We Ranked the Best and Worst M&M Flavors of All Time
As if you needed even more choices perusing the sweets aisle, your favorite movie theater candy has added a new flavor to its lineup. That's right, M&M’s has made their Caramel Cold Brew part of their official collection!
The 82-year-old candy company was trying to appeal to Gen Z-ers by debuting the flavor in February and has now announced that it can be found permanently, nestled alongside the company’s 10 other best M&M flavors.
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How many flavors of M&M's are there?
Currently, there are 11 flavors of M&M’s, not including M&M Minis or any of the seasonal or limited edition flavors, like White Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Treat (which comes out around Easter) and White Chocolate Strawberry Shake (which is a Valentine’s Day treat). The everyday lineup of the first candy in space (really!) is as follows: Plain, Peanut, Peanut Butter, Almond, Caramel, Pretzel, Dark Chocolate, Mint, Crispy Cookie, Fudge Brownie and, now, Caramel Cold Brew.
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
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What is the most common M&M flavor?
While the two most popular flavors of M&M’s are Plain and Peanut, there are nine other varieties to explore (plus Minis if you’re into those). Caramel Cold Brew came about last year as the company was scrambling to get the attention of Gen Z-ers.
"At Mars, we're always listening, innovating, and executing to meet the expectations and tastes of our consumers. M&M's Caramel Cold Brew delivers on the robust flavor profile of one of Gen Z's favorite drinks," said Gabrielle Wesley, Chief Marketing Officer of Mars Wrigley North America in a press release. "This delicious new innovation inspires a moment of everyday happiness for fans, allowing them to enjoy their favorite coffee shop flavor with one of their favorite brands."
But how does this one rank compared to the brand’s 10 other flavors? We took a trip down the candy aisle for you to make your next shopping trip a bit easier with this M&M’s power ranking. Here’s my honest review of all 11 M&M’s candy flavors.
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11 Best M&M Flavors, Ranked
#11: Caramel Cold Brew
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
I hate to do this right out of the gate, but these were my least favorite flavor of M&M. To me, they had the exact flavor of a cappuccino Jelly Belly. They’re medium-sized, chewy in the center, and have a heavy artificial coffee taste that reminded me of those cheap, tiny vacuum-sealed bags of beans you get in Christmas gift baskets. To be fair, I go for an unsweetened dark roast in the a.m., and a friend who takes her coffee light and sweet absolutely cannot get enough of these new M&M's.
M&M'S CARAMEL COLD BREW SINGLES 1.41 OUNCES PER BAG 24 PER CARTON (TOTAL 33.84
#10: Pretzel
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Monstrous in size, with a tiny pretzel nib inside, these are not particularly salty which makes them taste considerably less pretzel-y. A bit on the stale side, so If you’re expecting a strong salty pretzel taste to go along with your chocolate, this isn't it.
M&M'S Pretzel Milk Chocolate Candy Bulk Pack, Sharing Size, 8 oz Bag (Pack of 8)
#9: Dark Chocolate
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
These have the same, poppable feel as regular milk chocolate M&M’s but they taste a little like when you buy knockoff M&M’s…something is just off. The dark chocolate used isn’t of the highest quality, and you can tell. They’re almost sickly sweet, but I wouldn’t be turned off entirely to maybe trying to bake with them.
M&M'S Dark Chocolate Candy Family Size, 19.2 Ounce
#8: Almond
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Perhaps the largest in size of all the varieties, they’re kind of like a Jordan almond but instead of the super sweet candy coating, it’s the M&M chocolate and candy shell that we all know and love. The almonds were kind of bland so I found these uninteresting. I’d much rather eat a Jordan almond.
M&M's(R) Almond 9.3 oz Sharing Size (Pack of 2)
#7: Mint Dark Chocolate
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Only coming in two hues, light and dark green, these taste like those creamy mint Andes candies your grandmother had, but in pop ‘em form. They're bigger than regular M&M’s and smaller than the giant Almond ones. So if you’re a mint fan, you’ll like these refreshing little spheres of dark chocolate and cool mint flavor. Perfect for snacking on a warm spring day.
M&M'S Mint Dark Chocolate Candy Sharing Size 9.6-Ounce Bag (Pack of 8)
#6: Crunchy Cookie
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Very similar to crispy M&M’s (which have been discontinued and then reintroduced a few times over the years before being reincarnated into the Crunchy Cookie flavor), these have a sugar cookie middle and are way smaller and rounded in size so they’re highly poppable. Not a ton of cookie flavor—as in, you don’t get notes of vanilla or salted dough as much as you think you would. It’s good but way different from a cookie dough flavor and leans into sugar cookie territory.
M & M's Crunchy Cookie Milk Chocolate Candy, 2.83oz, 24ct Share Size Packs per Carton, Blue
#5: Peanut Butter
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Super thin shell, and while not as peanut buttery as Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (or as epic as Reese’s Pieces), you know when you eat it that it’s a good old smushy sugary PB flavor.
M&M's Peanut Butter Milk Chocolate Easter Candy, Party Size, 34 oz Bag
#4: Caramel
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
These are like if Rolos and M&M’s had a sweet little lovechild. The caramel is not nearly as “stick to your teeth” as a Rolo, but it’s decent. They’re better if you let them melt in your mouth a little and then chew. And you’re definitely not going to get the cheese pull-like effect that’s displayed on the package as the texture of the caramel is a bit harder.
M&M'S Caramel Chocolate Candy Sharing Size 9.6-Ounce Bag (Pack of 8)
#3: Fudge Brownie
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Gooey, almost brownie batter-like at its core, this one is the size of the peanut butter ones but not as large as the pretzel ones. The brown M&M character on the package has a knowing smirk and is definitely judging you like she just knows you’re going to eat the whole “share size” bag by yourself. And you will.
M&M'S Fudge Brownie Chocolate Candy Party Size, 34 oz Bag
#2: Plain
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
Nothing beats the classic M&M in my opinion, and not just because they remind me of my grandma’s house where she always had a beautiful glass dish full of colorful candy gems. They’re the perfect ratio of candy shell to milk chocolate. No artificial flavors, no nuts, no weird textures. Just perfect melt-in-your-mouth little candies.
M&M'S Milk Chocolate Candy, 38-Ounce Party Size Bag
#1: Peanut
Courtesy of Jessica Wrubel
More interesting than the plain, but not as weird or off-putting as some of the other flavors, these are crunchy, nutty and classic, with a decent peanut-to-candy shell ratio (and also great with a caramel M&M at the same time!).
M&M'S Peanut Milk Chocolate Candy, Party Size, 38 oz Bag (Pack of 2)
