The most popular junk food by state
This is the most popular junk food in every state
America is known for food that is fast, fun, and fried.
While traditional junk foods aren’t exactly a cornerstone of a healthy diet, enjoying your favorite treats every now and again in moderation doesn’t have to derail you from your health and fitness goals.
Hims asked Americans to weigh in on their favorite junk foods, and what we learned is that America’s palette is as diverse as its residents. What’s more, where you live can also impact how you eat.
This diversity came through regionally, with different states varying widely on their preferences. For example, Kansans are 3X more likely to opt for soda over beer, but the opposite is true for Alaskans, who are three times more likely to choose beer over soda. Vermont residents are connoisseurs of both wine and chocolate. And Colorado can’t get enough pizza: More than one-quarter of residents name it as their junk food du jour.
Here’s a complete look at America’s favorite junk foods by state, according to a 2025 Hims study.
Pizza is America’s Favorite Junk Food Overall
97% of Americans admit to having a favorite guilty pleasure food, with pizza, ice cream, and chocolate topping their list. At the bottom? Sugary drinks like Frappuccinos and bubble tea, along with breakfast treats like pastries and Pop-Tarts. Here’s the full ranking.
Q: What is your favorite junk food, or guilty pleasure food? Select one.
- 11% Pizza
- 8% Ice cream
- 8% Chocolate/candy bars
- 6% Hamburgers
- 6% Fried chicken
- 5% Chips
- 5% Beer
- 5% French fries
- 5% Soda
- 4% Candy
- 4% Cookies
- 4% Doughnuts
- 4% Chicken nuggets
- 4% Mac and cheese
- 3.5% Wine
- 3.5% Hot dogs
- 3% Pastry
- 3% Frappuccinos®
- 2% Bubble tea
- 2% Pop-Tarts
- 1% Other
- 3% None of the above—I don’t like any guilty pleasure foods
Colorado Is the Ultimate Land of Pizza Lovers
More than 1-in-10 Americans (11%) say pizza is the junk food they crave most (see full list above), with Colorado coming in as the state with the most pizza lovers—27% of Coloradans chose pizza as their top guilty pleasure food, followed by West Virginia (18%), Montana (18%), Massachusetts (17%), and Indiana (16.5%).
All other junk foods in Colorado paled in comparison, but fried foods like french fries and fried chicken came in second and third (9% and 6.5% named them as favorites, respectively).
What can Colorado live without? Sweet drinks. Soda, Frappuccinos®, and bubble tea were at the bottom of Colorado’s list of favorite junk foods, with fewer than 1% of residents naming each as favorites.
Utah Has America’s Biggest Sweet Tooth
Candy is the number one junk food in Utah, with 13% of residents naming it as a favorite, the most of any state. Ice cream was a close second for Utah (12%), followed by cookies (11%), cementing Utah’s place as the most sugar-craving state in America. What don’t they love? Chips, mac and cheese, and hot dogs—foods that fall on the salty rather than sweet side of the equation.
South Dakota Prefers Salty Snacks
Opposite Utah, South Dakota is all about salty snacks, and can take or leave the sweet stuff. They were 2X more likely to opt for chips than candy (10% vs. 5%), making chips the top junk food in South Dakota and the only state where chips ranked number one.
Interestingly, however, french fries—a close cousin to chips, at least the potato variety—fell toward the bottom of South Dakota’s list, with only 2% of residents saying fries were a favorite. What are they washing their chips down with? As many South Dakotans chose soda as beer: 7% of residents named each as favorites.
New York Has the Most Junk Food Cravings of Any State
New Yorkers were the most likely to admit to at least one junk food craving. Fewer than 1% of New Yorkers said they didn’t have a guilty pleasure food. At the top of their list is a food they're well-known for, pizza, tied with ice cream as a favorite (both 14%).
What can they live without? Mac and cheese didn’t rank highly for New Yorkers, perhaps because it’s harder to handle on the metro than a slice of pizza.
New Mexico Loves Chicken Nuggets
For some, the best way to enjoy chicken is in nugget form, and this holds true for residents of New Mexico. Chicken nuggets placed third on their list of favorite junk foods (9% love them), right after burgers and pizza (11% and 10% named them as favorites, respectively), making New Mexico the state with the most chicken nugget lovers. Fried chicken (the non-nugget variety) also scored relatively well, with 6% of New Mexicans giving it top marks. These options stand out as ones with more protein. Want to make sure you’re getting enough protein? Check out this handy protein calculator.
