As Halloween Approaches, This Is NJ's Favorite Candy (2024)

Seasonal & Holidays

Americans are expected to pay $3.6 billion on candy alone this Halloween. See what New Jersey residents favor.

Posted Fri, Oct 20, 2023 at 1:00 pm ET|Updated Fri, Oct 27, 2023 at 3:42 pm ET

CandyStore.com, a bulk candy retailer, analyzed sales data from 2007 through 2022 across the U.S. to come up with the three most popular Halloween candies by state.

New Jersey stuck with the same favorites as last year, with no major movers shaking up the top three. Tootsie Pops took the candy crown, M&Ms were the runner-up, and Skittles are New Jersey’s third favorite based on CandyStore.com sales. Here is how many pounds of each candy has been sold in the two months leading up to Halloween, the site said.

• Tootsie Pops: 148,870 pounds
• M&Ms: 145,453 pounds
• Skittles: 145,295 pounds

This amount represents a weighted average over the last 16 years, with more recent years weighted more heavily, CandyStore.com told Patch.

Nationwide, Reese’s cups reign supreme – though M&Ms have been getting closer to that #1 spot, the candy retailer said. Candy corn also made the top 10 this year, returning after a short absence.

And, CandyStore.com also shared the nationwide top 10 list. Here are the top-craved Halloween candies by their customers across the U.S.

1. Reese’s cups
2. M&Ms
3. Hot Tamales
4. Skittles
5. Sour Patch Kids
6. Starburst
7. Hershey’s Kisses
8. Candy corn
9. Hershey mini bars
10. Snickers

...now, if those candies don’t hit your sweet tooth, we found another study showing the most “uniquely popular” Halloween treats by state. This one, from grocery delivery service Instacart, aimed to find the candy that each state purchases more than the national average.

Instacart's data found that Twizzlers also have a special place in the hearts of those in the Garden State, and several other Northeastern states – Red Vines lovers, on the other hand, are well-represented in California and Nevada.

Halloween is coming up on Tuesday, Oct. 31.