These Are the Most Popular Ice Cream Flavors in Each State

Vanilla may be the most popular ice cream flavor in America, but those looking to branch out are filling their carts with Moose Tracks, Rocky Road, green tea, coffee, and birthday cake, according to a 2021 study from Instacart.

The sweet survey, which the food delivery company shared in July 2021, found those five flavors to be the most popular — aside from plain Jane vanilla, which accounts for more than 26% of all ice cream sales in the United States.

"Americans' love for ice cream runs deep, and with thousands of different ice cream options available for purchase through Instacart, we thought it would be fascinating to dig into the data to uncover the most uniquely popular flavors in each state," Laurentia Romaniuk, Instacart's trends expert, told T L. "It turns out that people across the country have a hankering for vanilla, peanut butter cups, and fudge since 'Moose Tracks' is the top unique flavor in 12 states."

In general, Americans tend to prefer chocolate ice cream — 24 states picked a flavor with chocolate as the base as their favorite. But not every state followed the trend: Buyers in Hawaii stuck with tropical flavors, picking mango ice cream above most else, while those in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut all chose pistachio.

Most ice creams appeared on the list more than once as a state's top pick, but Delaware (which picked cherry), Pennsylvania (which picked mint chip), and New Mexico (which picked chocolate, chocolate chip) each forged their own path by opting for a unique flavor.

To determine each state's favorite flavor, Instacart looked at ice cream sales and compared it to the national average.

These are the most popular flavors in each state, plus Washington D.C.

Alabama: Moose Tracks

Alaska: Green Tea

Arizona: Rocky Road

Arkansas: Rainbow Sherbet

California: Rocky Road

Colorado: Green Tea

Connecticut: Pistachio

Delaware: Cherry

Florida: Rum Raisin

Georgia: Rum Raisin

Hawaii: Mango

Idaho: Green Tea

Illinois: Moose Tracks

Indiana: Moose Tracks

Iowa: Moose Tracks

Kansas: Rainbow Sherbet

Kentucky: Chocolate Chip

Louisiana: Birthday Cake

Maine: Coffee

Maryland: Cookie Dough

Massachusetts: Coffee

Michigan: Moose Tracks

Minnesota: Moose Tracks

Mississippi: Birthday Cake

Missouri: Cookie Dough

Montana: Rainbow Sherbet

Nebraska: Moose Tracks

Nevada: Rocky Road

New Hampshire: Coffee

New Jersey: Pistachio

New Mexico: Chocolate Chocolate Chip

New York: Pistachio

North Carolina: Birthday Cake

North Dakota: Moose Tracks

Ohio: Chocolate Chip

Oklahoma: Cookie Dough

Oregon: Green Tea

Pennsylvania: Mint Chip

Rhode Island: Coffee

South Carolina: Moose Tracks

South Dakota: Birthday Cake

Tennessee: Moose Tracks

Texas: Rainbow Sherbet

Utah: Rocky Road

Vermont: Coffee

Virginia: Birthday Cake

Washington: Green Tea

Washington, D.C.: Mango

West Virginia: Moose Tracks

Wisconsin: Moose Tracks

Wyoming: Rocky Road