The Best Bob's Burgers Halloween Episodes, Ranked

Here's every Halloween episode from Bob's Burgers so far, ranked least best to best!

By Nick Valdez - October 30, 2023 11:49 pm EDT

It's the spooky holiday season, so now is the best time to rewatch some of Bob's Burgers best Halloween episodes! Bob's Burgers has made it a tradition to feature an episode around the Halloween holiday, but no special has really been the same over the years. It's tough to predict how Bob's Burgers will celebrate the holiday as it could either be entirely about celebrating it, or used as a backdrop for a different and unexpected kind of character story. Either way, you know you're in for a good time with these holiday specials nonetheless.

Bob's Burgers has its fair share of distinct Halloween specials, but it's kind of hard to actually decide which is the real "best" of the best because there's no actual "worst" episode on this list. The Halloween specials are the highlights of each respective season, but there are a few elements in some of the specials that make them more fun to rewatch than the others.

That's how this list was ultimately organized. In terms of which of the Bob's Burgers Halloween specials are the best to rewatch and the "least best" to rewatch for the spooky holiday. Read on to see our list of the best Bob's Burgers Halloween episodes, and let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments! You can even reach out to me directly about all things animation and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!

#11 - The Pumpkinening

Season 12, Episode 3

When it comes to Bob's Burgers' Halloween episodes, you'll find that even the weakest of the offerings have a lot of fun in their own ways. "The Pumpkinening" is on the bottom of this list for the default reason of featuring the least amount of the Belcher kids for the Halloween holiday (instead relegating them to the restaurant). While Linda and Gayle's story is a fun look into their relationship and past (and Gayle gets to say "pumpkin carving contest" a hilarious amount of times), the rest of the episodes on this list feature more of the kids and are the better for it.

#10 - Pig Trouble in Little Tina

Season 5, Episode 2

It's really just splitting hairs when it comes to the rest of the episodes on this list, and the lower entries here just have a different Belcher kid ratio. "Tina and the Real Ghost" gives us a full scope of the Halloween holiday itself, and spends more of its time exploring Tina at school as she deals with guilt nightmares over a fetal pig. It's a great Tina episode for the series, and it's great to see how she dreams up perfect versions of her brother and sister, but this one also misses out on just that little bit of magic by keeping the Belcher kids apart for the most part of the actual Halloween holiday. Though it makes up for it with some cool horror imagery.

#9 - Tina and the Real Ghost

Season 10, Episode 4

"Tina and the Real Ghost" is just cute and fun shenanigans that takes a full Belcher family story and spreads it into two great smaller stories. It's also a much more fun use of Tina and her friend group as it plays with Tina's need for companionship, Tammy's need to be seen as better than Tina, and gets pretty spooky as it goes on. Tina was able to get the upper hand with a scary prank on the rest of Tammy and the others, and had a full relationship (as quick and not real as it might have been). Also it's always good to see the actual restaurant be successful, so relegating Bob and Linda to the side story was fine because it also meant some fun ghost hunting shenanigans.

#8 - Teen-a Witch

Season 7, Episode 3

The Tina specific Halloween episodes are definitely fun, but also limiting as it means that the rest of the family isn't as involved as mentioned in the prior entries. It's the same for "Teen-a Witch" as while it has some fun moments where Tina deals with a witch's curse (which also brings in some fun members of the school staff), and has more direct involvement from Gene and Louise, Bob's story is too detached from the stuff at the school. Though his search for his missing jack-o-lanterns leads to a great payoff with Mr. Fischoeder for the family as a whole, and that makes this one hit that much better for the holiday.

#7 - Full Bars

Season 3, Episode 2

The first Halloween episode (and the first holiday centric episode in the series overall) in Bob's Burgers lays the groundwork for some of the best elements we'd see again in later seasons. Not only does it focus on the Belcher kids as they go out trick or treating (which is always a good sign for Bob's Burgers Halloween stories), it shows off their unique tastes in costumes (with Gene's homage to Queen Latifah), and actually shows off a new side of Teddy's life. It's also why it's not higher on the list, however, as while the Belcher kids go on a great adventure fit for Halloween, it's pretty rough and intentionally awkward with the Teddy story. It's just not a very fun way to spend time, but the Belcher kids seeking out full bars is great enough to make up for it.

