Score Free M&M's By Failing At Halloween

No household wants to be known as the one that ran out of candy on Halloween night because they didn't purchase enough. Perhaps you've been there: turning off the lights, drawing the curtains, and pretending like nobody's home during prime trick-or-treating hours. But if you run out of precious sweets this year, you don't have to dread the sound of the doorbell ringing. M&M's and Gopuff are collaborating on a service that will refill your candy bowl in under an hour, and the bailout won't cost you a thing.

A press release from Mars, maker of M&M's, explains that its "Halloween Rescue Squad" will start at 3 p.m. ET on Halloween. If your candy bowl runs dry and you need a helping hand, you can sign up on the website to receive a refill, free of charge. Only one caveat: Since this promotion is in partnership with third-party rapid delivery service Gopuff, you have to be in one of Gopuff's service areas to claim the offer.

You'd have to be the most ill-prepared house on the block to run out of candy this year, because it's anticipated that Halloween purchases in 2023 might break some sales records—we're projected to spend $3.6 billion on candy alone. After a few soft pandemic years, our spending each Halloween has managed to climb back upward, and it seems that between the costumes and the party food and the trick-or-treat goodies, we're ready to invest in Halloween as much as we spend on Thanksgiving.

Now, since Gopuff and Mars don't seem to require any proof that your candy bowl is empty, you might be able to, you know, fudge your story a bit and score some free candy regardless of whether you're answering the door for any trick-or-treaters on Halloween. Not that I'm recommending you do that or anything. No, I won't be attempting to gain dishonest access to free M&M's on October 31 at all.