Fact-Checked
It’s that time of year again. Ghosts! Goblins! Vampires! And customers who are looking forward to Halloween.
Fun Halloween-themed music can add ambiance to your restaurant, bar, or retail store and match how your customers are feeling about the spooky season. But is it legal to play Halloween music in your store, and what’s the best way to do it?
The answer is yes, you can play Halloween music in your business, but you need a music provider with the right commercial license to do it.
“Thriller,” “Monster Mash,” and “Ghostbusters” are copyrighted songs. Playing them where customers or staff can hear is a public performance under U.S. copyright law.
Personal Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube accounts can’t be played in your business, even during Halloween. Each one limits you to personal, noncommercial listening.
Popular Halloween Songs are all Licensed and Need a Legal Music Provider
These are the most popular songs during the Halloween season and they are all licensed via a Performing Rights Organization.
A PRO licenses only its own members’ shares of a song, and the U.S. has five of them: ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, GMR, and AllTrack.
What this means is the easiest way to legally play the Halloween songs your customers are looking for is to sign up for a legal commercial music provider such as Soundtrack Your Brand, Jukeboxy or CustomChannels.
| Song | Artist (year) | Songwriter(s) | PRO(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thriller | Michael Jackson (1982) | Rod Temperton | ASCAP |
| Monster Mash | Bobby "Boris" Pickett (1962) | Bobby Pickett, Leonard Capizzi | BMI |
| Ghostbusters | Ray Parker Jr. (1984) | Ray Parker Jr. | ASCAP |
| This Is Halloween | The Nightmare Before Christmas cast (1993) | Danny Elfman | BMI |
| Somebody's Watching Me | Rockwell (1984) | Kennedy "Rockwell" Gordy | ASCAP |
| Time Warp | The Rocky Horror Picture Show cast (1973) | Richard O'Brien | BMI |
| Spooky | Classics IV (1967) | Mike Shapiro, Harry Middlebrooks Jr., James Cobb, Buddy Buie | BMI |
| I Put a Spell on You | Screamin' Jay Hawkins (1956) | Jay Hawkins | BMI |
| Werewolves of London | Warren Zevon (1978) | Warren Zevon, LeRoy Marinell, Waddy Wachtel | ASCAP and BMI |
| Disturbia | Rihanna (2008) | Chris Brown, Brian Kennedy, Robert Allen, Andre Merritt | ASCAP and BMI |
Registrations checked October 2, 2026. Verify any song in ASCAP and BMI Songview before relying on a single license.
Public Domain Halloween Music Still Need a Commercial License
Some of the most recognizable spooky music predates recorded sound. Saint-Saëns’ “Danse Macabre” (1874), Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain” (1867), Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” (1875), and the Toccata and Fugue in D minor attributed to Bach are all public domain compositions.
The recordings aren’t. Orchestras, labels, and arrangers own the versions you’d actually play. A public domain piece streamed from your personal Spotify is still a personal Spotify stream in a business.
Through a licensed service, these pieces are the Halloween layer we’d pick for spas, hotels, and dinner service. They read as eerie without novelty lyrics.
Recommended Legal Music Providers for Halloween Music in Your Business
| Provider | Great For... | Starting Monthly Price | Free Trial Available | Try Free |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Soundtrack Your Brand
★ Most Popular
|
Great Playlists Like Spotify | $37 | Try Free → | |
Jukeboxy
⚡ Quick Setup
|
Fast Setup with Web Music Player | $17.99 | Try Free → | |
CustomChannels
|
Multi-Location Businesses | $25 | Try Free → |
Affiliate disclosure: We are reader supported and may earn a commission if you sign up through links on this page, at no extra cost to you.
Make an informed choice! Compare music providers for your business on our Compare Page—free and simple.
When to Start and Stop Your In-Store Halloween Music
There isn’t a set time when businesses usually start playing Halloween music. It really comes down to your brand, your in-store ambiance and if you have any specials or theme nights related to the holiday.
| Business type | Start | Heaviest rotation | Switch off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costume, gift, and seasonal retail stores | Late September or early October | October weekends | Close on October 31 |
| Grocery and convenience stores | Mid-October, light mix | October 24 to 31 | Open on November 1 |
| Restaurants and coffee shops | Mid to late October, dinner only | Dinner on October 30 and 31 | Open on November 1 |
| Bars | Week of October 26 | Friday and Saturday nights | Close on October 31 |
| Salons and hotels | Late October | Classical and atmospheric only | Open on November 1 |
Restaurants get the least room. Diners notice “too early” faster than shoppers do, so keep lunch on your normal mix. See our pages on music for retail, grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and hotels for programming by business type.
If you sell into the winter holidays, schedule the November 1 switch now. Our guide to Christmas music for business picks up from there, and our seasonal music for business guide covers the full calendar.
Halloween Programming That Won't Burn Out Your Staff
Novelty songs are the risk. Do the math on a short playlist: 18 Halloween tracks at about 3.5 minutes each repeat every 63 minutes. Over an 8-hour shift, your floor team hears “Monster Mash” seven or eight times. Customers hear it once.
Blend seasonal tracks into your normal catalog instead of running a Halloween-only list. Keep the morning open close to your usual sound. Lean in on evenings and weekends.
Turn explicit filters on for family hours, especially if you add current pop like “Disturbia.” Set volume limits by zone, because a patio and a checkout lane need different levels. Then load the whole October 31 plan into your scheduler, including the November 1 switch. That way nobody plugs in a personal phone “just for tonight.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I play my personal Spotify or Apple Music Halloween playlist in my business?
No. Personal streaming accounts are limited to personal, noncommercial listening. Playing them for customers or staff is an unlicensed public performance. There is no Spotify for Business, Apple Music for Business or Amazon Music for Business.
Do I need both ASCAP and BMI to play Halloween music?
For a typical playlist, yes. Of the 10 Halloween songs we checked, 5 are BMI only, 3 are ASCAP only, and 2 need both. Regardless, if you’re playing them in overhead music you need a legal music provider.
Is Halloween karaoke covered by my background music subscription?
No. Background music plans cover overhead playback only. Karaoke, DJs, and live cover bands need venue licenses from the PROs. Check out our live music licensing guide for more information.
Can a small business play Halloween music on the radio without a license?
Sometimes. Section 110(5)(B) exempts radio and TV broadcasts in food and drink businesses under 3,750 gross square feet and other businesses under 2,000 gross square feet, if you don’t charge admission. It never covers streaming.
When should I stop playing Halloween music?
Switch back to your normal sound when you open on November 1. Schedule the switch in advance so nobody has to do it by hand.
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By John Boyle
John is a music for business expert and the founder of MusicforBusinessFinder.com which has been featured on BigIdeasforSmallBusiness.com, Noobpreneur and YFS Magazine. He focuses on helping small business owners navigate the confusing world of commercial music licensing, improve sales, and protect their businesses. By providing clear, independent analysis of top audio platforms, he ensures owners can make informed choices with confidence. He also loves rooting for the Mariners and his daughter’s soccer team.