30 Gluten and Dairy Free Halloween Candy Picks (Checked List)

Most Halloween candy already sitting on store shelves is gluten and dairy free — you just have to know which pieces to grab and which to skip. Skittles, Starburst, Smarties, and Swedish Fish are all safe as-is. Chocolate candy is where the trouble starts, since milk chocolate and wafer bars almost always carry both allergens. Here's the checked list: what's already safe, what to avoid, and the specialty brands worth ordering ahead for the pickiest reactions.

Checked at Any Store

These are already gluten and dairy free by ingredient list, no substitution needed. A few carry a cross-contact caution since they're made on shared equipment — noted below for anyone who needs to avoid that too.

Candy	Gluten Free?	Dairy Free?	Notes
Skittles	Yes	Yes	Made with gluten free ingredients but not certified; possible cross-contact on shared lines.
Starburst	Yes	Yes	No gluten or milk ingredients in the standard formula.
Smarties (US, Ce De brand)	Yes	Yes	Free of the top allergens. Note: not gluten free in Canada, where "Smarties" is a different, chocolate candy.
Swedish Fish	Yes	Yes	No milk products; vegan-friendly formula.
Sour Patch Kids (original bag)	Yes	Yes	No wheat, barley, or rye. Skip Sour Patch Kids cereal, which does contain wheat flour.
Jolly Rancher (hard candy & lollipops)	Yes	Yes	No gluten or dairy ingredients in the classic hard candy line.
Dum Dums	Yes	Yes	Free of the top nine allergens per the manufacturer.
Mike and Ike	Yes	Yes	Free of wheat, milk, egg, peanut, tree nut, soy, fish, and shellfish.
Laffy Taffy	Yes	Yes	Vegan formula, no gluten ingredients.
Nerds	Yes	Yes	No dairy ingredients, but made in a facility that also processes milk, wheat, egg, peanut, tree nut, and soy.
Junior Mints	Yes	Yes	No gluten or dairy ingredients across all flavors.
Life Savers (mint rolls)	Yes	Yes	No gluten or dairy ingredients; not certified.
Now & Later	Yes	Yes	No wheat or milk ingredients, but made in a facility that also processes wheat, milk, egg, tree nut, and peanut.

Skip These (Contains Gluten and/or Dairy)

These are the classic candy-aisle names we get asked about most, and every one of them is on this list on purpose — not because we forgot them. Most fail on dairy alone (milk chocolate is, almost by definition, made with milk), a few fail on gluten too, and we've noted exactly which for each one below.

Candy	Contains Gluten	Contains Dairy	Notes
Twix	Yes (wafer/cookie)	Yes	Wheat wafer plus milk chocolate.
Kit Kat	Yes (wafer)	Yes	Wheat wafer plus milk chocolate.
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups	No	Yes	Milk chocolate coating; also contains peanuts.
Reese's Pieces	No	Yes	Candy shell and center both contain milk.
Snickers	No	Yes	Milk chocolate and caramel (contains milk).
Milky Way	No	Yes	Milk chocolate and caramel.
M&M's (milk chocolate)	No	Yes	Milk chocolate shell.
Butterfinger	No	Yes	Peanut butter crisp coated in milk chocolate.
Milk Duds	No	Yes	Milk chocolate covered caramel.
Tootsie Rolls	No	Yes	Contains condensed skim milk and whey.
Almond Joy	No (not certified)	Yes	Coconut and almond in milk chocolate.
Mounds	No (not certified)	Yes	Coconut in milk chocolate.
York Peppermint Pattie	No	Yes	Mint filling coated in milk chocolate.
Rolo	No	Yes	Caramel and milk chocolate.
Heath Bar	No	Yes	Toffee and milk chocolate.
100 Grand	Yes (barley malt)	Yes	Chocolate, caramel, and crisped rice with barley malt.
Whoppers	Yes (barley malt)	Yes	Malted milk center in chocolate.
Twizzlers	Yes (wheat flour)	No	No dairy, but wheat flour rules out gluten free.
Nestle Crunch	Yes (barley malt)	Yes	Rice crisps flavored with barley malt, in milk chocolate.
Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar	No	Yes	Plain milk chocolate.
Hershey's Kisses (milk chocolate)	No	Yes	Plain milk chocolate.
Charleston Chew	No (not certified)	Yes	Nougat contains milk.
Bit-O-Honey	No	Yes	Contains nonfat milk; also almonds.
Andes Mints	No	Yes	Contains nonfat milk and milk protein concentrate.

