have refreshments and plenty of spooky decorations to set the perfect Halloween mood.

Trunk Or Treat 

Organize a trunk or treat event! This should be especially popular in the rural areas where the houses are really far apart. All you need is some candy to pass out, the trunk of your car, a few friends, and some trick or treaters. 

Get everyone together with their costumes, candy, and cars, and have the trick or treaters go from car to car to trick or treat. Feel free to decorate your trunk if you like and wear your spooky best! The Booster Club can require registration and a registration fee in advance or just request a donation at the event.

trunk or treat

Pet Costume Contest 

Have the students submit pictures of their pets in costume to be uploaded to a picture website, like the school’s Instagram.

Undead Dog Walk 

Partner with your local shelter and show off the dogs to be adopted by dressing them up in costume (if they’ll allow it) and holding a pet parade through the center of town! Also, don’t forget to talk to local businesses and individuals in the community about donating to support the shelter and the school.

puppy dressed up like a ghost

Haunted House 

Grab some of your most theatrical seniors and train them to put on a haunted house for the community! The PTO/PTA can either have the participants walk through or have them ride through on a hayride style ride!

Creepy Cupcake War 

Hold a cupcake war where the theme is all things spooky and delicious! The bakers that want to participate make their best cupcake creations and your patrons pay to taste all of them and vote on the best. You can also charge your bakers a registration fee or just have them register so you can provide enough space for everyone who wants to compete.

See also: GUIDE: How to Run a Bake Sale

halloween cupcakes

Ghost Tour 

Have any places with a lot of ghostly activity? Accept donations for a guided ghost tour! 

Haunted Golf Course 

Accept donations for competitors to play their best in a Halloween themed golf course! Decorations are a must but if the event organizers want surprises waiting to scare the participants around every corner, its entirely up to them!

Costume Swap 

Organize a costume swap for your students! Price of entry could be a costume to swap and once they find something they like, they could purchase it from the Booster club.

kids in halloween costumes

Halloween Festival

This is the perfect big event to pull together all of your smaller fundraising activities! Charge an admission fee for patrons to come visit and have lots of food and smaller games for them to play and donate as much as they can. 

Creepy Movie Marathon 

Host a movie marathon featuring fun and spooky movies! The event organizers can decide whether they want full terror and gore or to keep it famly friendly. Either way, have a food truck on speed dial to feed the hungry patrons and offer lots of bathroom and walk breaks.

kids in a field watching a movie

Murder Mystery Dinner Party

Host a murder mystery event/dinner! Event organizers may need to limit space to this event to make it as effective as possible but that just means you’ll be able to charge a little bit more because space is so limited! Once you have your list of participants together, hand out cards giving each person their role and what they’re expected to wear to the event and throw the event in a traditional murder mystery style!

Check out our list of holiday fundraisers so you can be prepared at any time of the year!

halloween fundraising pinterest

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