5 Store-Bought Halloween Snacks To Grab And 5 You Might Want To Avoid

Fall is officially upon us, and that means that pumpkin spice everything season is (finally!) in full bloom. Gone are the summery Aperol spritzes and cocktails adorned with tiny umbrellas. It is now time to pump up our October vibes with apple picking, caramel-dunking, and steaming hot mugs of cider.

Of course, one of the best ways to get into the fall spirit is by heading to your local supermarket and choosing a few key Halloween snacks to indulge in throughout the month. Luckily, there are tons of options. If you've had the chance to go grocery shopping of late, you've probably already noticed that the aisles are totally decked out in neon orange wrappers decorated with tiny ghouls and spooky spiders. While it might be fun to see these festive products as you wander the snacks section, it is not always easy to know which witch is which — or rather, which package is best.

The good news is that we have done a deep dive into several of the most popular Halloween snacks on the market to determine which products you should bag and which ones are better to leave alone. From the scrumptious seasonal Oreos to the more questionable Harvest pumpkin spice pretzels, it's fair to say that not all themed treats are equally delicious.

It's no secret that Halloween Oreos are a seasonal classic. With their pumpkin-colored frosting and dark brown cookies, these festive sandwiches have the capability of transforming an ordinary spread into a fall celebration. Traditionalists will love eating them the old-fashioned way: Twist them open, dunk them in some milk, and then lick the frosting right out of the middle. Yes, your tongue may well turn orange but, let's be real, that's just part of the fun.

This year, the Oreo Halloween Boo! Orange Crème Cookies seem to be especially popular among folks looking to get into the holiday mood. According to Target, 75% of customers say that they would recommend this product to other shoppers. What's more, 88% of customers gave the product five stars. And, the reviews are awesome. One shopper shared their excitement about the cookies' fun aesthetic, writing, "Halloween Oreos shouldn't be any different than originals, but somehow they are just better. Nothing makes spooky season better than the best Oreos!" Other Target patrons seemed to enjoy these more than the originals, simply saying, "Orange cream hits different."

Naturally, it's also worth mentioning that Halloween Oreos make a great addition to other seasonal recipes. Whip up a chocolate cake and frost it with orange icing. Then, place a few of Nabisco's classic cookies on top. Using an offset spatula, draw little black lines around your Oreos so that they look like spiders. You'll be enjoying the spooky season in no time!

While Halloween Oreos are here to bring a taste of autumn into your home, there is another type of cookie that won't necessarily have that same impact. The sugar cookies by Favorite Day Bakery may seem like the sort of thing that will get you in the mood for fall. They're certainly cute, but when you actually put them in your mouth, their flavor is reportedly seriously lacking.

In fact, despite the fact that each of the hand-decorated cookies comes in an adorable shape — either a ghost, a bat, a pumpkin, or a Frankenstein's monster — they have deplorable reviews. Target reports that just 36% of shoppers would recommend these cookies to a friend. What's worse, a whopping 28% of customers gave this Halloween snack just one star. As one Target patron shared in their review, "These look super cute, and I love that it's individually wrapped so it goes well in a boo basket." However, they went on to warn, "Don't buy [this product] for the taste." The issue? According to the reviewer, "They taste like pure sugar."

To make matters even more disappointing, customers complained quite a bit about the price. One package of just eight cookies sells for a hefty $14.99 — not exactly cheap! Given this exorbitant cost, shoppers were particularly frustrated, with another summarizing by saying, "These cookies were adorable but overpriced!"

When you're skipping through an apple orchard or frolicking in a pumpkin patch, what do you eat? If it isn't Harvest Scarecrow Crunch Trail Mix, you might want to reconsider. This fantastic fall treat has all the elements of a good Halloween snack. Its yellow, orange, and brown colors will get you in the mood for fall, while its protein, iron, and calcium content mean that it's far from being an "empty calorie" option. 

