Pumpkin spice popularity overview
- Pumpkin spice remains popular, with 52% of US adults liking it
- Pumpkin spice launches grew 36% between 2024 and 2025
- Older consumers show stronger pumpkin spice appeal than younger groups
- The US dominates launches, though European adoption is increasing
- Future growth looks steady, driven by innovation and seasonality
Pumpkin spice is everywhere. As summer fades into autumn, the early darkness rolls in and leaves begin to pattern the ground, one certainty is that in coffee shops across the US and Europe, menus will be festooned with pumpkin spice.
The ingredient has become synonymous with the season, with its branding’s dull orange tones reflecting the colour of the leaves on the ground. And every year, without fail, it returns. But do consumers actually like it?
Pumpkin spice: Fad or mainstay?
“Pumpkin spice has shown considerable staying power and is best regarded as a seasonal mainstay rather than a short-lived fad,” says Elif Polat, senior consultant at analytics company Euromonitor International.
The ingredient, which is closely associated with the arrival of autumn, is situated at the confluence of several key food and beverage trends, including nostalgia, comfort, seasonal rituals, and indulgence.
Euromonitor data suggests that the ingredient is only increasing in popularity: pumpkin spice launches grew by 36% between 2024 and 2025.
It is even evolving outside of the coffee category, with products such as Oreo Pumpkin Spice Sandwich Cookies and Lindor Pumpkin Spice limited editions showing that it has appeal beyond beverages.
What do consumers think of pumpkin spice?
Pumpkin spice is popular among consumers. Around 52% of US adults, for example, have tried and liked it, according to data from analytics company Mintel, compared to a fifth who tried it and didn’t.
“This puts it fairly high up versus other seasonal spice flavours such as thyme, ginger, and nutmeg,” explains Jonny Forsyth, food and drink principal strategist at Mintel.
Mintel’s data suggests that the appeal of pumpkin spice is strongest among older consumers: in the US, only 43% of Gen Z and 48% of Millennials have tried and liked it, compared to 58% of Gen X and 56% of Baby Boomers.
One reason for this could be that younger consumers are often attracted to iced coffee, rather than the warmer drinks in which pumpkin spice is usually used, suggests Forsyth. Another factor could be that younger consumers are often attracted to more international flavours visible on their social media feeds.
Where is pumpkin spice popular?
The US is pumpkin spice’s heartland, and it continues to be where the ingredient sees most traction.
Pumpkin spice in the US has a “deep culinary legacy”, says Mintel’s Forsyth, first emerging as early as the 1930s when consumers used it in autumn baking. The coffee trend took off in the early 2000s, he explains, when Starbucks launched its Pumpkin Spice Latte, a product that soon spread to other coffee shops.
Over the past five years, the US has accounted for more than half (51%) of pumpkin spice launches, compared to 10% for the UK and 11% for Canada, according to Mintel data.
However, according to Euromonitor, pumpkin spice launches are also growing outside of the US, not just in the UK but in other European countries such as Germany and the Netherlands as well.
“This international expansion suggests that pumpkin spice is increasingly finding traction in markets with established coffee cultures and strong consumer engagement with seasonal and limited-edition products,” suggests Euromonitor’s Polat.
“Its appeal is likely supported by its combination of familiarity and novelty: the flavour profile feels comforting and recognisable, while its limited seasonal availability creates anticipation and encourages repeat engagement.”
The future of pumpkin spice
Pumpkin spice is likely to remain a mainstay in seasonal flavours, says Euromonitor’s Polat, although growth will be incremental rather than transformational.
If brands are to keep pumpkin spice fresh, they will need to embrace premium positioning, cross-category extensions, new flavour combinations and different consumption occasions, she says.
Yet without the deep cultural associations the product has in North America, it may not have a lasting legacy elsewhere, suggests Mintel’s Forsyth. It may instead be overtaken by other TikTok-based coffee flavour trends.
Nevertheless, the popularity of the ingredient, at least for the moment, shows little sign of slowing down.
