Fall Food and Drinks 2026: Every Chain’s Menu and When Pumpkin Spice Drops

Fall flavors now arrive weeks before the leaves turn, and 2026 was no exception, with the big chains rolling out pumpkin spice, caramel apple, and other seasonal menus across a single busy stretch of late August. This is our running cheat sheet: the release calendar up top, then every chain’s lineup with what is new for 2026 marked, and a link to each full menu with photos. We update it as more chains announce.

When Fall Menus Dropped in 2026

The season rolled out from mid-August into early September. Here is the release calendar for the chains we have covered, in order:

Duncan Hines and Swiss Miss also brought a Peanuts baking-and-cocoa collection to grocery shelves this month.

When Does the Fall Menu Come Out?

Earlier every year. In 2026 the major chains launched between August 18 and 26. Starbucks brought back the Pumpkin Spice Latte on August 25, the latest of the big launches, while Dunkin, Panera, Peet’s, and Einstein Bros. all went live August 19 and McDonald’s and Philz started the wave on August 18. If you are waiting on one specific chain, the calendar above has the date.

The Pumpkin Crowd

Most of the big names went pumpkin again this year, and several pushed well past the standard latte.

Starbucks (Pumpkin Spice Latte back August 25)

Starbucks brought the Pumpkin Spice Latte back on August 25 with the widest pumpkin board of the season and a genuinely new drink, the Chaider.

• New: the Chaider (a cider-inspired chai, hot or iced), Iced Pumpkin Cream Shaken Espresso, Pumpkin Spice Chai, Iced Pumpkin Cream Matcha, and two banana bread lattes that are staying on the menu
• Returning: Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai, Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino, and the Pecan Cortado and Pecan Crunch lattes

See the full Starbucks fall lineup

Dunkin (fall menu out August 19)

Dunkin brought pumpkin back on August 19 and stacked a lot on top of it, including a full tiramisu collection and an Alix Earle breakfast.

• New: Pumpkin Cloud Dunkalatte, Pumpkin Pie Coffee Chiller, Pumpkin Patch Cloud Latte, Nutty Pumpkin Protein Latte, a four-drink Tiramisu collection, Berry Clementine Refreshers, and the Alix Earle Earle-Y Riser Meal
• Returning: Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte, the Pumpkin Donut, Pumpkin MUNCHKINS, Pumpkin Muffin, and the $6 Meal Deal

See the full Dunkin fall lineup

Panera Bread (fall menu out August 19)

Panera went all-in on pumpkin, from the returning latte to new drinks and bakes.

• New: Pumpkin Spice Iced Coffee, Pumpkin Spice Frozen Java, Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll, and Caramel Pumpkin Slice
• Returning: Pumpkin Spice Latte (hot or iced) and the iced Pumpkin Cookie

See the full Panera fall lineup

Peet’s Coffee (fall menu out August 19)

Peet’s paired its pumpkin drinks with a new line of protein smoothies.

• New: three Vitality Protein Smoothies (Caramel Apple, Cold Brew, Strawberry, each with 14 grams of protein) and a Sparkling Green Apple Energy
• Returning, with Vanilla Dream Top: Pumpkin Latte, Pumpkin Chai Latte, Pumpkin Cold Brew, and Iced Pumpkin Matcha Latte

See the full Peet’s fall lineup

Einstein Bros. (early access August 19, full menu August 26)

Einstein Bros. brought back its Pumpkin Bagel and Pumpkin Shmear for the first time in seven years.

• New for 2026: the return of the Pumpkin Bagel and Pumpkin Shmear after a seven-year absence, plus a Kids 7 and Younger Eat Free day on August 22
• Timing: digital early access started August 19, and the full fall menu goes nationwide August 26

See the full Einstein Bros. fall lineup

IHOP (pumpkin menu out August 24)

IHOP’s pumpkin pancakes returned with two new items alongside.

• New: Pumpkin Cheesecake Pancake Tacos (silver-dollar pumpkin pancakes folded around cheesecake mousse) and a Pumpkin Spice Milkshake
• Returning: the Pumpkin Spice Pancakes, made with real pumpkin puree

See the full IHOP fall lineup

7 Brew (out September 1)

The fast-growing drive-thru coffee chain launched five fall drinks split between pumpkin and green apple.

