Misc

The Most Popular Halloween Costumes of 2021

Published

2 years ago

October 29, 2021

Anshool Deshmukh

The Most Popular Halloween Costumes of 2021

Halloween—it’s the time of year when kids and adults alike dress up, eat candy, and show off their spookiest selves. It’s also when the scariest home decorations are the talk of the town, and people are frightened left, right, and center.

With the help of data from Google Trends and their unique Frightgeist series, we visualized the most searched Halloween costumes in the U.S. in 2021.

From spooky to sweet, these are the costumes everyone wants to dress up as this Halloween.

A Brief History of Halloween

Halloween is celebrated each year on October 31, with this year’s Halloween occurring on a Sunday. The tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, where people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts.

The concept of Halloween didn’t gain popularity until it reached the United States. Borrowing from European traditions, Americans began to dress up in costumes and go house to house asking for food or money, a practice that eventually became today’s “trick-or-treat” tradition.

Other superstitions also started to form around the holiday. Young women believed they could divine the appearance of their future husbands by doing tricks with apple parings or mirrors.

Over time, Halloween moved away from focusing on witchcraft and ghosts to the festival we know and love today—a day focused on games, foods of the season, and festive costumes.

What Are the Most Popular Halloween Costumes?

With COVID-19 cases down compared to last year and Americans expected to spend over $10 billion on Halloween this year, much of the United States will be partaking in celebrating the spooky holiday.

From classy costumes and last-minute DIYs to pop-culture outfits and even era-inspired costumes, here are the top 25 most popular Halloween costumes in the U.S. in 2021.

Rank	Costume Name	Category
1	Witch	Horror Films
2	Rabbit	Animals
3	Dinosaur	Animals
4	Spider-Man	Comic Book Characters
5	Cruella de Vil	Film Characters
6	Fairy	Fantasy Characters
7	Harley Quinn	Comic Book Characters
8	Cowboy	Professions
9	Clown	Professions
10	Chucky	Horror Films
11	Cheerleader	Professions
12	Pirate	Professions
13	Pumpkin	Foods
14	Angel	Characters
15	Vampire	Fantasy Characters
16	Among Us	TV Charaters
17	Zombie	Horror Films
18	1980's	Era
19	Superhero	Comic Book Characters
20	Devil	Characters
21	Joker	Film Characters
22	Ninja	Professions
23	Squid Game	TV Charaters
24	Beetejuice	Horror Films
25	Doll	Toys

Notable Trending Costumes

The Netflix show Squid Game has had a meteoric rise in popularity in recent weeks, becoming one of the most-watched shows on the streaming platform—just in time for Halloween.

Squid Game costumes are the 23rd most popular in Google’s search, and they continue to trend high, being the most searched costume idea in Detroit.

In 2020, the mobile game Among Us was the talk of the gaming world, and this year it is the 16th most popular costume, with its popularity spiking in Jacksonville, Florida.

Other notable costumes in the top 50 include Pokémon at #50, Fortnite at #44, Velma Dinkley (of Scooby-Doo fame) at #42, Poison Ivy (the comic book villain) at #33, Beetlejuice at #24 and the entire 1980s decade at #18.

Most Popular Halloween Costumes by State

When it comes to festivals, every state has its unique perspective and traditions on celebrating them. This extends to popular Halloween costumes too.

Though there might be some overlap, digging deeper into the most popular costumes in every state allows us a unique look into how diverse people’s tastes are across the country.

Here is a breakdown of the most popular costumes in the U.S. in 2020 by state:

State	Most Popular Costume	National Rank in 2020
Alabama	Harley Quinn	03
Alaska	Beetlejuice	36
Arizona	Rabbit	04
Arkansas	Doll	12
California	Witch	01
Colorado	Dinosaur	02
Connecticut	Powerpuff Girls	32
Delaware	Doll	12
District of Columbia	Beyonce	333
Florida	Rabbit	04
Georgia	Witch	01
Hawaii	Monsters Inc	43
Idaho	Witch	01
Illinois	Dinosaur	02
Indiana	Witch	01
Iowa	Chucky	20
Kansas	Mickey Mouse	57
Kentucky	Zombie	13
Louisiana	Witch	01
Maine	Dinosaur	02
Maryland	Ninja	09
Massachusetts	Dinosaur	02
Michigan	Rabbit	04
Minnesota	Witch	01
Mississippi	Angel	06
Missouri	Dinosaur	02
Montana	Purge	15
Nebraska	Joker	30
Nevada	Witch	01
New Hampshire	Ninja	09
New Jersey	Witch	01
New Mexico	Clueless	74
New York	Dinosaur	02
North Carolina	Dinosaur	02
North Dakota	Star Wars	28
Ohio	Witch	01
Oklahoma	Dragon	35
Oregon	Fortnite	07
Pennsylvania	Witch	01
Rhode Island	Hermione Granger	146
South Carolina	Wonder Woman	31
South Dakota	Spider	38
Tennessee	Harley Quinn	03
Texas	Harley Quinn	03
Utah	Witch	01
Vermont	Deer	125
Virginia	Rabbit	04
Washington	Angel	06
West Virginia	Zombie	13
Wisconsin	Witch	01
Wyoming	Physician	67

