Most Popular Christmas Candy by State

STATE	TOP HOLIDAY CANDY	2ND PLACE	3RD PLACE
AL	Reindeer Corn	Candy Canes	Skittles
AK	Hershey Kisses	Candy Canes	Reese’s Pieces
AZ	Pez	Skittles	Hershey Kisses
AR	Starburst	Candy Canes	Skittles
CA	Peppermint Bark	M&M’s	Hershey Kisses
CO	Hershey Kisses	Reese’s Pieces	Candy Canes
CT	M&M’s	Hershey Kisses	Candy Canes
DE	Candy Canes	Pez	Hershey Kisses
FL	Skittles	M&M’s	Snickers
GA	Candy Canes	Skittles	Starburst
HI	Starburst	Hershey Kisses	Pez
ID	M&M’s	Hershey Kisses	Jolly Rancher
IL	Jolly Rancher	Pez	M&M’s
IN	Snickers	Candy Canes	Starburst
IA	M&M’s	Reese’s Pieces	Hershey Kisses
KS	Peppermint Bark	M&M’s	Candy Canes
KY	M&M’s	Reese’s Minis	Starburst
LA	Pez	Skittles	Reese’s Minis
ME	Candy Canes	Hershey Kisses	Chocolate santa
MD	Reese’s Pieces	Candy Canes	Pez
MA	Skittles	Hershey Kisses	Candy Canes
MI	Reindeer Corn	Reese’s Pieces	M&M’s
MN	Jolly Rancher	Hershey Kisses	Snickers
MS	Snickers	Hershey Kisses	Candy Canes
MO	Starburst	Skittles	Hershey Kisses
MT	Skittles	Reese’s Minis	Reese’s Pieces
NE	Hershey Kisses	M&M’s	Pez
NV	Peppermint Bark	Candy Canes	Starburst
NH	Candy Canes	Reese’s Minis	Skittles
NJ	Reese’s Minis	Pez	Skittles
NM	Pez	Chocolate santa	Candy Canes
NY	Skittles	Candy Canes	Pez
NC	Pez	Snickers	Starburst
ND	Chocolate santa	Pez	Reese’s Minis
OH	Pez	Hershey Kisses	Starburst
OK	Starburst	Pez	Skittles
OR	Reese’s Minis	Candy Canes	Snickers
PA	Candy Canes	Pez	Reese’s Minis
RI	M&M’s	Skittles	Candy Canes
SC	Pez	M&M’s	Starburst
SD	Reese’s Minis	Reese’s Pieces	Hershey Kisses
TN	M&M’s	Candy Canes	Starburst
TX	Pez	Skittles	Candy Canes
UT	Reindeer Corn	Hershey Kisses	M&M’s
VT	Candy Canes	Snickers	Pez
VA	M&M’s	Pez	Candy Canes
WA	Candy Canes	Reese’s Minis	Skittles
DC	Jolly Rancher	Snickers	Candy Canes
WV	Peppermint Bark	Pez	Jolly Rancher
WI	Pez	Jolly Rancher	Starburst
WY	M&M’s	Snickers	Reese’s Pieces

Without further ado, here are the states and their top Christmas time candies.

Alabama

Reindeer corn is a festive candy that’s derivative of its original Halloween counterpart. The Yellowhammer State loved that one too! Alabama’s top Halloween candy was candy corn. They love that stuff down there! I wonder what George Washington Carver would think about reindeer corn?

Alaska

The Last Frontier State loves Hershey Kisses at Christmas time. If they had a kiss for every mile of coastline in Alaska, they’d have 6,640 kisses. And then they’d probably need some chapstick.

Arizona

I wonder if there are Pez dispensers in the shape of telescopes. If so, you’d probably find them in Tuscon where they have the most telescopes in the world. AZ loves Pez at Christmas time, and Pez do make good gifts and easy, fun stocking stuffers. Skittles came in second, followed by Hershey Kisses.

Arkansas

Shine bright like a Starburst in Arkansas. If you get that subtle (and bad) joke, you must be from AR! …and a Rihanna fan. The Natural State loves those fruity morsels, along with candy canes and Skittles at #2 and #3.

California

Peppermint Bark reigns supreme in the Golden State. I wonder how much peppermint bark it would take to replace the actual bark on the General Sherman, California’s ginormous and really old tree. It would certainly look a lot more festive that way. M&M’s came in second in CA, Hershey Kisses third.

Colorado

Did you know a silver nugget that weighed 1850 pounds (!) was found near Aspen? It was a long time ago, but it makes sense why Coloradans love Hershey’s Kisses. It is like a big silver nugget. Reese’s Pieces and candy canes were runners up.

