Get permission
Only hunt where you are allowed to be. Ask the owner or manager first. Many parks and cemeteries close at dusk, so check the posted hours. If anyone asks you to leave, leave.
Home / Halloween ghost hunt
Halloween 2026
Your Halloween Ghost Hunt step by step.
A simple plan for Halloween night with the three GhostLab apps. Map the room with Spirit Detector, log EMF readings and record EVP audio with Paranormal Toolkit, then run a spirit box session with Dead Channel. Bring a friend, get permission, and have fun with it.
For fun and entertainment. The apps log readings, record audio, map surfaces and play sound. They do not detect or prove anything.
Before you go
Get ready in daylight.
Sort these out before it gets dark.
Stay safe
Wear sturdy shoes and a warm layer, carry a flashlight, and watch your step on stairs and uneven ground. Skip abandoned or damaged buildings. If something feels unsafe, call it a night.
Bring a friend
Never go alone. Tell someone who is staying home where you will be and when you expect to be back. Agree on a time to check in.
Charge your phone
Start with a full battery and bring a power bank and cable. Scanning, the flashlight and long recordings all use battery quickly.
Pack headphones
Headphones make quiet recordings much easier to hear on playback. Keep one ear free while you walk around so you can still hear the room.
Take notes
Bring a notebook and pen, or use a notes app. Write down the time, the room and anything you notice, like a draft, a creaky floor or a car going by.
The plan
Three steps for Halloween night.
Each app works on its own. Use all three in this order, or skip any step you do not have the app or device for.
Step 1
Map the room with Spirit Detector
Needs a LiDAR scanner. Spirit Detector runs on iPhone 12 Pro or a later Pro model, or an iPad Pro from 2020 on, with iOS 17 or later. It is not available on Android. If nobody in your group has one, go straight to Step 2.
Spirit Detector uses the LiDAR scanner to draw the room as dots, one measured distance at a time. Do this first, before you turn the lights down, so you have a record of the doorways, stairs and furniture to plan around and check against later.
- Hold the phone at chest height and let the room fill in for a few seconds before you move
- Turn slowly. Fast turns smear the map
- Tap Freeze to stop adding dots, then walk around what you have
- Tap Record for a short video of each room. It saves to the Library
- Glass, mirrors and dark paint can confuse the scanner, and people walking through leave trails. That is normal for LiDAR
48 hours free, then $4.99 once. iPhone Pro and iPad Pro only.
Step 2
Run EMF and EVP sessions in Paranormal Toolkit
Open GhostLab: Paranormal Toolkit and start with the EMF tile. It reads the phone's magnetometer and shows the level on green to red LED bars. Then switch to Classic EVP, which records clean microphone audio for you to play back later.
- Take an EMF reading in each room before you start, so you know what normal looks like there
- Outlets, wiring, appliances, speakers and other phones all move the meter. Note where they are
- Walk slowly and write down the time and place whenever the reading changes
- For EVP, ask everyone to stay still and quiet. Say the time and your name at the start of each recording
- Ask a short question, then wait 20 to 30 seconds in silence before the next one
- Call out your own noises, like "that was me" or "car outside", so playback is easier
- Keep each recording to about 5 minutes. Short clips are easier to review
EMF and Classic EVP are free. GhostLab Pro is $9.99 one time.
Step 3
Do a Dead Channel spirit box session
GhostLab: Dead Channel is a spirit box app. It sweeps through eight banks of recorded voice clips, breaths and static, a few at a time with silence in between, chosen at random. The app never uses the microphone, so it does not hear your questions. Everyone listens and decides for themselves what they heard.
- Turn the volume up with the side buttons and tap Start
- Ask one short question out loud, then stay quiet for about 30 seconds
- The phone taps and the screen flashes red when it plays a longer clip. Read the session clock out loud when that happens
- Everyone writes down what they heard before anyone says it out loud. Then compare notes
- Run a second phone or voice recorder if you want your questions on tape. Dead Channel saves only its own audio
- Tap Stop. The session saves to the Library so you can play it back later
48 hours free, then $7.99 once. iPhone, iPad and Android.
Timing
A simple 90 minute night.
Halloween is on a Saturday this year. Visit the location in daylight first, then start after dark.
- 0:00Walk the location with the lights on. Agree on which rooms you will use.
- 0:10Step 1. Map each room with Spirit Detector and record a short video.
- 0:25Step 2. EMF readings in each room, then EVP recordings of about 5 minutes each.
- 0:55Step 3. A Dead Channel session of 10 to 15 minutes.
- 1:15Pack up, count heads, and leave the place the way you found it.
- LaterPlay back the recordings with headphones and line up your notes by time.
After the hunt
Review it together.
Play back your EVP clips and the Dead Channel session with headphones, and go through everyone's notes side by side. Most odd sounds and readings have an everyday cause, like wiring, a phone, a pipe or someone shifting their weight. Working out the cause is part of the fun. Share your setup and tag @ghostlabicu.
GhostLab Halloween ghost hunt checklist · ghostlab.icu/halloween-ghost-hunt.html
Halloween night checklist
Check the boxes on screen, or print it and bring it with you.
Location:
Date and start time:
Team:
Before you leave
On site
Wrap up
Notes
For entertainment only. GhostLab apps log readings, record audio, map surfaces and play sound. They do not detect or prove anything. Hunt safely, and only where you have permission to be.
FAQ
Common questions.
Do I need all three apps?
No. Each app works on its own. Paranormal Toolkit covers EMF and EVP for free on iPhone, iPad and Android. Add Spirit Detector if you have a LiDAR iPhone or iPad Pro, and Dead Channel if you want a separate spirit box app.
Which devices can run Spirit Detector?
iPhone 12 Pro or a later Pro model, or an iPad Pro from 2020 on, running iOS 17 or later. It needs the LiDAR scanner, so it does not run on other iPhones and is not available on Android.
How much do the apps cost?
Paranormal Toolkit is free to download, and EMF and Classic EVP stay free. GhostLab Pro is $9.99 one time. Dead Channel is free for 48 hours, then $7.99 once. Spirit Detector is free for 48 hours, then $4.99 once. None of them are subscriptions.
When should I start the free trials?
The Spirit Detector trial starts with your first scan, and the Dead Channel trial starts when you begin it. Each lasts 48 hours. If you want to use them on Halloween night without buying, start them no more than two days before.
Can the apps detect ghosts?
No. The apps log sensor readings, record audio, map surfaces and play sound. They do not detect, measure or prove anything paranormal. GhostLab is for entertainment.
Where is a good place to hunt?
Anywhere you have permission to be and that is safe to walk around at night. Your own home, a friend's basement or an old building whose owner says yes all work well.
Where can I get help with the apps?
Visit GhostLab support for help with any of the apps.
Get the apps before Halloween.
Install them at home, open each one once, and learn the controls before Halloween night.
GhostLab: Spirit Detector
LiDAR room mapping. iPhone 12 Pro or later Pro models and iPad Pro (2020 on). 48 hours free, then $4.99 once.
GhostLab: Paranormal Toolkit
EMF, EVP and spirit box tools. iPhone, iPad and Android. Free to start, Pro is $9.99 one time.
GhostLab: Dead Channel
Spirit box app with eight voice banks. iPhone, iPad and Android. 48 hours free, then $7.99 once.
Questions? Visit GhostLab support.
For entertainment only.
GhostLab apps log sensor readings, record audio, map surfaces and play sound. Nothing in them detects, measures or proves anything paranormal, and no reading or sound is scientific evidence of anything. Please hunt safely, and only where you have permission to be.