Halloween 2026 lands on a Saturday. You have a room, a DJ who said yes and about two weeks. That is tight, but it works if you make the big decisions in the first few days and spend the rest of the time selling.

Expect company. On Halloween weekend it can feel like every crew in your scene is throwing something, and your crowd is juggling a costume, a group chat and three invites.

14 to 12 days out: lock the basics

Decide these before you post anything:

• The date. Saturday, Oct. 31 is Halloween itself and draws the most competition. Friday, Oct. 30 is a real option: your crowd can come to yours and still make a bigger party the next day.
• The room and its hard times. Doors, last entry, music off and out. Get them from the venue in writing.
• The lineup. Confirm each performer and their set window. How to Plan Set Times for Your Party turns those windows into a schedule.
• The theme. “Costumes encouraged” counts. A theme gives people a costume prompt and gives your flyer something to say. Keep it loose enough that someone can pull a look together in a week.
• Capacity and break-even. Know how many tickets cover the room, the performers and the decorations before you set prices.

12 days out: build the event page and ticket tiers

Two weeks doesn’t leave room for a month-long early bird. A short ladder fits the window:

• Early bird: a limited quantity at your lowest price, ending after the first weekend of sales
• General admission: the main tier, on sale through the final week
• Final days: a higher price for the last two or three days before doors

On Beatmatch, each ticket option gets its own price, quantity and sale start and end date and time, so the early bird closes on schedule without you touching it. You can also set a maximum per order if you want to keep one buyer from taking a big block. If you are still working out the numbers, see How to Set Ticket Prices for a Party.

Then write the description with the Halloween questions answered up front: what the theme is, whether costumes are required or encouraged, what the venue won’t allow (full-face masks inside, prop weapons, loose glitter, whatever their rules are), where coats and bags go and when last entry is. Guests read these before they buy. For a structure to follow, see How to Write an Event Description That Sells Tickets.

Add your flyer to the event page too, so it matches what people see in their feeds.

10 to 7 days out: sell to the people most likely to come

Your first buyers already know you: past guests, your co-hosts’ friends and your DJs’ fans. Start there before you spend time on strangers.

• Post the flyer and the ticket link the same day the page goes live.
• Ask each performer and co-host to share it from their own accounts.
• Give each of them their own promo code with a cap and an end date, so you can see whose list is moving tickets. How to Use Promo Codes for Your Party covers how to set those up.
• Post again when the early bird ends. “Early bird is gone, GA goes up Thursday” gives people a reason to buy this week.

6 to 3 days out: answer costume questions and push

A lot of Halloween buyers decide late, because they are waiting to see who else is going and whether their costume comes together. Make that easy:

• Post the set times once they are final.
• Answer the questions you keep getting in DMs in one post, then send the same answers to ticket holders in a text blast.
• Remind group buyers that one person can buy for the whole group, up to your per-order limit. Ticket transfers aren’t available, so the buyer needs to be at the door to scan everyone in. Buying Tickets for the Whole Group? covers it from the guest side.

Once people have tickets, a text blast reaches guests tied to your event with lineup updates or a last-minute ticket announcement. Keep it to one or two messages so it doesn’t feel like spam.

2 days out to doors: plan for costumes at the door

Costumes slow a door down. Masks come off for ID checks, props get a second look and big costumes take up the whole line. Plan for it:

• Put one more person on the door for the first hour than you would on a normal weekend.
• Send a day-of text blast with the door rules: bring ID, have your ticket open in the Beatmatch mobile app and know when last entry is.
• Have your door team scan tickets in the Beatmatch mobile app, each on their own profile, not one shared phone.
• Expect dead phones. Costumes don’t have many pockets. If a guest’s phone is dead, your door team can find them by name or email in the Orders tab and check them in by hand.
• If you run a costume contest, post the judging time in advance and pick a prize you control, like a spot on the guest list for your next party.

For more on keeping the line moving, see Run a Faster Door.

Set up your Halloween party

When you create your event on Beatmatch, add your flyer, set each ticket option’s sale end date and give your door team access before the weekend. Step-by-step: Create Ticket Options and Check In Guests.