Finding the perfect Halloween costume to impress your friends can be a hard decision. The people on this list are extremely creative, and we are impressed by all of their out-of-the-box costumes. If you are looking for a costume idea, here’s a little inspiration. Here are 67 amazing Halloween costume ideas.
1. Sputnik 2 and Laika
A Flickr user recreated Sputnik 2 for this costume in 2010, the Soviet spaceship that took the dog Laika into space. Luckily, this Laika survived the mission. Here’s the costume at a different angle at Flickr.
2. The Yip Yips
These are Sesame Street’s popular best friend aliens, the Yip Yips . The Yip Yips always travel together, so you’ll definitely need a friend for this costume. For it to properly fit, it takes two people, according to this Instructable.
3. Optimus Prime Costume
This Instructables member, Dannyeurena; made this amazing Optimus Prime costume out of hot glue, cardboard, and duct tape. He was actually able to move and dance in this costume!
4. Death Becomes Her Costume
This extremely creative Halloween costume is based off of the movie Death Becomes Her. In this movie, Goldie Hawn gets a hole blown through her body. The creator, Nicole Magne shows the whole process of developing this costume on her detailed blog. The Instructables version is available if you want to recreate this costume yourself!
5. Boba Fett Hovering on a Flame
This Boba Fett Hovering on a Column of Flame costume was created by a Linkfilter member. The column of flame hid his legs, and he wore platform shoes made from roller blades to make himself a lot taller.
6. The Meme Helmet Cat
This Helmet Cat costume was put together by Flickr user, Alida Saxon’s brother. This fan favorite internet meme was turned into a very creative Halloween costume; by using a basketball and painted it green for the helmet, and the fur was made from a stuffed toy.
7. Where the Wild Things Are
These five friends dressed up for Halloween as the monsters and Max from the book Where The Wild Things Are. Craftster member Jeanette, made the monsters heads out of papier-mâché.
8. Mega Man
This absolutely adorable Mega Man Halloween costume was made by Kevin, for his 3 year old son. The lights actually do work, and the helmet is made out of a bike helmet. Here are more pictures of the finished product.
9. Bender Costume
Back in 2005, Chris Miller made his own Bender Halloween Costume. The eyes actually move by a servo that was controlled by his hands. He took home a finalist ribbon in a costume contest.
10. Emoticon Helmet
This helmet was created by the Digital Media Design Dept at Hongik University in Korea. The wearer’s body actions determine what emoticon will be shown. If you are wanting to make your own; the original website has a video and instructions on how to make it, but it’s in Korean.
11. AT-AT
This AT-AT Costume was made by Katie Mello of LAIKA House in Portland, for her dog Bones. Bones has his own Facebook page, where you can see him in this costume and in other clothing.
12. Death Star Costume
Image by Flickr users Bob909 and Anditron.
Anditron always had a creative costume for Halloween, but when she was pregnant- she decided to incorporate her baby bump. She made a Death Star costume. She was dressed in black, and her belly was the death star with small x-wing fighters attached. Here’s the Death Ray deployed:
Image by Flickr user Bob909 and Anditron.
13. Coppertone Baby
Who hasn’t seen the Coppertone logo? This adorable girl dressed up as the little Coppertone girl. She dressed up in swim pants, a tan leotard, tights, and even had a puppy!
14. Leg Lamp Costume
You can easily buy the Leg Lamp costume from a store, or you can be like this creator- and make it. The Leg Lamp is from the movie A Christmas Story. The ironic part is the creator, redditor mjr214 has a friend who only has one leg- and that’s why this costume is even more fitting. This photo displays the comparison.
15. Walk the Dinosaur
This awesome Halloween costume was put together by Alison at Mod Mischief. She put together a dinosaur illusion costume a few years ago. She made the dino she is riding out of papier-mâché, and she is even wearing stilts. She had to top the costume from the previous year, as she set it pretty high after the kidnapped mermaid costume she posted at Instructables.
16. Genie on a Magic Carpet
Allison posted an Instructables step by step guide of this Genie on a Flying Carpet costume her friend wore. A walker on wheels actually is what supports the carpet, in order to make it look like it’s flying.
17. Zombie Cat Costume
This great Halloween costume is an animation featuring zombie cats called Meow. Dawn Weast and Suzy Gruber loved the video so much; they wanted to make a Halloween Costume after it for their five year old daughter, Bell.