Bubble Tea Outpaces Beer In the Sin City State
They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas—and apparently what’s happening in Nevada, home to Sin City, is bubble tea. The sweet Taiwanese tea has grown in popularity in the U.S., but no state loves it more than Nevada, the top state of bubble tea drinkers according to our study.
In fact, the state of Nevada ranks bubble tea as high as ice cream and chocolate (6% of residents name each as a favorite). Beer, on the other hand, fell slightly lower on the list (5% say it’s a favorite) and wine even lower than that (3%).
The Most Popular Junk Food In Every State
Most states chose either pizza, ice cream, or chocolate as favorite guilty pleasure foods, but eight states (bolded below) bucked the trend and chose other junk foods first.
Here’s a look at the favorite junk food in all 50 states—the last one may surprise you.
- Alabama: Chocolate
- Alaska: Pizza
- Arizona: Pizza
- Arkansas: Chocolate and Pizza (tied)
- California: Pizza
- Colorado: Pizza
- Connecticut: Hot Dogs
- Delaware: Pizza
- Florida: Pizza
- Georgia: Ice Cream
- Hawaii: Pizza
- Idaho: Chocolate
- Illinois: Pizza
- Indiana: Pizza
- Iowa: Pizza
- Kansas: Ice Cream
- Kentucky: Pizza
- Louisiana: Pizza
- Maine: Chocolate
- Maryland: Chocolate
- Massachusetts: Pizza
- Michigan: Pizza
- Minnesota: Ice Cream
- Mississippi: Fried Chicken
- Missouri: Pizza
- Montana: Pizza
- Nebraska: Pizza
- Nevada: Hamburgers and Pizza (tied)
- New Hampshire: Chocolate
- New Jersey: Pizza
- New Mexico: Hamburgers
- New York: Pizza and Ice Cream (tied)
- North Carolina: Chocolate
- North Dakota: Pizza
- Ohio: Ice Cream
- Oklahoma: Pizza
- Oregon: Ice Cream
- Pennsylvania: Ice Cream
- Rhode Island: Ice Cream
- South Carolina: Pizza and Ice Cream (tied)
- South Dakota: Chips
- Tennessee: Fried Chicken
- Texas: Chocolate
- Utah: Candy
- Vermont: Pizza
- Virginia: Pizza
- Washington: Pizza
- West Virginia: Pizza
- Wisconsin: Pizza
- Wyoming: Doughnuts and Fried Chicken (tied)
3 Tips to Support Your Health Goals
Splurging from time to time on your favorite foods can still be a part of a balanced diet, as any diet that’s too restrictive usually isn’t sustainable. Here are a few tips to help you enjoy your favorite foods while sticking to your health goals.
- Practice mindful eating. No matter what you’re eating, being mindful of when you’re eating and how much can help. If you’re a stress eater, before you sit down for a meal or a snack, ask yourself if you’re really hungry or if you’re feeling anxious or stressed. If it’s the latter, try going for a walk or a bike ride or shooting hoops in the driveway to help destress.
- Make healthy swaps. There are still plenty of ways to enjoy your favorite foods and feel good, and giving them a healthier spin is one great way to do it. If you’re a french fry lover, pick up some sweet potatoes and make sweet potato fries at home in an air fryer. If ice cream is your vice, try a recipe for frozen Greek yogurt to curb the craving.
- Stay active. Understanding your total daily energy expenditure can be a helpful tool to understand how your body burns energy throughout the day, what to eat, and how much to move. Creating a workout plan that incorporates strength training and cardio can help you stay in a calorie deficit and support a healthy diet.
Data and Methodology
This study is based on a 7,100-person online survey, which included (1) 5,000 18-to-65-year-old respondents in the top 50 metropolitan areas (100 respondents per city); (2) 5,000 18-65-year-old respondents in each of the 50 states (100 respondents per state); and (3) a nationally representative sample of 500 18-to-65-year-old respondents to contextualize results. These three categories are not mutually exclusive; some respondents fall within more than one category. The study was fielded in January 2025.
Findings were analyzed by 190 demographic and psychographic cuts, including city, region, gender (when Hims refers to “women” and “men,” that includes all people who self-identify as such), age, race and ethnicity, relationship status, parenting status, sexual orientation (heterosexual, bisexual, gay, lesbian, pansexual, asexual, queer, etc.), fandoms (music, sports, etc.), and fitness and diet preferences, among other areas of interest.
All data in this study are from this source, unless otherwise noted. Independent research firm, Culture Co-op, conducted and analyzed research and findings.
This story was produced by Hims and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
