6 Top-Rated Halloween Props You Can Reuse Year After Year

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With pumpkin spice taking over the coffee scene and October just around the corner, you may want to consider your must-haves for the spooky season. For many, Halloween is a time to let loose and have fun with home decorations, parties, and even trick-or-treating with the kids. But how many times have you thought twice about buying a gadget because you didn’t want to spend money on a single-use product?

Especially with lithium-ion batteries and solar power, reusable gadgets are becoming increasingly popular, and best of all, they save you money in the long run — or at least let you spend it on other cool tech gadgets. Based on high ratings from a wide range of users, as well as recommendations from personal use, here are six top-rated Halloween gadgets you can reuse year after year. A more detailed explanation of our methodology will be provided at the end of this article.

Purple Flame Halloween Solar Lights Outdoor

Whether you’re opening your home to trick-or-treating kids or just want to give your yard a Halloween feel, adding outdoor solar lights can liven up your yard. Amazon sells an eight-pack of Outdoor Purple Flame Solar Halloween Lights for $42.99, which have rave reviews from more than 10,000 users with a rating of 4.4 out of five stars. Many love the flickering look of the flame, but keep in mind that these lanterns are more of a decoration than a sidewalk light.

These lanterns come in purple and orange and are incredibly user-friendly. The bottom of the lanterns has ABS pegs, so they should slide into the ground without a problem. And since they’re solar-powered, they’ll automatically charge for six to eight hours during the day, giving them four to eight hours of lighting at night. Just make sure you turn them on by twisting the bulb on top and sliding the on/off switch.

Smoke machine with 13 LED light effects

What will set your haunted house apart from the rest? Spooky aesthetics — and the best part is the gadgets you can reuse year after year. The AGPTEK Smoke Machine with 13 LED light effects costs $56 and has a 4.4 rating from more than 5,000 users. You’ll also need some kind of spray fluid to create the fog. Amazon sells Froggy’s Fog Halloween and Party Fog Fluid for $24 and has a 4.6 rating from 4,800 people.

This fog machine is quite simple and uses automatic technology. After heating up, it sprays fog for 25 seconds. While dispersing the fog, the machine starts to heat up again. As for the power, this gadget uses 500 watts and an output of about 2000 CFM. Two wireless remotes are also included: one controls the on and off position of the fog machine, and the other controls the LED lights, which have a total of 13 different lights and different lighting effects such as fade and strobe.

There are a few safety warnings, though. Make sure there’s enough spray in the tank and that the metal nozzle is completely submerged in the spray. Also, don’t set the mist machine to spray directly at people, and keep it away from heat sources like fireplaces and radiators, as well as carpets and other fabrics. Overall, many reviewers find it easy to use.

Gothic style 2 in 1 wine and beer opener

Looking for a fun Halloween party tool that everyone will be talking about and will probably be playing with all night long? The OTOTO 2-in-1 Gothic Wine and Beer Opener is a fun gadget that has appeared on several TikToks and Instagram Reels in the past. It works exactly like a standard wine opener, where you screw a screw into the cork of a wine bottle and use your arms to lift the cork. It looks like a flying bat when in use and is sure to get some laughs.

This kitchen gadget retails for $35, but as of this writing, there’s a limited-time offer that’s $20 off. There’s no word on how long the offer will last. More than 6,100 shoppers have given it a 4.6 out of five-star rating, with many saying it’s adorable and perfect for the Halloween season, so you can bring it to your Halloween parties every year.

Long range walkie talkie

When you’re trick-or-treating, you sometimes need to break away from the group or let older kids wander around and beg for candy. While you can use phones to stay in touch, there’s always fun in using a walkie-talkie—you can even incorporate one into your costume. A four-pack of Pxton Long Range walkie-talkies costs $40 on Amazon and has a 4.5 out of five-star rating from more than 5,000 users. Plus, the gadgets come with a personal recommendation—I used them to chase my runaway husky through the woods and managed to get more than a mile away from the person I was talking to.

These long-range walkie-talkies can reach up to three miles in open spaces and 0.6 to 1.2 miles in other cases, such as when walking around the neighborhood on Halloween night. In addition, starting from a full charge, they can operate for 8 to 12 hours – the time depends on how often they are used. You also have the option of using one of 16 pre-set channels to connect to other walkie-talkies in use.

How convenient are these walkie-talkies to use during Halloween? They come with headphones, so you don’t have to bother with the gadget itself. They also come with straps to make them easier to keep track of. However, if you don’t like your walkie-talkie hanging on your wrist, you can always opt for a belt clip.

Flame Light LED bulbs (2 pieces)

When decorating your home, one of the easiest ways to do this is to upgrade your lighting. For Halloween, adding a few Flame Light LED bulbs is one way to spice up the party. These bulbs come in a double pack and have E26 bases, which is a standard household size — although it’s recommended to double-check the sizes of your lights before purchasing to make sure they’ll fit. These Flame bulbs are priced at $19, but are on a limited offer for $10 at the time of writing. They also have a 4.3 rating from over 8,200 users.

This bulb has four modes: flame simulation, breathing, general light, and the most impressive, gravity sensing. If you hang this bulb upside down, the flame simulation will switch to a visual of a flame coming from the top of the bulb. Being an LED, it also has an impressive lifespan of over 5,000 hours. The best part is that these lights aren’t just for Halloween—they would look great in an outdoor lantern all year round.

NEBO Slim Work Lamp

A rechargeable flashlight is one of the most versatile gadgets on the market, and it has a use in any dark or scary situation. When you’re candy-hunting, you’ll want to take a flashlight with you, whether you’re walking around the block or walking from car trunk to car trunk. NEBO has a ton of flashlights to choose from, but you’ll want something bright enough for cars to see you, but not so dangerously bright that you’ll blind oncoming traffic. The NEBO Slim Work Light is a versatile option at just $31 and with a 4.7 out of five star rating from over 1,000 consumers.

This 500-lumen flashlight is a palm-sized gadget that you can hold in your hand or clip to something like a hat or pants pocket. You can even clip it to your child to make sure you and any traffic around you see them. It’s also kid-friendly, as you only need one button to control the light. It can shine for up to 10 hours and charges via Micro USB.

How We Chose These Halloween Gadgets

These gadgets were chosen based on three popular categories that Halloween tech typically falls into: home decor, parties, and trick-or-treating. With that in mind, we tried to pick products that fit into one or more of these categories. Each gadget is top-rated, with a rating of at least 4.3 out of five stars. We also took into account the number of reviewers: it doesn’t make sense to consider a product top-rated if it only has a small group of users. Each device has at least 1,000 buyers, and some have reached more than 5,000.

One of the annoyances with Halloween products is that many items, such as spider webs and cheaply made bats, are disposable. However, all of these items are reusable. In fact, some of them can be used year-round or for other activities. A fog machine isn’t just for Halloween, and rechargeable flashlights are essential for camping or emergencies.