18. Shark Attack Costume
A Redditor user, Notsohipster has a cousin who has no legs, and they decided to make the best of it. He and his little sister dressed up as a shark and a surfboarding victim for Halloween.
19. Pregnant Zombie Costume
Image (cc) by Flickr user ian aberle
Amanda Fite definitely stood out from the crowd; when she dressed as a pregnant zombie for the Texas Frightmare Zombie Walk, in 2009. You can see just how much work went into this costume by checking out the photos from Flickr user, Ian Aberle’s.
20. Port-a-Potty Costume
Sam’s brother had a homemade costume of a Port-a-Potty that he wore in 2010. Ben was able to walk around and “sit” at the same time. The popular Port-a-Potty brand in their area is Honey Bucket, so Ben’s mini Port-a-Potty had that label on it.
21. Chomping Pacman Costume
This amazing Pacman costume was built a few years ago by Matthew Varas. This project actually took six weeks to build, but it was worth it- because the results are great. You can see the process at Make.
22. Robot Couple Costumes
This awesome robot couple’s costume was made for a costume competition by Instructables member, onebrokenneck. These Hollywood-style robot costumes are made out of aluminum. If you don’t have a metal shop, the Instructables guide says you can also use cardboard. The legs and arms are made out of dryer ducts.
23. Halo Costume
In the past, Shawn Thorsson has made a lot of really awesome costumes. In 2008, he planned on making a Halo costume; but he unfortunately had to put that on hold, as he was deployed to Afghanistan. The following year, the plan was a go, and the project was completed. Thorsson copied the armor from the video game world of Halo, and he painted them different colors. His friends joined in on the fun, and dressed as the characters from the Red vs. Blue series. The process is all documented, to show you the process.
24. The Birds Costume
A redditor user, CampingIsInTents- posted a picture of herself a few years ago dressed as Tippi Hedren. This costume is based off of a popular movie. But you won’t see anyone with this exact costume, because she bought the birds and altered the wings to her liking- in order to make the costume perfect.
25. Krang Costume
This Krang costume was made by Melissa Dunphy for her husband, in 2010. Krang is a villain on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon. The costume called for a lot of duct tape, foam rubber, and repurposed electronics. Here are a few photos of the costume from Flickr.
26. Headless Marie Antoinette Costume
This awesome Death Becomes Her costume was made by Nicole Magne. This decapitated Marie Antoinette costume is extremely creative, and if you want to recreate it- here is the process of creating the costume at Etsy.
27. 8-bit Gary Costume
This creative 8-bit costume was created by Kiel Johnson and Klai Brown. This costume was made out of foam cubes, which were glued onto a cardboard suit for a Toshiba ad. The process of making this costume is documented in photographs.
28. LEGO Costume
This LEGO Minifig costume was made by an Instructables member, Kaged Konbat. The head was made from a tube sold as a form for concrete, it may be strong but it’s light. Your friend can join you as a LEGO brick!
29. Darth Vader TIE Fighter Costume
(Image by Flickr user Kevin Tostado)
This incredible Dark Vader costume was spotted in 2007, at Downtown Disney in Anaheim for Halloween. This person spent a lot of time constructing a TIE fighter around a wheelchair. You can see more Halloween costume ideas for children in wheelchairs here.
30. A Steampunk Iron Man Costume
Image by Judy Stephens)
This awesome steampunk Iron Man Halloween costume won the Marvel costume contest in 2010, at Comic Con.
31. Double Rainbow Costume
This extremely colorful costume was inspired by the double rainbow meme from Paul Vasquez. In the video he was shocked at seeing a double rainbow.
32. Mad Max Costume
Karol Bartoszynski was a huge fan of Mad Max, and later on made it into a career. He is a costume designer and organizes Mad Max fan gatherings. He also runs the fan site for Mad Max Costumes.
33. Reverse Trick-or-Treat Comic Idea
An amazing Halloween costume was related to this story from Mefite np312. Unfortunately, no pictures were posted of the Halloween costume; however, Doc Pop took the idea and turned it into a comic. You can see the whole comic at Flickr. We are hoping someone will use this idea again as inspiration for a costume.
