(NEXSTAR) – What’s the most popular Halloween candy in the state? Well, it might be a widely known sweet with a Connecticut connection, according to online sales data.
CandyStore.com, an online candy retailer specializing in wholesale and bulk orders, has sought to determine the “most popular” Halloween candies in each state, based largely on the past 16 years of the company’s sales data in the months leading up to Halloween. Distributors and manufacturers who work with CandyStore.com also “chipped in” to provide additional stats, according to CandyStore’s analysts.
While the top candies vary from state to state, CandyStore estimates that Reese’s Cups, M&Ms and Hot Tamales are the country’s three “most popular” candies overall (and in that order) based on sales per pound between 2007 and 2022.
But which sweet, specifically, is most popular in the Nutmeg State? According to CandyStore’s analysis, that would be the Almond Joy, a chocolate-covered coconut bar first sold in 1946 by the Peter Paul Candy Manufacturing Company based in New Haven, Connecticut. (These days, the brand is owned by Hershey, along with the almond-free version Mounds.)
Milky Way bars and M&Ms, respectively, were ranked as the second- and third-most popular Halloween candies in Connecticut, according to CandyStore.
Curious to see which sweets are top-sellers in other states? Take a look below at the “most popular” candies across the country, as determined by CandyStore.com.
| State | Top Candy | 2nd Place | 3rd Place |
| Alabama | Skittles | Starburst | Hershey’s Mini Bars |
| Alaska | Twix | Sour Patch Kids | Milky Way |
| Arizona | Hershey Kisses | Hot Tamales | Snickers |
| Arkansas | Butterfinger | Jolly Ranchers | M&M’s |
| California | M&M’s | Reese’s Cups | Skittles |
| Colorado | Milky Way | Hershey Kisses | Twix |
| Connecticut | Almond Joy | Milky Way | M&M’s |
| Delaware | Sour Patch Kids | Skittles | Life Savers |
| Florida | Reese’s Cups | Skittles | Hot Tamales |
| Georgia | Jolly Ranchers | Swedish Fish | Reese’s Cups |
| Hawaii | Hershey’s Mini Bars | Skittles | Butterfinger |
| Idaho | Snickers | Starburst | Candy Corn |
| Illinois | Sour Patch Kids | Kit Kat | Starburst |
| Indiana | Starburst | Hot Tamales | Jolly Ranchers |
| Iowa | Reese’s Cups | M&M’s | Hershey’s Mini Bars |
| Kansas | M&M’s | Sour Patch Kids | Reese’s Cups |
| Kentucky | Reese’s Cups | Hot Tamales | Swedish Fish |
| Louisiana | Lemonheads | Reese’s Cups | Blow Pops |
| Maine | Sour Patch Kids | Candy Corn | Starburst |
| Maryland | Hershey Kisses | Hershey’s Mini Bars | Reese’s Cups |
| Massachusetts | Butterfinger | Sour Patch Kids | Dubble Bubble Gum |
| Michigan | Starburst | Candy Corn | Butterfinger |
| Minnesota | Hot Tamales | Tootsie Pops | Skittles |
| Mississippi | 3 Musketeers | Snickers | Butterfinger |
| Missouri | Almond Joy | Milky Way | Hot Tamales |
| Montana | Twix | M&M’s | Dubble Bubble Gum |
| Nebraska | Sour Patch Kids | Salt Water Taffy | Twix |
| Nevada | Hershey’s Mini Bars | Hot Tamales | Hershey Kisses |
| New Hampshire | Reese’s Cups | M&M’s | Starburst |
| New Jersey | Tootsie Pops | M&M’s | Skittles |
| New Mexico | Hot Tamales | Candy Corn | Hershey’s Mini Bars |
| New York | Sour Patch Kids | Hot Tamales | Candy Corn |
| North Carolina | M&M’s | Reese’s Cups | Hershey’s Mini Bars |
| North Dakota | Hot Tamales | Candy Corn | Jolly Ranchers |
| Ohio | Blow Pops | M&M’s | Starburst |
| Oklahoma | Skittles | Dubble Bubble Gum | Snickers |
| Oregon | M&M’s | Reese’s Cups | Candy Corn |
| Pennsylvania | Hershey’s Mini Bars | M&M’s | Skittles |
| Rhode Island | M&M’s | Twix | Candy Corn |
| South Carolina | Skittles | Butterfinger | Candy Corn |
| South Dakota | Starburst | Jolly Ranchers | Candy Corn |
| Tennessee | Tootsie Pops | Salt Water Taffy | Skittles |
| Texas | Sour Patch Kids | Reese’s Cups | Starburst |
| Utah | Candy Corn | Tootsie Pops | M&M’s |
| Vermont | M&M’s | Skittles | Milky Way |
| Virginia | Butterfinger | M&M’s | Hot Tamales |
| DC | M&M’s | Tootsie Pops | Blow Pops |
| Washington | Tootsie Pops | Salt Water Taffy | M&M’s |
| West Virginia | Hershey’s Mini Bars | Blow Pops | Hot Tamales |
| Wisconsin | Butterfinger | Hot Tamales | Starburst |
| Wyoming | Reese’s Cups | Salt Water Taffy | Dubble Bubble Gum |
No matter which candy might be most popular in your state, CandyStore.com expects there to be plenty of it. The National Retail Federation estimates consumer spending for Halloween candy to reach approximately $3.6 billion in 2023 — around a half-billion more than in 2022.
More information, including an interactive map and additional candy-centric stats, can be found at CandyStore.com.