Study reveals where high streets may see the biggest Halloween boost
A new analysis has revealed the average footfall uplift across UK regions during Halloween week, ranking those with the biggest average increase.
The study by the flexible workplace specialists, BizSpace, analysed UK retail footfall data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The study examined the average footfall uplift during Halloween week in 2024 and 2025 compared with the preceding weeks in each year. Regions were then ranked by their average increase across the two Halloween weeks to predict this year's uplifts.
According to the findings, high streets in Northern Ireland are predicted to see the biggest uptick in visitors this Halloween, up 10.1% from the average October footfall. This is 2.6 times higher than the UK average Halloween uplift of 3.9%. Scottish high streets are expected to benefit from the second-biggest Halloween week visitor boost in the UK, with an average Halloween week uplift of 9.4%.
This is compared with the average across preceding October weeks, including the autumn half-term dates in Scotland. This is 2.4 times higher than the UK average.
The North East ranks third, with an average Halloween week uplift of 8.4%, or 2.2 times higher than the national average. This is followed by the East Midlands in fourth, with an average footfall increase of 7.4%, and the North West in fifth, with a 6.7% uplift.
Wales and the West Midlands rank jointly in sixth, with an average Halloween week footfall uplift of 6.3%, which is 1.6 times higher than the UK average. Seventh is Yorkshire and the Humber, with an average footfall uplift of 5.3% during Halloween week, 1.4 times above the national average.
Eighth is the South West, with an average footfall uplift of 2.8%, followed by London in ninth with a 2.0% average uplift, and the East of England in tenth, with an average Halloween week uplift of 0.8%. While high streets in these regions do experience a slight increase in visitors over Halloween week, their respective uplift figures are lower than the national average.
The South East rounds out the ranking across all UK regions, with no change in the average number of visitors across retail areas during Halloween week compared to the rest of the season. Aman Parmar, Head of Marketing at BizSpace, commented: "Northern regions consistently see a much stronger Halloween boost than the south, which suggests trick-or-treating culture or community-led Halloween events are driving real commercial value for high street businesses in those areas.
"Halloween is just the beginning of the seasonal calendar when retailers can see surging customer numbers, with Black Friday and Christmas to come. Halloween can be a good indicator of where shoppers may be starting their Christmas preparation sooner, too."
