Mario & Luigi

Mario has been jumping on things since 1981, when he showed up in Donkey Kong as a carpenter called Jumpman. His little brother Luigi arrived two years later, and the two have been the most famous plumbers on the planet ever since. This spring, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie opened on April 1 and went on to make more than a billion dollars worldwide, which means a whole new wave of kids now knows every power-up and every "Let's-a go!" by heart. Mario and Luigi are about as easy as a sibling costume gets: same outfit, different color, and a built-in argument about who's the main character. HalloweenCostumes.com sells both kids' versions by Disguise: a Boy's Mario Nintendo Costume for $39.99 to $49.99 and a Mario Bros Luigi Boy's Costume for $34.99 to $39.99.

So a pair for two kids comes to about $75 to $90, depending on sizes. That's roughly what one new Mario game costs.

These are the classic Disguise versions, the simplest Mario and Luigi suits on the site. Each one is a jumpsuit plus a hat, with a stick-on mustache thrown in. They don't come with white gloves, and that's the one thing parents keep mentioning. Mario has 11 reviews and Luigi has five, both with a 4.6-star average. Here's what's in each bag, how they fit and what parents said.

What's in Mario's bag

The Boy's Mario Nintendo Costume (item DI73689) is officially licensed and includes three pieces: a jumpsuit, a hat and a mustache. The materials are 100% polyester fabric and fiberfill, plus 100% polyurethane foam.

The jumpsuit is styled as blue overalls with a red shirt, all in one piece, and it closes with hook-and-loop at the center back. The hat is foam with an appliquéd vinyl "M" on the front. And the mustache is synthetic hair with a self-adhesive backing that peels off.

That's a classic Mario setup. The one-piece design is easy to put on, and since the shirt and overalls are sewn together, nothing comes untucked during a long night of running from house to house.

What's in Luigi's bag

The Mario Bros Luigi Boy's Costume (item DI73692) is the same idea in green. It's officially licensed, comes with the same three pieces as Mario, and uses the same materials. The mustache backing uses polyisoprene adhesive.

The jumpsuit closes with hook-and-loop at the center back and is lightly padded. The foam hat has an appliquéd vinyl "L" on the front.

So Mario and Luigi are built the same way, which is great for siblings. Nobody gets the "better" costume. They just get different colors.

How the sizes work

Both costumes come in five sizes: 3T/4T, 4/6, 7/8, 10/12 and 14/16. The pricing is a little uneven.

For Mario, most sizes cost $39.99, but the 10/12 costs $49.99. For Luigi, the 3T/4T, 7/8 and 14/16 cost $34.99, and the 4/6 and 10/12 cost $39.99. So the cheapest pair is two 7/8s or two 14/16s, at $74.98. The priciest is two 10/12s, at $89.98.

Mario's size chart lists the chest and torso, plus the overall jumpsuit length. The 3T/4T has a 24-inch chest, 19-inch torso and 33-inch length. The 4/6 is 27, 23 and 40 inches. The 7/8 is 29, 24 and 42. And the 10/12 is 32, 26 and 46. The 14/16 measurements are listed as "Coming Soon," so if your kid needs that size, there's no chart to compare against yet.

The torso number matters most for a jumpsuit. It's the measurement that decides whether the suit pulls when your kid sits, crouches or tries to do a Mario jump. If your kid is tall for their age, compare their torso to the chart before you order.

Notice the big jump between sizes, too. The 3T/4T is 33 inches long, and the 4/6 is 40. That's a 7-inch difference, so a kid who's outgrowing toddler clothes but not quite a 4 may find one size short and the next one long. In that case, longer is usually easier to manage. You can roll the legs.

What Mario parents said

Mario's 11 reviews break down as 73% five stars, 18% four stars and 9% three stars. Most of the written reviews are about fit and how well it holds up.

A parent whose son wore a 7/8 and weighs about 50 pounds wrote, "Costume was cute and held up well through a zoo trick or treat, full school day, and Halloween parade. Still in good condition. My son loves it and fit true to size." That's a pretty serious stress test for a kids' costume, and it passed.

Javier, who also bought a 7/8, wrote, "Exactly the size I need, my kid is 6 yrs old very tall and thin. It's a very nice quality costume." So for tall, slim kids, sizing up from their age can work well.

Another parent said, "My son is beside himself about Halloween & this Mario costume. The costume fits as described & is of good quality." And one wrote, "So cute my son loved it. Only thing it runs a bit big."

The mustache got a mention too. A parent whose daughter wore the costume said, "My daughter loved it. It fit perfectly and was comfortable. She only wore the mustache for pictures because it bothered her." That's a very common story with stick-on mustaches, and it's worth planning for.

The most critical review, from 2020, said, "The costume is beautiful, but the quality is not good, the wires are unrolled even before being measured." It's not entirely clear what the reviewer meant by "wires," but it sounds like loose threads.

