15 Reese's Candies, Ranked Worst To Best

I'm willing to bet you already know and love the classic Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, but have you ever explored the Reese's candies beyond it? (And no, we're not just talking about Reese's Pieces.) Whether you're picking out the sweets that will be filling up your Halloween bowl this year or are just wondering what the differences between Reese's Chocolate Lava Big Cup and Reese's Thins are, this list is bound to shed some light on the best Reese's candies to grab.

To create this ranking, I looked at the overall flavor profile and texture of 14 Reese's candies. I also considered each candy's texture. Since each one involves chocolate and peanut butter filling in some way, I included the ratio of both as a ranking factor. Most of these candies retail for about the same price, so I didn't factor that into my ranking. For the scientists, my full methodology is detailed at the end of this article. Read on for details on which Reese's candies to buy, but peanut butter allergy sufferers, be warned: you'd probably be better off exploring our ranking of 15 different Hershey's chocolate bars instead.

The Chocolate Lava Big Cup wasn't quite what I expected. The chocolate exterior and thick peanut butter filling are exactly what you'd get from a regular Reese's Big Cup, but underneath the peanut butter is a gooey layer of chocolate-flavored syrup (not the Hershey's canned stuff, however). Now, depending on your chocolate sauce preferences, you might not agree with me, but I was overwhelmed by the chocolate sauce's aftertaste. It's made with high fructose corn syrup, which was likely a major contributor (especially since a plain Reese's Cup doesn't contain corn syrup).

I'm typically not a corn syrup complainer, but in this candy, the syrup's artificial taste overwhelms the rest of the peanut butter cup. Plus, the chocolate sauce barely even tastes like chocolate. I can appreciate the syrup's texture, which makes the Chocolate Lava Big Cup even creamier than a regular Reese's, but the flavor profile isn't there yet. For now, maybe just dip your regular Reese's in some smooth melted chocolate instead.

Sadly, the Reese's Caramel Big Cup suffers from the same issue as the Chocolate Lava one: the caramel sauce has a strange artificial flavor that overpowers the rest of the candy. Overall, I could tell caramel and Reese's peanut butter go well together. The caramel sauce added an extra-salty flavor that paired beautifully with Reese's peanut butter filling and lingered on the palate. These elements were satisfying, but the sauce itself was overwhelmingly corn-syrupy and didn't have the strong caramel flavor I was hoping for. I think a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup dipped in caramel sauce — or even filled with a chewy caramel candy — would be delightful, but the Caramel Big Cup's sauce misses the mark.

Based on the photo alone, you can probably tell that there's something a little off about my Reese's Pumpkin — namely, it looked more like a Reese's Square. It came out of the package as pictured. Believe it or not, I bought it at the same store as the others and stored it in the same spot, at the same temperature. Something may have been wrong with the batch I bought, but I think the ranking holds up regardless.

I felt like both the shape of the Reese's Pumpkins and the ratio of chocolate to peanut butter filling were off. This is undoubtedly an unpopular opinion for fans of the Reese's Pumpkin, and I acknowledge that the batch I purchased could have contributed to these issues. Regardless, the biggest difference with Reese's Pumpkins is that they're missing the signature ridges of the Reese's Cup, which — as I discovered throughout my tasting — really do create the perfect ratio of peanut butter to chocolate. 

Without the ridges, the Reese's Pumpkins had a little too much peanut butter, too thin a layer of chocolate, and an overly soft exterior. The creaminess of Reese's peanut butter filling is designed to pair with a chocolate shell that has a little bite, whereas the Pumpkins were rather mushy by comparison. They were the only candy on this list that just didn't seem to hold up very well. Bonus points for their cute shape, though — or at least what I imagine they might look like.

As a white chocolate fan, I was surprised to find that Reese's White Cups weren't one of my favorites (especially since Hershey's made the white chocolate bar that ranked highest in our tasting). They're still a fairly solid candy, and certainly worth a try if you enjoy white chocolate. But the combination of white chocolate and peanut butter just isn't as striking as milk chocolate and peanut butter. This makes the Reese's White Cup taste a little bland; without contrast, the candy mostly just tastes like peanut butter. It doesn't have a bad flavor profile by any means, but I'd rather go for another Reese's candy with more flavor.

