Party supplies are the tableware, decorations, and favors used to set up, serve, and send guests home from a gathering, from a backyard birthday to a corporate gala. Before you buy, it helps to know which stores price by the piece and which ones sell by the case. This guide compares the retailers that genuinely stock the category right now, what each one does best, and where your money goes further somewhere else.
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Party Supplies Explained: What They Are and Who They Help
The category splits into three buckets. Plates, cups, napkins, cutlery, and table covers handle what guests eat off of. Balloons, banners, streamers, a backdrop, and a centerpiece handle what you hang up. Party favors handle what guests take home. Nearly every shopping list mixes the three, weighted by budget.
Four groups buy most of it. Parents working backward from a headcount and a theme for a birthday party. Couples pulling together a baby shower or a bridal shower, who lean on matched kits so nothing clashes. Event planners handling corporate events, school functions, and community events, who buy in bulk quantities and watch per-unit cost. And anyone marking a milestone anniversary, where atmosphere outweighs saving two dollars on cutlery.
Seasonal and holiday stock runs on its own clock. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas decorations land roughly six to eight weeks ahead of each date, and what is left clears out fast in the days right after.
How to Choose Party Supplies: Features That Matter
Judge this category on four things: plate rigidity, print quality, balloon wall thickness, and whether a set actually covers your guest count. The rest is preference.
Plate weight and rigidity. A thin paper plate folds under a slice of cake and a fork. Molded fiber or heavyweight coated stock holds a full plate without flexing, so solid color tableware from a mid-tier brand often beats a themed set printed on flimsy board.
Print quality on napkins and table covers. Cheap ink smudges once it gets damp, and it will get damp. Crisp graphics stay readable on a napkin, a tablecloth, and signage from setup through cleanup.
Wall thickness and fill type. Helium-filled latex balloons float for hours, not days, and thinner walls shorten that window further. Foil balloons hold gas much longer, so save those for number and letter displays that must last all day. Air-filled garland kits skip helium entirely, which is why they now dominate balloon decorations at home. Our guide to where to buy balloons covers the sizing differences.
Complete themed collections. Good party kits bundle plates, cutlery, napkins, and accessories into one box and print a serving count on the front, so you get everything you need for a stated guest number.
Latex-free options. Rubber sensitivity is common enough that foil and mylar alternatives earn their premium at a kids’ event. Read the packaging, not the product photo, because mixed foil and rubber kits are now the norm.
Party Supplies Buying Mistakes to Skip
Ordering late ruins more events than any other single error. Themed and personalized items ship on longer timelines than everyday goods, so place the order well ahead of the date instead of the week of it.
Buying by set count instead of guest count. A 16-piece set does not cover 30 people. Count heads, add margin for spills and seconds, then buy.
Shopping without a color scheme. Two or three colors carried across the tablecloth, the streamers, and the wall hangings reads as intentional. Six reads as leftovers from three different events.
Forgetting the unglamorous items. An arch display is fun to shop for. Trash bags, serving utensils, ice, and a folding table are not, and those are what people drive back to the store for.
Leaving inflated rubber within reach of small children. The Consumer Product Safety Commission, the federal agency that regulates consumer product hazards, requires cautionary labeling on balloon packaging because uninflated and broken pieces are a choking risk for children under eight. Worth reading the agency’s guidance before a toddler birthday.
Which Stores Carry Party Supplies
Five national chains reliably stock this category in person: Walmart, Target, Dollar Tree, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby. Costco covers bulk disposables, though selection varies by warehouse. Walgreens and CVS carry a thin endcap of gift bags and foil inflatables, useless for planning. One thing worth knowing: Party City closed its corporate stores in early 2025, so an independent party store is now the only specialty option in most markets.
Walmart
Walmart, the largest brick-and-mortar retailer in the United States, pairs the widest assortment with the lowest shelf prices among general-merchandise chains. The birthday party supplies aisle sits near stationery and gift wrap, with a seasonal endcap that rotates through graduation and holiday decorations.
Target
Target shelves the category in its seasonal aisle, usually across from the greeting cards near the front. The in-house Spritz line covers solid color tableware and coordinated accessories, so Target wins on current color trends and loses on licensed cartoon themes.
Dollar Tree
Dollar Tree is the best discount party stop for basics: plates, cups, balloon packs, table covers, and gift bags at fixed low prices. Inventory rotates constantly, so a second visit two weeks later looks different. Its separate bulk site sells the same items by the case.