And, as for the flavor, Target shoppers say that they're into it! In fact, a stunning 95% of shoppers say that they would recommend this treat to their friends. What's more, 82% of customers gave the snack 5 stars. As one delighted shopper wrote on the store's website, "I look for this mix every time Target starts putting out fall stuff. I love it ... Keep bringing it back, and I'll keep coming back to buy it!" Another shopper agreed, "I love everything about it, from the white chocolate covered cherries to the peanut butter candies."

Naturally, though, there was one thing that several shoppers complained about — although it might not be what you'd expect. As it happens, several Target patrons were frustrated by how small the bag was because they wanted more. One satisfied customer even wrote, "Make this one in the 31.5oz! It's our favorite and we look forward to it every year."

When it comes to enjoying fall to the fullest, pumpkin might just be the most vital ingredient. That being said, any good Halloween snack needs more than just a scoop of pumpkin to make it taste great. On top of being festive, the best October treats must be fresh, balanced, and soft on the spice. Unfortunately, however, Walmart's Pumpkin Cake Roll seems to fail on all three of these essential levels.

According to the data shared by Walmart, about 44% of customers gave this cake a disappointing single star. Reviewers described its flavor as too potent — and too old. One shopper wrote, "I feel it should be fresher than this." They then went on to clarify that the problem had nothing to do with the product's expiration date, adding, "Today is the 25th and this item has a 'best if used by' date of the 27th."

Other customers balked at the excessive amount of spice that had been added to the pumpkin cake's recipe. As one Walmart patron relayed, "Heavy, overwhelming taste of clove. It's a bit much. I love pumpkin rolls but I won't be purchasing another one from here." Another shopper tried to imagine why the recipe was so overpowering, "I think someone dumped the whole container of cloves in this batch; even the icing wasn't a save for the overwhelming spice mixture in the cake. My whole family hated it."

Popcorn balls have been a popular Halloween snack since their heyday in the 1950s, and Kathy Kaye's Halloween Sweet & Salty Popcorn Balls are here to show us that the traditional treat is far from dying out. These popcorn balls are certainly festive, and people say that they also taste good. In fact, according to data shared by Walmart, a commendable 81% of consumers gave this product five stars. As one verified purchaser wrote in their review, "I've been buying Kathy Kaye's popcorn balls for years, from the first time I found them at Walmart. They are by far the best popcorn balls anywhere."

Interestingly, many Walmart shoppers seemed to find that children, in particular, appreciated this fun, crunchy snack. One satisfied mother wrote that she highly recommended these delicious popcorn balls. Apparently, she especially appreciated that "They were very fresh." She also liked that they were "not too sweet," leading her to declare, "My kids and I really enjoyed them." Another shopper said that these popcorn balls can also make an excellent trick-or-treat offering, writing, that over 100 of their trick-or-treaters seemed excited to receive this snack. They stated, "This will be a traditional favorite for Halloween."  

While some Halloween snacks will provide you with a delicious treat, others practically scream "TRICK!" Such is certainly the case for Harvest Caramel Apple Caramel Corn. At first glance, this product might seem like it has all the components of a great fall snack — caramel, apples, and popcorn. However, once you actually get ready to chow down, it seems that this snack falls majorly short. As one dissatisfied Target customer revealed in a product review, "This sounded so much better than it tasted." Another echoed this sentiment, "Tasted like chemicals. Wanted to like it but was awful. Ended up throwing it away."

Sadly, it appears that this negative caramel corn experience was fairly common among customers. Just 34% of Target shoppers said that they would recommend this product to their family or friends. And, a whopping 26% of patrons gave the product one star — although at least one customer said that they wished they could give it an even lower grade. The disappointed shopper shared, "This is ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE! ...I'd rate it 10 NEGATIVE STARS if I could!!!" The reason for this horrible rating was also because of a "chemical" taste that bothered the reviewer. They also mentioned the snack's smell, which was said to be less than appetizing.

