Whoppers and Maltesers look very similar, but in many ways, they are very different candies. We suspect that many people have not had both of these chocolatey malted balls since they are primarily sold and manufactured in different countries.
Since there is a lot of curiosity about the similarities and differences between these two candies, we purchased both of them to find out what really separates the two. Surprisingly, one was much tastier than the other to us. Read on to see what one we preferred.
Taste Test
Three of us here at Brand Informers tasted these candies. Since we live in the U.S., Whoppers were nothing new to us. All of us had them as treats many times. However, Maltesers were brand new to us.
We attempted to do a blind taste test thinking the two would taste very similar. Our thinking was that it would be difficult to distinguish between the familiar tasting Whoppers versus the Maltesers. We were wrong. The Whoopers were immediately recognizable while the Maltesers were a pleasantly new tasting delicious surprise to the taste buds.
Which one was the better candy? Maltesers! All three of us preferred this candy over the Whoppers despite two of the three of us thinking that the Whoppers would taste better going into the taste test.
The quality of the chocolate used for Maltesers tasted superior to that on Whoppers. A look at the ingredients below will explain why. We all agreed that the Maltesers tasted more natural, almost like something homemade or from a local chocolate maker.
One thing we really liked about the Maltesers was that they tasted more chocolatey compared to the prominent center flavor of the Whoppers. The centers of these candies are what really set these two apart. The interior of the Whoppers had a crunchy strong malt flavor that overpowered the chocolate. The center of the Maltesers was like a crunchy cookie that complemented the primary chocolate flavor.
Appearance
Whoppers 
Maltesers
Whoppers have a slightly darker brown color to them versus the shinier lighter brown color of the Maltesers. In regard to size, they are approximately the same. It’s extremely difficult to tell these two candies apart when you see them side by side from even a short distance away.
These two candies are more different in their interiors than their exteriors. Whoppers (pictured left) feature a bone-colored interior that is much more compact compared to the center of Maltesers (pictured right). Maltesers have a heavily aerated center that is light tan in color. Furthermore, Whoopers have a thinner layer of exterior chocolate compared to Maltesers.
Ownership & History
Whoppers – Whoppers are currently a brand of The Hershey Company. The Overland Candy Company officially created Whoppers in 1939 when they were then called Giants. Leaf Brands eventually merged with Overland in 1947 which led to Giants being reintroduced as Whoppers in 1949. Hershey acquired Whoppers from Leaf in 1996. In addition to Whoppers, Hershey also obtained Jolly Rancher and Good & Plenty.
Maltesers – This candy is owned by Mars Wrigley and has been made since 1937. Maltesers were invented by Forrest Mars Sr, in England when he moved there from America after being estranged from his family. In addition to creating Maltesers, Forrest also invented the Mars bar while in the UK. Maltesers were originally marketed as energy balls with the target market being women looking to shed a few pounds.
The candy has primarily been sold in Europe, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. They are supposedly now available in the U.S. but we had to order them from England off Amazon because they weren’t available where we are in the U.S.
Nutrition
There aren’t enormous difference in the nutrition facts between Whoopers versus Maltesers. Whoppers win out in calories, total fat, and cholesterol. However, Maltesers have less sodium, carbs, sugars, and higher protein.
| Whoppers | Maltesers | |
|---|---|---|
| Serving Size | 31g (13 pieces) | 29.5g (14 piece) |
| Calories | 140 | 155 |
| Total Fat | 5g | 7.4g |
| Saturated Fat | 5g | 4.4g |
| Trans Fat | 0g | 0g |
| Cholesterol | 0mg | 3.7mg |
| Sodium | 70mg | 33.2mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 23g | 19.2g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0g | 0g |
| Total Sugars | 17g | 15.5g |
| Protein | <1g | 1.5g |
Ingredients
Whoppers – Sugar; Corn Syrup; Partially Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil; Whey (Milk); Malted Milk (Barley Malt; Wheat Flour; Milk; Salt; Sodium Bicarbonate); Cocoa; Contains 2% Or Less Of: Resinous Glaze; Sorbitan Tristearate; Soy Lechithin; Salt; Natural And Artificial Flavor; Calcium Carbonate; Tapioca Dextrin.
Maltesers – Sugar, Skimmed Milk Powder, Cocoa Butter, Glucose Syrup, Barley Malt Extract, Cocoa Mass, Palm Fat, Lactose and Protein from Whey (from Milk), Whey Powder (from Milk), Milk Fat, Emulsifiers (Soya Lecithin, E492), Wheat Flour, Palm Kernel Fat, Palm Kernel Oil, Raising Agents (E341, E500, E501), Wheat Gluten, Salt, Glazing Agent (Pectin), Natural Vanilla Extract.