Halloween candy gets scarier: chocolate prices soar in the US

American shoppers are facing a scarier Halloween this year: candy prices have jumped by more than 8%, with chocolate rising even faster, up nearly 30% compared with last year. A 48-count box of full-size chocolate bars now costs around 50 dollars, compared with 40 dollars in 2024.

The root cause is a global cocoa shortage. Cocoa prices more than doubled since the start of 2024, peaking at nearly 13,000 dollars per metric ton in late 2024, before recovering to around 7,000 dollars. Adverse weather, swinging between heavy rainfall and drought, together with disease outbreaks, has hurt crop yields on cocoa farms in West Africa for several years in a row.

The impact on shoppers is real: 57% of Americans say chocolate prices are making them reconsider how much candy to dish out this year, and about half plan to cut back on Halloween spending overall. Hershey announced a « lower double-digit » price increase back in July.

As a result, chocolate’s share of Halloween candy sales has been shrinking, from 52% last year to 44% this year, as shoppers shift towards cheaper, trendier sweets instead. On average, chocolate now costs about 8 dollars per pound, compared with roughly 5.77 dollars per pound for non-chocolate candy.

There is a glimmer of hope, though: cocoa futures recently hit an 11-month low, thanks to improved crop prospects and increased supply from West Africa, which could ease prices again for next year’s trick-or-treaters.

Adapted from Newsweek and Axios, October 2025