10 Best New Candies To Hit Shelves In 2026 (So Far)

Candy has come a long way since the honey-coated confections of ancient times. Walk into just about any grocery or convenience store, and you'll face a paralyzing selection of chocolate, gummies, and hard candy in a variety of flavors. Along with nostalgia-eliciting old-school favorites like Mallo Cups and Necco Wafers, candy manufacturers constantly work to develop new creations to tempt consumers. That brings us to the wide range of sweets that make up the best new candy of 2026 (so far). 

We're highlighting 10 exciting releases that include chocolate bars and treats, new gummy flavor releases, and unexpected texture pairings. You'll even find a few Halloween options among the mostly non-holiday picks (ICYMI, check out this list of popular Halloween candy from worst to best). Candy industry shifts point toward a consumer base desiring unabashed flavors (as indicated by the rise of spicy sweets) and unique textures (such as freeze-dried candies). This list falls nicely in line with prevailing trends and offers a little something for every sweet tooth or craving.

As a Halloween-exclusive release, Skittles Pop'd Creepy Crunch won't be haunting stores forever. Texture is the star of the show here, as this treat merges the Skittles you know and love with the satisfying crunch of freeze-dried candy. Each bag features five flavors, including red raspberry, ghostly lime, blood orange, cursed apple, and beastly blackberry. 

This is the U.S. debut of Haribo Crazy Skeletons, a gummy candy that combines two flavors in one treat. Each bag contains a selection of sweet and sour skeletons in pineapple and blood orange, strawberry and black currant, and cherry and kiwi. Gummy fanatics will no doubt enjoy weighing in on where those flavors fit on a list of every gummy flavor from least to most appealing.

A chocolate confections company based in the Netherlands, Tony's Chocolonely frequently receives praise for its products. The brand also uses ethical fair trade practices when manufacturing its chocolate bars, making them even more appealing. We personally can't wait to sample the new Filled bars, which come in Creamy Milk Chocolate Ganache and Gooey Caramel Sea Salt Crunch flavors. 

Dubbed an incomparably delicious candy by Costco shoppers, the Hi-Chew brand is known for manufacturing chewy, fruit-flavored candy. The new Lychee & Raspberry Stick is a great example of what makes these sweets so appealing. This pairing combines tart and sweet flavors into one tasty, pleasantly dense bite. 

Available in Salted Caramel Creme and Affogato, the latest iterations of Hershey's Creme Bars are mind-blowingly indulgent. Each king-size bar is milk chocolate and features a creamy filling of either salted caramel or espresso-tinged caramel and vanilla. (If you're not familiar, an affogato is an Italian dessert consisting of hot espresso poured over vanilla gelato.)

Chili powder-coated candy might surprise American taste buds, but sweet-spicy flavors have long been a staple of Mexican candy (like Lucas Skwinkles Salsagheti and Jovy Chili Rokas). The new Skittles Gummies Fuego features five flavors coated in spicy goodness: lemon, mango, raspberry, strawberry, and watermelon. To learn more about the larger pantheon of this style of sweets, check out these must-try Mexican candies. 

Some people (me) believe that Reese's Pieces are a divine candy that can't be improved upon. Others (also me) are seriously intrigued by the new Chocolate Cookie Reese's Pieces. The chocolate cookie center infuses the peanut buttery goodness of Reese's with a satisfying crunch.

Most Americans associate the Smarties brand with those dusty candy wafer rolls forlornly lingering in the bottom of every Halloween bag. As people in the U.K. already know, Smarties Squashies are densely chewy and pleasantly sweet. As for the new Sours Cherry & Apple flavor, it won the gummy category at the Most Innovative New Product Awards Showcase at the 2026 Sweets & Snacks Expo (per the National Confectioners Association). 

If you primarily know Jolly Rancher as a tooth-breaking hard candy, the brand also offers lots of gummy treats as well. Like Skittles Gummies Fuego, Jolly Rancher Heat Wave Gummies Spicy 'n Sweet assorted fruit-flavored candy features a chili-powder coating. Each bag includes gummies in flavors like citrus punch, pineapple, lime, mango, and watermelon.

Twix Bits are like if regular Twix bars and Whoppers (aka malted milk balls) had a baby. The spherical candy features a chocolate outer coating and caramelly cookie interior. You can choose from three bag sizes, depending on the voraciousness of your appetite (and inherent generosity): Share size (2.83 ounces), Treating size (4.4 ounces), and Sharing size (8 ounces).