The trending Halloween costumes of 2026 are almost all characters, and the makeup is what makes each one read from across the room. Harley Quinn, Wednesday Addams, Elphaba and Glinda, Sally and the Stranger Things cast lead the searches this season. Here are the 10 character makeup looks worth doing this year, how long each takes, and how to see every one of them on your own face before you open a single palette.
The character looks everyone is searching for
The costumes change every year, but the pattern does not: people search for the character, then for the makeup that makes it believable. This table ranks this season's looks by how much work the face takes, so you can pick one that fits the evening you actually have.
| Character | The look in one line | Time | Face paint |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Addams | Pale, deadpan, dark lip, two braids | 15 minutes | No |
| Morticia Addams | Porcelain skin, sharp wing, blood red lip | 25 minutes | No |
| Harley Quinn | Smudged pink and blue eyes, red lip, heart | 25 minutes | No |
| Glinda | Pink shimmer, rhinestones, bubblegum lip | 20 minutes | No |
| Corpse Bride | Pale blue skin, huge dark eyes, blue lip | 40 minutes | Yes |
| Beetlejuice | Grimy green skin, raccoon eyes, wild hair | 35 minutes | Partly |
| Sally | Pale blue face, stitches, long red hair | 45 minutes | Yes |
| Elphaba | Full green face, smoky eyes, dark lip | 45 minutes | Yes |
| Eleven | Bare skin, buzz cut, one nosebleed | 10 minutes | No |
| Vecna | Cracked red skin and dark veins | 60 minutes | Yes |
If you are also changing your hair for the night, our guide to hair ideas by season covers the darker shades and sleek styles that suit most of these characters.
10 trending Halloween costumes, as makeup
These are the same looks in HairGlam's Halloween Studio, each rendered on one face so you can compare them fairly. The names in the app are descriptive; the character each one recreates is underneath.
1. Wednesday Addams
The easiest character on the list and the most searched makeup of the season. Very pale matte skin, a plum black matte lip, a soft smoky eye and two long, neat braids. The whole point is restraint. Our full Wednesday Addams makeup guide covers the braids and the dance look too.
2. Harley Quinn
Smudged pink shadow around one eye, smudged blue around the other, a bright red lip and a small black heart on one cheekbone, with platinum pigtails tipped pink and blue. The Harley Quinn makeup guide walks through it step by step.
3. Elphaba
A rich, even green from the hairline to the collar, sculpted with a darker green, smoky eyes and a deep berry lip. It is the most dramatic look here and the one most worth testing first. See Wicked makeup for Elphaba and Glinda side by side.
4. Glinda
The soft half of the Wicked pair: pink shimmer on the lids, a line of small rhinestones along the cheekbones and a glossy bubblegum lip. It pairs perfectly with a friend going as Elphaba.
5. Sally
A pale blue face and neck, black stitch lines at the corners of the mouth and across the neck, dark lashes and long, straight red hair. It is face paint work, but the stitches are the only fine detail.
6. Morticia Addams
Porcelain skin, a long sharp wing, arched brows and a blood red matte lip, with dead straight black hair. It is glamour first and costume second, which is why it works for a dinner as well as a party.
7. Corpse Bride
Pale blue gray skin, very large dark eyes with long lashes, a deep blue lip and a few faint stitches on one cheek. The eyes carry the whole look, so spend your time there.
8. Beetlejuice
Mossy gray green skin, smudged raccoon eyes, faint green shading at the temples and jaw, and wild, teased white hair with a green tint. Messy on purpose, which makes it forgiving.
9. Eleven
Bare, pale skin, slightly tired eyes, a single thin trickle of fake blood from one nostril and a very short buzz cut. The quickest look on this list if you already have the hair.
10. Vecna
A raw, reddish, cracked face with dark root-like veins spreading from the forehead to the jaw and sunken eyes. It is the hardest look here, done with paint and shading rather than prosthetics.
Which look suits your face
Character makeup still has to work with your features. A full green or blue face flattens contour that your bones normally provide, so Elphaba, Sally and Corpse Bride need extra shading to keep the face from looking flat. A very dark lip, like Wednesday's or Morticia's, makes a small mouth look smaller and a full mouth look striking. Heavy smudged eyes, like Harley's or Beetlejuice's, can close a small eye.
None of that is obvious from a photo of someone else. It is obvious in ten seconds on a photo of you, which is why the smart order is to try the look first and buy the paint second.
Try every character on your own face first
HairGlam's Halloween Studio puts all of these looks, and 29 more, on a photo of your face in seconds: face paint with no mess and nothing to wash off. Your first 4 Halloween looks are free, on iPhone and iPad. Try Wednesday, then Harley, then Elphaba on the same selfie and the right costume usually picks itself. Try this year's character looks on your face in HairGlam before you buy a single brush.
Try any Halloween look on your own face
Your first 4 Halloween looks are free. 39 face paint and costume looks, no mess, nothing to wash off.
Character names describe costume looks only. HairGlam is not affiliated with the shows or films mentioned.
Questions people ask
What are the most popular Halloween costumes in 2026?
Which character makeup is easiest for a beginner?
Which character looks need full face paint?
Can I try these character looks on my own face first?
Read next
Hair ideas by season: what to change in fall, winter, spring, summer
Wednesday Addams makeup: the deadpan look, braids and all
Harley Quinn makeup: the smudged pink and blue look, step by step
Wicked makeup: Elphaba green and Glinda pink, step by step
Morticia Addams makeup: porcelain skin and a blood red lip
