Spooky season is here! It’s time to bring Halloween festivities to the workplace. Not sure where to start? Here are 22 ideas for your office Halloween team-building 2023!
Note that all ideas shared in this article have a recommended duration, format, group size and budget. Final cost and activity specifics may vary depending on your company and team requirements.
Mystery Game

Not everything Halloween needs to be ghosts and goblins. A great twist on the themes of the season is to embrace mystery and intrigue. Indulge the current obsession with true crime by staging a mystery game for your team.
Duration: 90 minutes
Group size: Small
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $25 / person
If you’re struggling to come up with the plot for this game, let the experts lead you virtually in a whodunnit gam
Pumpkin Craft

Carving pumpkins is a Halloween classic, but what about taking a more creative approach? With a pumpkin craft, you can put a spin on the typical holiday celebrations and create something that transitions well into the Thanksgiving holiday, too.
Duration: 60 minutes
Group size: Small, medium, large
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $60 / person
Not the craftiest person? Not a problem! Outsource the artsy thinking with a boxed pumpkin craft kit
Murder Mystery

Is your team just itching to Scooby Doo this? Then you should indulge them with a little murder mystery. Go general or opt for a story that is Halloween themed. Bring your employees together in teams to encourage partnership as they find and solve the clues.
Duration: 75 minutes
Group size: Small
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $500
Want to kick things up a notch? Hand the reins to theatrical experts with a perfectly scripted cold case mystery
Cookie Decorating Class

Embrace the sweet side of life with a cookie decorating class. Select Halloween-themed kits to make the process easy on you and simple to adapt to a virtual set-up. There’s nothing like bringing a bit of child-like baking to the season. And it’s a great way to have your team bond together, too.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $30 / person
Want to keep it simple with pre-made kits and live instructions? Check out this Fall Sugar Cookie Decorating Class.
Halloween Cake Pops

Indulge a bit and have a lot of fun in the process. Cake pops are quick and simple to make! Add some white chocolate and food coloring and you can adopt the Halloween theme. It’s a fantastic way to embrace the “treat” side of trick-or-treating.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $25 / person
Halloween Lunch and Learn

What’s better than a tasty (and free) lunch? Getting to learn some cool facts as you eat. Invite a guest speaker to come and teach your team about something related to the holiday so everyone can leave with a full belly and a stimulated mind.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Any size
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $70 / person
Looking for a suggestion? The World’s Spookiest Places provides a virtual campfire experience with great storytelling and stunning visuals.
Creative Halloween Costume Competition

This one is a classic, and for a good reason; who doesn’t love seeing all those crazy costumes? Create a team-building activity by grouping people together and assign them a theme! You can keep this pretty concrete (iconic musical groups) or take a more abstract approach (think Met Gala themes). Then, have everyone vote on the best costumes.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $25 / person
Gardening Night

Connect with nature and plant some pumpkins (or other plants of your choosing). This is a relaxing and stress-relieving Halloween of?ce activity for moody fall days. You don’t need a green thumb or gardening experience to enjoy this.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $80 / person
This Plant Night: Pumpkin Planter service is fun and includes all the items you need for a holiday-themed plant.
Team Clean-Up Event

Halloween weather is often ideal for getting outside while you can. Take this time to better the environment by hosting a clean-up at a park or a beach near you. Want to incorporate more of the holiday? Challenge your workers to make eco-friendly costumes from items they would usually just toss at home.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Any size
Format: In-person
Budget: minimal – consider transportation
Fall Wreath Making

Allow your team to embrace the season and enhance their home with fall wreath making. Create in-season decor that brings autumn colors to life. Once everyone is done, get your team to display their creations for each other to show off their artistic approaches.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $50 / person
Not sure where to begin? Try this Fall Flower Arranging virtual workshop.
Office Fundraiser or Drive

Combine the company Halloween party with a fundraiser or drive. It’s a great way to give back to the community while bringing the team together. Look for a specific charity to contribute to or ask for seasonal items to be donated, such as winter coats, gloves, and scarves, allowing you to help the less fortunate get through the cold weather that is around the corner.
Duration: 3 hours
Group size: Any size
Format: In-person
Budget: $50 / person
Spooky Musical Bingo

