This Map Shows Every State’s Favorite Halloween Candy

You know it’s October when you step into the grocery store and suddenly the aisles are stocked with spooky bags of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Twix, Starbursts and Hershey’s bars. Maybe there are mini pumpkins and apple cider for sale, so later that day you can sip an autumnal drink as you doom scroll and reminisce about the Halloweens of yore when your kids could actually trick-or-treat without having to worry about COVID-19. But now, as some families are likely to spend their Halloweens just watching a scary movie and eating bags of candy, the sweet stuff has never been more important. But according to a new map, the kind of candy you pick might actually say something about the state you live in. Zippia examined Google Trends to figure out the most popular candy in each state, and yes, as expected, it gets kinda weird.

Unsurprisingly, Starbursts are a nationwide favorite, and the most popular choice in Texas, South Carolina, North Dakota, Iowa and Georgia and Alabama. Crunch bars take the top slot in California, New Jersey, New York and North Carolina. Kit Kats are sought after in Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada and Washington. The breakdown between chocolate-based candy and fruit-flavored candies is, interestingly, an even split, with 25 states preferring chocolate and the other 25 chomping on the non-chocolate stuff.

There are definitely some outliers, though, like Oklahoma liking Wonka’s Runts (y’know, the hard candies that are shaped like apples and bananas, that you haven’t seen since you were a kid). Rhode Island prefers Baby Ruths, which isn’t that weird, New Hampshire appears to have a penchant for circus peanuts. We don’t know why, either. Whatever your candy preference is, and even if you’re looking at your state’s candy choice and feeling a little confused, with Halloween just around the corner, you at least have a good excuse to grab a few bags of your favorite treats. But if it’s circus peanuts, just know that there might be a little judgement. Peanuts are fine. Starbursts, however, are clearly king. It’s important to note that Candy Corn is truly nowhere to be found on the list.