CivicScience has the world’s largest proprietary database of real-time declared intent, allowing brands to activate high-performing advertising that drives up to 80% better performance. See how CivicScience partners achieve superior marketing outcomes here.
1. Big-box retailers remain the preferred choice for Halloween shopping, but online-only stores are gaining popularity.
Halloween is creeping closer, and plans to celebrate are slightly down from last year, with 63% of U.S. adults planning to celebrate in 2026, down from 67% in 2025. Among celebrators, the usual festive activities remain widely popular. Half (50%) intend to pass out candy this year, 41% plan to watch scary movies, and 40% will decorate their homes. Those planning to dress up in a costume this year held steady at 30%. However, interest in attending a Halloween party dipped to 24%, and interest in going trick-or-treating dropped to 20%, each down three percentage points from 2025.
Big-box stores remain the top choice for Halloween candy (30%) and decorations (28%) among shoppers. Grocery stores are closely followed among candy buyers at 29%. However, alternative channels are trending upward in 2026. Online candy purchases jumped by five percentage points to 14%, while wholesale and discount stores also saw upticks. For costumes and decor, discount stores take 19%, while online-only (19%) and seasonal pop-ups (17%) expanded their market share compared to 2025.
Let Us Know: Do you generally make an effort to buy holiday-themed merchandise?
2. American spending at dollar stores continues to rise, and it’s playing a growing role in holiday shopping.
With grocery prices rising and Americans increasingly feeling pessimistic about the economy , it’s no surprise that dollar store shopping is on the rise in 2026. The latest consumer-reported data from CivicScience show that among those who shop at dollar stores, nearly half (47%) report spending more at them over the past six months — a significant jump up from 38% in 2024. The growth is strongest among households earning under $50K, with 52% of consumers reporting spending more at these stores than in years past. Interestingly, however, a greater number of respondents in households making over $150K report that their spending at dollar stores increased compared with two years ago (33% vs. 28% in 2024).
As the holiday shopping season ramps up ahead of Thanksgiving, dollar stores have steadily carved out a niche as a top choice among some consumers. The share of U.S. adults planning to buy their gifts at these stores rose to 13% in 2026, up from 5% in 2020, beating specialty/chain stores (10%). Despite this growth, big box stores remain the most common destination for shopping (44%), followed by small/locally owned businesses (17%) and department stores 15%).
Take Our Poll: How often do you shop at a dollar store?
3. Americans cite the cost of flights as the number one reason why they’re reluctant to travel by plane.
Geopolitical conflicts continue to have a meaningful impact on the cost of flying. As expected, this has led to heightened consumer travel reluctance, with high ticket prices cementing their status as the primary barrier. Since March, the percentage of fliers citing cost as a reason for hesitation has risen to 45%, a 10-percentage-point spike. Meanwhile, secondary concerns have either increased by a single percentage point or slightly decreased since March. Discomfort and inconvenience (29%) and delays or cancellations (28%) round out the top three drivers of hesitation.
The drivers of reluctance split along distinct demographic lines: adults under 45 are less likely to report reluctance overall (11%) than those 45+ (26%) and Gen Pop (20%). Older consumers (45+) are primarily deterred by structural barriers such as ticket prices (49% vs. 40%) and safety concerns (31% vs. 22%). Conversely, 18-44-year-olds express greater reluctance over in-flight interactions, leading to concerns about onboard conflicts (24% vs. 19%) and illness transmission (25% vs. 21%).
