Halloween season is here, and across America, children (and their parents) are ready to trick-or-treat, as they hope their goodie bags and plastic pumpkins are filled with candy rather than shiny red apples, toothbrushes, or rocks.
What candy will the average trick-or-treater get this Halloween? Walmart ($WMT), the world's largest company by revenue and biggest retailer in the United States, might have the answer through its online website.
Those who want to avoid having their house decorated with toilet paper and eggs are able to order most of the retailer's stock on Walmart.com. It is even running a promotion for free two-day shipping to avoid that scary nightmare of getting that package of candy after Halloween.
Halloween candy can be found within Walmart's best-selling product rankings for the past month, specifically in the general Food category. By averaging these product's sales-rank data and counting the number of days those products, we're able to get a solid estimation of what candy and other foods Walmart shoppers are buying on a daily basis.
Here's the unedited top-ten of Food category best-sellers, averaged from their sales rank data over the past 30 days (Sept. 16 to Oct. 15):
| Name | Brand | Category Rank (Average) | Name (Count) |
|---|---|---|---|
| M&M'S Variety Pack Chocolate Candy Singles Size 30.58-Ounce 18-Count Box | M&M'S | 1 | 30 |
| 3 Musketeers, Full Size Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.92 Oz | 3 Musketeers | 2 | 30 |
| Elmer Chocolate Rose Heart Box, 2 oz, 1 ct (Design will vary) | Elmer Chocolate | 3 | 30 |
| Great Value Distilled White Vinegar, 128 Fl Oz | Great Value | 4 | 30 |
| Great Value Pure Cane Sugar, 4 lb | Great Value | 5 | 30 |
| Sam's Choice Purified Water, 10 Fl Oz, 12 Count | Sam's Choice | 6 | 30 |
| Gatorade Wide Mouth, Fruit Punch, 20 Fl Oz | Gatorade | 7 | 14 |
| Slim Jim Giant Smoked Meat Stick, Tabasco Flavor, .97 Oz. | Slim Jim | 7.5 | 28 |
| Great Value 100% Juice, Apple, 96 Fl Oz | Great Value | 8.4 | 30 |
| Great Value Coffee Creamer, Original, 35.3 fl oz | Great Value | 9.4 | 30 |
Out of all food products, family-owned Mars Incorporated ($PRIVATE:MARS) claims the first and second best-selling spots for the past month with M&M's and 3 Musketeers outselling all other food products.
The 18-count box of M&M's — which includes regular, peanut, and peanut butter flavors — and individual full size 3 Musketeers bars aren't necessarily Halloween products; those two items can be enjoyed year round. But even still, Walmart customers are still dropping $44.85 for that motherload of the candy that melts in your mouth, not in your hand to (hopefully) share with the ghosts and ghouls that knock at their doorstep.
The full Walmart.com trick-or-treat bag
Outside of the top-ten, there are a few other general candies, as well as some other Halloween treats, that ranked within the top-100 food products over the past 30 days.
| Name | Brand | Category Rank (Average) | Name (Count) |
|---|---|---|---|
| M&M'S Variety Pack Chocolate Candy Singles Size 30.58-Ounce 18-Count Box | M&M'S | 1 | 30 |
| 3 Musketeers, Full Size Chocolate Candy Bar, 1.92 Oz | 3 Musketeers | 2 | 30 |
| 100 Grand Candy Bars, Fun Size, 11 Oz | 100 Grand | 23.5 | 30 |
| DOVE Dark Chocolate Sharing Size Candy Bar, 3.30 oz | DOVE Chocolate | 25.75 | 28 |
| M&M's, Peanut Milk Chocolate Candy, Party Size, 42 Oz | M&M'S | 44.14285714 | 28 |
| Halloween Assorted Variety Chewy Candy & Chewing Gum Packs, 24.9 Oz, 92 Ct | Mars Variety | 49.14285714 | 28 |
| Kathy Kaye Halloween Popcorn Balls, 1 oz, 12 ct | Generic | 53.66666667 | 30 |
| Lik-m-aid Fun Dip Assorted Treat Size Halloween Candy Pouches, 0.42 oz, 48 ct | Wonka | 54.66666667 | 30 |
| Hershey's, All Time Greats Chocolate Candy Variety Pack, 15.9 Oz, 30Ct | Hershey's | 55.66666667 | 30 |
| Hershey's, Full Size Chocolate Candy Bars Variety Pack, 45 Oz, 30 Ct | Hershey's | 62.6 | 30 |
| M&M's, Chocolate Peanut Candy, Fall Harvest Blend, 11.4 Oz | M&M'S | 66.46666667 | 30 |
| Mars Chocolate, Halloween Candy Variety Mix, 37.5 Oz, 80 Ct | Mars Chocolate | 76.33333333 | 30 |
| Hershey's, Giant Milk Chocolate with Almonds Candy Bar, 6.8 Oz | Hershey's | 80.57142857 | 28 |
| Swedish Fish & Sour Patch Kids, Halloween Candy, Variety Pack, 53 Oz, 100 Ct | Sour Patch Kids | 81.2 | 30 |
| Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats Original Marshmallow Mini Squares 60ct Halloween | RICE KRISPIES TREATS | 83.2 | 30 |
| MARS Chocolate Favorites Halloween Candy Bars Variety Mix Bag (TWIX, MILKY WAY, SNICKERS, 3 MUSKETEERS, M&M'S Brands), 126.3 oz 400 Pieces | Mixed | 85 | 2 |
| Reese's Kit Kat, Chocolate Candy Miniatures Assortment, 40 Oz | Hershey's | 86.2 | 30 |
Out of the 17 potential Halloween treats that listed within the top-100 best-selling items over the past 30 days, almost half of them are made by Mars. Within that count are four different products with M&M's (including a killer MARS Chocolate Favorites Halloween bundle), and a Dove Dark Chocolate bar, which might be enjoyed by parents who want to enjoy something after taking their kids around for hours of trick-or-treating.
The aforementioned 3 Musketeers bars, a Halloween candy variety mix, and an assortment of Halloween chewing candy and gum — which includes Lifesavers, Skittles, Starburst and Hubba Bubba — rounded out the stash of Mars candies on the list.
The Hershey Company ($HSY) ranked four candies in the top-100, but surprisingly, none averaged in the top-50. On one end of its spectrum are miniature Kit-Kats and variety pack, and on the other are full-sized chocolate candy bars (one sans nuts, one with almonds).
Swiss food and drink company Nestlé ($VTX:NESN) only ranked one item in the top-100, but it was the third highest candy on the list: the 100 Grand bar. Although new trick-or-treaters may not have a clue on what this is, parents — or fans of the Opie and Anthony show— know it to be a chocolate bar filled with caramel and crisped rice, sort of like a cross between a Crackle and a Milky Way.
What can we conclude from this list? Most likely, trick-or-treaters will be getting a ton of chocolate this year, to the surprise of very few. They'll most likely have a few bags of M&M's, some other mini chocolate bars, and a 100 Grand or two to give to their old folks.
And should those kids really get the entire stash of full-sized candy bars and other treats this Halloween, then local dentists around the country might need to prepare to have a frightening amount of work to do.