14 Work Halloween Costumes To Match With Coworkers

Halloween is one of the most fun holidays to celebrate, but some occasions don’t call for overly-spooky or scary elements. Work is one place where you may still have to look professional enough to complete your tasks, but you can still dress up in a costume that turns heads. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, participation in Halloween activities has been growing, with 70% of Americans celebrating. You’ll be in good hands if you start a group for work Halloween costumes. Try out these costumes, which will be a hit with people of all ages.

1. Clark Kent (And Other Superheroes)

This costume may be the most office-appropriate one on the list because you’ll be wearing what you usually do, with the potential addition of glasses and a superhero shirt under your work clothes. You may have to fight your coworkers over which one of you gets to be Clark Kent (aka Superman), but the rest of the people in your group can choose from plenty of other DC superheroes — or even Marvel, if you don’t mind being from different universes.

2. Pac-Man and the Ghosts

These costumes are super simple, as you can make them out of t-shirts. If you’re Pac-Man, you only need to paint the face on a yellow shirt. If you’re one of the ghosts, you can get a bit more creative with colors and how you tear the shirt to make it look more accurate to the pixel characters.

To achieve a very ghostly look, you can spray paint some cheesecloth with glow-in-the-dark paint and attach them to your ghost costume. While it might look ridiculous while the lights are on, your Pac-Man ghosts can stand out that much more by having a glowing element that adds a little spookiness to their whimsy. 

3. The Wizard of Oz

If you have older coworkers, they’re bound to enjoy dressing up as the characters from The Wizard of Oz. While this group might be a little smaller, it definitely employs some creativity and might be one of the harder groups to replicate on this list. Consider taking the most challenging costume and making something unique out of it. Your group will wow others in your workplace.

4. The Scooby-Doo Gang

Scooby-Doo is one of the most-loved cartoons among adults, making it an excellent and easy-to-make option for your group of coworkers. You only need five people for this group — four, if you want to bring a Scooby stuffed animal instead of having someone dress in a dog onesie. The costumes are easy to pull together, and if anyone in your group doesn’t have something, much of it can be found online or at a party store.

5. Food Item

Because food doesn’t have a designated humanoid appearance, you can get creative with how you want to portray your favorite snack. Consider working with your friends to create an array of ideas. You might all be pieces of a sandwich, for example.

If your group chooses to come as a bunch of pieces of popcorn, consider bringing in snacks for your workplace. You can make creepy hand-shaped bags of popcorn that function as individual servings. It’s a fun way to get everyone in the office involved in your costume and fun.

6. Microsoft Office Programs

Over one million workplaces use Microsoft Office products globally, meaning this group will be a hit in just about any office. You can get super creative with these costumes or make it super simple by putting the logos on shirts in each program’s respective color. Plus, it’s an excellent option for larger groups. Microsoft Office features Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and so much more, meaning that you’ll be able to make this group as large or small as you like. It’s the pinnacle of all work Halloween costumes.

7. Starbucks Baristas

If you don’t already work at Starbucks, dressing up as baristas with your best friends is a great, simple option. You can decorate the aprons yourselves and even theme them around your actual workplace if you want something a bit more custom and fun. Your other coworkers will be delighted to see several baristas running around the office during the day — it might even make them feel like they’re in the wrong place!

8. A Framed Photo

This costume is pretty straightforward. All you need is an oversized frame that you and your group can fit inside. You can choose the theme of the photo, which can involve creating a backstory for your group’s “characters.” For example, maybe everyone in the photo is part of the same family and would wear matching shirts for a vacation or family reunion. 

You can all coordinate colors and matching outfits to make it seem like you belong to the same family or group, or you might choose to dress from a bygone decade to offer your coworkers a sense of nostalgia. Whether you make up a photo of the past or present, this kind of costume can be comfortable for your whole group and allow your group members some independence, too.