Formulations change without warning, so this list is a starting point, not a guarantee — check the current label on anything you're unsure about, especially seasonal or limited-edition packaging.

Specialty Brands (Zero Guesswork)

For trick-or-treaters with more than one allergy to manage, these brands are built gluten and dairy free from the ground up and mostly free of the top allergens too. We order these ahead every year since they're rarely on local shelves.

No Whey Foods

• Milkless Mini Chocolate Bars — individually wrapped, our go-to for trick-or-treat bowls.
• Choco No-No's & No Freight Bites — milkless white and milk chocolate bars in one pack.
• Skull Pop Chocolate Lollipops — a fun seasonal shape.
• PeaNot Cups — the closest match to Reese's we've found; we keep these on hand year-round.
• Bags of Terror — chocolate covered pretzels with orange sprinkles.
• Fear-Knot Pretzels — individually bagged chocolate covered pretzels.
• Halloween Goodie Tubes — a fun spooky spin on the classic candy tube.
• Browse the full No Whey Foods Amazon storefront for current Halloween availability.

YumEarth

• Sour Littles — the gluten and dairy free answer to Sour Patch Kids.
• Organic Chewys — a Starburst-style chew, top 9 allergen free.
• Lollipop Variety Pack — organic, no artificial dyes.
• Giggles — their take on Skittles.
• Black Licorice — a good spooky-season option, top 9 free.
• Fruit Snacks — a year-round staple in our house.
• Gummy Bears — individually packaged, no top 9 allergens.
• Choco Yums — their M&M's-style option.

Zollipops & Shameless Snacks

• Zollipops — gluten free, zero sugar lollipops marketed as tooth-friendly.
• Shameless Snacks candies — gluten free, dairy free, vegan, and free of artificial dyes. Sour Blue Raspberry is a house favorite.
• Bulk variety bag of individually wrapped Skittles and Starburst, pre-checked above, for a mixed bowl with no sorting required.

Non-Candy Ideas

It's worth keeping a few non-food options on hand too, for kids who can't have candy yet or trick-or-treaters looking for something different:

• Stretchy Skeletons
• Halloween Bracelets
• Glittery Stretchy Strings (fidget toys)
• Pop Tubes
• Halloween Coloring Activity Mats
• Mold-Free Bath Cars

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Reese's gluten free?

Yes, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups don't contain gluten ingredients, but they do contain dairy (and peanuts). For gluten and dairy free trick-or-treaters, our No Whey Foods PeaNot Cups pick above is the closest safe match.

Is candy corn gluten and dairy free?

Most classic candy corn, including Brach's, is both gluten and dairy free by ingredient list — it's primarily sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin-free binders. Always check the current bag, since some seasonal or "caramel apple" flavored versions add dairy.

Why does chocolate candy cause the most problems?

Milk chocolate is, almost by definition, made with milk. And wafer or cookie bars like Twix and Kit Kat add wheat on top of that. Non-chocolate candy — gummies, hard candy, taffy — is much more likely to already be free of both.

Do I need to worry about cross-contact for trick-or-treat candy?

It depends on sensitivity level. For celiac disease specifically, look for a manufacturer statement about shared equipment (like Nerds' facility note above). For a milk or wheat allergy, cross-contact risk is usually more significant and worth checking with the brand directly if it's not stated on the package.

More for Fall

• Fried Apple Fritters
• Candy Corn Brownies
• Halloween Trail Mix
• Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats

For more brand checks, travel guides, and everyday tips, see our full Gluten & Dairy Free Living Tips hub.

Share for others and save for later!