41 Trendy Short Halloween Nails

You’re probably just like me, enjoying the crisp autumn vibes and can’t wait for October to come. One of the most exciting things about fall is to get your nails done. I just love fall nail designs as they are full of mood and just make you feel festive and playful. However, you can upgrade your autumn nails by adding a touch of Halloween nails to them.

As Halloween falls at the end of October, it’s the perfect occasion to switch up from fall nails to Halloween nails, so it’s another excuse to get your nails done again. What I love about these Halloween nail ideas is the fact they are so spooky-fun, and the nail design is so unique and lovely. If you’re celebrating Halloween this year, you’ll absolutely love these Halloween nail ideas because we’ve got you everything from cute and simple short Halloween nails, mini pumpkin short nails, and chic black-and-orange short nails.

1. Creepy-Cute Halloween Nails

There’s a lot packed into this mani — short, deep-purple nails framed by two peachy-pink accent nails that quietly steal the scene. The accents are whimsically precise: a little white ghost, a neat black spiderweb, and tiny orange pumpkin-like dots, yet everything still reads calm, controlled, and intentionally polished.

2. Halloween Short Mummy Nails

Soft, wrapped stripes add personality, and those tiny black-dot eyes? The mummy mood is absolutely here for it. If you’re feeling cute and mischievous this year and want your nails to reflect your cozy-spooky vibes in person and all over your socials, then this Halloween nails is for you.

3. Spooky Chic Halloween Nails

4. Autumn Harvest Nails

If you’re pumpkin-obsessed but could also slay with a single stare, then pumpkin-orange Halloween nails are probably your thing, and you’ve likely just fallen head over heels for this short, almond-shaped set with me.
The vibrant orange base, topped with bite-size 3D trinkets each tucked inside a gold-toned oval frame and haloed by tiny white star-like accents — a mushroom, a metallic gold apple, a playful little ghost, a hot chocolate mug crowned with whipped cream, and a metallic gold autumn leaf — is exactly the stuff of desires and obsessions, and I seriously need to try them out.

5. Frankie Frenchie Short Halloween Nails

I have a special place in my heart for edgy Halloween nails. Frankie Frenchies take the classic French and swap the white tip for a vibrant green — often with a magnetic or velvet finish — then add little black stitch details to channel Frankenstein’s monster. Keep your nails filed sharp to really give these tips the kick they deserve and know how to give them.

6. Witchy Nails

They read like a lavender dream scattered with tiny leaves, pinprick stars, a crescent moon, a playful ghost, and a faceted crystal. Preventing the look from tipping into overly sweet territory is the light purple base that adds warmth, while the intricate details keep everything chic.

7. Halloween Blood Drip Nails

it comes to these short Halloween nails — with pale bases dripping scarlet like fresh wounds paired against solid, glittery dark-red accents — I can’t recommend following the picture drip for drip or placing every speck of glitter right where it should be; steal the mood, not the map.

8. Halloween Mix & Match Nails

9. Halloween Spider Nails

While the web-and-spider motif could look as good on any nail shape, the long square dimension is crucial for the artsy accent nail — it lets the shimmering, holographic base and tiny black arachnids really sing.

10. Short Pumpkin Halloween Nails

An electric orange base streaked with vertical red stripes reads pure pumpkin — each canvas, especially the larger nails, is stamped with a bold black jack-o’-lantern face: carved eyes, a triangular nose, and a jagged smile that’s equal parts spooky and playful. 

11. Midnight Spook Nails

12. Tropical Ombré Hibiscus Halloween Nails

13. Spider Web French Manicure

14. Pop-Punk Halloween Nails

These nails are textbook Halloween. So, if you’re wondering which set to choose and don’t have a minute to spare, start with this look now.

One nail rocks a bold black-and-white checkerboard — classic spooky-meets-alt energy. Several nails drip with a black “blood” effect over a pale base for that quietly creepy detail. Two playful smiley faces — one in electric green, the other in hot pink — sport stitched-out “X” eyes for a modern, cheeky scare. The rest are simple power punches of solid black and magenta/pink, tying the whole thing together and keeping the vibe loud and on-trend.

15. Milky Ombré with Polka Dots Nails

16. Horror-themed Nails

17. Short Halloween Ghostface Nails

18. Floral Ghosts Nails

19. Purple Twilight Bat & Web Nails

20. Halloween Ghosts & Flowers Nails

21. Ghosts on Vacation Nails

I’m sure they’d be more than up for the challenge, especially when it comes to a cohesive and whimsical ghost themed set that places little white ghost characters on a pale blue sky and ocean backdrop with a sandy shore at the base of each short Halloween nail.

22. Halloween-themed Nail Art

23. Summer French Tip Nails

24. Glazed Ghostie Nails

25. Mixed Media Nail

26. Halloween Gradient Nail Design

27. Halloween Colorful Nails

28. Love-themed Mix & Match Nails

29. Halloween Checkerboard Nails

30. Fish Nails

31. 3D Floral Nails

32. Mediterranean Nail Art Design

33. Halloween Tea Party Time Nails

34. Combination Nail Design

35. Halloween Spooky Spectrum Nails

36. Short Ombre Nails

37. Checkered Halloween Nails

38. Boo Crew Nails

39. Vampire Bat Nails

A traditional French tip gets a playful twist when the white smile line is swapped for a black, scalloped edge that looks like tiny bat wings, so it reads spooky without losing its polish. If you have naturally short Halloween nails, all the better.

40. Halloween Textured Nails

Taking that smoky black and white marble and turning it elegant-chic is as simple as choosing a short, rounded nail with neat cuticles. You just have to make sure the swirls read crisp and deliberate as you balance the contrast for a subtle Halloween feel.

41. Frankenstein’s Monster Nails

Taking some cheesy and playful Halloween favorites and turning them elegant chic is as simple as choosing a long square nail with sharp edges and neat cuticles. From there you just have to keep your lines straight and strong so the black and white stripes that nod to Beetlejuice the vibrant green nails with stitch like details that evoke Frankenstein and the black nails with white bone motifs read polished and festive for any Halloween celebration.