Finding vegan Halloween candy can feel tricky, but there are actually great vegan candy options right at your regular grocery store, even last minute!
This guide to vegan Halloween candy is meant to be last-minute. I'm not including items that you'll have to order online. These are all vegan candy options that I found in a single trip to a regular store a week before Halloween.
I also bought a skull candelabra, because I have absolutely zero self control around Halloween stuff.
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Like I mentioned above, this list of vegan Halloween candies isn't all-inclusive. This is the selection I was able to find at a single trip to a regular store (not a Whole Foods, Sprouts, or other specialty store).
Of course, what you find may vary. This list is meant to give you an idea of what to brands look out for when you're shopping.
One other addendum: companies sometimes change their recipes without warning. As of this writing, these candies are all vegan.
Sour Patch Kids
Sour Patch Kids may be my favorite accidentally vegan conventional candy, and this year's Halloween offering only cemented their place in my heart.
At the store I visited, there were three vegan Sour Patch Kids Halloween candy packs:
- Spooky Mix - regular and watermelon variety pack
- Spooky Mix - regular, Big Kids, and Tropical with Swedish Fish thrown in for good measure
- Lollipops - Sour Patch Kids lollipops with sour candy dipping powder
Sour Patch Kids and Smarties both also make an appearance in my vegan Valentine's Day candy guide!
Dots
If you're looking for gummies that are vegan, the Dots mini boxes are a great option!
These were just the regular Dots, which was a bit of a bummer. I'd love to see a variety pack with some of their other flavors, like the Tropical Dots.
Blow Pops
Blow Pops -- NOT Tootsie Pops -- are another classic vegan Halloween candy. Like the Dots, these are just regular Blow Pops. Though the bag does call them Creepy Treats, there are no fun, offbeat flavors inside, just the usual.
Dum Dums
Nothing throws me back to childhood like Dum Dums. They remind me of going to the bank with my mom, where the tellers always handed these out.
Smarties
Smarties may be the original vegan candy, so I always like to support them! I'm talking about Smarties in the U.S. here. In the E.U., Smarties are made by Nestle, and they are not vegan.
Yum Earth Organic Giggles
If you're looking for an organic option, Yum Earth has you covered! Their Giggles are basically like Skittles (which are also vegan!).
Frequently Asked Questions
The article gets into this in much greater detail, but here are some solid options to try: Dots, Skittles, Jolly Ranchers, Nerds, Laffy Taffy, Sour Patch Kids, Twizzlers, Twizzlers Pull n Peels, Ring Pops, Unreal or Justin's Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, Smarties, Blow Pops (NOT Tootsie Pops), .
M&Ms contain dairy and confectioner's glaze, so they are not vegan.
Starburst in the U.S. is not vegan, but in the UK it is.
Most gummy bears contain gelatin, so they are not vegan or vegetarian. Check out our roundup of vegan gummy candy for alternatives!
Yes! Plain Oreos and many of the variations are vegan, including the minis.
Non-vegan Halloween candy ingredients
There are a lot of vegan candy options out there, but finding them can involve a lot of squinting at ingredients lists.
I did the squinting, so you won't have to, but just in case you want to explore further options, these are common non-vegan ingredients to look out for:
- beeswax
- butter, butterfat
- carmine
- castoreum
- confectioner's glaze
- eggs
- gelatin
- honey
- l. cysteine
- milk, milk powder
- whey
Vegan Halloween candy podcast episode
In which Dave describes the entire Saw series to me while we eat a sickening amount of candy!
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Got a favorite vegan treat that you think we should cover on the podcast? Send your suggestions to [email protected]!
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Erica
Very helpful guide! Thank you!
Becky Striepe
Glad that we could help!
TofuForBrains
Hi! This is a fun list, but unfortunately it looks like Nerds aren't vegan (at least, not all varieties). They definitely still use carmine :-( Every year, the hunt for vegan Halloween candy is a favorite pastime! Happy Spooky Season!
Becky Striepe
Yeah, the red nerds, like strawberry, aren't vegan, unfortunately. The pink Guava ones didn't use carmine when I published this. I hope they don't change the formula, because they're delicious! Happy spooky season to you, too!