Every Jelly Belly Flavor Ranked Worst To Best
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Jelly beans are more than a candy; they're an essential part of Americana popularized in the office of the President of the U.S. and adored by children and the young at heart from coast to coast. Jelly Belly is one of the most famous producers of jelly beans in the country, specializing in whimsical and delicious artisan flavors (via the New York Times). But surprisingly, Jelly Belly didn't actually start off specializing in jelly beans, instead setting its sights on candy corn.
Fortunately, Jelly Belly saw the light and started producing those shiny little bursts of sweet, sour, and fruity flavor that we all love and adore. Although Jelly Belly has rolled out some deliberately bizarre flavors in the past, most of their beans are on-point, balanced, and tasty. That said, some are clearly more successful than others, with layers of nuance and authentic flavor. We break it all down below, bean by bean, and reveal the top Jelly Belly flavor you can buy today.
48. Buttered Popcorn
The dreaded Buttered Popcorn Jelly Belly is the scourge of any assorted bowl of beans, waiting to accost you with its bizarre combination of traditional buttered popcorn and sweetness. The unappetizing combination seals this bean's fate, netting it terrible ratings on message boards (like CB7 Tuner) and rendering it the gross counterweight to nicer flavors like Pina Colada or Lemon.
Nobody needs a Buttered Popcorn jellybean. Take one taste, and you'll understand why.
47. Caramel Corn
Caramel Corn jellybeans are another headscratcher that rates moderately better than buttered popcorn, simply because caramel is supposed to be on the sweeter side. Unfortunately, unlike real caramel corn, these beans don't have that luxe and lovely rich toffee caramel flavor to offset the salt.
Instead, you get a bunch of one-note flavors that clash, but since they're sweeter than buttered popcorn, they actually resemble jellybeans — which is why we've bumped them slightly up the list.
46. Top Banana
Jelly Belly usually knocks it out of the park with its fruit-flavored beans, but unfortunately, Top Banana strikes out. The trouble starts with the aesthetic, which resembles more of a browning banana than a tasty jelly bean. Pair this bean's less-than-lovely looks with its overpowering ripe banana flavor, and you have a bean guaranteed to make you go "blech."
Ultimately, with so many fantastic fruit flavors in the Jelly Belly cannon, Top Banana is unnecessary and una-peel-ing.
45. Chocolate Pudding
Chocolate pudding is a great dessert. Jelly beans are a great dessert. Unfortunately, mashing them into one confusing and muddled combination is not such a great dessert. Jelly Belly's Chocolate Pudding jelly bean suffers from a few fatal flaws.
They look unappealing and strange, and while they have a lovely chocolate taste in the beginning, their flavor quickly disintegrates into pure sugar, leaving you wanting an actual chocolate pudding and not a sad rendition of one.
44. Cappuccino
Like Jelly Belly's Chocolate Pudding beans, its Cappuccino beans leave a lot to be desired, specifically in appearance and taste. Cappuccinos are delightful drinks, and there's no need to try to cram all of that rich coffee and deep sugar flavor into a tiny jelly bean.
Unfortunately, these beans are overly sweet and have minimal actual coffee flavor. You get a ton of sugar up front and a slight bitterness on the end, a highly unappealing combination.
43. Plum
Plums are often-overlooked fruits, and Jelly Belly does them justice in these spotted dark purple jelly beans that taste robust and juicy. These beans are delicious because they taste just like premium plum juice and are not overly sweet. It's nice to run across a Jelly Belly Plum bean in a bowl full of sweeter fare, like French Vanilla and Bubble Gum.
The problem isn't so much the taste, though — it's the shell. Instead of looking whimsical, it looks mottled, which could be off-putting.
42. Licorice
Licorice jelly beans are polarizing. The majority of the world agrees that Licorice is the inky dessert of the devil lurking in Easter candy baskets and waiting with bated breath to spoil your day.
However, some outliers buck the system and say that Licorice jelly beans are the unsung heroes of the candy jar (via Reddit). Whether these licorice lovers are true contrarians or they actually like the deep anise-flavored stuff is up for debate.
41. Kiwi
Although Jelly Belly's Kiwi beans come in a vibrant, luscious hue, they're a little lacking in the flavor department. The kiwi taste is much too nuanced, and has a puzzling aftertaste vaguely reminiscent of soap.
These beans overpromise and underdeliver, making them one of Jelly Belly's least successful fruit flavors, despite all appearances. So give these emerald imposters a pass, instead opting for more true-to-life citrus flavors like Lemon or rich-tasting renditions of Strawberry Jam and Mango.
