Best Candy of 2025: Our Taste Testers’ Sweetest Picks

You know what’s sweet? Making a career of tasting candy. I mean, sure, some days I’d take a carrot stick over a Twizzler, but we here at Sporked recognize having the chance to try pretty much all the fun new candy that hits stores right when it comes out is a privilege. What are we doing with our privilege? Telling you about the best candy we tried all year, that’s what.

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Runner-Up

Haribo Sour Sodas

Haribo

If you love sour candy and you love the whimsy of soda-flavored candies that are shaped like little soda bottles, good news: Haribo released a banger just for you this year. Sour Sodas are delicious, zingy, and fun to eat. And even though we’re fans of the typical extra-firm chew of Haribo gummies, we like that these are soft and squishy—the squish really keeps you coming back for more. Granted, the flavors are a little odd—Cherry Cola is a gimme; Lemon-Strawberry and Peach-Blue Raspberry aren’t exactly the first combos you think of when you think “soda”—but hey, the weirdness certainly contributes to the whimsy.

Credit: Liv Averett / Haribo

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

Winner

Ferrero Rocher Squares

Instacart

This might be an unpopular opinion among the real sweets freaks, but I’ve always thought that Ferrero Rocher candies, in their original orb form, were a bit much. One bite and I’m good (well, as long as that bite includes the whole-hazelnut center). That’s part of the reason I’m such a big fan of the much daintier Ferrero Rocher Squares, which turned out to be the best candy we tried all year. We tried the variety pack, which includes dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate. Your favorite will totally be a matter of taste, but I was STUNNED by how good the white chocolate squares are—the creamy, neutral flavor really highlights the crispy-crunchy hazelnut filling inside the squares. Yeah, it was the year of Dubai chocolate, but these little hazelnut-filled treats are timeless.

Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

About the Author

Howdy! I’m Gwynedd, Sporked’s managing editor. I live in Los Angeles and have access to the best tacos the U.S. has to offer—but I’m a sucker for a crunchy Old El Paso taco night every now and then. I’ve been at Sporked since 2022 and I’m still searching frozen mozzarella sticks that can hold a candle to restaurant sticks. Why you should trust me: I’ve been a journalist for 20 years (yikes), a consumer of food for 40-plus years, and I’m truly hard pressed to think of foods I don’t like (or that I can’t tolerate at the very least). Oh and one time I cooked my way through Guy Fieri’s cookbook and wrote about the journey through Flavortown. What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s Original Savory Thins. Fat free plain yogurt (usually Fage or Nancy’s). Honeycrisp apples. Sweet cream coffee creamer for my at-home Americanos. A frozen cauliflower crust pizza and some jarred mushrooms to top it with. Old El Paso Stand ‘N Stuff taco shells and Gardein Ground Be’f, even though I think “be’f” is a nightmarish contraction. Favorite ranking: Stouffer’s frozen dinners. I don’t own a microwave (I get my cancers the old fashioned way!), so I love taste testing things that I don’t really buy to eat at home. Least favorite ranking: Soy sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love soy sauce—but consuming that much sodium in one sitting is probably illegal in some countries. Our frozen enchilada taste test was a close second; the smell of microwaved corn tortillas still haunts me.