Black licorice might be the most controversial candy. It’s sweet, sure, but it’s also spicy and herbaceous and alienating to a lot of palates. I’d always considered myself a fan—I can really put away some Good & Plenty—but I’d also underestimated how challenging it would be to find the best black licorice. I performed this taste test over the course of several days because it turns out you can’t try a lot of licorice at once without totally overwhelming your taste buds. The nuances become very hard to distinguish once that powerful anise flavor has settled on your tongue. I know—my job is so hard!
There are a lot of types of black licorice, too. There’s soft, squishy Australian licorice (like Wiley Wallaby, which actually didn’t make our list). There’s classic rope-style licorice, which is plasticky in a fun way but much less intense tasting than other varieties. Then there’s salty licorice, which I hadn’t had before and might love?
I like to think there’s something for everyone on this list of the best black licorice, but in general we wanted that spicy-sweet licorice flavor without a cloying, artificial sweetener-esque aftertaste. We wanted good chew and a pleasant eating experience. We wanted licorice that makes an impression without making the wrong impression.
In the future, we’ll update this list of the best licorice with other flavors (red licorice is a whole other can of worms), but for now, here’s the best black licorice candy you can buy, from the best salty licorice to the best Australian licorice.
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- Sockerbit Salty Octopus
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Until this taste test, I’d never had salty licorice. I’d always thought of licorice as being a little salty as is—but this salty licorice is literally coated in salt. What a wild thing to do to candy, right? But it works. These salty octopi from viral Swedish candy company Sockerbit are so boldly salty, but it winds up being a pretty nice complement to the anise-forward sweetness of the licorice itself. To be perfectly honest, this was the only salty licorice we tried in our best licorice taste test, but we couldn’t get enough of its addictive squish. If you’re not afraid of a salty-sweet treat that leans REAL HARD into the salty end of the spectrum, try this licorice.
Credit: Liv Averett / Sockerbit
- Red Vines Black Licorice Twists
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In the past, I’ve argued against pitting Red Vines and Twizzlers against one another, mostly because they’re not even the same flavor (Red Vines are classic red licorice flavored, Twizzlers are strawberry flavored). But black licorice Twizzlers and black licorice Red Vines seem fair to compare—and Red Vines win. They have a nice, soft bite (although Red Vines will always remind me a little of edible wire casings) and the licorice flavor is much better than Twizzlers, which tasted a little like chlorinated water to me. Black Red Vines are rich with anise flavor that settles into a deep molasses sweetness, but they aren’t overpowering. This is the best black licorice to buy if you want to snack on a bunch of black licorice rather than just having one powerful-tasting piece as a treat.
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Panda Soft Licorice
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Panda licorice comes in little honeycomb-shaped morsels that are very pleasing to eat. You can really sink your teeth into these puppies. Plus, Panda licorice has a low ingredient list—the only ingredients are molasses, wheat flour, licorice extract, and aniseed oil—and it has a nice, tame, simple flavor to match. The morsels are chewy rather than gummy, so they don’t become permanently embedded in your teeth. According to the bag, Panda licorice has been famous for its flavor since 1927. That makes sense to me because it’s some of the best black licorice we tried.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Haribo Lakritz Schnecken
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This isn’t salty licorice, per se, but Haribo Lakritz Schnecken—it means licorice snails! cute!—have an almost savory flavor I really love. It reminds me of Good & Plenty minus the candy shell. Even though these little wheels of licorice are savory up front, they have a pleasantly sweet finish. This is the best black licorice if you’re into very classic licorice laces. This is the best black licorice if you want something that’s fun to eat.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Gimbal’s Scottie Dogs
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Wow, be cuter, why don’t you?? These little black licorice scottie dogs are adorable and they taste great. They are perhaps the most egalitarian licorice candies we tried. They taste kind of like root beer barrels but chewy. But while the flavor is suitable for everyone who likes a little bit of anise and chicory root tastiness, the texture might not be. These are VERY chewy. They’re not quite Dots-level chewy, but they’re way more like gumdrops than a lot of the other best licorice candy brands on this list. Personally, I think the chew is satisfying. I love these.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Darrell Lea Soft Australian Licorice
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A few years ago, Wiley Wallaby burst onto the scene and made Australian licorice a household candy. I love Wiley Wallaby’s red licorice, but I was less impressed with their black licorice, which has an anise aftertaste that settles on your tongue in a cloying, artificial-sweetener kind of way. If you like the soft chew of Wiley Wallaby but want a more compelling licorice flavor, Darrell Lea is the best black licorice to try. It’s sticky and sweet, but it doesn’t have that aspartame-esque aftertaste. It has the perfect amount of chew. It’s the right color—brownish but not translucent. There’s no high fructose corn syrup which is nice, too. And the licorice flavor is rich and bold. Wiley Wallaby may very well make the best red licorice, but the best black licorice is Darrell Lea’s territory.
Credit: Liv Averett / World Market
Best Salty Licorice
Best Licorice Ropes
Best to Bite
Best Savory
Best Chewy
Best of the Best
Other products we tried: Wiley Wallaby Black Licorice, Nice! Australian Black Licorice, Twizzlers Black Licorice, RJ’s Soft Eating Licorice
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!