The Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop is no longer in production, and no major US chain lists it as a current item. What is left is a thin resale market, a few specialty shops sitting on old inventory, and grocery catalogs that still show the product but never fill the order. Before you buy, know which channel is real and what a decade-old tube of liquid candy will actually be like.
This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Who Actually Wants a Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop in 2026
A Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop is a liquid candy sold in a soft plastic tube with a twist-off cap, made by Wrigley under Mars, Incorporated, and eaten by pressing the gel straight into your mouth. It was built to ooze rather than pour, which was the novelty. A Squeeze and Lick lollipop paired a hard sucker with the same gel.
Despite the name, it was never bubble gum. Hubba Bubba is a Wrigley gum brand from 1979, and this was a fruit-flavored sweet wearing that badge from the late 1990s. Gum versus gel causes more confusion in resale listings than anything else.
Three groups look for it now: adults who ate it as kids, collectors who want a sealed unit for display, and parents chasing a childhood memory. A Change.org petition asking Mars to bring it back is still open, an r/nostalgia thread about it keeps drawing comments, and an r/candy thread exists purely to ask what replaces it. Finding Crystal Pepsi runs the same way, as does the King Vitaman cereal hunt.
Buying Criteria: What Separates a Good Listing From a Bad One
Every unit on the market is old stock, so you are judging the listing, not the confection. Four things decide whether one is worth paying for.
A visible best-by date on the tube. Sugar syrup separates, texture stiffens, and taste fades first, so a seller who will not show the printed date is asking you to guess.
Photos of the actual unit. Stock images say nothing about seal condition or discoloration. Ask for a picture of the exact pack.
Which format you are getting. The sweet flavors line, the sour line, and the lollipop are three different things sold under one name, and sellers mix the terms freely.
Seller type and quantity. A specialty retailer clearing closeout stock carries different risk than someone emptying a garage, and only one has a returns desk. The 18-piece box was the standard case pack, so a single tube priced like a case is a red flag.
| Format | What it was | How it shows up now |
|---|---|---|
| Sweet pack | Watermelon, cherry, blue raspberry | 18-piece box pages, mostly sold out |
| Sour pack | Sour apple, sour watermelon, sour blue raspberry | Single units and 12-count lots on resale sites |
| Squeeze and Lick lollipop | Hard sucker plus gel filling | Stale grocery catalog pages |
Five checks, in order, before you pay.
- Confirm the format against the table above.
- Locate the printed best-by date. If the seller has not photographed it, ask.
- Check the seller’s feedback on food sales, not their overall rating.
- Compare the asking price against the last known retail price for that pack size.
- Read the return terms first, since most food listings are final sale.
Red Flags When Shopping for a Discontinued Treat
The most expensive mistake is paying collector money for something you actually plan to eat.
Undated stock sold as new. On a resale marketplace, new means unopened, not fresh. An unopened pack can sit years past its date, and expect prices well above original retail.
Mixing it up with the generic version. A separate, unrelated Squeeze Pop brand of liquid candy is still made and stocked by specialty sellers. Fine on its own terms, but not the Wrigley item, and search results blend the two.
Mixing it up with current Hubba Bubba gum. Bubble Tape and Hubba Bubba Max are still produced and sold nationally. Those are chewing gum, not a gel filling, and buyers who skim a listing title end up with the wrong one.
Trusting a live grocery page. Instacart, Price Cutter, and similar delivery catalogs still carry entries for it. Those are database leftovers, and the order will not be filled. A page that loads is not stock on a shelf.
Buying Squeeze Pops Locally: Store by Store
No national chain appears to carry it. Walmart, Target, CVS, and Walgreens dropped it years ago, and each website now returns nothing or third-party marketplace offers. Two kinds of physical locations still justify a stop.
Retro and Specialty Sweet Shops
Independent shops built around discontinued and hard-to-find sweets are the only realistic in-person option. Rocket Fizz, IT’SUGAR, and Economy Candy specialize here, and regional retro stores sometimes hold odd lots that never reach the web. Call before you drive, and ask for the Wrigley tube by name.
Flea Markets, Toy Shows, and Conventions
Vintage vendors at flea markets and pop culture conventions occasionally carry sealed novelty sweets as collectibles. Inspect it in your hand: find the printed date, confirm the cap seal is intact, and hold the tube to the light to see whether the gel has separated. That inspection, before money changes hands, is the whole argument for this channel. Our candy bar buying guide covers easier finds.
Buying Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop Online: Retailer Comparison
Whatever supply remains lives online, and every channel moves old inventory rather than fresh production. Three are worth checking, all priced above original retail.
Amazon
The original product page on amazon.com is still live, and third-party sellers list against it intermittently. Check the current listing #ad, then read the customer questions, where freshness and date questions sit alongside the flavor ones. Offers appear and vanish, so set an availability alert.