9. Greenhouse Outfit

For coworkers with green thumbs or who are still starting to explore horticulture by creating their own garden, this simple yet adorable costume is an excellent choice to honor a meaningful hobby. It’s a break away from the traditional ghoulish outfits, but it’s fun. More importantly, you don’t have to spend hundreds to perfect this Halloween outfit. You can make everything from scratch. 

Draw a house on cardboard and cut it out. Attach a string on each side so you can wear it as a crown. Finish the look with a watering pot filled with colorful faux blooms. This costume will undoubtedly enthuse colleagues who enjoy gardening or nature as much as you do. Elevate the look by featuring other green thumb essentials in your workplace group halloween costumes, such as plant-watering peace hands, terrarium candle or a please don’t die marker staked on a pot. 

10. Lupin The Third

If you love anime, why not go for a master thief character? Invite other colleagues to be your cohorts and coordinate for fun costumes to wear to work. It’s not every day you can become a notorious robber and hunt treasures around the world with the rest of the gang. Lupin famously sports a deep red blazer underneath a dark gray or blue long-sleeve polo shirt paired with a yellow tie. He wears leather pants and shoes and always has a luger pistol in his hand. You probably have the clothes you need lying around in your closet. Otherwise, you can buy them and accessories at a costume shop for a cheap price. 

11. A Disney Character

While you may not show up in a Disney princess costume, going to work as your favorite Disney characters or characters from all one movie can be a real hit with people. Work together to pick a group of Disney characters or a movie you want to represent, then create a casual version of that character, so you don’t have to wear something too outlandish in the office.

You can also choose to personify one of the animals. Want to go to work as Tramp from “Lady and the Tramp”? Imagine what he would look like as a human, then design a costume using clothes in your closet around your vision. You may picture him wearing a gray t-shirt, while someone dressed as Lady might wear a fashionable dress for the time period. When you’re dressing as animals, you can truly get creative.

12. Bank Robbers

If portraying Lupin is too much, you may find turning yourself into a bank robber for a day more fun. The costume is straightforward. Wear an oversized black and white long-sleeve for the top and dark pants and shoes. Don’t forget the black gloves, knitted beanie and robber eye mask. Complete the look with an extra-large white bandit bag with a dollar sign in gold color. This attire will surely be a hit in the office. Wouldn’t it be thrilling if everyone get together and plot a bank heist? 

13. The Addams Family

Netflix and other streaming platforms feature entertaining series and video game TV shows you can pull ideas from when brainstorming your Halloween costumes, from themes of dragons to vampires and other mythical creatures. 

If you’ve watched Wednesday, the popular Netflix series is an excellent inspiration for a costume that surely makes an impression. Ask three of your colleagues if they’ll be down for playing the infamous Addams family with you. Fortunately, dressing up is easy since the costumes for the entire squad are all black. If you’re playing the father of this wackiest family, dress up in a black suit and pants underneath a white long-sleeve shirt with a dark tie. Wear black shoes that shine. Complete the look with a fake mustache and cigar in your hand. 

For your partner, the iconic Morticia Addams, a long black maxi dress with a sexy, off-shoulder neckline is all anyone needs to wear. Overdo the makeup with a smokie, dark eyes and red lips to achieve the witchy aura. Nail the matriarch’s eccentric look with long, black nails.

14. Barbie and Ken

This Barbie-Ken duo is perfect for office couples who want to wear work Halloween costumes in a pinky fashion and creative way. Ryan Reynolds’ pink and green striped shirt, which he wore unbuttoned, is one of the iconic outfits in the movie. It’s easy to rock this simple costume. Don’t forget to get a wig to finish the look. For Barbie, any vibrant pink dress and a matching blonde wig will do. 

Work Halloween Costumes Everyone Will Enjoy

Whether you work with people around the same age or in a multi-generational workplace, you can make work Halloween costumes that will delight everyone around you. When in doubt, you can opt for something easy that requires minimal effort from everyone involved. Dig a little into the interests of the rest of the members of your group. Find something that works well for everyone involved, and you’ll have a great time celebrating a creative holiday with your coworkers.

Original Publish Date: September 19, 2022 — Updated September 27, 2024