Spooky Sweets: S-Tier Stars and Subpar Selections

Happy Halloween eve, Stuyvesant! If you are making a last-minute CVS trip for candy and debating which ones to offer to hungry trick-or-treaters tomorrow, refer to this comprehensive and completely unbiased tier list of 16 popular Halloween candies to make your pick and become the most popular neighbor in your neighborhood. 

TLDR: Candy corn sucks. 

S-Tier

Peanut M&Ms: With a nostalgic crunch and the perfect combination of sweet chocolate and salty peanuts, Peanut M&Ms take their well-earned place in the S tier of Halloween candy. This classic treat is an A&E favorite for good reason. Their small size and non-melting exterior make them perfect for sharing. The complexity of flavours in this candy is a large part of its appeal. It is a household name and a true step up from regular M&Ms, which lack the balance that comes from the peanut element of this chocolate candy. Nothing is more welcome on Halloween night than a classic yellow package full of these delightful candies. —Lea Salas Adam

Reese’s: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups have been a staple Halloween candy forever, and for good reason. The sweetness of the chocolate coating is perfectly balanced by the savory, salty peanut butter, creating an ideal bite without the nauseating sugar overload that some candies bring. The creaminess of the chocolate and peanut butter as they melt in your mouth only adds to the treat’s beautiful simplicity. Several members of A&E argued that Trader Joe’s dark chocolate peanut butter cups outshine the original Reese’s, but we still agreed unanimously that Reese’s deserves an S-tier ranking. Sorry to those with peanut allergies! You’re truly missing out. —Kimberly Chen

Butterfingers: I find it impossible to believe that anyone, with the exception of people allergic to peanuts, would be able to say that Butterfingers are anything below an S-tier. They’re truly the absolute perfect balance of salty (peanut butter) and sweet (chocolate, peanut butter), with a delectable crunch—I’d try to explain it, but it’s truly impossible to put its glory into words. I feel so sorry for everyone who is unable to try a Butterfinger, since nothing will truly ever top it. And it’s not like I’m just some crazy person rambling about “Oh, Butterfingers this! Butterfingers that!” It was practically unanimous to place these legendary treats into S tier, and for good reason. —Riley Martin

Sour Patch Kids: As the signature sour candy, it’s no surprise that Sour Patch Kids are a fan favorite. The initial sourness hits like a punch to the face, while the fruity, tangy sweetness afterward acts like a balm for the shock. There’s a balance between sour and sweet that makes Sour Patch Kids different from the other fruit candies on this list. The outer coating adds a unique, sand-like texture that melts away with the sourness to expose a smooth, juicy gummy underneath. A&E was incredibly split on whether the original or watermelon version of this candy is better, but we ultimately concluded that the original cannot be topped. —Sara Bhuiyan

A-Tier

Kit-Kats: Kit-Kats are clearly A-tier—one of A&E’s most unanimous votes of the day. The classic chocolate candy easily clears much in the way of plasticky-tasting artificials and overcomplicated, thick candy bars. This strength in simplicity, however, leads to Kit-Kats falling short of true perfection. With a thin profile and a center solely containing wafer, they lack a distinctive ingredient or a delicious pairing, as we see with nuts and nougat in Snickers or creamy chocolate creating a texture contrast in Kinder Bueno. The chocolate is also a shade too sweet, solidifying this classic’s place in the A tier. —-Daniel Oren.

Swedish Fish: Swedish Fish in A-tier was a controversial “agreement” that nearly tore A&E apart! In the end, the beautifully red gummy won the hearts of the many and prevented a civil war. Swedish Fish have a wonderful flavor that is sweet and fruit-forward while not being overly sugary. It has a solidly bouncy texture that is satisfying to bite into but does tend to stick to your teeth. All in all, Swedish Fish has a delicious taste and has earned its A-tier placement, but lacks the complexity of flavors needed to send it into S-tier. —Maggie Miao

Twix: Twix is an A-tier—pretty good but not astounding. Chocolate coating with caramel and crunchy wafer can’t be beat. Though the caramel-to-crunch ratio is a bit off—I prefer more caramel, and it’s lacking salt that could tie it all together. Overall, it’s pretty good, and no one would be mad about having a Twix, but a dark chocolate coating and sea salt could take it to the next level. —Soraya Gharib

