Confession time: I love low sugar candy. I have sugar guilt that’s a byproduct of coming of age in the ‘90s. That’s life! But believe me, the best low sugar candy has its virtues: You can eat a whole bag in one sitting. It’s fruity and sweet (although nowhere near as sweet as candy that’s loaded with sugar or corn syrup), and it scratches that candy itch without being loaded with calories. It’s frequently vegan. And it’s low carb, if you care about that and you believe the food math on these packages, which typically goes something like carbs – fiber – sugar alcohol = net carbs. Anyway, my enthusiasm for candy sweetened with things like allulose and stevia leaf came in handy in this taste test.
For this taste test, I gathered a bunch of low sugar candy, some from brands I’d heard of, some from brands I hadn’t. You’ve probably seen Joyride at Whole Foods or your local AMC movie theater (we’re all AMC Stubs A-List members, right??), but have you seen Blobs? Or how about Albanese’s low sugar offerings? They were news to me. And now I have new go-tos to smuggle into the movies—don’t rat or I’ll have my A-List membership revoked. Here’s the best low sugar candy (as in, the best tasting low sugar candy) you can buy.
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- Kiss My Keto Tropical Rings (1 gram of sugar, 2 net carbs)
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These Kiss My Keto gummy rings are sweetened with stevia leaf, fruit juice, and the sugar alcohol Erythritol. I’m no food scientist, but I think Erythritol might be one of the sugar alcohols that result in a cooling sensation on the palate, because I definitely experienced that. Anyway, these keto candy rings are fruity and chewy enough to make up for the weirdness. The rings come in three flavors—mango, orange, and pineapple—and they’re all pretty good. It’s not the best low sugar candy in the world, but with just one gram of sugar, you could certainly do worse.
Credit: Merc / Instacart
- Joyride Sour Gummy Worms (0 grams of sugar, 5 net carbs)
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As I mentioned, AMC carries Joyride sour gummy bears, but I actually prefer these gummy worms. These aren’t very sour, but I think that’s okay. You’re gonna be eating a whole bag and you don’t want to totally destroy your tongue. Okay, fine, they could be more sour. That said, I like them a lot. These low sugar candies have a firm, satisfying chew (much firmer than Trolli gummy worms, if that’s what you’re used to). They’re not super sweet, but sweet enough to taste like candy. The sour powder tends to settle in my throat rather than on my tongue. But they’re pleasant to eat. They come in three flavors that I couldn’t really tell apart: Tropical Nights, Lemon Sublime, and Rainbow Ice. If I had to guess which was which, I would say Rainbow Ice tastes the best, although Lemon Sublime has a tang that’s pleasant. This is the best low sugar candy if you need to scratch that gummy worm itch. Also, these are sweetened with allulose instead of sugar alcohols if that is a selling point.
Credit: Merc / Instacart
- Joyride Fruity Golly Lolli’s (1 gram of sugar, 2 net carbs)
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Lollipops are so boring. But they exist because people like to eat them, so far be it from me to let my gummy candy bias keep lollipops off of our list of the best low sugar candy. (Also, I’m not sure why “Lolli” is possessive in this low sugar candy’s brand name, but that’s not my business!) Anyway, based on the flavor of a lot of other low sugar candy, I didn’t love the idea of a lollipop. What gets the job done in most cases is the chew—you’re in the mood for gummy candy, and chewing on something mildly sweet can satisfy that craving. But something that just hangs out in your mouth? I was dubious it would be good—but these are surprisingly tasty! They taste like low sugar fruit punch or a fruit juice your mom would buy because it’s “healthy.” They come in four flavors: Watermelon Wizard, Fairytale Fruit, Rainbow Ice, and Blue Raspberry. They’re all good, but I think the Blue Raspberry might be best because it really tastes like blue raspberry–the others are sort of generically fruity, but in a totally pleasant way. When it comes to low sugar candy, I’m a lollipop convert!
Credit: Merc / Instacart
- Smart Sweets Cola Gummies (3 grams of sugar, 18 net carbs)
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When my colleague Justine Sterling ranked the best gummy candy, she tried several varieties of Smart Sweets, and these were the best. They’re pretty high in carbs for keto candy, but they’re definitely low sugar. They’re very firm—even firmer than Haribo gummies—and they will get stuck in your teeth, but we like how the mild, herbal cola-adjacent flavor works as a not-super-sweet candy. Give these a shot—but keep an eye on your crowns.
Credit: Merc / Instacart
- Blobs (2 grams of sugar, 7 net carbs)
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Before this taste test, I’d never heard of Blobs. Now I love them. In fact, I smuggled three bags into a screening of Longlegs and my friends went nuts for them (again, don’t tell AMC, please). They come in fun, amoebic shapes, and the variety pack on Amazon includes three flavors: Passion Fruit-Pineapple, Orange-Mango, and Pomegranate-Apple. The Passion Fruit-Pineapple is very pineapple-y. Pomegranate-Apple is tangy and pleasant (if a little medicinal tasting), and Orange-Peach is tangy and subdued. Everyone I shared them with also liked Passion Fruit-Pineapple the best. Texture-wise, they’re pretty firm—kind of like stale Haribo Goldbears, but a little bit stickier. What makes these some of the best low sugar candies? They’re actually sweet. A lot of low sugar candy is dramatically less sweet than sugar-based candy—but I think Blobs could fool people. These don’t contain sugar alcohols and are sweetened with allulose instead. If you go to the movies as much as I do, you’ll go through a variety pack of these puppies in no time.
- Albanese Lower Sugar Gummi Worms (2 grams of sugar, 19 net carbs)
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Albanese is known for making extremely delicious, very squishy gummy bears, and it turns out they make the best low sugar candy, too. These gummy worms are the best because they taste the most like real candy. They have the best squish, too. Is it a little weird that some of them are a fleshy, opaque pink that makes them resemble actual earthworms. Sure, but we kind of liked it. They’re sweetened with allulose and, unfortunately, their chew is so good because they contain gelatin (sorry, vegans). They’re sweet and softly chewy. And while there’s a touch of fake sugar flavor on the finish, it’s not a deal breaker. I ate way more of these than I meant to. The assortment of flavors is fun, too: Blue Raspberry Lemonade, Watermelon Pineapple, and Green Apple. They picked tart flavors that work in this format. I would definitely buy these again.
Credit: Merc / Instacart
Best Rings
Best Sour
Best Lollipops
Best Chewy
Best Sweet
Best of the Best
Other products we tried: Smart Sweets Sour Blast Buddies, Smart Sweets Peach Rings, Kiss My Keto Gummy Bears, Smart Sweets Sweet Fish, Wiley Wallaby 1g Sugar Very Berry Licorice,
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!