40. Toasted Marshmallow
Toasted marshmallows are fabulous treats. Unfortunately, toasted marshmallow jelly beans are like strange imitators trying to mimic the flavor of a toasty campfire treat and missing the mark.
We get where Jelly Belly is going with its Toasted Marshmallow bean, but it's just not there. The beans have a slightly artificial flavor and a too-sweet finish, rendering them poor substitutes for actual marshmallows. Jelly Belly does get a lot of credit for the cute, splashy, white, and brown designs on these beans, though.
39. Cotton Candy
One of the reasons why we love cotton candy is its ethereal, slightly artificial flavor. Chowing down on a giant cloud of cotton candy is like scarfing down treats from another planet. On that note, Jelly Belly's Cotton Candy beans should taste fabulous, but tragically, it does miss the mark.
The reason is simple: It's too one-note. Instead of invoking childhood nostalgia, it's just way too sweet. There's no nuance, and it's truly a shame.
38. Juicy Pear
Jelly Belly's Juicy Pear beans are a great example of what Jelly Belly does best: deliver big time on fruity flavors. These beans taste just like the real deal, and are a cute, off-green color that looks amazing in any candy dish.
Unfortunately, while Jelly Belly does bring the pear flavor, it's still a slightly muted fruit, and it fails to stand up to powerhouses like Very Cherry. Our verdict: Excellent execution and taste profile, wrong fruit.
37. Bubble Gum
Bubble Gum Jelly Belly beans have that intense bubblegum taste that will transport you straight back to the second grade. It's childhood nostalgia in a jelly bean, with a pastel pink shell that looks like traditionally-flavored bubblegum.
Unfortunately, the problem with these beans is in neither the taste nor the flavor, but in the mechanics. These Bubble Gum beans taste so much like the real deal that it's almost weird to swallow them. There's some cognitive dissidence there that we don't like. Otherwise, full marks.
36. Orange Sherbet
Orange Sherbet is an excellent all-around flavor of jelly beans. It's not awe-inspiring, but it's certainly not bad either, and it tastes passably like orange sherbet ice cream.
Unfortunately, Orange Sherbet beans suffer the same fate as their bubble gum counterparts: You have to go through some serious mental gymnastics to understand why you're eating it room temp and chewy instead of cold and creamy. Also, the orange flavor isn't strong enough to make these beans truly sing.
35. Dr. Pepper
Dr. Pepper Jelly Belly beans have a sophisticated, robust flavor with lots of stone fruit taste and rich spices, just like the drink. Reddit lauds these beans as being one of the best flavors that Jelly Belly has to offer, but we're not sold.
While the jelly beans taste very similar to an ice-cold Dr. Pepper, there's still a lot of lingering licorice in the end, which gives them a heavy taste. Also, color-wise, they're suspiciously similar to the dreaded Chocolate Pudding bean.
34. Peach
Jelly Belly's Peach flavored beans are a bright little burst of summer in every taste... at least at first. They're juicy and delicious from the outset. They would be much higher on our list if that were it.
Unfortunately, Jelly Belly's Peach beans fall flat on the backend, disintegrating into a pure sugar taste after just a few seconds of chewing. It's a disappointing finish after such a strong start — and frankly, a bit of a tease.
33. Cinnamon
Although Cinnamon jelly beans are the most popular flavor in the United States, they still stir up a ton of controversy on the internet. Reddit commenters compare Cinnamon beans to "spicy hell" and lament that they resemble perennial fave flavor Very Cherry in color.
Realistically, if you can handle the heat, this bean is all right. But eat too many, and your taste buds are fried. On the other hand, who wants to eat just a few jelly beans? Cinnamon might be tasty in small doses, but it's impractical.
32. S'Mores
Unlike Jelly Belly's Toasted Marshmallow bean, S'Mores really does hit the spot. It miraculously manages to cram all of the campfire goodness of true S'Mores into one tasty, tiny bean.
Unfortunately, although you do get the overall taste, the individual flavors are tough to distinguish, making these beans a little muddled and frustrating for true jelly bean flavor connoisseurs. However, these jelly beans will do the trick if you want to invoke some childhood camping magic in a tiny taste bomb.
31. French Vanilla
Where Jelly Belly failed with Chocolate Pudding, they succeeded with French Vanilla beans. Not only do these jelly beans have all of that scrumptious authentic vanilla flavor, but they also have the slightly speckled look of vanilla bean-infused premium ice cream.