Sometimes, we stumble upon a product that is festive, tasty, and healthy — and Good & Gather Ghoul Grub is one of those rare gems that has all three of these characteristics. Shaped like spooky Halloween items, these gummies are colorful and festive. What's more, they boast a sweet yet fruity flavor — without being excessively high in sugar content. Indeed, Good & Gather Ghoul Grub has just 12g of sugar per pack, which is just 24% of the recommended daily limit. They also provide 100% of one's daily portion of Vitamin C, making it the perfect choice for kids in need of a nutritional boost.

Although Ghoul Grab has not exactly exploded in popularity — it still has just seven ratings on Target's website — the people who have indulged in this delicious Halloween snack seem to really like it. 100% of customers say that they would recommend this product, and 86% gave it five stars. One satisfied parent reported, "My daughter really liked them." Another shopper commented on how intensely these fruit snacks can taste, calling them "extremely flavorful."

When fall is finally in the air, it can be tempting to pair a nice hot coffee with a plate of chocolate cookies and just enjoy the flavors. However, if and when you go to do this, it is best that you sip your drink with something other than Halloween Joe Joe's Cookies. Found at Trader Joe's, these vanilla bean and chocolate cookies might seem like the perfect way to sink into October, but reviews of this product are extremely hit-or-miss. And when they miss, boy do they miss!

As one cookie aficionado shared in a Halloween Joe Joe's review thread on Reddit, there was something majorly off about the snack's texture. They mentioned, "I must have gotten a bad batch, because the cream in these is almost...waxy. I have a cookie sitting next to me that I'm not even going to eat, because they taste terrible. And that is unheard of!" Unfortunately, though, this shopper was not the only person who struggled to enjoy this Halloween snack. Another Trader Joe's patron confessed that even though their boyfriend loved these treats, they themselves just couldn't get behind them. They wrote that the cookies have a "chocolate chalk" flavor that does not mix well with the "cream filling." Ultimately, the reviewer's conclusion was, "I prefer the other pumpkin ones that look like blonde Oreos."

While Trader Joe's Halloween cookie game has been arguably pretty weak, the same cannot be said for the store's granola. This year, the Honeycrisp Apple Granola is so beloved that it is rumored to be flying off the shelves in certain parts of the United States. In a product review thread, one Reddit user claimed that this granola is impossible to order in most of the Midwest. They also went so far as to suggest, "What's on the shelves is likely to be it!" Another shopper commented, "I walked in to Trader Joe's today and found ONE SINGLE BAG of this on the shelf." They then went on to claim, "It hasn't been there every day this week."

The reason for the granola's reported popularity is that it really is scrumptious. Indeed, Trader Joe's patrons say that this Halloween snack tastes great as a baked goods ingredient, a yogurt topper, or even directly on a spoon. One satisfied customer shared that mixing this granola with cinnamon yogurt was "all of my romantic fall dreams in food form." If yogurt and granola isn't exactly your style, however, fear not! You can still enjoy this delectable granola in a different fall recipe. Whip up a batch of maple apple muffins and then go ahead and stir some honeycrisp granola into your batter. This will give you a Halloween snack that's both crunchy and flavorful.

We love pumpkin spice products as much as anyone else, but Harvest's Pumpkin Spice Mini Pretzel Twists just don't seem to be the answer to our fall cravings. Thanks to its orange and white frosted exterior, this product might look like the perfect Halloween snack. However, when you actually go to pop one of these pretzels into your mouth, you might find that the flavor is not quite what you expected it to be.

As revealed by Target, this seasonal treat got a measly 3.8-star rating from customers. To make matters worse, nearly 1 out of every 3 shoppers gave this product either one or two stars. Reflecting on their disappointment, one customer explained, "Unfortunately I didn't taste any pumpkin flavor. They just tasted like white chocolate covered pretzels." The same reviewer added, "If you like that, then they're tasty. But I was disappointed with the lack of pumpkin spice."

In confirmation, another shopper agreed that the pretzels lack any sort of pumpkin spice flavoring — and went on to say that this snack tasted like something way less appetizing. The anonymous reviewer wrote, "At first they taste like dog biscuits." They then went on to claim that the aftertaste is "very sweet." If it's Halloween cookies you're after, maybe it's best to pass on these.