#6 - Heartbreak Hotel-oween

Season 11, Episode 4

"Heartbreak Hotel-oween" isn't a Belcher family focused special, but it's an emotional one. Dolores has one of the most interesting hooks for a one-off character in the entire series as she hosts a seance for her late husband, and only wants to do so in order to be sure he wasn't cheating on her before his passing. It ends in quite the sweet fashion (as the best Halloween episodes do), and had a great mystery for the Belcher kids to solve throughout. All the while we learn that Bob has the rarest blood type as he nearly passes out from donating blood for the first real time. It's great.

#5 - Apple Gore-chard! (But Not Gory)

bobs-burgers-halloween-apple-gore-chard-but-not-gory.jpg — (Photo: 20th Television Animation)

Season 13, Episode 6

The most recent Halloween episode is also one of the best as it finds something to do for every member of the Belcher family, and hits multiple settings too. Not only do we get a big focus on the Belcher kids themselves despite them being separated for a majority of the episode, we also get to spend more time with Louise's class as they head out on a mysterious field trip. Bob chaperones again (which is a sign of an instant classic), and Linda went overboard with the kids' Twister inspired costumes so she heads to the school to help keep them together. This one had just the right blend of spooky, the right quirky costumes, and even more of the great Bob and Louise connection.

#4 - The Wolf of Wharf Street

Season 8, Episode 3

Speaking of great episodes involving the entire family, "The Wolf of Wharf Street" really is just a classic episode all around. Not only is it the one special that sees Linda tagging along with the Belcher kids when they're trick or treating, but there's a great use of Teddy. It's tough for Teddy to fit in any of the family focused stories in a meaningful way, but here he was used delightfully as a loopy Bob mistook him for a werewolf. This ties into the actual wolf hunt that Linda and the kids are on at the same time, and it all wraps up nicely as it was revealed to be the Fischoeder's escaped wolf the entire time. Only Bob was too loopy to connect the dots. A real all-timer.

#3 - Nightmare on Ocean Avenue Street

Season 9, Episode 4

In terms of the Halloween specials where the Belcher kids actually go trick or treating, "Nightmare on Ocean Avenue Street" is by far the best one. This episode has everything you'd want from the trick or treating specials with cute costume ideas for the Belcher kids (and a few of the other favorites like Regular Sized Rudy), a fun foe that the kids need to defeat, and even Bob and Teddy get some time to bond over their rivalry with a new handyman. It's probably the most fun of the trick or treating episodes too in terms of capturing that kid spirit of the holiday.

#2 - The Hauntening

Season 6, Episode 3

In terms of the Halloween specials that involve the entire Belcher family all having an adventure together, "The Hauntening" is the best, no question. Inspired by the fact that Louise isn't scared at all of their previous efforts, the rest of the family gets together to pull off a huge haunted house prank that finally gets Louise to scream like she's always wanted. It's a feel good episode as Louise has a happy ending, and the rest of the family is happy at this result too. It's also a pretty scary episode as the Belcher family thinks they're under attack by a potential killer, and it leads to some great jokes all around. It's a feel good, spooky kind of story that makes for a perfect rewatch each year.

#1 - Fort Night

Season 4, Episode 2

But if there's one Halloween episode of Bob's Burgers that's truly the best of the best, it's "Fort Night." It's got the Belcher kids preparing for trick or treating, Bob and Linda going trick or treating instead (leading to a fun joke where someone recognizes them while doing it), and it's got actual suspense and peril as the kids are actually in some real danger thanks to being trapped by Millie. While any of the Bob's Burgers Halloween episodes are a great rewatch if you want a fun way to spend the holiday, this is the one you check out if you want some real intensity.