19 Cute Halloween T-Shirts That Double as a Subtle Costume

Halloween is here, and it’s time to celebrate spooky season! Whether you’re going trick-or-treating, heading to a Halloween party, or making crafts or yummy treats at home, costumes are essential. But let’s be honest: When you’re a busy parent who is consumed with making sure your kids have the best costumes, the last thing you’re probably thinking about is your own costume.

Now we’re just a few days out and you want to wear something festive, even if you’re just handing out candy from your house. Well, you’re in luck! There are tons of “costume” T-shirts that don’t require any more effort than getting dressed. From Wonder Woman to group tees, these costume Halloween T-shirts are made for busy parents.

Jack-O'-Lantern T-Shirt

jack-o'-lantern shirt
Walmart
single icon $6.98 from Walmart
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Jack-o’-lanterns are one of the classic symbols of Halloween, which is why it’s one of the easiest things to dress up as for the holiday. This carved pumpkin T-shirt is the easiest way to be festive with a “costume” without having to do much at all.

'Nightmare Before Christmas'

Disney Men's Nightmare Before Christmas Jack Skellington Face Graphic T-Shirt
Walmart
single icon $13.87 from Walmart
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The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of the most loved and popular Halloween movies out there (despite having Christmas in the title.) This costume comes with Jack Skellington front and center and that’s it, but it’s spooky enough on its own.

Peanut Butter Shirt

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Amazon
single icon $22.99 from Amazon
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Plenty of couples opt to dress up as peanut butter and jelly for Halloween in those big, clunky costumes, but it doesn’t have to be that intense. This peanut butter shirt sends the message with a cute photo and the words “peanut butter” to make it extra clear.

Jelly Shirt

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Amazon
single icon $19.99 from Amazon
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And of course, there can’t be peanut butter without jelly! The jelly T-shirt is literally and figuratively the perfect complement to the peanut butter shirt. Buy as a pair and throw them on for an easy Halloween couples costume, er, coordinating shirts.

Wonder Woman

wonder woman t-shirt costume
Walmart
single icon $27.98 from Walmart
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Wonder Woman is a costume that most people would think takes a lot of effort and a head-to-toe ensemble, but it turns out, all one needs is a T-shirt. This Wonder Woman shirt comes with the full front-facing outfit the hero wears in the movies. Plus it has a cape!

Ghostbusters Shirt

Ghostbuster Adult Short Sleeve Costume T-Shirt with Back Print
Walmart
starting icon Starting at $21.95 from Walmart
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Who are we going to call? The Ghostbusters! At least for Halloween, anyone can be one without the full jumpsuit getup with this T-shirt that is in the vein of the outfit from the movies. It even comes with the cute anti-ghost logo on the front of it.

Skeleton Rib Cage Shirt

Skeleton_Rib_Cage_Shirt.png
Walmart
single icon $11.99 from Walmart
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Pumpkins are a universal sign of Halloween, but on the creepier side, so are skeletons. And it’s super easy to “dress up” as one with this skeleton rib cage shirt. It’s spooky and gets the point across with just a T-shirt. Could also double as an “X-ray.” Easy-peasy.

S'mores Group Shirts

S-mores_Group_Shirts.jpg
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $29.97 from Etsy
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T-shirts that are costumes aren’t only just one person at a time. This s’mores group shirt bundle allows four people to have a super fun but easy “costume” as the different ingredients of a s’more: the graham cracker, chocolate, marshmallow, and fire.

Periodic Pun Shirt

periodic table halloween shirt
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $10.70 from Etsy
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This play on the Periodic Table shirt is perfect for the science nerds out there who want to have fun on Halloween but don’t want to dress up all the way, or can’t come as a whole beaker or element (see what we did there?). The shirt says “I can be scary, but only periodically.”

Penguin Shirt

penguin costume t-shirt
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $25 from Etsy
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Who doesn’t love a cute penguin? There are costumes that allow people to literally transform into penguins but it’s a cumbersome outfit. Now with this T-shirt costume, it’s super easy to dress up as a “penguin” for Halloween. It comes with a little bow-tie, too!

Shopping Bag T-Shirt

Shopping_Bag_T-Shirt.jpg
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $16.79 from Etsy
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Everyone knows what those plastic grocery store bags look like with the “Thank you” written on them, and an Etsy seller has turned it into a hilarious Halloween costume T-shirt. This shopping bag T-shirt is enough on its own to be considered dressing up, and it’s funny, too.

Disney T-Shirt

Princess Dress Matching Group Shirt
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $15.99 from Etsy
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There will always be Disney lovers out there, and if that sounds accurate, then these Disney-inspired T-shirts that we found on Etsy are perfect. No one needs a big princess dress or actual prince outfit to get the message across. These are costumes that will easily do the trick.

Candy T-Shirts

Group candy shirt candy halloween shirts
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $16.95 from Etsy
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Another great group or family costume idea is dressing up like candy. Instead of having big, cumbersome outfits or getting hot in a tootsie roll costume when it’s not even clear if it’s safe to have a party, then T-shirts are the way to go. They’re fun and easy to coordinate with friends or family members.

My Name Is Karen

karen t-shirt
Etsy
starting icon Starting at $9.69 from Etsy
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If you’re somehow unfamiliar, the term “Karen” typically refers to older women who constantly complain and like to make people’s lives miserable. This funny Karen T-shirt plays off of that and it’s all that’s needed to get the message across.

Playing Cards T-Shirt

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Etsy
starting icon Starting at $20.62 from Etsy
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Playing cards are such a great idea to wear as a T-shirt costume. It’s super easy and looks perfect as a white tee. Plus, it can be worn as a group, which kills a few birds with one stone. This Etsy shop has aces, kings, and queens.

Ghost Cat T-Shirt

"Paranormal Cativity" Halloween Tee
Kohl's
single icon $19.99 from Kohl's
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This Halloween T-shirt is less about a costume and more about making a funny holiday statement. In this case, it’s of a cat in a ghost costume that says “Purranormal Cativity” and it’s adorable. What other time of year could one wear this? Yeah, they can’t.

Ponies in Costumes T-Shirt

my little pony t-shirt
Walmart
single icon $14.99 from Walmart
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In the same vein as the paranormal cat T-shirt, sometimes Halloween isn’t always about dressing up as something else. Maybe it’s about having the freedom to wear the things, or in this case the T-shirt, that express who we really are. In this case, it’s My Little Pony fans.

Thing 1 T-Shirt

thing one t-shirt
Walmart
single icon $11.98 from Walmart
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Thing 1 and Thing 2 are classic Dr. Seuss characters — it’s a simple costume that kids and adults will both recognize. Even better, you can turn this into a full family costume with a few extra T-shirts.

Grumpy T-Shirt

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Zazzle
single icon $16.08 from Zazzle
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Last but not least, we have a classic costume: a T-shirt representing one of the seven dwarfs from Snow White. It’s obvious, easy and cute, and a great way to celebrate Halloween. This one just happens to be Grumpy, which makes sense for many parents.

*Psst: if you choose to purchase an item from this post, CafeMom.com may receive a small cut. Each item and price is up to date at the time of publication; however, an item may be sold out or the price may be different at a later date.