Connecticut

Some people call people from Connecticut Nutmeggers. Must be an inside joke. But I guess Nutmegger is appropriate for a Christmas season article. It certainly rolls off the tongue better than Connecticuters. What rolls down the tongue in CT are M&M’s. Followed by Hershey Kisses and candy canes.

Delaware

Register your candy canes here for the best tax advantages. You can visit them on your holidays. Candy canes took the number one spot in the land of corporate entities. Followed by Pez and Hershey Kisses.

Florida

They found an 8,000 year old body in Florida so well preserved they extracted DNA out of its brain tissue. Maybe in a few more millennia they’ll dig up some poor sap from our time with a belly full of Skittles. Floridians loved them for Halloween too. M&M’s and Snickers were runners up.

Georgia

Sit on your idyllic Georgian porch, watch the willows weep and hand out candy canes to your neighbors. Sounds like a fine holiday tradition to me, even if I did just make that up. Candy canes topped the Peach State, followed by fruity combo of Skittles and Starburst.

Hawaii

When you have your own time zone, you don’t give a darn about daylight savings time. And so, Hawaii doesn’t. They do love their Starbursts in the Aloha State, as well as their royal palace. Hershey Kisses for that chocolate fix and in third place comes Pez.

Idaho

No one Main Streets better than Idaho. The longest main street in America is in Idaho and it would take a whole lot of M&M’s to cover all 33 miles of it. Plenty of room along that road for spectaters for a Potato Parade. Ok bad potato joke. Second and third go to Hershey Kisses and Jolly Ranchers.

Illinois

People in Illinois are smart. They reversed the flow of a river, for goodness sakes! In 1887!! Still Jolly Ranchers seem an unusual choice to be number one for holiday season candy. But hey, Chi-town, you do you. Pez and M&M’s come in second and third.

Indiana

Indiana has a lot going for it. Indy 500, Notre Dame football, Indiana Hoosier Basketball, Stranger Things, The Upside Down. Ok, Indiana had a lot going for it in the 1980s. But glory once crowned this marvelous Midwest state! If you snickered there, then I achieved context. Snickers are number one here during the holidays, candy canes and Starburst follow.

Iowa

The Hawkeye State has the steepest railroad in America, a 60-degree incline. Santa’s sleigh can’t even handle that kind of grade! Ok, maybe it can. M&M’s are the winners in Iowa, followed by Reese’s Pieces and Hershey Kisses.

Kansas

Kansas has been proven to be flatter than a pancake. If you’ve ever been to Kansas you really can’t dispute that. We were expecting reindeer corn to do well here, but maybe since there is already so much corn, they need to escape a little. So they choose fun and festive peppermint bark candy. Peppermint bark was first place, M&M’s second, and candy canes third. No word on how far down the list reindeer corn came in.

Kentucky

Conspiracy theorists claim that there’s not actually any gold in Fort Knox. Maybe that’s where they keep all their holiday M&M’s. The Bluegrass State loves M&M’s at Christmas time. Reese’s Mini Cups came in second, with Starburst closing out the top 3.

Louisiana

Louisiana loves football so much. How much? Once when LSU scored a last second touchdown to win a big game, the celebrations from the crowd registered on the Richter scale. So we will guess that the majority of Pez dispensers sold at Christmas time have a Tigers football helmet on top. Skittles came in second, followed by Reese’s Mini Cups.

Maine

Poor Maine. It kind of sticks out like a sore thumb..on the map. Hardy har har. But, it’s also the only state the only borders one other state, only one-syllable named state, and the only state where the state flower isn’t a flower. Bit of an oddball, Maine. Nothing odd about candy canes though. How very standard and traditional of you, Maine. You’re not fooling anyone.

Maryland

Highest median income in America. But Richy Rich Marylanders love good ol’ Reese’s Pieces during the holidays. I love Reese’s Pieces too, but I would have guessed gold flake chocolate truffles or something.  Candy canes come in second, Pez third.

Massachusetts

It’s windy in Massachusetts, y’all. How windy?  Sixteen of the top 25 windiest cities are in MA. Damn Daniel, no wonder the snow piles up so high there. Skittles take number one in the Bay State.

Michigan

Michigan is part of the Corn Belt, and it loves the corn. The football team color is “Maize”. Their quarterback’s name is O’Korn. Candy corn is their #1 Halloween candy. They even genetically modified their sweet corn to increase the sugar content from 9% to 35%. They just LOVE the corn. No surprise, Michigan’s favorite candy during the holiday season: Reindeer Corn.

Minnesota

The oldest rock in the world was found in Minnesota. Huh? That stat confuses me. Was the world made of liquid before this mother rock gave birth to the rest of the rock and crust, etc? Brain spinning. Ok, back to candy. Jolly Ranchers top the holiday favorites for MN. Hershey Kisses and Snickers come next.