While I often find zero-sugar products lacking, Reese's Zero Sugar candies pleasantly surprised me. Texturally, they present the exact same experience as a regular Reese's cup, and they offer the same ratio of chocolate to peanut butter, too. The main difference, of course, is the unavoidable aftertaste that comes with artificial sweeteners. The Zero Sugar cups are made mostly with maltitol and some sucralose, which is more likely to cause the unusual aftertaste. The candy tastes similar to a Reese's cup to begin with, but the sucralose taste lingers on the palate long after you eat a Zero Sugar Reese's. (For the curious, the main difference between sucralose and aspartame is that the former is also a no-calorie option.) 

Naturally, I recommend Reese's Zero Sugar candies to anyone looking to avoid sugar. If you don't want a regular Reese's, I think these will offer you a satisfying substitute. But in a masked taste test against the originals, the Zero Sugar Reese's have no chance of winning.

When I cut into this Reese's cup, I immediately noticed the chocolate coating was much harder than a regular Reese's, making it harder to bite into. The chocolate is brittle, so it snaps abruptly as you eat it rather than giving you a smooth bite. 

Compared to Reese's dairy-based peanut butter filling, the plant-based peanut filling doesn't have as much flavor. This makes the chocolate coating taste more overpowering. The chocolate-to-peanut-butter ratio looks the same, but it doesn't have quite the same salty, peanut-y flavor as a regular Reese's.

I found the Plant-Based Reese's to have a pleasantly creamy peanut butter filling, and a nice level of sweetness. But the chocolate texture and milder overall flavor make these candies a little less desirable. As a dairy-free alternative, they get the job done, but they don't carry the same signature flavor that makes Reese's peanut butter filling so craveable.  

I'll be the first to admit that my ranking of both the Reese's Thins and the Reese's Big Cup (spoiler alert!) may not tie in with your personal tastes. These two products are made for people who either want more chocolate and less peanut butter, or more peanut butter. Neither choice is 'wrong,' and Reese's certainly delivers with Reese's Thins; they're a primarily chocolate-based candy, with the thinnest possible layer of peanut butter filling inside. This does make them slightly harder and less creamy than a typical Reese's, so the texture changes significantly.

These candies are good — but in my humble opinion, I'm not eating a Reese's to skimp out on Hershey's peanut butter filling. If a Reese's Thin is what you're looking for, I can't blame you. But other, more flavorful candies are ahead.

In my mind, the Reese's Big Cup is tied with the Reese's Thins because they're both there to satisfy those who want more (or less) than what's in the original Reese's. If you're a peanut butter person, I can't recommend the Big Cup enough. It may not be quite as large as the giant Reese's Peanut Butter Cup you can build yourself, but it delivers on a satisfying inch of peanut butter filling. The peanut butter flavor definitely comes through more strongly than the chocolate. Overall, the candy is soft and somewhat creamy, but there's so much peanut butter filling inside that it also comes off as slightly dry.

For most people, I would argue that the Reese's Big Cup isn't necessary. Your average person is going to think of the regular Reese's Cup as the gold standard of chocolate to peanut butter, and the Big Cup is very indulgent when it comes to the latter. Reese's made these candies for people who are positively obsessed with peanut butter, but for most, they won't be a first-place choice. That's why they rank in the middle of this list — they're absolutely amazing for some people, but I think most will likely prefer other options.

Reese's OREO Cups are a fun combination. The top of the cup is made with white creme, while the sides are milk chocolate. Mixed in with the peanut butter filling are crunchy OREO cookies. The texture of this OREO cup is extra satisfying; the cookies add an airy crunchiness to each bite.

The only reason this candy didn't rank higher is that I felt it could have had more OREO flavor. I expected a treat that tastes like both Reese's and OREO cookies — and it definitely delivered on that classic Reese's peanut butter taste, but the OREO cookie flavor was less clear. Because of the cookie mix-ins, the interior of this Reese's cup was also a little drier than usual. It would have been nice to have more of that classic OREO creme flavor and texture.

This is where the competition really gets tough; ranking the final five Reese's candies was difficult because they're all truly top-tier. The Reese's Peanut Butter Bar is a really fun treat, and it's hard to stop eating! Each square in this chocolate bar is filled with Reese's peanut butter filling — and Reese's absolutely nailed the ratio of chocolate to peanut butter here. The chocolate layer is just the right thickness, as is the peanut butter. Every square breaks off neatly in bite-sized pieces that are perfect for sharing. While I still think the ridges of the classic Reese's Peanut Butter Cup are hard to beat, this bar's texture is very satisfying. The chocolate isn't too soft, offering plenty of contrast to the creamy filling, but is still smooth. 

I definitely found a new favorite candy in Reese's Fast Break. This long, stick-shaped bar is filled with (of course) Reese's peanut butter and nougat, which is pleasantly chewy and adds a lovely bite to the soft Reese's filling. 

