The WORST Halloween Candy in 2026, and the Best Too

This year 3,200 people voted on the best and worst Halloween candy, and the results are the biggest shake-up since we started ranking them in 2014. Take a guess before you scroll.

By Ben George

Do you have strong opinions about Halloween candy? Sure you do. Everybody does. So every year we ask CandyStore.com customers to settle it. What’s the best Halloween candy? And what’s the worst Halloween candy, the one you’d be happy to never see in a treat bag again? (Yours or your kid’s. We don’t judge.)

Most years the answers barely move. A candy slips a spot, another one climbs a spot, and the same favorite sits at the top of the best list like it pays rent there. We’ve been ranking these since 2014, and in all that time the top spot never changed hands.

This year it did. I’m not telling you who took it yet. I will tell you that two candies that had never cracked our top ten crashed the party, and one of them went straight into the top three. And the worst Halloween candy? That one’s an old enemy. It spent a few years pretending to be a little less hated, and now it’s right back at the bottom of the pile.

How We Ranked Them

How did we do it? By going straight to the source. We survey the customers of our online candy store and let the votes fall where they fall. This year 3,200 of them answered. No guesswork, no borrowing from other people’s lists, and no editorial thumb on the scale. Every ranking change below is measured against our last survey, which ran in 2024.

One thing to keep in mind as you read. This survey measures what people say they love and hate. Our map of the most popular Halloween candy in every state measures what they actually buy. The two don’t always agree, and a few of the candies below make that very obvious.

Oh, and please keep in mind, the opinions expressed here are not those of CandyStore.com. They are inferred from the data by a mere candy blog writer.

So, without further ado, here’s the list.

The 10 Worst Halloween Candies

#10 Worst. Smarties

Good news for the powdery little disks. Smarties climbed two spots away from the bottom, from #8 to #10, their kindest finish since this list started in 2014.

Your kids will still come home with a pile of them. It’s inevitable. And the human tongue can only take so many vaguely sweet, chalky candies before it gives up. Fewer voters hit that wall this year, though, and I’ll take progress where I can find it.

Improved from #8 in 2024.

#9 Worst. Almond Joy

I’ll admit this one surprised me, and it’s going to start some arguments. Almond Joy lands on the worst list for the first time ever, which is a strange place to find a candy that wins two states outright on our sales map (Connecticut and Missouri).

Coconut does that, though. People who love it really love it, and people who don’t will trade an Almond Joy for pretty much anything else in the bag. Enough of the second group showed up to vote this year.

Sometimes you feel like a nut. This year, a lot of people didn’t.

New to the list.

#8 Worst. Black Licorice

Black licorice took one small step back from the edge this year. Same rule as always. We mean the pure black stuff here. Twizzlers don’t count.

It’s the candy version of a strong opinion, and most kids digging through their haul on Halloween night are not in the mood for one. Good imported licorice, if you can get your hands on it, is great. The kind that shows up in treat bags? Not so much.

Improved from #7 in 2024.

#7 Worst. Mary Janes

Mary Janes stepped two spots back from the bottom. The peanut butter and molasses chew has been around since 1914. It went missing for a while after NECCO closed, then came back with a new look, and slowly it seems to be winning people over. Maybe it just needed us to miss it first.

Improved from #5 in 2024.

#6 Worst. Wax Coke Bottles

Wax Coke Bottles didn’t move, and neither did the problem. You bite the top off, drink a tiny sip of sugar water, and then you’re chewing wax. The novelty is great. The first time. When you’re five. By third grade most of us were tossing them without a second thought.

No change from 2024.

#5 Worst. Necco Wafers

Anyone remember the Necco Wafer Panic of 2018? The factory shut down and people cleared the shelves like the wafers were never coming back. Wild times.

They did come back, and it looks like absence made a few hearts grow fonder, because they moved one more spot away from the bottom this year.

Back in 2014, the first version of this list was sure Necco Wafers would end up the hands down worst candy. They’ve never finished worse than #3. Still, that chalky texture keeps them on the list every single year.

Improved from #4 in 2024.

#4 Worst. Peeps

The highest debut on this year’s worst list goes to a candy that usually belongs to a different holiday. Peeps land at #4 on their first try.

Most people think of Peeps as an Easter thing, but they show up every October too, as sugar-coated marshmallow ghosts and pumpkins. Their fans love them with total sincerity. Everybody else regards them with a lot of suspicion. This year the Halloween shapes made enough of an impression to get noticed, just not the way Peeps would have liked.

New to the list.

#3 Worst. Peanut Butter Kisses

You know these even if you don’t know the name. They’re the ones in the plain orange and black wax paper wrappers that everybody mistakes for Mary Janes.