• Pumpkin: Original Pumpkin Blondie Breve and a dessert-style Pumpkin Roll Shake
• Green apple: Drizzled Apple 7 Brew Energy Frozen Chiller, Caramel Apple Pie Macchiato, and Apple Butter Chai
• Giveaway: a free 7 Brew Doh squishy on Jackpot Day, September 7, with any two medium or large drinks

See the full 7 Brew fall lineup

Krispy Kreme (out August 11)

Krispy Kreme’s Autumn Collection brought Pumpkin Spice back on August 11, alongside three new treats, four doughnuts and two lattes in all.

• New: Maple Cheesecake Doughnut, Cafe Mocha Doughnut, and a new latte
• Returning: Pumpkin Spice Cake Doughnut, Biscoff Cookie Butter Doughnut, and the Pumpkin Spice Latte

See the full Krispy Kreme fall lineup

Dutch Bros (out August 21)

The fast-growing drive-thru coffee chain brought back two fall favorites and added one new flavor across its 1,225-plus locations.

• Returning: Caramel Pumpkin Brûlée (pumpkin and salted caramel) and Cookie Butter
• New: Autumn Berry, a pomegranate-orange-peach Rebel energy drink, not a coffee

See the full Dutch Bros fall lineup

The Caramel Apple Crowd

A growing group is betting on caramel apple instead of pumpkin, and one bakery is running both.

Wendy’s (out August 3)

Wendy’s skipped a Pumpkin Spice Frosty entirely for a new Apple Crumble Frosty Fusion, a vanilla Frosty with spiced apple syrup and oat crumble, pitched as a fall flavor “beyond pumpkin spice.” It is out nationwide through the fall.

McDonald’s (out August 18)

McDonald’s skipped pumpkin entirely for a caramel apple McCafe line.

• New: Caramel Apple Pie coffees as a Frappe, a hot latte, an iced latte, and an iced coffee, finished with salted caramel whipped cream and apple pie bits
• Note: no pumpkin on the McCafe fall board this year

See the full McDonald’s fall lineup

Philz Coffee (out August 18)

Philz also skipped pumpkin, going for two new cold brews instead.

• New: Apple Cinnamon Roll cold brew and Pecan Pie cold brew, plus seasonal pastries that vary by market
• Where: all 80-plus Philz locations in California and Chicago, while supplies last

See the full Philz fall lineup

Paris Baguette (out August 26)

Paris Baguette played both sides, adding a full caramel apple collection next to its returning pumpkin one.

• New: a Caramel Apple collection spanning a Streusel Trifle, Streusel Donut, Streusel Waffle, Streusel Tart, a Caramel Apple Macchiato, and a Caramel Apple Matcha Latte
• Returning: the Perfectly Pumpkin lineup

See the full Paris Baguette fall lineup

Also on the Fall Menu

Not everything this fall is pumpkin or caramel apple.

Chick-fil-A (out August 24)

Chick-fil-A put chicken and waffles on the menu all day, with s’mores drinks on the side.

• New: Chicken and Waffles Sandwiches in breakfast and entree sizes, a S’mores Milkshake, and a S’mores Frosted Coffee
• Timing: the sandwich runs from morning through dinner, breakfast size until 10:30 a.m. and entree size after

See the full Chick-fil-A fall lineup

Duncan Hines and Swiss Miss (in grocery now)

For baking at home, Conagra put the Peanuts gang on a set of Duncan Hines mixes and Swiss Miss cocoa.

• New, for Halloween: the Great Pumpkin Bundt Cake and Glaze Mix, a pumpkin Bundt with orange glaze that nods to It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
• Also in the collection: Charlie Brown-ie Blondie Bar Mix and more, with suggested prices from $2.49 to $5.49

See the full Duncan Hines and Swiss Miss collection

Cold Stone Creamery (fall flavors out now)

Cold Stone skipped pumpkin for a nostalgia-forward fall duo it calls The Cozy Collection.

