Commercialization attitudes towards Halloween are diverse.

Gross Halloween Candy Because the holiday comes in the wake of the annual apple harvest, candy apples (known as toffee apples outside North America), caramel or taffy apples common Halloween treats made by rolling whole apples in a sticky sugar syrup, sometimes followed by rolling them in nuts.

At one time, candy apples were commonly given to children, but the practice rapidly waned in the wake of widespread rumors that some individuals were embedding items like pins and razor blades in the apples. While there is evidence of such incidents, they quite r and have never resulted in serious injury. Nonetheless, many p nts assumed that such heinous practices were rampant because of the mass media. At the peak of the hysteria, some hospitals offered free X-rays of children is Halloween hauls in order to find evidence of tampering. Virtually all of the few known candy poisoning incidents involved p nts who poisoned their own children is candy.

One custom that persists in modern-day Ireland is the baking (or more often nowadays, the purchase) of a barmbrack which is a light fruitcake, into which a plain ring, a coin and other charms placed before baking. It is said that those who get a ring will find their true love in the ensuing year. This is similar to the tradition of king cake at the festival of Epiphany.

In the United States, Autumn marks the beginning of a months-long marketing and advertising season, typically focusing on products and services appropriate for gift giving. This culminates in the annual Christmas holiday gift shopping season, which kicks off officially with Black Friday. Currently, the holiday advertising season begins on or around Halloween, and in some years has started as early as Labor Day (U.S. holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September).

Many companies tip their hats to the season in creative ways. Theme parks such as Tampa Bay is Busch Gardenss typically host Howl-O-Scream , a haunted house ride or exhibit. Some companies, such as TV advertising agency Cheap-TV-Spots.com, mark the holiday advertising season with a festive, often tongue-in-cheek, annual Halloween announcement peppered with references to horror movie titles.

Halloween is not celebrated in all countries and regions of the world, and among those that do the traditions and importance of the celebration vary significantly. In Scotland and Ireland, traditional Halloween customs include children dressing up in costume going guising , holding parties, while other practices in Ireland include lighting bonfires, and having firework displays. Mass transatlantic immigration in the 19th century popularized Halloween in North America, and celebration in the United States and Canada has had a significant impact on how the event is observed in other nations. This larger North American influence, particularly in iconic and commercial elements, has extended to places such as South America, Australia, New Zealand, continental Europe, Japan, and other parts of East Asia.