A look at popular costumes at the state level reveals some interesting quirks. Montana, for example, is uniquely interested in The Purge, and Rhode Island trick-or-treaters are big fans of Hermione Granger of Harry Potter fame.

Traditions are Here To Stay

At its core, Halloween still remains that same old fright-inducing festival it has always been.

Even though pop culture might influence your Halloween choices, traditional costumes will always have a unique place in everyone’s heart.

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Misc

Ranked: The World’s Top 10 Automotive Exporters (2000-2022)

Data from the World Trade Organization highlights the world’s 10 largest automotive exporters in 2022.

Published

1 day ago

September 30, 2023

Marcus Lu

Ranked: The World’s Top 10 Automotive Exporters

According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, over 85 million motor vehicles were built around the world in 2022.

In this graphic, we add context to this massive figure by ranking the world’s 10 largest automotive exporters. The list is based on data from the World Trade Organization (WTO) and includes countries from nearly every corner of the world, highlighting the global nature of the industry.

Top 10 Exporting Countries

The data we used to create this graphic is included in the table below. It represents each country’s share of the total export value of global automotive products in both 2000 and 2022.

“Automotive products” are defined by the WTO as motor vehicles, parts and accessories for motor vehicles, and internal combustion engines for propelling said vehicles. This grouping excludes motorcycles and trailers.

Exporter	2000 (% of world exports)	2022 (% of world exports)	Change (pp)
🇪🇺 EU	45.4%	46.1%	+0.7
🇺🇸 U.S.	11.7%	9.1%	-2.6
🇯🇵 Japan	15.3%	8.9%	-6.4
🇲🇽 Mexico	5.3%	8.5%	+3.2
🇨🇳 China	0.3%	8.0%	+7.7
🇰🇷 South Korea	2.6%	5.1%	+2.5
🇨🇦 Canada	10.5%	3.3%	-7.2
🇬🇧 UK	4.5%	2.7%	-1.8
🇹🇭 Thailand	0.4%	2.0%	+1.6
🇹🇷 Türkiye	0.3%	1.7%	+1.4
Total	96.3%	95.4%	--

From this list we can identify which countries have experienced the most growth or decline over the past 22 years.

Countries With the Most Growth Since 2000

The automotive exporters that grew their share of global value the most since 2000 are China (+7.7 pp), Mexico (+3.2 pp), and South Korea (+2.5 pp).

There are clear drivers behind each of these growth stories.

For example, China became the world’s largest car market back in 2009, which accelerated the growth of its domestic automakers. China is also home to some of the world’s biggest automotive suppliers, including Weichai (diesel engines), Hasco Automotive (drivetrain and air conditioning systems), and CATL (EV batteries).

Mexico, on the other hand, has grown its auto industry by enticing global brands to construct their factories there. The country’s competitive edge includes cheaper labor and a land border to the United States.

Finally there’s South Korea, whose growth is largely attributed to Hyundai Motor Company. The Seoul-based automaker recently became the third largest on a global basis, trailing only Toyota and Volkswagen.

Countries With the Biggest Decline Since 2000

The automotive exporters that declined the most since 2000 are Canada (-7.2 pp), Japan (-6.4 pp), and the U.S. (-2.6 pp).

Canada’s auto industry has experienced a steady decline in recent years, though new EV-related investments could turn things around. In March 2022, Stellantis and LG Energy Solutions announced the construction of a $3.5 billion EV battery plant in Windsor, Ontario.

Canada’s automotive industry is largely concentrated in the province of Ontario, which neighbors Michigan, the top state for U.S. car production.