Candy Warehouse and Specialty Sellers
Candy Warehouse, a bulk confectionery retailer, keeps its 18-piece box page online with a $34.95 list price, a sold-out status, and a manufacturer-discontinued note. Browse their catalog for the sour listing too. Treat $34.95 as the price anchor, since anything far above it is collector pricing. Old Time Candy, Blair, and import shops carrying UK or Canadian stock are worth a search, though none list it reliably.
eBay and Collector Marketplaces
eBay is the most consistent source of sealed units and usually the priciest. Filter to Buy It Now, sort by price plus shipping, and message the seller for a date photo before bidding. Snackoree occasionally surfaces a 12-count sour case, and camelcamelcamel tracks Amazon price history.
Returns and Buyer Protection When You Buy Old Stock
Food is the worst-protected category in online retail, and discontinued food is worse. Know your recourse before you pay.
| Channel | Window | What protects you | Practical note |
|---|---|---|---|
| eBay | 30 days from delivery | eBay Money Back Guarantee | Covers not received and not as described |
| Amazon | 30 days from delivery | Refund or replacement, not a return | Grocery is generally non-returnable |
| Candy Warehouse | Varies | Retailer policy | Check their policy page first |
| Specialty shop in person | Varies | Store policy | Sweets are usually final sale |
Return policies as of September 2026. Verify the retailer’s own policy page, because these change without notice.
The category gotcha: marketplace sellers set their own terms, which can be stricter than the platform baseline, and neither treats “it tasted stale” as a defect. Photograph the condition the day the package lands. Order from eBay first if you want leverage.
Best Squeeze Candy Alternatives Right Now
Chosen on format similarity first, current production second, and shelf availability third, so you can enjoy something this week. Check current pricing at each link rather than trusting a number on any guide.
Best overall substitute: Bazooka Juicy Drop Pop. A hard lollipop paired with a sour gel you press out, the closest thing on shelves to the Squeeze and Lick format. Stocked at Walmart, Target, and gas stations. Search on Amazon #ad
Best for the tube format: generic Squeeze Pop liquid candy. Still in production, and the one Candy Warehouse points shoppers toward. Nearest match to the original eating mechanic. Search on Amazon #ad
Best gel pack: Too Tarts Squeeze Candy. A fruit gel in a soft pouch rather than a twist-cap tube. The closest analogue if texture is what you miss. Search on Amazon #ad
Best sour hit: Kidsmania Quick Blast Sour Spray. Not a gel, but the same handheld press-to-dispense idea. Check Dollar Tree and Five Below before ordering. Search on Amazon #ad
Best novelty pick: Push Pop and Baby Bottle Pop. Dispenser sweets where the appeal is the interaction more than the taste. Both sell in checkout aisles nationally. Search on Amazon #ad
Still want the brand: Bubble Tape and Hubba Bubba Max. Both remain in production and easy to find. Search on Amazon #ad. For a gift with similar shock value, BeanBoozled is easier to source.
Start with those alternatives if you want something to eat this week. If it has to be a Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop, set an availability alert on the Amazon page, then check eBay monthly with a date-photo request in your first message. Anything priced far above the $34.95 case anchor is a display piece, not a snack. For more retired finds, browse our food and snack guides.
Hubba Bubba Squeeze Pop Questions, Answered
When was it discontinued?
Mars and Wrigley never published a discontinuation announcement, so no exact date exists and anyone quoting one is guessing. The clearest public marker is retailer-side: Candy Warehouse’s page carries a manufacturer-discontinued note alongside a sold-out status. For a rough timeline, camelcamelcamel’s price history shows when tracked pricing went quiet.
What flavors did it come in?
The sweet flavors box was sold with watermelon, cherry, and blue raspberry. A separate sour line included sour apple, sour watermelon, and sour blue raspberry. A Halloween release also existed in some years, which is why odd packaging turns up in collector listings.
Are squeeze pops back?
Not the Wrigley one. There is no relaunch announcement from Mars, and the Change.org petition asking for a revival remains open rather than answered. Generic versions from other makers are still produced, which is why the question keeps resurfacing on posts about returning retro snacks.
Is it the same as Hubba Bubba Bubble Tape?
No. Bubble Tape is a six-foot strip of chewing gum in a round dispenser and is still sold nationally. This was a liquid filling in a tube and was never gum, despite the shared brand. They also sit in different store sections, so a store stocking one tells you nothing about the other.
Is old candy from eBay safe to eat?
Sealed sugar confectionery is shelf stable for a long time, but stable is not the same as good. Past its printed date, a liquid filling can separate, crystallize, or stiffen, and taste fades before anything else. Check the date, refuse a broken seal or visible discoloration, and skip it if the seller cannot say how it was stored. Video reviews on YouTube of expired sweets preview what you would be paying for.
Editorial Note
In September 2026, our editorial team re-verified retailer availability, listed pricing, and return policies for this guide, including the Candy Warehouse page and the Amazon listing.