Although the vanilla flavor is there, the taste is never too cloying or overwhelming, making these tasty beans ones that you can eat by the handful. The only thing that they're missing is the deep flavor layers of Jelly Belly's fruit beans.
30. Coconut
Coconut can be a love it or leave it kind of flavor, straddling that thin line between invoking a sweet taste of the tropics and tasting artificial. Jelly Belly's Coconut beans deliver big on rich coconut flavor and get consistently high ratings on Amazon, but they do taste a tiny bit off.
If you like shredded, sweet coconut, you'll dig these beans. But on the other hand, they don't taste much like the fresh stuff.
29. Tutti-Frutti
Tutti-Frutti is a glorious mish-mash of fruity flavors, and it's undoubtedly one of Jelly Belly's best beans. However, what keeps Tutti-Frutti near the middle of our list is simply that it's difficult to distinguish between the different notes, leading to a pleasant, sugary, vaguely fruity taste with hints of raspberry and lime. If you like your beans assertively fruit-forward and pronounced, you might want to give Tutti-Frutti a miss.
28. Root Beer
Jelly Belly hits some high notes with its soda-flavored beans, and Root Beer is a decent example of this. With a lot of sweetness and just the teeniest drop of bitterness at the end, Root Beer is a balanced bean that's neither cloying nor artificial-tasting.
Our only complaint is that these beans might be too on the money, leaving us wanting a frosty mug of the real stuff instead of another handful of beans.
27. A&W Cream Soda
A&W Cream Soda jelly beans barely eke past Root Beer beans, because their flavor profile is more conducive to a jelly bean than root beer. Cream soda has a more rich vanilla flavor and natural sweetness.
While Jelly Belly's Root Beer beans make us want to reach for a big cup of soda with crushed ice, its Cream Soda beans stand alone, reminiscent of the flavor but a dessert in its own right.
26. Berry Blue
Berry Blue jellybeans are vibrant and tasty with a light and lovely fruit flavor that's a lot more subtle than other fruity jelly beans on our list. This nuanced but distinctly berry flavor means that these beans play well with others. For example, you can combine them with A&W Cream Soda for an exciting mix of light vanilla and touches of summer berry.
They're nearly universally pleasing, but not as bold as some of Jelly Belly's other flavors.
25. Raspberry
Richly flavored, deeply hued Jelly Belly Raspberry beans bring the flavor, and then some. These beans taste almost identical to raspberry jam and have a nice pucker at the end, giving an authentic nod to the original fruit.
The only reason these beans land in the center of our list is that they can be a little too flavor-forward for some, and they tend to clash with other beans. The Raspberry Jelly Belly beans stand alone.
24. Blueberry
Unlike their Berry Blue counterparts, Jelly Belly's Blueberry beans don't shy away from intense flavor, so you'll get a tart and sweet mouthful of natural blueberry flavor in every bite. Jelly Belly expertly offsets the natural sourness of blueberries with a sweet shot of sugar.
It's a nice balancing act that lands Blueberry beans in the middle of our list. They're also highly patriotic, if you need another reason to scoop up these beans.
23. Cantaloupe
Jelly Belly's Cantaloupe beans are sun-colored and summery, with lots of concentrated cantaloupe flavor in each bite. Since cantaloupe is more of a delicate flavor, Jelly Belly does a phenomenal job walking the line between representing it properly and being too overly sweet or artificial.
Instead, it nails the flavor with a just-sweet-enough bean that tastes like a dessert version of the beloved fruit without going over the top with the saccharine. Please take notes, Kiwi!
22. Pina Colada
It's not easy to replicate a beloved drink in candy form, but Jelly Belly hits the mark with its Pina Colada beans. These beans are a smooth and citrusy ode to the tropical drink, with just a bit of coconut on the backend.
One of the most impressive things about these beans is that you can taste every individual flavor in conjunction with the overall taste of the bean, for a multi-layered experience.
21. Mixed Berry Smoothie
Jelly Belly's Mixed Berry Smoothie has a spotted purple shell that seems meant to mimic a fruit-studded breakfast smoothie. The presentation totally works, as does the flavor, which is a luxe and juicy blend of different berries against a creamy sweet background.
These beans really do taste like fresh berry smoothies, except even better, and are almost like an upgraded berry-centric version of Jelly Belly's longstanding favorite, Tutti-Frutti. We are here for Tutti-Frutti 2.0.