They stepped out of the bottom two this year, and that’s about the only good news. They aren’t Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and they aren’t Hershey’s Kisses, and the wrapper does them no favors. When the most memorable thing about your candy is that people confuse it with a different unpopular candy, the votes tend to follow.

The advice on this list hasn’t changed in twelve years. Leave them in the wrapper and move on to the next candy.

Improved from #2 in 2024.

#2 Worst. Circus Peanuts

After three surveys in a row as our voters’ least favorite Halloween candy, Circus Peanuts finally hand over the title. Before anybody throws them a party, this is not a comeback.

The case against them hasn’t changed. They taste like artificial banana, and nobody can tell you why. The texture is somewhere between foam and a marshmallow that gave up. They’re shaped like peanuts, they taste nothing like peanuts, and they come in an orange you won’t find anywhere in nature. They didn’t get any better this year. Something else just got voted down harder.

This list has been calling them inedible monstrosities since 2014, and I stand by it. Still, a few people defend them with real passion, and we sell them every single year. Somebody out there is buying Circus Peanuts on purpose. If that’s you, you know who you are, and honestly? Respect.

Improved from #1 in 2024.

#1 Worst. Candy Corn

And the worst Halloween candy of 2026 is… candy corn.

Candy corn held this title from 2019 through 2021. Then it spent three surveys in second and third place, and I think we all got a little comfortable. Well, it’s back. At the very bottom, or the very top, depending on how you look at it.

The funny thing is, our candy corn debate survey split thousands of voters nearly down the middle. And while candy corn gets voted the worst here, our sales data ranks it #8 in the country. It even wins Maryland, North Dakota and Utah outright on this year’s state map. People boo it in the polls and then buy it by the pound.

For the record, this list has been sticking up for candy corn since 2014, and clearly we’re still well in the minority. Look, if you don’t like it, just give it to me. Yes, it’s just sugar. Isn’t that the point?

Worse, up from #3 in 2024.

The 10 Best Halloween Candies

Now we get to the fun part. You can probably guess most of these. They’re popular for a reason. But this year there’s a brand new name at the very top, and two first-timers pushed their way into the top ten.

Sorry, Hershey’s

Before we count down, a moment of silence for two candies that didn’t make it. Hershey Bars were #7 last time and fell off the list completely. So did the classic box of NERDS, which was #10.

NERDS fans, don’t panic. The brand’s entry on this year’s survey was NERDS Gummy Clusters, and you’ll find them a lot higher up.

#10 Best. Butterfinger

Butterfinger slipped one spot in the survey. At the register it’s a very different story. It wins three states outright on our sales map, behind only M&M's, Sour Patch Kids and Hot Tamales.

It’s a personal favorite of mine, for the record. Not everybody loves the flaky texture, and a full size bar can be a bit much. But a fun size Butterfinger? That’s the sweet spot. You’re not going to complain when one gets dropped in your bag, are you?

Down from #9 in 2024.

#9 Best. Twix

Cookie, caramel and chocolate. Twix gives up a spot this year, but nobody has managed to improve on that formula yet. On our sales map, though, it just lost Montana, the one state that put it first, to M&M's. It still finishes top three in four states.

If there’s one candy bar I’d want to get in full size on Halloween, it’s still Twix.

Down from #8 in 2024.

#8 Best. BUBS

Here’s one your kids might know better than you do. BUBS is a Swedish candy maker famous for foamy, chewy candies, the kind you find at pick and mix counters all over Sweden, and it has arrived here along with the rest of the Swedish candy wave.

Making our top ten on the first try is a big deal. On our sales map it’s still more of a regional thing, finishing third in Kentucky and New York. So call it a rising star for now. Check back next year.

New to the list.

#7 Best. Hot Tamales

Hot Tamales cooled off two spots in the survey. They still win four states on the sales map, because cinnamon people are nothing if not loyal. Not everybody wants heat in their Halloween candy. The ones who do really do.

Down from #5 in 2024.

#6 Best. Kit Kat

Kit Kat held on to #6. Chocolate, wafer, that clean snap, and a jingle that has been stuck in all of our heads for decades. The fun size is basically half a regular bar, too, which is pretty generous by fun size standards.

Steady is a fine thing to be.

No change from 2024.

#5 Best. Sour Patch Kids

Sour Patch Kids slipped a spot in the survey, but sour candy is still everywhere we look. On the sales map they win ten states, tied with M&M's for the most, and they climb to #2 in national sales. First they’re sour, then they’re sweet, then they’re gone.

Down from #4 in 2024.

