Americans preparing for Halloween this year may find their favorite treats come with a scarier price tag. Candy and chewing gum prices were 7.7 percent higher in September than a year earlier, more than twice the 3.7 percent increase in overall consumer prices, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Since August 2019, candy and gum prices have climbed 54 percent, compared with a 31 percent increase in overall consumer prices and a 35 percent rise in hourly pay, according to the website US Food Price Monitor, which cites BLS data. Still, Americans are not giving up their Halloween sweets. Consumers are expected to spend a record $13.5 billion celebrating Halloween in 2026, including $4.1 billion on candy, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported.
Roughly 96 percent of Halloween shoppers plan to buy candy this year, it said. However, what exactly goes into those trick-or-treat bowls varies widely by state. CandyStore.com's 2026 analysis, based on Halloween season sales data dating from 2008 to 2025, found M&M's remain America's top Halloween candy overall.
Sour Patch Kids has climbed to No. 2 nationally, with each brand taking the top spot in 10 states, according to the analysis. This year's candy inflation is part of a much larger run-up in prices. BLS data shows candy and chewing gum prices increased 2.3 percent in the year ending September 2020.
They rose by 2 percent in 2021, 13.1 percent in 2022, 7.5 percent in 2023 and 0.3 percent in 2024. They then accelerated again, increasing 9.8 percent in the year ending September 2025 and another 7.7 percent through September of this year. CandyStore.com's report found 12 states had a different No. 1 Halloween candy this year compared to the company's previous 2024 ranking.
Seven of those states switched from a chocolate favorite to one without. None moved in the opposite direction, it said. "Because chocolate makers buy cocoa months—sometimes up to two years—ahead, shoppers are paying for that spike now," Ali Furman, PwC's consumer markets industry leader, told NBC News.
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