There isn’t much time left until the spookiest night of the year.
With Halloween inching close, you’re either one of those people that has been planning their costume for months in advance or someone who plans on just throwing something together that day.
If you’re the latter, we’re here to help you look not totally crazy on Oct. 31 with a costume that people won’t even realize you put together three hours before the party.
Besides the ones listed, there are some more classics you can also always go with, like a witch, a pirate or even a ghost. These don’t quite ever go out of style.
For our last-minute people, here’s a guide to easy Halloween costumes 2025.
Easy Halloween costumes for women
Carrie Bradshaw
Why not be the iconic “Sex and the City” character who everyone loves to hate?
All you need is a fluffy white tutu-like skirt, a pink tank top and some heels to recreate one of the columnist’s most iconic looks. Curling your hair is a nice addition along with a shopping bag.
She also has some other looks you can recreate including the white button-down with a belt and heels.
‘Little Red Riding Hood’
To recreate the fairytale character, you just need a red hood (which you can find at pretty much any costume store), a white dress and a basket to carry around.
Victoria’s Secret model
With the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show back this year, an easily recognizable costume would be to go as a Victoria’s Secret Angel.
You can get a pair of wings from any costume shop and then go in as much or as little clothing as you’d like. You can bedazzle a bra or put on your most comfortable silk robe and a pair of high heels. Voila, there’s your look. Don’t forget the iconic voluminous blowouts.
DIY Halloween costume ideas for men
‘Saltburn’
You could also do this one as a solo costume but you if you have a crew you can recreate the iconic “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” themed birthday party from “Saltburn.”
Oliver wears deer antlers, a white suit jacket and pants with floral designs. You could probably get away with just wearing a plain white suit jacket and white bottoms.
Meanwhile, Felix wears a white tank top, gold angel wings and a pair of blue jeans. To spice things up you could also carry around a bottle of Prosecco.
This one could be a gender neutral costume as well.
‘Men in Black’
If you’re looking for a fun duo costume, recreate Kay and Jay’s look from “Men in Black.”
All you need is a white button-down, a black suit jacket, a black tie, a fake gun and some black shades. Any pair of black pants would be fine. Bonus points if you carry around a blow-up alien.
This is another one that works well as gender neutral.
‘Scream’
There are a few ways you could go about this one. You could either just buy the “Scream” mask and a fake knife and go as the classic killer or you could take it one step further and dress up as Billy Loomis.
In a scene that almost everyone will recognize, you can grab a white shirt (that you don’t plan on wearing again), a pair of blue jeans and some black sneakers. Make sure to get a lot of fake blood and cover the front of your shirt, your hands and part of your neck with it.
Last-minute Halloween costumes for couples
‘The Office’
Jim and Pam are one of the cutest couples in “The Office,” so why not channel their Halloween costumes for your own?
To be three-hole punch Jim, all you need is a white button-down, a black tie, a coffee mug and some black felt or paper which you can cut into three circles and put on the right side of your shirt.
To do Pam’s look, you need a pair of black cat ears, a black turtle neck and some black face paint.
‘Scooby-Doo’
There are a couple of ways you can channel the meddling group of teenagers with your partner. You can either choose to do the classic couple Fred and Daphne, the nerdy couple Shaggy and Velma or the silly besties Shaggy and Scooby.
For Fred, you need a white shirt, blue pants and an orange scarf. To be Daphne you need a purple dress and a green scarf. If you’re looking to be Shaggy, a green shirt and brown pants are all you need. For Velma opt for a red skirt, an orange turtleneck and some orange socks.
Finally, for Scooby you need to wear brown and maybe get a blue collar, dog ears and some black face paint.
Party animals
A super easy last-minute costume that you can probably recreate with things right in your closet. All you need is an animal print dress, top and a skirt or pants — whichever you prefer. Then add party hats and party blowers.
Vampire
A costume that never goes out of style. For this one, you could go as sexy or as simple as you’d like. You could channel a specific vampire, such as Edward Cullen, Dracula, Mavis or Katherine Pierce, or opt for an all-black look, complete with fake vampire teeth and blood.
You could also go as everyone’s favorite vampire hunter Buffy.
‘Total Drama Island’
If you remember the Cartoon Network show, then you know there are tons of characters to choose from with relatively simple looks that you probably already have in your closet.
You could go as Gwen with an all goth look, as Bridgette with a teal top, jean shorts and flip flops, as Geoff with a pink open button-down, cowboy hat, shell necklace, shorts and flip flops or as Chris with a blue short sleeve, white long sleeve shirt, cargo shorts and flip flops.
This one would definitely be more recognizable as a group.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Best last-minute Halloween costumes for 2025, from easy DIYs to over the top
Reporting by Dina Kaur, Arizona Republic / Arizona Republic
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