Michaels and Hobby Lobby
Michaels and Hobby Lobby are the craft-store answer, each with a dedicated aisle beside their floral, paper, and ribbon departments. That adjacency is the point: you can build a centerpiece or a custom banner in one trip rather than ordering a premade one. Both run frequent percentage-off promotions, so check the current offer first. Call ahead for anything theme-specific, since craft stores stock decorations more shallowly than Walmart does.
Best Places to Order Party Supplies Online
Ordering party supplies online wins on selection and per-unit price, and loses on judging print quality before it arrives. Four sites cover nearly every scenario.
Amazon. Amazon #ad carries the deepest range of themed collections, arch kits, and bulk packs, with fast shipping on Prime-eligible items. Sort by review count rather than star rating, since near-identical kits make volume the more honest signal. Third-party sellers set their own return terms, so check the seller name on anything expensive.
Oriental Trading. Oriental Trading specializes in bulk party decorations and favors, with wholesale options the general retailers cannot match on quantity. It is the default for school functions, church events, and classroom-scale orders. Per-unit prices fall as case sizes rise, so it rarely suits a 12-guest table.
eFavormart. eFavormart is built for event professionals: bulk inflatables, linens, table settings, chair covers, and glow products for evening receptions. Its affordable pricing on real fabric tablecloths beats disposables if you host repeatedly.
Party Direct. Party Direct sells complete kits organized by theme, bundling plates, decorations, and coordinated pieces so you are not assembling a list from scratch.
How Much Should You Pay for Party Supplies
As of September 2026, a basic birthday setup for 12 to 16 guests runs roughly $30 to $75 depending on where you shop. Premium kits with matching decor, tableware, and favors land between $80 and $200, and a full arch installation adds $60 to $150 on top.
| Tier | Cost for 16 guests | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Budget | $25 to $45 | Thin plates, generic colors, basic rubber packs, no theme |
| Mid-range | $50 to $100 | Coated plates, matched napkins, foil accents, printed banner |
| Premium | $120 to $250 | Heavyweight or reusable tableware, designer prints, arch kit, favors |
The one place paying more rarely pays off is plain single-color disposables. A premium white plate and a dollar-store white plate look identical in photos, so buy those at the cheapest tier and move the difference into the backdrop.
Our Top Party Supplies Picks
Ranked on selection, per-unit price, and how much of one event each option can cover on its own.
Best all-around: Walmart. Broadest in-store assortment, lowest shelf prices, same-trip groceries. Browse their selection
Best budget: Dollar Tree. Fixed low prices on the disposables nobody will scrutinize, which is where most of a tight budget gets wasted elsewhere. Check availability on their site
Best for bulk orders: Oriental Trading. Wholesale per-unit pricing on case quantities, ideal for community events and school functions. See their bulk range
Best statement piece: an air-filled balloon arch garland kit. No helium tank, no rental, and it holds shape for days rather than hours. Prices span a wide band by kit size, checked September 2026. Check price on Amazon #ad
Best for premium style: Bonjour Fete. The boutique curates its range around high-quality products with a designer feel, worth it for a milestone event where every detail shows. Browse their collection
Start with a firm guest count and a two-color scheme, then split the order: disposables from Dollar Tree or Walmart, one statement piece from Amazon or a craft store, and bulk items from Oriental Trading above roughly 40 guests. Buying party supplies two weeks out instead of two days out is the difference between a stress-free setup and a frantic one. For gift wrap, see our wrapping paper guide.
Common Questions About Party Supplies
Does Michaels have party supplies?
Yes. Michaels stocks a dedicated aisle with tableware, balloons, and banners, and it sits next to the paper, ribbon, and floral departments, which is what makes it the better choice for custom decor. Many locations also run a personalization counter, so a one-off banner does not have to be ordered weeks ahead.
Does Costco sell party supplies?
Costco carries a limited assortment: large packs of disposable tableware, plastic cutlery, folding tables, and bakery cakes. It does not stock themed collections or decorations, and the mix varies by warehouse and season. Most of it never appears on the website, so call your local club first.
How do I build a balloon arch without helium?
Most kits include a flexible plastic strip, mixed-size rubber, and adhesive dots. Three steps:
- Inflate to three or four different sizes with a hand pump and knot each one.
- Push the knots through the holes in the strip, alternating sizes and colors as you go.
- Fill the gaps with 5-inch pieces on adhesive dots, then anchor both ends to the wall.
Are latex-free balloons available for kids with allergies?
Yes. Foil and mylar contain no rubber, sit in the same aisle as the stretchy kind, and hold gas longer as a bonus. For a guest with a confirmed allergy, skip rubber across the whole room instead of separating the two types, since particles transfer easily in a shared space.
The wheretobuyguides.com editorial team checked retailer stock and pricing for this guide in September 2026.