halloween

This Map Reveals the Most Popular (and Most Hated) Halloween Candy in Each State and the Results Are Shocking

Cheryl Fenton
Cheryl Fenton
An editor once called her “the kitchen sink writer." Translation - Boston-based freelancer Cheryl Fenton can write about anything, including the kitchen sink (peep her interior design pieces). Her bylines run the gamut from dailies like USAToday and the Boston Globe to monthly…read more
Follow
published Oct 26, 2022
pinterest
comments
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Assorted halloween candy background.
Credit: sampsyseeds / Getty Images

With an average of 172 million Americans celebrating Halloween every year, there are probably some strong opinions on what’s going to fill up those trick-or-treat pumpkins. While some candies are polarizing (looking right at you, Good & Plenty), others like M&M’s and Snickers are traditional fan favorites. 

Considering most Halloween shopping is accomplished within the first two weeks of October, your cabinet is probably already stocked with bags of sweets (remember, hands off until the big day). A new ranking by CandyStore.com takes a (Michael Myers-esque) stab at what you purchased. And if you haven’t purchased yet, here’s what you probably should be grabbing on your next trip to the candy aisle.

Using sales data prior to Halloween, the distributor determined which candy was the most popular all around. Spoiler alert: the top three are Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Skittles, and M&M’s. A huge surprise in the data? Americans actually have a love-hate relationship with candy corn, which rounded out the Top 10 Most Popular Candy landing in the tenth place while also sitting pretty in the second position on the Top 10 Worst Candies. Not so surprisingly, it lost to circus peanuts, because no one likes chewing Styrofoam.

The data also captured the top three candies in each state. And if you’re wondering, chocolate-type candies absolutely reign supreme. For a fun interactive view of your area, however, you can hover over your state on the image to see the goods.

While the pandemic caused a scary dip in 2020 candy sales, this year’s numbers are actually looking pretty sweet. According to the National Retail Federation’s annual Halloween spending survey, people are expected to spend an all-time high of around $3.1 billion on candy this year — which means we’re back in business for the spooky season.

Looking for ways to use up all that leftover Halloween candy? These tasty baked desserts will help you do just that. Or forgo the candy all together and make these Snickers-inspired cookies (North Carolina and Virginia’s favorite candy).