Mississippi

Hey what’s that? Home of the original Stetson cowboy hats, Mississippi has a name that has inspired many children’s songs made to encourage spelling. Fill your Christmas cowboy hats with Snickers this year.

Missouri

The 1904 World’s Fair gave birth to many treats that we still enjoy today. Cotton candy, anyone? What about waffle cones and ice tea. Staples. A modern day holidays staple in MO is Starburst, the top Christmas candy in the state. Skittles and Hershey Kisses round out the list.

Montana

Ah Montana. Where the river runs through it and the temperature can jump from negative 54 to plus 49 degrees in one day. I hope you like your Skittles frozen, Montanans. Skittles are the number one holiday candy, followed by Reese’s Mini Cups and Reese’s Pieces.

Nebraska

If you’re a sandhill crane bird watcher, or a roller skate history buff, there is not greater state than Nebraska! Annual bird migrations bring thousands of bird watchers every year, and the world’s only roller skate museum resides there too. Stop by Omaha to see what the Oracle has to say about Christmas candy. Odds are he likes Hershey Kisses best, followed by M&M’s and Pez.

Nevada

With all that Vegas going on over there, it’s easy to get distracted from the fact that there have been many nuclear tests done in Nevada. You would think the fallouts would have affected their judgement, but not judging by their holiday candy preferences. Pretty traditional: peppermint bark, then candy canes and Starburst. OK Starburst for Christmas isn’t quite traditional. Chalk it up to the nukes.

New Hampshire

Live Free or Die. You can take this candy cane out of my cold dead hand. New Hampshire people will not be told how to live. Though, in this case, not many people will argue with candy canes for Christmas. So, chill out NH, enjoy your canes and don’t worry about any candy oppression this year.

New Jersey

Horses and divorces they say. More horses than Kentucky and the fewest divorces in the country. Nice work, Jersey! Just don’t count on the bridges to be open when the politicians get cranky. Jersey loves Reese’s Mini Cups during the holidays, followed by Pez and Skittles.

New Mexico

State law in New Mexico declares that no idiot shall vote. It’s not clear at the time of publication whether a definition for “idiot” has yet been entered into statute. But if you choose Pez, Chocolate Santas or candy canes as your favorite holiday candy, I’d say your voting rights are likely to remain in tact.

New York

New York City has over 700 miles of subway tracks flowing under the city streets. I wonder how many people riding on the subway this holiday season will be snacking on Skittles? Odds are good that many of them will. It’s the number one holiday candy in New York. But New York state is more than just NYC. Dairy farmers and Woodstock re-enacters might also be downing Skittles. Or candy canes which came in #2.

North Carolina

The largest privately owned home in America is situated in North Carolina. In the mountains of Asheville, a house with a square footage exceeding 4 acres and 250 rooms waits for you to get lost in. The fireplace is probably gigantic too, so it would probably take a lot of Pez to fill all the stockings hanging there.  Pez is the winner in NC, followed by Snickers and Starburst.

North Dakota

The official state beverage of North Dakota is milk. Awww. That’s so adorable. So I guess they won’t have a problem leaving out a glass or more of the milky goodness for Kris Kringle on Christmas Eve. Bottoms up Santa. Speaking of St Nick, North Dakota favors chocolate santas for their holiday candy. Pez and Reese Mini Cups run up.

Ohio

The first ambulance service started in Ohio in 1865. The first electric traffic lights were installed in Cleveland in 1914. First state to use police cars too. The cash register was invented there. Clever mechanical and electric things come out of Ohio. No surprise that they love Pez candy during the holidays.  Those funky dispensers are always new and unique and have that clever mechanical operation that is just satisfying. Still no idea who Sloopy is though.

Oklahoma

The Sooner State is known for those incredible covered wagons of the pioneer days. I wonder how many Starbursts it would take to fill one of those. Early settlers might have need a more rounded set of equipment than just several tons of sugary candy. But they would have sure had a Merry Christmas!  Starbursts are the number one candy in Oklahoma for the holidays, followed by Pez and Skittles.

Oregon

Speaking of covered wagons. Oregon Trial is such a classic Apple IIe 1980s game I can’t even see the word Oregon without thinking of little digital men fending off all sorts of dire circumstances on my computer screen. Ah elementary school. If only those men had Reese’s Mini Cups to keep them nourished in those cold winter months. Maybe I would have finally made it to Oregon! The mini cups are number one in Oregon, with candy canes and Snickers rounding off the top 3.

Pensylvania

If the Liberty Bell only used one N, then that’s good enough for me. Crazy right? There’s even a place in the Constitution where it’s spelled without the double n. Luckily for historical re-enactors and grammar nerds, the top candy in this state presents no such dilemma.  Only one way to spell candy canes. Pez comes in second. Reese cups third.

