Hershey's Non-Chocolate Candy Brands, Ranked Worst To Best

Most people's minds go immediately to chocolate when thinking about Hershey's brands. The candy company is mostly well-known for its wide array of chocolate options, like Almond Joy, Kit Kat, and Reese's peanut butter cups. But you might not know that Hershey's also carries many non-chocolate brands. Most of these candies lean toward the fruity end of the spectrum, and they range from gummies to hard candy to mints. I've decided to taste my way through six of these brands, ranking them from worst to best as I go.

Honestly, none of these candies completely blew me away, but some were considerably better than others. However, some are certainly better than others. The best-ranked candy varieties on this list are simply lacking an unpleasant, bitter artificiality that some of the worst-ranked candies unfortunately boast. The best of the best have a nice fruitiness to them that keeps them interesting, along with a texture that feels more like actual food than flavored plastic. Whether you're trying to figure out which of these candies you should eat (or which you should avoid), this guide will help you choose.

Good & Plenty may provide some fans with a nostalgic flavor that reminds them of their childhood. This licorice-flavored candy is shaped into pill-shaped pellets that take on a chewy texture in your mouth before ultimately sticking to your teeth. Sure, if you like licorice, they may not be that bad. But to me, these things really just taste like licorice-flavored plastic. I've never been a big fan of Good & Plenty, but I seem to remember them having a stronger licorice flavor to them when I ate them as a kid. Did I like eating them then? No. But at least they had a strong, distinctive punch to them. Now, though, you do get what I find to be a bit of that strange, medicinal flavor alongside an artificiality that's just not very pleasant.

Then, there's the texture. Like I've already mentioned, these chewy candies are notorious for sticking to your teeth. You get a few short seconds of juiciness when you start to chew, and then you feel like you need to floss. Sure, it's a movie theater classic, but still, it's one that I don't ever want to eat again.

Is it clear enough that I don't like Twizzlers? I consider Good & Plenty to taste pretty bad, but Twizzlers come in a close second. This is another Hershey's candy that I seem to remember having a stronger flavor when I had them as a kid. However, with both of the varieties I tried — cherry Twizzlers Bites and strawberry Twizzlers Twists — neither offered much flavor at all. When I opened the package, I definitely picked up on a very particular aroma that didn't seem to translate to the palate. With the cherry variety, I got a hint of an off-putting medicinal flavor, while I didn't really taste anything with the strawberry one at all. And honestly, I'm not sure which is worse.

Then, there's the texture problem. Sure, licorice is known for its chewiness, but this stuff still has a texture like straight-up rubber. I felt like I couldn't really chew it enough for it to get to a point where I actually wanted to swallow it. So, why does this candy rank above Good & Plenty if I disliked it so much? It essentially just comes down to shape. Twizzlers, at the very least, are a bit more interesting than Good & Plenty for those first few bites while they still have their signature twisted texture.

I can't deny that Shaq-a-Licious XL gummies have an appeal to them, mostly thanks to their shape. It's definitely an amusing take on a candy, and taking a bite out of a giant gummy shaped like Shaq's head is admittedly kind of fun. These gummies have achieved this spot on this list largely due to this sense of novelty, because after actually tasting the gummies, I have to admit that they're not very good. This pack comes with three different flavors: peach, berry punch, and orange. None of them were particularly delicious, but I found the peach flavor to be actively bad. The berry punch was a slight step up (but not much), while the orange flavor was, surprisingly, my favorite of the bunch. That said, they all tasted very plastic-y, with an unpleasant, bitter aftertaste that made me want to stop eating immediately.

To make matters worse, I didn't particularly like the texture here either. In my mind, the best gummy candies are bouncy and moist, with a soft texture that's springy once you take a bite. Unfortunately, that's not what I got with these. Rather, they were quite hard, with none of the springiness I had imagined. Instead, I found them exceptionally chewy, sticking to my teeth immediately. Considering that there are much better gummy candies out there, I probably wouldn't buy these again.

Now, mints kind of fall into a category of their own, but in this case, we're considering them candy. Although Ice Breakers definitely aren't one of my favorite mint brands out there, they rank as highly as they do on this list specifically because they're just one of the least offensive items. To me, the coolmint mints were better, largely because they're just pretty innocuous. They're refreshing, although they sort of lean into toothpaste territory. I'm not sure I would eat them for enjoyment, but when you're trying to freshen your breath, they're not a bad option.

While these mints aren't anything groundbreaking, they're reliable enough for what they're meant to do. Compared with the more artificial-tasting candies lower on this list, Ice Breakers offer a cleaner flavor and a more pleasant overall experience, which earns them a relatively high placement.

After trying two different Jolly Rancher candies, I didn't quite know how to rank this brand. This is because one of the varieties was relatively tasty for a cheap hard candy, while the other was actively bad. Out of the two, I definitely preferred the classic Jolly Rancher Hard Candy. While I feel like some of the candies on this list don't taste as good as they once did, that's not a problem I ran into with this product. These Jolly Ranchers taste just like I remember, with those same sweet, fruity flavors that somehow make for a refreshing snack. The blue raspberry has always been a fave, despite the fact that it turns your tongue blue. The grape and cherry flavors are pretty solid as well. Now, that's not to say that this is the most delicious candy I've ever tried, but it's pleasant overall.

But Jolly Rancher Chewy Poppers? This is a really unfortunate take on such a classic candy. To me, these candies essentially taste like crayons. Even though I tried several different flavors, that bitter "crayon" flavor kept coming through. There's a touch of fruity flavor when you first take a bite, but after that, this candy offers nothing beyond an awkward, sticky chewiness.

Finally, we get to the best of the best on this list: Sour Strips. As someone who likes sour candy, I expected this stuff to be the tastiest of the bunch anyway, and I wasn't wrong. I tried two varieties of Sour Strips. The first, blue raspberry, tasted decent, with that synthetic (but arguably still delicious) blue raspberry flavor you've tasted in other candies before. There's also a decent burst of sourness there, which is the main appeal of this candy. However, the Sour Strips Bites are actually pretty solid, with a nondescript, fruity flavor that really allows an intense sourness to shine. Plus, they're a bit less messy to eat than their classic strip counterparts, because you're not going to shed sugar everywhere while you're working your way through a strip.

I still think that Sour Strips have a bit of a rubber feel to them, with a flavor that could be more natural-tasting and pronounced. But the sourness hides a lot of sins and ultimately still makes this candy worth trying. If you're already a fan of sour candy, then there's a good chance you're going to enjoy this brand as well.

I selected six Hershey's non-chocolate candy brands that were available at my local grocery store for this piece. When possible, I selected multiple products from each brand. I paid attention to both flavor and texture while ranking these candies. Fruitier, bolder candy rose to the top, while options that had more bitter, artificial flavors ranked worse than their counterparts. I also looked for a texture that lacked the intense plastic-like feel I got from some of these brands.