Maryland residents spend nearly $68 apiece on Halloween candy, well above the national average, while West Virginia ranks as America’s most generous trick-or-treat state.
A receipt review from Solitaired, reported by Mental Floss, ranked the states by average Halloween candy spending per resident and found the East Coast out front, with the Midwest and South packing the rest of the top 10.
Maryland sat at No. 1 at $67.95 per resident. West Virginia followed at $61.32. Pennsylvania came in third at $59.35.
The national average landed around $49.19. South Carolina, at $48.93, sat right near that mark.
Spending is only part of the picture. Solitaired’s survey also found West Virginia the most generous state on candy-related measures overall, full-size bars, participation, and more.
Eighty-eight percent of West Virginia residents said they planned to hand out candy for trick-or-treating. Nationwide, 79% of Americans usually do the same each year.
Americans expect about 42 trick-or-treaters at the door. Around 55% said they want to be known as a “good candy house.”
That is the old neighborhood standard: keep the porch light on, fill the bowl, and don’t cheap out on the kids.
Pennsylvania’s third-place finish fits its industrial map. The Hershey Company is headquartered in Hershey, home also to the chocolate-themed Hersheypark. Just Born, the company behind Mike and Ike, Hot Tamales, and Peeps, is based in the state as well.
Maryland’s lead has a hometown candy tie of its own. Goetze’s Candy Company, maker of Caramel Creams and Cow Tails, is headquartered in Baltimore.
When candy jobs and candy culture sit in your backyard, big bags at the door are less of a surprise.
After the top three, the ranking ran Mississippi at $59.32, Indiana at $59.14, Illinois at $58.12, and Michigan at $57.78. Texas spent $56.88 per resident, Oklahoma $56.78, and Louisiana $55.85.
That list is heavy on the South and Midwest, places where front-yard traditions still matter and nobody needs a seminar to explain why you stock full-size bars.
Solitaired reviewed the receipts for the spending figures and surveyed residents on handing-out plans and preferences. Absolute survey dates, sample size, and the full 50-state table were not detailed in the Mental Floss report.
What the numbers do show is simple enough. From Appalachia to the Gulf Coast, a lot of households are still buying candy to give away, not to lecture kids about it.
In a country that argues about everything else, a lit porch and a full bowl remain a pretty clear American statement.
