Food and Beverage
Favorite Candy by State 2025
Favorite Candy 2020
Hershey's bar
Jolly Ranchers
Kit Kat
M&Ms
Milky Way
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Skittles
Snickers
Sour Patch Kids
Starburst
Swedish Fish
Twix
State | Favorite Candy 2020↓ | Most Popular Jelly Bean Flavor 2024 | Most Popular Halloween Candy 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Minnesota | Twix | Buttered Popcorn | Hot Tamales |
 | Utah | Twix | Black Licorice | Candy Corn |
 | Kentucky | Swedish Fish | Black Licorice | Reese's Cups |
 | Idaho | Starburst | Orange | Snickers |
 | Iowa | Starburst | Buttered Popcorn | Reese's Cups |
 | Delaware | Sour Patch Kids | Cinnamon | Sour Patch Kids |
 | Louisiana | Sour Patch Kids | Green Apple | Lemonheads |
 | Nebraska | Sour Patch Kids | Sour (specific flavor unspecified) | Sour Patch Kids |
 | North Dakota | Sour Patch Kids | Buttered Popcorn | Hot Tamales |
 | Kansas | Snickers | Black Licorice | M&M's |
 | Maryland | Snickers | Root Beer | Hershey Kisses |
 | New Mexico | Snickers | Cherry | Hot Tamales |
 | New York | Snickers | Sour (specific flavor unspecified) | Sour Patch Kids |
 | Alabama | Skittles | Watermelon | Skittles |
 | Arizona | Skittles | Cinnamon | Hershey Kisses |
 | Florida | Skittles | Coffee | Reese's Cups |
 | Georgia | Skittles | Black Licorice | Jolly Ranchers |
 | Hawaii | Skittles | Cherry | Hershey's Mini Bars |
 | Indiana | Skittles | Blueberry | Starburst |
 | Massachusetts | Skittles | Coconut | Butterfinger |
 | North Carolina | Skittles | Black Licorice | M&M's |
 | Rhode Island | Skittles | Blueberry | M&M's |
 | South Carolina | Skittles | Root Beer | Skittles |
 | Alaska | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Black Licorice | Twix |
 | Nevada | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Coffee | Hershey's Mini Bars |
 | Oklahoma | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Coffee | Skittles |
 | Pennsylvania | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Black Licorice | Hershey's Mini Bars |
 | South Dakota | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Root Beer | Starburst |
 | Tennessee | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Black Licorice | Tootsie Pops |
 | Wyoming | Reese's Peanut Butter Cups | Juicy Pear | Reese's Cups |
 | New Hampshire | Milky Way | Watermelon | Reese's Cups |
 | Arkansas | M&Ms | Root Beer | Butterfinger |
 | Colorado | M&Ms | Buttered Popcorn | Milky Way |
 | Illinois | M&Ms | Chocolate | Sour Patch Kids |
 | Maine | M&Ms | Root Beer | Sour Patch Kids |
 | Mississippi | M&Ms | Pink Strawberry | 3 Musketeers |
 | Montana | M&Ms | Black Licorice | Twix |
 | New Jersey | M&Ms | Black Licorice | Tootsie Pops |
 | Ohio | M&Ms | Buttered Popcorn | Blow Pops |
 | Oregon | M&Ms | Watermelon | M&M's |
 | Texas | M&Ms | Buttered Popcorn | Sour Patch Kids |
 | Virginia | M&Ms | Cinnamon | Butterfinger |
 | Washington | M&Ms | Juicy Pear | Tootsie Pops |
 | Wisconsin | M&Ms | Cotton Candy | Butterfinger |
 | Connecticut | Kit Kat | Cherry | Almond Joy |
 | Missouri | Kit Kat | Coffee | Almond Joy |
 | California | Jolly Ranchers | Black Licorice | M&M's |
 | Vermont | Jolly Ranchers | Juicy Pear | M&M's |
 | West Virginia | Jolly Ranchers | Blueberry | Hershey's Mini Bars |
 | Michigan | Hershey's bar | Black Licorice | Starburst |
 | District of Columbia | Cherry | M&M's |
What Is the Most Popular Candy in the United States?
Even though many people associate candy with Halloween, the reality is that people eat candy throughout the year. So, what is the most popular candy in the United States?
According to data from the popular website CandyStore, Daily Meal published information about the most popular candy in each state.
Thirteen states listed M&M’s as their favorite candy, making it the popular candy choice. Skittles weren’t far behind with ten states: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and South Carolina. Seven states, Alaska, Nevada, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Wyoming, are big fans of Reese’s Peanut Butter cups.
This means over half of all states claim one of these three candies as their favorite.
Less Popular Candy Choices
While most candies were generally popular in many states, some states were more unique. Snickers and Sour Patch Kids each were listed as favorites by four states, while Jolly Ranchers made the top of the list in three states. Kit Kats, Twix, and Starburst each had two states that listed them as favorites.
Some candies only had one state listing them as a favorite. Hershey’s bars (Michigan), Milky Way (New Hampshire), and Swedish Fish (Kentucky) finished out the favorites list.
Candy Preferences
Looking at this list, there are some trends that emerge. Warmer, southern states are most likely to prefer fruity, hard candies to melty, chocolate candies. While there are some exceptions to this trend, it makes sense why people may prefer candies that can savor all year long.
Chocolate-based candy is most popular in 28 states, while the other 22 prefer fruity-flavored candies.
Holiday Candy Purchases
Although National Candy Month takes place in June, as previously mentioned most people associate candy with Halloween. The top five days for candy selling happen in October. In fact, over 10% of all candy sales each year happen in the few days before Halloween, with October 28 being the most popular candy sales day of the year. Although they are in third place looking at the year as a whole, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are the most popular candy choice in 18 states when looking at Halloween candy choices.
Some candies are also more popular at different times of the year. For example, Cadbury Creme Eggs were the most popular Easter candies in 24 states. Because Easter is the second-largest holiday for candy sales, this is a large number of Cadbury eggs being sold each year. Christmas and Valentine’s Day are also popular candy-consuming holidays, especially for chocolate-flavored candies.
