Tips for Perfect Halloween Apartment Decorating

Halloween is one of the most decorative holidays of the year! It’s filled with delightful displays of pumpkin-themed creativity and some spooky costumes. It brings out the fun in everyone, no matter where they live.

Just because you live in an apartment or a loft doesn’t mean you can’t get in on the festivities like everyone else. With these tips for perfect Halloween apartment decorating, you’ll have the ‘haunted house’ you’ve always wanted. There are tons of unique Halloween apartment decor options and DIY ideas to make your home as scary as anyone else’s, all you need is creativity and this list!

Halloween decorations for apartments don’t always have to be ghastly and ghostly. Not everyone can afford to scare their kids every morning with frightening decorations. Still, there are plenty of unique ways to bring out the fun and festivities in your Halloween decorated apartment.

Whether you’re looking to scare the daylights out of your neighbors or turn your home into Halloween central for your whole family, these small apartment halloween ideas will bring out the ghouls and ghosts this season.

Halloween Decorating Ideas for Apartments

Mini Pumpkins for Every Space

Pumpkins are as synonymous with Halloween as Christmas trees are with Christmas. You can’t go to any grocery store without seeing the front covered in available pumpkins. For many, this means carving contests where massive pumpkins become slightly smaller pieces of art. What about the folks who don’t have huge porches that are perfect for pumpkins though? 

That’s where mini-pumpkins come in!

You can have the same carving contest with miniature pumpkins. Not only do they take up less space, but they cost less too. Whether you’re a kid or an adult, you’ll have just as much fun carving up a couple of small pumpkins as you would making a big mess with a larger one.

Halloween Doorway and Hallway Accessories

They might not stretch along a corridor of several bedrooms, but most apartments do have some form of hallway. They don’t have the potential to become a haunted house or maze, but they have plenty of space for you to decorate with. The same goes for doorways. 

Turn every single path and entrance into its own themed space. One bedroom becomes the “spider room” thanks to webs and stickers while another becomes the “vampire room” due to some red glue or fake fangs.

Halloween Window Decorations & Balcony Lighting

Lights are, arguably, the single most important part of holiday decorating. Christmas certainly puts them at the forefront, and the same can be said for Halloween.

Whether they’re red, purple, or orange there are a ton of light options for Halloween. So instead of sitting in the darkness, turn those balconies and windowsills into their own colorful light displays. 

The best Halloween apartment decorations are those that make the best use of the space you have. What better way to draw attention to your balcony than with a display that turns it into a red and purple home for vampires, werewolves, and every other kind of monster?

Different Colored Bulbs for Spooky Lighting

Not only can you string spooky lights up along your windowsills, but you can also change the lightbulbs throughout your house! If you’re getting ready for a party, or even just sprucing up for trick-or-treaters, adding some alternative lightbulbs throughout the home can add a spooky touch. 

Purple lightbulbs can give off a blacklight impression while red or orange lights can turn the entire room into a vampire den. 

Halloween Couch Covers, Seat Covers, and Tablecloths

When you don’t have a lot of space, almost anything can become a mantlepiece or new decoration, and that includes your furniture!

Throwing a white blanket on anything already turns it into a ghost, so why not add some extra spookiness with couch covers, seat covers, or even scary tablecloths? You can turn every dinner and breakfast for the entire season into its own mini-Halloween celebration. 

Halloween-Themed Music and Playlists

If you really want to get the “Monster Mash” going for the season then play the song!

One of the best music innovations of the last 20 years is shared playlists, which are just as effective as old mixtapes. That’s right, all you need is a few spooky playlists and your entire house can become the party house for every monster in your neighborhood. While you can certainly find scary soundtracks with vampire screams and zombie moaning, you can also find hundreds of uniquely-themed songs that brighten up the season without scaring the kiddos.

Halloween-Themed Posters and Stickers

Everyone likes a good sticker, just check out all of the laptops at your local Starbucks. They’re cost-effective, can be easily removed, and come in just about every different shape and color you could imagine. That includes spooky selections for Halloween!

Whether they depict skulls, pumpkins, or even vampire fangs, stickers can turn everything from a backpack or book cover into an extension of the season. 

Creepy Candelabras

The most important part of a haunted house is the spiderwebs, and the second most important part is the candelabras! There’s nothing spookier than a Victorian-era candelabra lighting the corners of every room.

That doesn’t mean you have to suddenly find 15 different wax candles only to then deal with the mess they leave. There are dozens of different electrical options that conserve battery life and power. If you have any existing lamps or candles of your own, there are also several different covers you can use to turn them from lovely and bright to dark and twisted.

Spiders, Spiders, Webs, and More Spiders

If you or anyone else you know has arachnophobia, this choice isn’t going to be for you. For everyone else, you can’t have Halloween without spiders. Despite the fact that they’re relatively friendly creatures who free our home from various pests, they’re definitely one of the scariest creatures in the animal or insect kingdoms.

Spiderwebs alone are enough to turn any corner into a creepy dungeon, but add a few fake spiders and you’ve got yourself a scary attraction. Felt, plastic, or glass – you can find the perfect spider to scare up any room or window. Careful not to make it too convincing or a real spider might try to move in!

Pumpkin Spice Candles, Potions, and Halloween Scents

Not every Halloween decoration needs to scare the pants off your family or friends, some can just delightfully remind them of this delicious season.

Pumpkin spice has taken over just about every aspect of the fall season. You can find it in drinks, candles, apparel, meals, and much more. Quite a few people aren’t fans, but for the most part, it’s an interesting way to literally spice up your apartment. The best Halloween apartment decorations are those that don’t just improve your space, but they make use of it. Adding an alluring pumpkin spice scent with an eye-catching candle can add a homely touch to any room in your home.

Nocturnal Owls and Eerie Moons Bring Out the Nightlife

Last but not least, there’s nothing like adding a touch of nature to bring out the Halloween in your home. Owls are the most famous ‘creature of the night’ and they look the part. Having a fake or decorative owl somewhere in your home immediately evokes the feeling of a walk on a dark and lonely path. Now just add a crescent moon or two into the picture and you bring out the darkness in any bright living room or kitchen. 

Decorating your apartment for Halloween doesn’t have to be expensive or time-consuming. There are so many ways to touch up different spaces. They don’t always have to break the bank or work with animatronics. A couple of tiny plastic spiders can be just as effective as a 10-foot skeleton that costs a few hundred dollars. Goodwill is a great place to go shopping for unique, affordable  halloween decorations for renters this time of year.

All you need is a little creativity, and your apartment will become the perfect haunted house for Halloween.

Looking for more renter-friendly apartment decor ideas for once the holiday season comes to an end? Read our blog on Renter-Friendly Design Ideas for more inspiration.