• New: Crumb and Get It, with HONEY MAID Graham Cracker Ice Cream, Cookie Dough, HONEY MAID Graham Crackers, and Cookie Butter
• Returning: Going Bananas for JELL-O Pudding, with JELL-O Banana Cream Pudding Ice Cream, NILLA Wafers, banana, and whipped topping
• Boo Batter: the orange Halloween ice cream is not in this lineup and has not been announced for 2026

See the full Cold Stone fall lineup

Dairy Queen (Fall Treat Collection out August 31)

DQ’s fall treats are led by the returning Pumpkin Pie Blizzard.

• Returning: Pumpkin Pie Blizzard (real pumpkin pie pieces, whipped topping, nutmeg)
• New: Caramel Apple Cheesecake Blizzard (August’s Blizzard of the Month), Brown Sugar Cookie Dough Blizzard, and a Toasted Marshmallow Mocha Coffee Cooler

See the full Dairy Queen fall lineup

Pumpkin Versus Everything Else

The clearest story this fall is a split. Pumpkin spice still defines the season at Starbucks, Dunkin, Panera, Peet’s, Einstein, and IHOP. But a growing group is betting on caramel apple instead: Philz dropped pumpkin from its menu, McDonald’s led with Caramel Apple Pie, and Paris Baguette hedged by running a full caramel apple collection next to its pumpkin one. Caramel apple is shaping up as the season’s main pumpkin alternative.

Halloween grocery and drink novelties

Beyond the coffee and bakery menus, a wave of horror-branded grocery and drink tie-ins hit shelves for Halloween 2026. A few to look for:

• SunnyD SpookyD, a limited-edition mystery-flavor drink at Walmart.
• Fanta Ghost Face Punch, a Scream tie-in soda.
• Angry Orchard’s Ghost Face cider Thriller Pack.
• Voodoo Ranger Slasher IPA, a Michael Myers beer.
• Pabst Blue Ribbon’s Jason 12-pack that folds into a wearable mask.
• Jack in the Box’s Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Munchie Meal.

Wendy’s Frosty Frights Kids’ Meal and Boo! Books

Wendy’s brought back its Frosty Frights Kids’ Meal toys for 2026, with six new characters and six Halloween-colored variants to collect (12 in all), plus a secret 13th “Brain Freeze” figure limited to 2,000 and available only through a one-hour Wendy’s Rewards drop on Friday, October 30. The $1 Boo! Books return too, with five free Jr. Frosty coupons and a $1.99 Kids’ Meal coupon, on sale August 31 through November 1. See our full guide to Wendy’s Frosty Frights and Boo! Books.

Sonic Wacky Pack Universal Monsters

Sonic’s Wacky Pack Kids Meal has a Halloween set of seven collectible Universal Monsters toys and spoons for 2026: Dracula, The Wolf Man, Frankenstein, The Mummy, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Bride of Frankenstein, and The Invisible Man. You get one per Wacky Pack at participating Sonic Drive-Ins for a limited time while supplies last. See our full guide to Sonic’s Universal Monsters Wacky Pack.

Applebee’s Spooky Sips

Applebee’s brought back its $6 Spooky Sips for 2026, the rum-based Dracula’s Juice and Tipsy Zombie, and for the first time added booze-free options: the $4 Tropical Spell Mocktail and the Graveyard Dirty Soda (Mountain Dew, blue raspberry, whipped cream, and Oreo crumbles). The $1 Dollar Zombie returns separately. Everything runs through November 15 at participating locations. See our full guide to Applebee’s Spooky Sips 2026.

Fall Menu FAQ

When does the Starbucks fall menu come out?

Starbucks launched its 2026 fall menu on August 25, when the Pumpkin Spice Latte returned along with the new Chaider and banana bread lattes. Our full Starbucks fall coverage has the complete board.

When does pumpkin spice come out?

In 2026 the big pumpkin launches ran from August 19 to 25. Panera, Dunkin, and Peet’s brought pumpkin back on August 19, and Starbucks followed on August 25. Fall menus have crept earlier each year, so the mid-to-late August window is now the norm.

Which chains skipped pumpkin this year?

Wendy’s skipped a Pumpkin Spice Frosty for an Apple Crumble Frosty Fusion, McDonald’s and Philz both went caramel apple and other flavors instead of pumpkin, and Paris Baguette ran a full caramel apple collection next to its pumpkin one.

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