Kinder: Our Kinder came from a mixed bag, so we got two different candies: Kinder Chocolates and Kinder Bueno. The Kinder Chocolates are little milk chocolate bars with a creamy, smooth milk filling inside. It’s simple and sweet, and it’ll make you feel like you're seven again. The crispy wafer-filled Bueno is more interesting, with hazelnut cream and a thin milk chocolate coating, making it taste like a lighter and crunchier cousin of Nutella. We judged that they were good competition for the S-tier heavyweights, but fell short in that they were too sweet, especially the Chocolates. —James Lu

B-Tier

Smarties: Smarties haven’t hit the same since elementary school, but the nostalgia factor hits hard. Remember the times when we would crush them into powder and eat them like pixie sticks? They taste like straight sugar, but perhaps that isn’t the worst thing in the world. Each color should taste the same, but your brain has this way of tricking you and associating the colors with a different flavor. They’re sugar pills that melt in your mouth unless you crunch on them, which allows them to sizzle. There are stronger contenders for the best Halloween candy, but Smarties are no pushover. —Alexander Deng

Skittles: Skittles are a classic choice for fruit-flavored candy cravings, though they don’t present themselves as anything extraordinary. The cushy chew that Skittles have is a nice addition to their mildly fulfilling flavors that may or may not be the same. Does the orange-flavored Skittle taste any different from the strawberry-flavored Skittle? My tongue says yes, but my Instagram reels say no. The conspiracy has yet to be debunked, and the A&E department is certainly not up for the job. Ultimately, the passing juiciness but flat simplicity of the candy has led to the mostly unanimous agreement of its placement in B tier. —Hana Fathony

Snickers: Snickers is, without a doubt, a runner-up after Twix in the classic go-to caramel and milk chocolate candy campaign. The mix of crunchy and chewy can feel off-putting. The peanut bits don’t have that same airy crunch as Ferrero Rocher, and instead, provide a heavy, unpleasant texture similar to those in a Trader-Joe's trail mix (who wants that for Halloween?). The overly-sweet milk chocolate coating, coupled with the already sweet caramel, leaves a bitter, grainy feeling on the back of my throat and the roof of my mouth. A well-deserved B. —Chloe Tseng

C-Tier

Starbursts: Starbursts are a volatile candy, leaving many either deeply content or utterly disappointed. Some flavors, such as strawberry and lemon, tend to be preferred, while others are underwhelming. Additionally, the excessive sweetness combined with the inevitable sticking of the candy to your teeth makes it frustrating to eat. However, there are some upsides to this rather unfortunate candy, namely the juicy burst of flavor and the thrill of getting a “good” flavor. It is sad that Starbursts have the potential to be a solid contender in the list of great candies, but they sink to C tier due to a vast imbalance of flavors and their frustrating qualities. —Noah Choi

Hershey’s: Hershey’s are a pretty standard chocolate, and their small size makes them perfect for giving out as Halloween treats. However, the white cream coating over the already sickeningly sweet milk chocolate inside made them just too overwhelming to rank them higher than a C in the A&E tier list. —Glynnis Gravador

D-Tier

Hi-Chews: Hi-Chews in general should be more of a B or C tier, but these flavors in particular were shockingly disappointing, with the dragonfruit even tasting a bit like olive oil (which is pretty gross), which cast it down to D tier. —Kaity So

F-Tier

Twizzlers: Twizzlers are often seen as one of the worst candies, and A&E definitely agrees. Despite the bright red color, they somehow manage to taste like nothing, the supposed strawberry flavor fading into oblivion. Their rubbery consistency makes it feel as though you are biting through hard wax, with every piece a struggle to tear off. Unlike other candies that excel in at least one category, Twizzlers fail in both flavor and texture, leaving A&E with nearly no reason to place them in any other tier. —Molly Gupta

Candy corn: Candy corn, the face of Halloween candy, yet the most hated. I can definitely see why it’s earned itself such a bad reputation. It’s heavy on the sweetness, doesn’t attempt to cut any of that sweetness with a sour kick, and isn’t rich enough to be decadent like chocolate. It’s creamy, but it has a dull flavor that gets old fast. Eating more than three at a time is just a little bit gross. But those three alone can hold their ground; it’s not like they completely fail to satisfy a craving for candy. I’d say they’d do better in a snack mix with other candy and, say, popcorn, rather than being eaten alone. —Haifa Sudjiro