#4 Best. M&M’s

M&M’s slipped a spot, which is what happens when a newcomer shows up above you. Nobody needs to worry about them, though. They’re #1 in national sales on our sales map and win ten states, tied with Sour Patch Kids for the most, so if anything M&M’s do even better at the register than in the polls.

For a long time it was plain or peanut, and that was it. Now there’s pretzel, and peanut butter, and a new flavor every time you turn around. Whatever your pick, toss a few fun size packs in the bowl and you’re golden.

Down from #3 in 2024.

#3 Best. NERDS Gummy Clusters

Say hello to the breakout candy of 2026. NERDS Gummy Clusters crash into the top three on their very first appearance. A gummy center covered in crunchy little NERDS, sweet and tangy in the same bite, and clearly what a lot of people had been waiting for.

The sales data backs it up. On our state-by-state sales map, NERDS Gummy Clusters finish in the top three in seven states, win Indiana outright, and debut at #5 in national sales. We don’t often see a candy climb this fast in the polls and at the register in the same year.

New to the list.

#2 Best. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Well, this is new. For the first time since this list started in 2014, Reese’s is not #1.

And it’s not having a great year at the register either. The same year it lost the popular vote to Snickers, Reese’s slid from #2 to #4 in national sales on our map, and M&M's kept the sales crown.

Peanut butter and chocolate in just the right ratio is still the golden ticket in any trick-or-treat bag. Remember separating yours out and hiding them so your siblings couldn’t steal them? Many a tear was shed over a poor hiding spot. Whether you’re team Mini, classic full size, or King size, it’s all about that Reese’s love.

Down from #1 in 2024.

#1 Best. Snickers

Snickers finally did it. It finished second on every edition of this list from 2014 through 2019, second again in 2024, and this year it takes the top spot for the first time. The best Halloween candy of 2026 is Snickers.

I’ll admit I was always more of a Milky Way person. But nougat, caramel, peanuts and chocolate in one bite was always a strong case, and this year enough voters agreed to end Reese’s run at the top. Snickers is also the candy most likely to be “confiscated” by a supervising parent, which might be the most honest popularity contest there is.

Oddly, the register hasn’t caught up yet. Snickers wins just two states on our sales map (Idaho and Tennessee). People say Snickers. Then they go buy M&M's and Sour Patch Kids.

Up from #2 in 2024.

Concluding the Worst Halloween Candy Rankings

And there you have it, the 2026 candy rollercoaster.

Candy corn is back at the bottom, which let Circus Peanuts (#1 to #2) and Peanut Butter Kisses (#2 to #3) off the hook by a spot each. Peeps (#4) and Almond Joy (#9) are new to the worst list, and Bit-O-Honey and Good & Plenty escaped it entirely. Everyone else moved away from the bottom. Necco Wafers went from #4 to #5, Mary Janes from #5 to #7, Black Licorice from #7 to #8 and Smarties from #8 to #10. Wax Coke Bottles didn’t budge.

At the top, Snickers took #1 from Reese’s for the first time. NERDS Gummy Clusters (#3) and BUBS (#8) are the newcomers, while Hershey Bars and the classic NERDS box dropped out. M&M’s (#3 to #4), Sour Patch Kids (#4 to #5), Hot Tamales (#5 to #7), Twix (#8 to #9) and Butterfinger (#9 to #10) each gave up a little ground to make room, and Kit Kat held at #6.

Love them or hate them, it’s the variety that makes Halloween so much fun. And if you’re not done arguing, we rank the worst Easter candy and the worst Christmas candy too.

Stay spooky, stay sweet, and happy Halloween 2026!

Worst Halloween Candy FAQ

What is the worst Halloween candy? Candy corn. It was voted the #1 worst Halloween candy in our 2026 survey of 3,200 CandyStore.com customers, taking the title back from Circus Peanuts. Peanut Butter Kisses came in third.

What is the best Halloween candy? Snickers, for the first time. It knocked Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups out of the #1 spot in our 2026 survey. By sales it’s a different story. M&M's lead the country, and Snickers is #14. Our state-by-state sales map shows where each candy wins.

What’s new on the list this year? Four first-timers. NERDS Gummy Clusters (#3) and BUBS (#8) joined the best list, and Peeps (#4) and Almond Joy (#9) joined the worst.

Is candy corn really that hated? It’s voted the worst in the survey, yet it sells well enough to win three states outright and rank #8 in national sales. It may be the most polarizing candy in America, and we have the debate data to prove it.

What should I do with the candy nobody wants? Regift it to an enemy, or try our candy-infused vodka recipes. Leftover Halloween candy has an afterlife.

For more info or press inquiries, contact Ben at ben@candystore.com