34. Umbrella Bat Costume
Lenore at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories made this creative Umbrella Bat costume. She made it out of a hoodie and an umbrella. She also posted the instructions online so you can make it too.
35. Trash Can Costume
This Trash Can costume can also be used for a prank. This costume wearer; remembered back to when he was a kid, and one of his fondest memories was when a man would dress up in a gorilla suit and scare the kids. He decided to be that guy, and dress up as a trash can. No one realized it wasn’t actually a real trash can, and he scared a lot of people.
36. Caterpillar Power Loader J-5000 Costume
You may not recognize the name Caterpillar Power Loader J-5000, but you will remember the mechanical power suit Sigourney Weaver wore to fight aliens in the movie Aliens. In 2006, Ben Hallert built this suit for Halloween. You can see photos, read his story, and watch a video here.
37. Rubik’s Cube Costume
This awesome costume was created by Flickr user, mcredis. He documented the process for others to be able to make it. He made and wore this costume to a parade in New York. All night long everyone kept asking him, “Can I solve you?”
38. Flaming Carrot Costume
The Flaming Carrot may have been an odd comic book character; however, it makes for an awesome costume. RoG posted details on how this costume was made.
39. Tron Guy Costume
This Tron Guy costume was made by Jay Maynard. He posted a step-by-step guide on how to make this costume.
40. Ghostbusters Costume
This Ghostbusters costume was posted by Honus on Instructables, so you can make your own costume. The costume is complete with the goggles, backpack, and weapons.
41. Big Daddy Costume
Harrison Krix, who is a graphic designer- created a costume of the character Big Daddy. Big Daddy is from the video game Bioshock. It took him seven weeks of sculpting with cardboard, fiberglass, and foam. This costume has a complete working drill arm, which is seriously awesome. The post has a video of the working drill arm, and a few photos.
42. Plastic Green Army Man Costume
This plastic green army man costume was created by Rebekah Tennis, for her son in 2011. Her son quickly became the soldier right out of the movie Toy Story, with a lot of paint. She posted the process of creating this costume online, that way others can make this costume.
43. Cherry Darling Costume
Photograph by Flickr user Cameron Yee.
Lacey Henderson recreated this Cherry Darling costume from Planet Terror. In the movie, Cherry Darling took viewers by surprise when they saw that one of her legs was a machine gun. Lacey is a beautiful amputee who made the best out of her situation by cosplaying this character at fan events. She has a webpage with pictures and instructions for those who aren’t amputees on how to recreate this awesome look.
44. Jack Skellington Costume
This amazing Jack Skellington costume was created by DeviantART member Mnemousyne. Under the costume she is wearing stilts, and the head is made on top of a helmet. Her sister is in the Sally costume.
45. Weeping Angel Costume
This terrifying costume is made by Livejournal user penwiper337. This costume is the Weeping Angel from the Doctor Who episode “Blink.” You can follow the process of making this costume on her blog.
46. The Ginger Bread Man Costume
This hilarious costume was actually created for a career day fair, but it can definitely work as a Halloween costume.
47. Dorian Gray and his Picture Costume
Heather and David dressed up from the novel The Picture of Dorian Grey, as the party was literary-themed. David is aged up and framed to be his picture, and Heather is Dorian. This Photograph is by Flickr user Jason Adams.
48. Mousetrap Costume
This adorable mousetrap costume is made by Jeff from Ohio. He made it for his three year old daughter. He welded on the metal hardware, he cut the wood and mounted it to a wagon, and made the back half of the mouse to work as a cushion for the child’s back.
49 & 50. Bob Ross and the Orbit Gum Lady Costume
This Bob Ross costume was made by Jake meek, and he said he purchased his attire in the ladies section at his local thrift store. He is also posing with the Orbit Gum Lady.
51 & 52. The Hamburgler and the Sunmaid Raisins Lady Costume
Here’s the same couple; but this time they are posing as The Hamburgler, and the woman on the Sunmaid Raisins box.
53. The DC Metro Costume
Scott Allen, mental_floss contributor won season tickets to the Washington Wizards for this.
54. The Firefox Logo Costume
This extremely creative costume is of the internet browser logo, Firefox. This costume was actually entered last year, in Crunchgear’s contest.
55. Rock & Roll Witch Costume
Another Halloween costume you can try is this rock & roll witch. If different and unique is what you’re looking for, then this is the winner.