20. Crushed Pineapple
Pineapple is a lovely, bold tropical flavor perfect for packing into a tiny jelly bean. Jelly Belly's Crushed Pineapple beans hit the spot with naturally sweet pineapple flavor and a slight hint of tartness. These beans are unapologetic odes to the fruit, with no other flavors clouding or competing with the pineapple itself.
If you're looking for a bit more taste variation, try eating Jelly Belly's Crushed Pineapple beans with a handful of its Coconut ones.
19. Red Apple
Jelly Belly's Red Apple beans capture that fantastic moment in late summer and early fall when there's a slight chill in the air, but it's still warm enough to walk around without a coat.
In addition to the highly-concentrated Macintosh apple flavor, these beans have contrasting colors, with a creamy center and deep ruby shell. They will remind you of biting into a crisp apple on a late August day, but better and sweeter.
18. Green Apple
Green Apple Jelly Belly beans edge out the Red Apple ones on our list simply because there's another element of intense flavor: tartness. As easily one of the best fruit-flavored Jelly Bellys, gorgeous Green Apple beans have that late summer vibe with a punchy sour twist at the end.
The tartness plays well with the sweetness, and the whole bean benefits from authentic green apple flavor. It's a homage to — and an elevation of — the original fruit.
17. Wild Blackberry
Don't confuse Jelly Belly's Wild Blackberry beans with Licorice ones, even though the two look nearly identical. Instead of being packed with polarizing anise flavor, Wild Blackberry beans are juicy, flavor-saturated, and robust, and mellow at the same time.
They're also an unconventional flavor and a refreshing change from Very Cherry, Juicy Pear, Mango, Crushed Pineapple, or any of Jelly Belly's arguably superb fruit beans, while at the same time complementing other flavors nicely.
16. Pink Grapefruit
While you can always tap into your pink grapefruit love with seltzer (via Paste Magazine), Jelly Belly gives you another way to hop on the pink grapefruit train through these vibrant orange-pink beans full of tart grapefruit flavor and a twist of sugar.
These beans shine because you get different flavors at the beginning and end, with none overpowering any other. From the sour upfront grapefruit taste to the sweet, smooth finish, they rule.
15. Lemon Meringue Pie
Making a successful dessert-flavored jelly bean is a tricky gamble. First, the bean must be a sweet nod to the dessert, but not identical. Second, you risk cranking the sugar up to 11 and ruining the entire flavor profile.
Fortunately, Jelly Belly's homage to lemon meringue pie is a balanced and somewhat restrained bean that builds on lemon meringue pie flavor with a luscious vanilla end note. It's successful, sweet, and an all-around great bean.
14. Lemon Lime
Jelly Belly's Lemon Lime jelly beans are a tried-and-true combination of bright citrus flavors. Although both the lemon and lime are strong in these beans, neither overshadows nor upstages the other.
You'll get a bold burst of sunny lemon as soon as you bite into the Lemon Lime jelly beans, then a bold lime finish on the tail end. Both flavors are distinct and complementary, and although they're similar in taste, you can genuinely discern between them.
13. Tangerine
Tangerines were made for transforming into jelly beans, as Jelly Belly proves with their bright orange citrus beans. Although you can get Jelly Belly's Tangerine beans in regular packaging, they look simply darling when scooped up into a carrot-shaped cone and tucked into an Easter basket.
Presentation is only one part of the puzzle, though. Tangerine jelly beans taste naturally sweet and noticeably different from orange-flavored treats, only much more authentic and delicious thanks to the natural sugars.
12. Pomegranate
Pomegranates are notoriously hard to eat, thanks to their tiny fiber-packed seeds (via Healthline), but thanks to Jelly Belly, you don't need to wrestle with the unwieldy fruit to enjoy powerful pomegranate flavor. There's a jelly bean for that.
Jelly Belly's Pomegranate beans taste almost identical to the real thing, with just a little extra sugar at the end. They're sophisticated, unconventional, and unexpected while still being totally tasty, which is the key to their success.
11. Strawberry Cheesecake
Jelly Belly's Strawberry Cheesecake bean beautifully echoes the dense creaminess of cheesecake with a tart but sweet hint of strawberry. It's all wrapped up in a delicate pink package with darker pink spots.
One of the reasons this bean works so brilliantly is that the inside of the jelly bean echoes the natural texture of decadent cheesecake. On top of that, the cheesecake's tangy sweetness and the ripe strawberries' flavor shine through in every morsel.