Since the nougat is also peanut-flavored, it doesn't detract from the peanut butter filling whatsoever, so the bar retains the flavor profile of a typical Reese's cup. It's fun to bite into and has a satisfying mouthfeel that's very different than what a traditional Reese's Cup offers. If you're a Reese's fan who wants to shake things up, or if you love the texture of candy bars like Milky Way or Twix, the Reese's Fast Break is worth a purchase.

Another unique offering from the brand is Reese's Sticks, which reminded me of a KitKat bar. These long, crunchy candies are filled with two layers of wafers and two layers of peanut butter. While I'm all for a soft and creamy candy, I think the wafer layers add a lot of textural variety to Reese's Sticks. They're light, layered, and crunchy. 

Looking at the inside of a Reese's Stick, there doesn't seem to be a lot of peanut butter inside — but I can assure you that the flavor profile is very clearly that of a Reese's Cup. Because Reese's Sticks are thinner, the peanut butter filling comes through very clearly. I have absolutely no complaints about the Reese's Sticks; I'll definitely be grabbing this candy bar again.

In a world of salty-sweet snacks, Reese's Take 5 is one of my new favorites. Take 5 delivers a lot of different notes at once: sweet milk chocolate, salty, creamy peanut butter, sweet, gooey caramel, crunchy peanuts, and whole, salty pretzels. It would be all too easy to eat a full bag of Take 5s — and if I didn't have a dozen other Reese's candies to get through during this tasting, I probably would have.

Reese's is already known for being both salty and sweet, but Take 5 takes it to a whole new level. It's a true explosion of flavors and textures. There's no other Reese's candy quite like it — and yet, thanks to the peanut butter filling, you can clearly tell that it's a Reese's product when you're eating it. Reese's Take 5 is a shining example of what a candy should be: nuanced, flavorful, and a little nostalgic. 

Seriously, is there anyone out there who doesn't love Reese's Pieces? (I have to assume the answer is no, given how quickly they leave my candy bowl each Halloween.) The secret to the success of these tiny candies is their combination of creaminess and crunchiness. 

The candy's chocolate coating is nice and crunchy, but it immediately gives way to a smooth peanut butter filling that coats your entire mouth at once, giving you the ultimate hit of sweet and salty flavor. It's that creamy filling that makes Reese's Pieces so difficult to stop eating; they almost seem to 'pop' open as you bite down. While it didn't factor into my ranking, I would like to award a quick bonus point for the fact that Reese's Pieces are very cost-effective; I snagged an entire box of them for $1.

Is there anything better than a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup? If you went into this ranking hoping that a niche Reese's candy would rise to the top, I'm sorry to disappoint. But Reese's Peanut Butter Cups truly are the standard, and honestly, Reese's should be proud that the OG is unbeatable to this day.

The chocolate shell has just the right amount of thickness, making for a smooth bite all the way through. The sweet chocolate coating and perfectly creamy filling are exactly what most people think of when they think of Reese's candies. The salty, nutty flavor of the peanut butter filling shines through, but is never overwhelming. It's a shining star from start to finish. 

I found several new favorite Reese's candies to add to my grocery list during this ranking, but at the end of the day, Reese's and I both know what it does best: the classic peanut butter cup. It stands on its own, and there's no other major candy brand out there that makes a peanut butter cup as good as Reese's. While I can honestly recommend most of the candies on this list, if you want something simple and purely classic, the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup is the one you're looking for. See you in the candy aisle.

I tried each of these Reese's candies one after the other, with water in between to cleanse the palate. I have a sweet tooth, but I also have a dentist, so I cut each candy into bite-sized pieces for this ranking. I made sure to cut each candy to include both the edge and the center, so that I was eating an accurate example of the candy's chocolate-to-filling ratio. 

I started with the classic Reese's Peanut Butter Cup so I could get a sense of what the original tasted like before continuing. From there, I chose the rest of the candies randomly. I ranked each candy based on overall flavor profile and texture before diving into the nuances of filling ratios and shapes. While I certainly didn't rank any of the candies based on how similar they tasted to an original Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, I did include a few flavor comparisons. I'm confident that you've tasted a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup at least once in your life, so it was a good way to give you an idea of what each candy tastes like (and where it might fall short).

I purchased each of these Reese's candies in-store. I chose the assortment based on what was available in my area, but I also confirmed these candies are widely available across the U.S. before including them in my ranking. Besides Reese's Pumpkins, which is popular enough that I felt it needed to be included, every candy is available year-round. After I bought them, I kept them at room temperature.