56. Cheshire Cat Costume
scarystitcher at Etsy
This award-winning costume of the Cheshire Cat, was created by Etsy member scarystitcher. She created this costume for her daughter last year, and posted it on Reddit. The eyes were sunglass lens and they were painted, and the mouth and nose are thick cardstock painted. She posted the process on how she made this costume on her Etsy listing.
57. Darla Costume
jarrettbraun, imgur
Redditor Jarrettbraun posted a picture of redditor neuhani’s amazing Darla Halloween costume. Darla is the bratty girl from the movie Finding Nemo. The bag really brought this whole costume together.
58. Hannibal Lecter Costume
Andy Pixel, Imgur
Last year, Andy Pixel made himself into Hannibal Lecter. The hand cart actually comes apart, so he can easily get out of the costume when needed; like using the restroom, getting in a car, or trying to take the stairs.
59. The Very Hungry Caterpillar Costume
Alanna George
For only a couple of dollars, Alanna George made the adorable Very Hungry Caterpillar costume. This costume is based off of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book. Her then two year old son was extremely excited to be dressed as a character from his favorite book.
60. The Governor and His Daughter Costume
TriforceKing, imgur
Redditor TriforceKing and his sister dressed as the Governor and his undead daughter, from the TV show The Walking Dead. There were a few people who pointed out that the Governor didn’t lose his eye until after his daughter was gone. But it’s a Halloween costume, it just makes the costume that much cooler.
61. Baby Can’t Wait Costume
BAOUWS, imgur
This picture or costume isn’t exactly new, but it’s still awesome. Redditor Ghost0_ discussed that he and his wife pulled off this costume a couple of years ago, and also talked about what all went into making this costume.
62. Man Being Carried Costume
This awesome illusion costume is from a couple of years ago, where QuaziLogical made this costume that took him about 30 hours of work, and cost him about 30$ to make. The “dummy” he used has its face covered up by a mask, and he is wearing a mask to look artificial. That helps to create the perfect illusion. See a closer look of the legs he made, here.
63. Snow Globe Costume
jpotisch via Flickr // CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
This amazing snow globe costume was made by hand by Flickr user, jpotisch. The globe is made from clear acetate, and the snow is actually made from bits of foam hanging by thread. The building process was posted in a Flickr album, and it took about three days for him to build it. He also made his sons banana costume, in the background, and he posted a tutorial of this process too.
64. Major Toht Costume
Cameron Stewart, imgur
Cameron Stewart recreated the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark, where agent Arnold Toht’s face is melted off- for a Halloween costume. He recreated the look for Halloween, at the last minute. He woke up one day thinking he was going to skip Halloween, but instead he decided to recreate this look. Cameron is a comic book artist, so creativity comes naturally to him. He discussed that the mask is actually the Red Skull mask from Captain America, with flesh-coloured paint dribbled over it. You can see him in other costumes in an imgur galleryfeaturing Toht, Jack Torrance, Patrick Bateman, and other characters.
65. Baby Captain Hook Costume
Rachael K, Instructables
This classis pirate costume was seriously taken up a step. Instructables member Rachael K, made this absolutely adorable costume. This toddler is Captain Hook from Peter Pan, being eaten by a crocodile. Rachel explains how she made the costume. This costume actually won the Judges Prize for Sewing in the Instructables Halloween Costume Contest last year.
66. Mad Max Costume
bloody_ben via Instagram
This awesome Mad Max costume is made by Ben Carpenter. He is a cosplayer who got a group of his friends to cosplay the cast of Mad Max: Fury Road. Ben cosplayed the scene where Max was strapped to the front of a vehicle, in order to supply blood to the driver. That scene worked perfectly, as Ben uses a wheelchair. He used his wheelchair in the upright position for the vehicle, driven by a friend. Their group actually won the award for Best Group Cosplay.
67. Taco Belle Costume
AvantGeek, DeviantART
This incredible Taco Belle costume is made by Olivia Mears. She is a costumer extraordinaire and cosplayer. Her Taco Belle dress decorations are actually made from tissue paper, Taco Bell wrappers, felt, and card stock. The inspiration for the extremely creative costume came from a different costume event, and she went for some fast food and contemplated the inadvertent pun.