10. Margarita
Jelly Belly's booze-free Margarita beans are tangy, lime-centric gems with a slight orange taste at the end. They do taste like a sweeter version of the real deal, almost like key lime pie mixed with premium orange liqueur and a side of sass.
These beans are a perfect way to cap off a celebration or serve at your next BBQ, and they taste just different enough from Lemon Lime to be intriguing and delicious.
9. Island Punch
Jelly Belly's Island Punch jelly beans nail it on two fronts: appearance and taste. These beans are the most beautiful shade of island blue with a crunchy shell and creamy interior, and their taste is a straight shot of childhood nostalgia.
These jelly beans manage to balance the tart and sweet flavors of tropical passion fruit with a little dose of sugar. As a result, they're not too sour, not too sweet, and ideal for munching by the handful.
8. Lemon Drop
Lemon Drop jelly beans shine because they're jammed with a true citrus flavor that never rings inauthentic, overly sweet, or artificial. Instead, Lemon Drop jelly beans do a delicate dance between sour and sweet, giving you different flavors on the front and back end of the bean.
They are easily one of Jelly Belly's best offerings because of this balance, elevating a simple flavor to monumental status and showing that there's tremendous beauty in simplicity.
7. Mango
Jelly Belly's Mango jelly beans are cheery yellow beans dotted with kelly green and taste as fresh as they look. One reason why Mango rates so high on our list amongst Jelly Belly's heavyweight flavors is that the mango juice gives each bean both sourness and sweetness in perfect balance.
Like Lemon Drop jelly beans, you'll get both nuanced flavors plus a pleasant pucker in every bite. Mango beans have a slightly better presentation, edging them slightly ahead of their lemony counterparts.
6. Strawberry Daiquiri
Jelly Belly does excel with its boozy beans, from Margarita to Pina Colada. Still, Strawberry Daiquiri is genuinely in a particular class of its own, and holds a well-deserved place in our top 10 jelly beans. These beans are the last word in creaminess, with slight strawberry hints throughout, an underlying current of sweetness, and just the smallest bite of citrus at the end.
The trifecta of cream, strawberries, and a teeny touch of citrus work wonders in these beans.
5. Sour Cherry
Jelly Belly's Sour Cherry jelly beans are for you if you want dense cherry flavor without all the residual sweetness. They're super tart, jammed with ripe cherry juice, and have a touch of sweet finish, thanks to the candy shell.
Plus, the bright red hue is truly lovely. Between the presentation, the balance of flavors, and sour tart undercurrent, these beans are sophisticated and truly tasty, a definite contender for Jelly Belly's best bean.
4. Chili Mango
Jelly Belly's Chili Mango jelly bean takes that beautiful concentrated mango flavor of its signature Mango jelly bean and adds a touch of heat. It's an inspired combination that plays heat off sweet and gives you oodles of layers of flavor in each bean.
Jelly Belly gets extra points for perfectly playing the balancing act between mango and chili, and not letting either flavor over shine or overpower. It's a clever combination that will leave you wanting more.
3. Watermelon
Jelly Belly's Watermelon beans resemble teensy watermelons, complete with a green and reddish shell and deep pink interior. There's even a white ring that separates the two, acting as the bean's "rind." They're so visually on-point that it's hard to believe the flavor could compare to the presentation, but it does.
These beans burst with juicy, multi-layered, watermelon flavor that tastes fresh without veering into too-sweet or artificial territories. These beans nail it on every single level.
2. Strawberry Jam
There's certainly no shortage of incredible strawberry-flavored beans from the Jelly Belly catalog of goodies, but there's something extraordinary about its Strawberry Jam bean. These beans are dark pinkish-red and have barely noticeable spots on their shells. Bite into one, and you'll get a rush of rich, decadent strawberry flavor that tastes almost exactly like the best jam you've ever eaten, only slightly sweeter and with a crunchy shell.
It's an experience, a heady candy rush, and one of the best jelly beans on the market, period.
1. Very Cherry
Since Jelly Belly has so many incredible jelly beans on offer, it's tough to pick the very best one of all, but Very Cherry is the only logical choice. This bean is widely adored and the most popular bean in the bunch (via the Jelly Belly website).
It's easy to understand why. Break through the deep red cherry shell, and you're in for a huge treat: waves of fresh and juicy cherry flavor balanced with a hint of sugar. These beans are nothing short of divine.