The Two Most Avoided Halloween Candies Are Somehow Getting More Sales Than Ever, DoorDash Data Shows

Every Halloween candy bowl has its winners and losers. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups disappear quickly, while a few less-celebrated treats have a reputation for being left behind or traded away. But new DoorDash ordering data suggests Americans may be buying more of two of Halloween’s most famously divisive offerings: candy corn and raisins.

DoorDash analyzed U.S. orders placed throughout October 2025 to identify the trends that could shape Halloween 2026. The company found that candy corn orders increased 30% year over year, while raisin orders jumped an even more surprising 60%. That growth comes despite DoorDash describing them as the kinds of treats people frequently claim they don’t want to discover in their Halloween haul.

The numbers don’t suddenly make either one America’s favorite Halloween treat. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups remain the most-ordered candy nationally for the third consecutive year, followed by Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars and M&M’s. Instead, the surprising increases show that Halloween buying habits are becoming considerably more varied than the traditional bowl filled exclusively with miniature chocolate bars.

Candy Corn and Raisins Are Quietly Making a Comeback

Candy corn may inspire an annual debate as soon as Halloween approaches, but plenty of people are apparently still ordering it. DoorDash found its orders rose 30% compared with the previous year. Raisins performed even better, climbing 60%, continuing an unusual comeback for something generations of trick-or-treaters have joked about receiving instead of candy.

Cristen Milliner, a consumer trends expert at DoorDash, suggested the increase in raisins may reflect parents looking for something that still works as a Halloween treat without adding even more candy to an already sugar-heavy night. She said their continued growth makes the trend increasingly difficult to dismiss as a one-year anomaly.

Raisins actually staged an even more dramatic surge in DoorDash’s previous Halloween report. The company’s 2025 analysis found raisin orders during Halloween week in 2024 had increased 522% year over year. Although the measurement periods aren’t directly comparable, the continued increase in DoorDash’s latest October data suggests people haven’t completely abandoned the unconventional trick-or-treat option.

Old-School Candy Is Suddenly Cool Again

Candy corn and raisins aren’t the only unlikely products finding new fans. DoorDash says old-fashioned sweets are enjoying a second consecutive year of significant growth, with Circus Peanuts leading the comeback at a staggering 350% increase in orders. Lemonhead orders climbed 200%, Bit-O-Honey rose 180%, and Dum-Dums doubled with an increase of about 100%.

The resurgence builds on trends DoorDash identified a year earlier. Its 2025 Halloween analysis found major growth for nostalgic products including Strawberry Bon Bons, Baby Bottle Pop, Bit-O-Honey, and Necco Wafers. DoorDash previously suggested that nostalgia could be helping older candies find new audiences, with parents rediscovering childhood favorites while younger consumers encounter the same products as retro treats.

Meanwhile, the mainstream favorites aren’t disappearing. Reese’s remains the national leader, and chocolate occupies four of the top five positions in DoorDash’s latest ranking. But fruity and sour options are gaining ground too: Airheads climbed from tenth to seventh, while Haribo entered the top 10 for the first time. The Halloween candy bowl, in other words, appears to be getting more eclectic rather than simply abandoning the classics.

Halloween Treats Are Changing Beyond the Candy Bowl

Shoppers aren’t only changing which sweets they buy. DoorDash found that full-size and king-size candy increased from more than 15% to 20% of candy order share, suggesting some households are going bigger with the treats they hand out. At the same time, Takis overtook pretzels and Goldfish as the platform’s most popular non-candy Halloween treat, another sign that intense and savory flavors are finding space beside traditional sweets.

Halloween shoppers also appear to wait until remarkably late to stock their bowls. DoorDash found an unusual rush between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Halloween, when candy ordering nearly doubled compared with a normal Friday. Orders then climbed again throughout the afternoon and peaked around 6 p.m., just as households were dealing with trick-or-treaters and potentially realizing their candy supply wasn’t going to last.

So candy corn and raisins haven’t dethroned Reese’s, and DoorDash’s figures represent orders on its own U.S. platform rather than every Halloween purchase nationwide. Still, the data makes one thing clear: the treats people love to complain about aren’t necessarily the ones shoppers have stopped buying. With candy corn up 30%, raisins up 60%, and nostalgic candies posting even larger increases, some of Halloween’s most mocked treats may be finding a surprisingly enthusiastic second life.