Rhode Island

Rhode Islanders were the first ones to take military action against their English overlords in the Revolution. They sank a British ship in the Narragansett Bay. Take that, HMS Gaspee. For this bold move, Rhode Islanders can basically do whatever they want for holiday candy, no judgement from us. They choose M&M’s, Skittles and candy canes.

South Carolina

The official dance of the state of South Carolina is the Shag.  The best shaggers create the illusion of slippery feet and rubber knees. I don’t know nothing bout that, but I do know that Pez makes their knees weak during the holiday season. M&M’s comes in second, Starburst third.

South Dakota

South Dakota is allegedly the least sleep-deprived state in the country. That could be why they make such wise decisions on holiday candy. Reese’s Mini Cups takes the number one spot, with Reese’s Pieces at number two. Can’t go wrong with ol’ Reese.

Tennessee

Tennessee borders a lot of states. In fact, on a clear day, from the top of Lookout Mountain it is said you can see seven different states. No word yet on whether that includes Tennessee. Standing up on that mountain at Christmas time, you can probably also see a lot of M&M’s – TN’s favorite holiday candy. Candy canes came in #2, Starbursts #3.

Texas

Don’t mess with Texas.  That slogan actually started as a anti-littering campaign. I guess they overshot a little, because it’s now pretty much the slogan of the state of Texas. So Texans, be sure not to litter when you unwrap and load-up your Pez dispensers this holiday season. Skittles and candy canes also have wrappers that residents of Texas will no doubt diligently dispose of in the proper receptacle.

Utah

There’s a quarry in Utah where more than 1200 dinosaur bones have been recovered. It’s the highest concentration in the world. Centuries from now, archeologists might find the remains of al the reindeer corn sold in Utah during the holiday season. Hershey Kisses are #2, and M&M’s are third.

Vermont

Vermont has the highest ratio of cows to people in America. That must be who’s eating all those candy canes. It was the first state to be admitted into the Union after ratifying the Constitution, and the last state to have a Wal-Mart. Sounds like good leadership to me.

Virginia

Virginia is a generous state. One of the original colonies, Virginia used to be much larger but granted large sections of land for the formation of Kentucky and West Virginia. I hope Virginia gets me this year for Secret Santa. They love M&M’s in VA. That’s the number one holiday candy. Pez comes in second, candy canes third.

Washington

Apples and glaciers. Washington produces the most apples of any state and has more glaciers than all the others combined. Not including Alaska of course. Ok, yeah that’s a big exclusion. If you’re in the area for the holidays, grab some candy canes because that is what’s happening in Washington holiday candy. Reese’s Mini Cups are #2.

Washington DC

Jolly Ranchers dominate this volatile town where jolly doesn’t seem to describe anyone lately. Here’s to a jolly holiday season to a town to a town (district) that could use a break from all the crazy politics.
Note, DC was too small for the interactive map. Sorry guys!

West Virginia

West Virginia is often called the southern-most northern state and the northern-most southern state, which I think means the same thing. But maybe not? Someone explain that to me in the comments below. WV goes the way of the peppermint bark for Christmas time. Gotta respect that. They also love Pez and Jolly Ranchers.

Wisconsin

For a state whose official dance is the polka and in which resides the World of Accordians, it seems kind of in keeping that their favorite candy during the holidays would be Pez. Pez has that same kind of nostalgic cult following. Pez feels right for Wisconsin.  Way to go Badgers. Also, the Dells is awesome.

Wyoming

The first national park was in Wyoming, Yellowstone. It was also the first state to grant women’s voting rights. And the first dude ranch too. So many firsts in Wyoming, but I also read there are only two set of escalators in the whole state. Maybe that’s changed by now. But Wyoming won’t be the first state to favor M&M’s during Christmas time. They also love Snickers and Reese’s Pieces.

 

So which candy does your state prefer? Does the list above match with what you like or your loved ones would like to receive as a gift?

If you get the wrong thing, just remember that – really – the holiday season is about family and friends.  It’s the thought that counts, the gesture that matters. Unless you give me reindeer corn, in which case we are no longer friends.

Leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!

For more info or press inquiries contact Clair at: clair@candystore.com

So which candy does your state prefer? Does the list above match with what you like or your loved ones would like to receive as a gift?

If you get the wrong thing, just remember that – really – the holiday season is about family and friends.  It’s the thought that counts, the gesture that matters. Unless you give me reindeer corn, in which case we are no longer friends.

Leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!

For more info or press inquiries contact Clair at: clair@candystore.com

Oh yeah, and here’s that gorgeous infographic:

Source: CandyStore.com