Best Vegan Candy Guide for Halloween, Parties & More! (Updated 2024)

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The words Vegan Halloween Candy Guide overlayed onto a bowl of candy.
The words Vegan Halloween Candy Guide overlayed onto a bowl of candy.

Best Vegan Candy Guide for Halloween, Parties & More! (Updated 2024)

Posted by

Published:

Take a look at our Guide to Vegan Candy for Halloween and get all your answers to what you can and can’t have! You’ll be surprised!

a bowl of candy on a white table with the words vegan halloween candy guide overlayed.

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We often get asked how to tell if a candy is truly vegan. Whether it’s for your kids or yourself, we know how important it is to enjoy delicious treats while sticking to your values and avoiding animal products. That’s why we created this vegan candy guide.

Whether you’re new to the vegan lifestyle, just starting to explore it, or simply need a reminder, you’ll be happy to know there’s still sweet goodies to love.

Now, I won’t sugarcoat it—many traditional candies do contain animal-derived ingredients, so they’re not vegan-friendly. But here’s the sweet part: there are actually plenty of delicious vegan candy options out there, especially for occasions like Halloween!

Whether you’re fully committed to a vegan lifestyle or just trying to avoid animal products, this ultimate guide to vegan-friendly candies will help you enjoy all the sweets you can without any of the worry.

Jump to:

What makes candy not vegan?

When candy contains animal-derived ingredients or is made with processes that use animal-derived ingredients they are considered not vegan.

These are the main reasons:

Milk/Dairy Products

Dairy is one of the biggest things to look for when determining a candy isn’t vegan. You want to look for ingredients like: milk, cream, butter, whey, casein, lactose, or casein. All of these ingredients are derived from cows, making them not vegan.

Eggs

Eggs aren’t super common in candy per say; however, sometimes meringue-based candy or chewy candy contain egg whites, also known as albumen.

Gelatin

A very common ingredient in candy, gelatin is used in gummy candies like gummy worms or bears, marshmallows, and more. Because it’s from the bones, skin, and tissues of animals, this makes it not vegan.

Honey

Because honey is from bees, when it is used in the sweetening process of candy, is voids it from also being considered vegan. While not common, beeswax would also not be vegan.

Carmine

Not all red food dye is non-vegan; however, carmine, or Red 4 specifically, is made from crushed cochineal insects and used to color red and pink candies.

Confectioner’s Glaze (also known as shellac)

Have you ever seen really shiny candy, or even sprinkles. Oftentimes the shiny finish is from the resin secreted by the lac bug. This makes it inedible for vegans.

All of these things are traditionally found in candies and they are all derived from animals.

What about vegan sugar?

If you live in the United States, you should be aware of why it’s important to look for vegan sugar.

Given that, we want to say that we did not verify the source of sugar for each of these products below. We recommend reaching out to the individual companies if you need to know.

We stand from a viewpoint that becoming vegan isn’t a quest to be the perfect vegan. In fact, in our society it’s nearly impossible. You can make the best choices you can on a day by day basis.

A teal jack o lantern.

How to easily spot an allergen-friendly house when trick-or-treating?

Over the last few years, the teal pumpkin project has really been gaining traction.  Essentially, it’s a way for parents with children that have food allergies to know that they can go to this house and find safe options for their children.  

Did you know that 1 in 13 children have a food allergy?  That’s roughly two kids in every classroom.  

Luckily, families have it even easier this year as many big-box stores are making it even easier to find teal pumpkins with their store bought reusable options. 

While it’s not guaranteed that a teal pumpkin house will have something vegan friendly, it is more likely that they will.

Often times these houses will give out things like applesauce, allergen friendly popcorn, pencils or stickers, etc.

The Ultimate Vegan Candy Guide

In this post, we list all vegan candy in alphabetical order. We also note whether the item is gluten-free if we have that information.*

*This information was accurate to the best of our ability at the time of publishing. Ingredients may change, please always read ingredients before consuming.

Please note that this is a list for the US brands. We are unable at this time to verify if candy in other countries use the same ingredients.

GF = Gluten Free

Vegan Candy A-F

A bowl of vegan candy.

Vegan Candy G-L

Vegan Candy M-R

A bowl of candy.

Vegan Candy S-Z

A jack o lantern glowing in a dark room.

*Vegan Candy Halloween Guide Disclaimer: 

The information included or this page are for informational purposes only and should never be considered as medical advice, opinion, or any other health-related information. You should always consult a medical provider for questions or answers regarding the health of yourself and loved ones. 

Please note at the time of posting, this vegan candy list was accurate. This list cannot guarantee that manufacturers have not changed manufactures, facilities, or ingredients. Always double check labels! If you have questions, our best suggestion is to call the manufacturer and ask. Especially in the case where a severe food allergy is present, contact them for allergen cross-contamination information. 

A person holding up a teal jack o lantern.

Where Can I Buy a Teal Pumpkin?

Want to make sure that people know your house is allergen-friendly?  All you have to do is place a teal pumpkin outside your house.  Of course, you can easily paint a pumpkin teal, but if you are looking for an easier option or one that is reusable, you can purchase a teal pumpkin or teal pumpkin decorations from the following stores: 

  • Amazon
  • Target
  • Walmart
  • Michaels
  • JOANN
  • Etsy
  • Oriental Trading
an assortment of teal jack o lanterns products on a shelf.

Did we miss a vegan candy?

Please let us know if we are missing something so that we can add it!

We hope that your favorite Halloween candy is on our list of vegan candy for Halloween. If it’s not, then we hope that you can find something that still brings you joy!  

Happy Trick or Treating (if it’s that time of year when you’re reading this)!

Originally published September 2020 and last updated October 2024.

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  1. Thank you so much! I was just wondering about this and most I avoided if I didn’t know. I shared with some peeps💗

    Reply

  2. For those wondering, they are NOT referring to Nestle’s milk chocolate candies in the UK that are also called “Smarties”. They are, instead, referring to the tablet-shaped fruity candy that comes in a cellophane-wrapped roll.

    Reply

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