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A Beauty Editor Smelled *Every* Fall Candle at Bath and Body Works, Then Ranked Them From Worst to Best
Happy pumpkin spice season to all who celebrate!
Some families celebrate fall by apple picking, carving pumpkins, and watching scary movies. Mine celebrates with a massive haul of Bath and Body Works fall candles. We're different! But no one can deny that a fall candle from the mecca that is B&BW is like the home equivalent to sipping on a pumpkin spice latte. The second a match strikes and my annual pumpkin candle starts burning, I'm transformed into my full form. Boots zipped up, blanket draped over my shoulders, berry lipstick on. The whole nine.
But here's the thing: Because Bath and Body Works releases new fall candles every year, and also consistently reissues old favorites, there's a lot to wade through, especially if you can't make it into a store to sniff. That's why I did the supremely hard work of smelling legit every. single. fall candle available at Bath and Body Works for 2025 and ranked them from least favorite to favorite. A few didn't make it to this list (not every single candle is worth your time and $$$, people). But the ones that are here are top tier. Like, some are even better than so many luxury candles I've tried. Keep scrolling for my full list, including a ranking, quick hits about what I love and dislike, and how they all smell.
Rating: 2/5
Smells like: Warm cinnamon, fresh ground clove, vanilla cream, brown sugar
Tester notes:
- Smells exactly like the cinnamon pinecones you get at the grocery store (plasticy, not fresh, too strong)
- I get very minimal pumpkin in this—at first whiff, it's all cinnamon
- For the person who wants a very classic fall scent in their home
Rating: 2/5
Smells like: Warm flannel (?), fresh fallen leaves (??), autumn air (???)
Tester notes:
- Smells like plastic, which I guess makes sense for a football, but also a bit like soap?!
- Really strong
- FWIW, a few other Cosmo staffers freakin' loved this candle and said it smelled like fall lite
Rating: 2/5
Smells like: Roasted marshmallow, melted chocolate, pumpkin graham cracker
Tester notes:
- Chocolate note is really overpowering and kinda headache-inducing for me
- Would be great for someone who really likes sweet scents
Rating: 3/5
Smells like: Golden honeycrisp, apple blossom, fresh sugarcane
Tester notes:
- Extremely realistic apple scent—I exclusively get the apple note here and nothing else. This isn't necessarily a bad thing if you love apple, but I wanted a slightly more relaxed version.
- Might be nice to burn in a kitchen
Rating: 3/5
Smells like: Honeycrisp apples, crisp autumn leaves
Tester notes:
- The apple note is light, which I love
- Not a candied apple (also love)
- But there's a perfume-y, almost salty after-scent that I don't love
Rating: 3/5
Smells like: Luscious caramel, ground cinnamon, rich brown sugar, creamy vanilla
Tester notes:
- Shockingly, the sweetness isn't overwhelming
- A more crowd-pleasing baked-good scent than a lot of the other ultra-sweet B&BW candles
- To me, it smells like a pumpkin cupcake with vanila frosting (just like the image on the packaging, tbh)
Rating: 3/5
Smells like: Fresh bergamot, heirloom mahogany, soft musk
Tester notes:
- Smells like a '00s-era Abercrombie model
- Might not be a scent that I want burning in my home necessarily (might smell better as a cologne)
- Really fills a room, though!
Rating: 3.5/5
Smells like: Freshly baked coffee cake, cinnamon sugar crumble, gooey caramel swirl
Tester notes:
- If Crumbl Cookies made a coffee cake, it'd smell exactly like this
- I love that I can really smell the caramel note amidst the coffee and cinnamon
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Warm sugar cookies, ground cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, sprinkled with sugar
Tester notes:
- The name is perfect—this smells exactly like a pumpkin snickerdoodle
- I really get whiffs of the cinnamon note that majorly helps tamper down the sweetness
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Fresh sage, juniper berries, aromatic eucalyptus, fresh woods
Tester notes:
- Perfect for those who hate sweet scents
- Can be burned in fall and winter
- Smells like a cabin in fall
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Toasted marshmallow, smoldering woods, fire roasted vanilla, crystallized amber
Tester notes:
- The way I want to cuddle up next to someone in a cozy knit sweater while this burns in the background...
- Kinda smells like cologne, but one you'd only wear during the cold months
- I love the touch of sweetness from the toasted marshmallow
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Pumpkin spice, sweet maple syrup, brown sugar
Tester notes:
- So nostalgic—makes my kitchen smell like I'm making Eggo waffles
- Not too sweet
- A simple, expected scent for fall
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Heirloom pumpkin, patchouli, fall spices
Tester notes:
- Reminds me of fancy bathroom potpourri (but, like, complimentary)
- Might be a bit too intense for a small space (I want to burn this in a suburban home, not really my tiny NYC apartment)
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Bold Irish whiskey, splash of vanilla, hint of coffee
Tester notes:
- Low-key smells like a fancy cologne
- Not as traditionally "fall" as some of the other scents I tested
Rating: 4/5
Smells like: Cinnamon chai, French vanilla froth, smooth caramel
Tester notes:
- Has a touch of spice that really gives it that chai smell
- Could totally work in fall, through the holidays, and all of winter
- Might be a little too sweet for some
Rating: 5/5
Smells like: Madagascar vanilla bean, homemade marshmallow, warm cinnamon nutmeg
Tester notes:
- Layered with a bit of spice and extra sweetness instead of just smelling like straight-up vanilla
- Cozy for fall, but usable all year round
- Soft scent that I can't imagine anyone not liking (unless you hate vanilla)
- Also comes in a beautiful ceramic jar that our editors are legit obsessed with
Rating: 5/5
Smells like: Red delicious apple, fall pumpkins, fresh ground cinnamon, clove buds
Tester notes:
- Best of both worlds in terms of iconic fall candle scents (pumpkin and apple)
- Smells like it should be way more expensive than it is, IMO
- Has a very strong scent that lasts in the air for a while
Rating: 5/5
Smells like: Glazed donuts, warm pumpkin spices, powdered sugar
Tester notes:
- Exactly what I want my kitchen to smell like in autumn
- Sweet, but not sickeningly
- Has a short throw, which is actually great for such a sweet scent
Rating: 5/5
Smells like: Golden nectar, crisp red apple, warm clove spice
Tester notes:
- Provides the perfect scent throw: not too much that it's overwhelming, but you can still smell it throughout your room/home
- Spicy notes make the apple smell a bit less foodie, so it's great for your entire home, not just the kitchen
- Legit smells like quintessential fall
- Pls get the stunning ceramic jar, it's everything
Why trust ‘Cosmopolitan’?
Beth Gillette is the beauty editor at Cosmopolitan with seven years of experience researching, writing, and editing skincare stories that range from the best perfumes to the best-smelling body lotions.
Beth Gillette is the beauty editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covers skincare, makeup, hair, nails, and more across digital and print. She can generally be found in bright eyeshadow furiously typing her latest feature or hemming and hawing about a new product you "have to try." Prior to Cosmopolitan, she wrote and edited beauty content as an Editor at The Everygirl for four years. Follow her on Instagram for makeup selfies and a new hair 'do every few months.
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