Thanksgiving pies are a traditional part of Americans' modern-day feast, with harvest flavors dominating the country's favorite pies.
Pumpkin pie is Americans' top choice for a Thanksgiving pie — with pecan pie, apple pie, and sweet potato pie right behind it. A new YouGov poll, conducted November 14 - 18, determined the country's favorite Thanksgiving pie by asking 1,000 U.S. adult citizens to share their opinion of 20 popular pies being served at Thanksgiving — do they love them, like them, dislike them, or hate them? Respondents were then asked to choose their favorite pie from a list of the ones they rate highest.
The good news for pie-makers is that majorities of Americans would either love or like to have most of the pies served, but there are clear favorites: 82% of Americans would love or like apple pie while 70% feel the same way about pumpkin pie. Other popular pastry choices include chocolate pie (68%), cherry pie (67%), banana cream (66%), pecan (65%), peach (63%), and lemon meringue (62%).
Pumpkin pie is the favorite of the highest share of Americans: 23% select it. Pumpkin has a healthy lead on runner-up pecan (14%) and third-place apple (12%). And although sweet potato is loved or liked by a comparatively slim 54% of Americans — compared to 82% for apple — it still ranks fourth overall, with 8% of Americans picking it as their favorite. The top four pies differ a bit in the share of their fans who say each one is their favorite:
- Among people who love or like pumpkin pie, 31% choose it as their favorite
- Among people who love or like pecan pie, 20% choose it as their favorite
- Among people who love or like sweet potato pie, 15% choose it as their favorite
- Among people who love or like apple pie, 14% choose it as their favorite
A separate YouGov poll conducted in 2020 among people who celebrate Thanksgiving also found that pumpkin, pecan, and apple are the country's top three choices for pie.
This poll was conducted on November 11 - 14, among 1,000 U.S. adult citizens. Explore more on the methodology and data for this poll.
Related: What Americans think about Thanksgiving foods and traditions
Pie images: Cover Image: Adobe Stock (Steve Cukrov); Pumpkin pie: Adobe Stock (Steve Cukrov); Pecan pie: Adobe Stock (Steve Cukrov); Apple pie: Adobe Stock (Anikonaann); Sweet potato pie: Adobe Stock (Stacy); Chocolate pie: Adobe Stock (pamela_d_mcadams); Cherry pie: Adobe Stock (Sea Wave); Blueberry pie: Adobe Stock (Sea Wave); Boston cream pie: Adobe Stock (Rose Nunez Smith); Key lime pie: Adobe Stock (petrrgoskov); Banana cream pie: Adobe Stock (Adelina); Strawberry pie: Adobe Stock (Pixel-Shot); Peanut butter pie: Adobe Stock (Lynne Ann Mitchell); Coconut cream pie: Adobe Stock (Africa Studio); Lemon meringue pie: Adobe Stock (olyina); Peach pie: Adobe Stock (Stacy); Rhubarb pie: Adobe Stock (Jenifoto); Plate: Adobe Stock (Anatoliy Sadovskiy)