What Luigi parents said

Luigi has five reviews and the same 4.6-star average. The positive ones are short and happy. Shiran bobo wrote, "Very beautiful and high quality costume." Another parent said, "My son is very excited about Halloween & being his favorite Mario Brother. The costume fits as described & appears to be of good quality."

The common thread in Luigi's reviews is the gloves. Wendy, who bought a 3T/4T for her almost 2-year-old, gave it five stars but said, "I wish the gloves were included but don't think my almost 2 year old would wear them anyway!"

The one two-star review said the same thing more strongly: "Decent costume, but for the price I expected a little better quality. It's just a very basic, cheap costume. For the price it should've at least included white gloves, but I had to order them separately."

So both costumes leave out the gloves. For Mario and Luigi, white gloves are a big part of the look. Without them, it's a little harder to tell the difference between Mario and a kid who just happens to be wearing red and blue.

The gloves question

Here's how to solve it. HalloweenCostumes.com sells Kid's Super Mario Brothers White Costume Gloves for $15.99 a pair, and Super Mario Bros Kid's Premium Gloves for $19.99. Two pairs of the regular ones would add $31.98 to the cost of a Mario and Luigi set.

Another option is the Kid's Luigi Costume Accessory Kit for $29.99, which includes a green hat with an "L," a pair of white plush gloves and a self-adhesive mustache. There's a matching Mario Child Accessory Costume Kit for $29.99 too. But since the jumpsuits already come with a hat and mustache, buying a kit just for the gloves means paying for things you already have.

The cheapest option is plain white gloves from a dollar store or craft store. They won't be as thick as the licensed ones, but from a few feet away, nobody will notice. And kids tend to lose gloves on Halloween anyway.

About that mustache

Both mustaches stick on with an adhesive backing. They look great in photos, but they don't always last the night. As one Mario parent noticed, some kids find them uncomfortable.

If your kid has sensitive skin, try a small piece on their arm a day or two before Halloween to see how they react. If the adhesive bothers them, or the mustache keeps falling off, a mustache drawn on with a brown or black face makeup pencil is a good backup. It won't fall off in the candy bag, either.

And for little ones, keep an eye on them. Stick-on mustaches tend to end up in mouths.

Washing and care

A shopper asked if the outfit is machine washable. The site's answer was that its product information "doesn't include washing instructions for it." It added that hand washing in cool water is likely the safer approach because of the foam. So if the costume gets dirty, try spot cleaning first, and let it air dry. Keep the foam hat out of the washer entirely.

Making it a whole Mushroom Kingdom

Mario and Luigi are the classic pair, but the site has a lot of options for a bigger group. There's a Mario Riding Yoshi Child Costume for $69.99, which looks like your kid is riding Yoshi, and a Child Mario Kart Inflatable Kart Costume for $69.99, for a kid who wants to drive. There's also a Child Deluxe Mario Raccoon Costume for $49.99, based on the tanooki-style power-up.

For younger siblings, there's a Mario Costume for Toddlers for $49.99 and a Mario Infant Costume for $29.99 to $39.99. And for parents who want to join, the site sells a Super Mario Official Mario Costume for Adults for $49.99 and a Men's Super Mario Brothers Mario Deluxe Costume for $69.99.

For candy, the Super Mario Question Block Treat Pail costs $19.99. Every time someone drops candy in, your kid can yell "coin!" That's a rule we recommend.

If you want a more detailed Mario, the site also sells a Boys Mario Deluxe Costume for $39.99 to $49.99 and a Kid's Premium Mario Costume for $59.99 to $89.99, plus a Kid's Premium Luigi Costume. The classic versions reviewed here are the simplest and cheapest, and for most kids, they do the job.

Summary

The Boy's Mario Nintendo Costume and the Mario Bros Luigi Boy's Costume from Disguise are simple, officially licensed jumpsuits with a foam hat and a stick-on mustache, for $39.99 to $49.99 and $34.99 to $39.99. Both have a 4.6-star average, and parents say they fit as described and hold up well, even through a school day and a parade. The biggest complaint is that white gloves aren't included, and the mustaches can be uncomfortable. Budget about $16 per pair for gloves, or grab inexpensive white ones.

So, are they worth it?

Yes, for most families. At $75 to $90 for both, you're getting two recognizable, comfortable costumes that kids can wear all day without fuss. The reviews are good, especially for durability, and the matching designs mean nobody feels left out.

I'll admit the missing gloves are a strange choice. For a character whose white gloves are part of his whole look, it feels like the one thing that should be in the bag. But it's an easy and cheap fix, and plenty of parents already have a pair lying around from a past costume.

So check your kids' torso measurements against the chart, add white gloves to your cart and do a mustache test before Halloween. Then let the brothers decide who goes first at every door. It's Mario's name on the movie, but Luigi fans will tell you he's the one who did all the work.