It’s the bingo you love but kicked up a notch. Instead of letters and numbers, you let the music guide you. Each person gets two bingo cards, and by selecting Halloween music, you keep it perfectly on theme. Enjoy the holiday, build your team, and discover some new tunes along the way.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $30 / person
If you aren’t sure how to make musical bingo work, check out this Halloween Themed Musical Bingo experience.
Office Decoration

Inject some life into your office with some Halloween-themed décor. You can do this yourself or get the whole team involved. We suggest selecting a theme (Pumpkin Patch, Haunted House, etc.) and splitting people up into teams, assigning them a specific area to decorate. This helps bring in team-building while also ensuring the whole office is in the spirit of the season.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small
Format: In-person
Budget: $100 / person
Autumn Paint Night

Halloween is infused with a creative spirit. So, why not embrace that with some group painting sessions? You can challenge everyone to paint something related to the season or let them paint as they wish while sipping fall beverages. No matter the approach you take, this is going to be a fun event.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $40 / person
For a strictly painting-centric event, we recommend looking into Paint Nite experience. If you are looking for a more sip-and-paint-style event, check out Painting & Pumpkin Spice.
Halloween Themed-Lunch

Time to embrace your Pinterest side! Host a Halloween-themed lunch, pot-luck style. Invite everyone to bring in a spooky dish of their choosing – eyeball mac-n-cheese, dirt cake, or whatever else fits the bill. It’s a great way to get creative while making the most of mealtimes during the workday.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Any size
Format: In-person
Budget: $30 / person
Ghostly Trivia

Harness those competitive spirits with some Halloween-themed trivia. Pump up the energy with dynamic hosting, music, and graphics. Bring in some team building by having employees play in groups. To add an extra layer of fun, invite everyone to wear their costumes.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Any size
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $20 / person
Want to keep things simple? Check out this Halloween-themed trivia option: Celebrate Halloween with Team Trivia!
Halloween Escape Room

If your team was trapped somewhere, could they escape? Find out with a virtual escape room! Each team member will get the chance to show off their creative thinking and problem-solving skills as well as develop their collaborative spirit.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small
Format: Virtual
Budget: $25 / person
We recommend trying The Grimm Escape! Guaranteed way to get everyone excited for Halloween.
Volunteer

Halloween is an often-overlooked holiday when it comes to volunteering and serving others. However, there is a need for help at all times of the year. Look for opportunities to assist at local shelters, nursing homes, and other places where people can use a helping hand. Take this time to bond as a team while doing something worthwhile for the community.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person
Budget: minimal – consider transportation
Halloween Online Of?ce Olympics

Made up of multiple mini-challenges, the Online Office Olympics is meant to get people connected and build a little friendly competition. Small groups are set up Family Feud style, allowing for collaboration and ?nding creative solutions to problems. Get to know your team and celebrate Halloween.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Any size
Format: Virtual
Budget: $30 / person
Halloween Online Office Olympics is a great service for an office Halloween party and sure to get everyone in the spooky spirit.
Mummy the Boss

Here’s an amusing idea to get the whole department in on the Halloween celebration. Have a little fun by giving your team the chance to mummy their own boss. It’s simple, silly, and sure to give everyone a good laugh.
Duration: 15 min
Group size: Small
Format: In-person
Budget: free
Chocolate Making Class

Halloween is known for candy and sugar. But that doesn’t mean you can’t put your health first. Make healthy sweet chocolate for a Halloween treat at the of?ce while learning all about how sugar impacts the body. You don’t have to cut back on sweets to enhance your health.
Duration: 90 min
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $130 / person
The Heart-Healthy Chocolate-Making experience has you covered for both the education and the chocolate making. All you need is their kit, a suitable space, and a few common household items for each person.
Pumpkin Spice Latte Workshop

Skip the chain coffee shops and instead learn how to make those PSLs yourself. From selecting the perfect blend to trying out some latte art, there is a lot you can incorporate to make this a truly rewarding experience.
Duration: 1 hour
Group size: Small, medium
Format: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Budget: $25 / person
Are you lacking the barista skills needed to lead this workshop yourself? Try this Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe Workshop with your team!
Happy Halloween!
These 22 Halloween-themed ideas for the of?ce are a great launchpad for brainstorming your in-office Halloween celebration as well as creating team bonding experiences. Good luck with your planning and have fun along the way!
Check out Thriver’s list of team-building activities for more fun at the workplace.