McCandless is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Al McCandless (born 1927), U.S. Congressman
Billy McCandless (1894–1955), former Northern Irish professional footballer
Bruce McCandless (1911–1968), rear admiral in the U.S. Navy and Medal of Honor recipient
Bruce McCandless II (born 1937), astronaut who made the first untethered spacewalk
Byron McCandless (1881–1967), vexillologist and commodore in the U.S. Navy
Christopher McCandless (1968–1992), American hiker and itinerant traveler who starved to death in Alaska, and the subject of the multiple non-fiction books and documentaries, beginning with Into the Wild (1996)
Lincoln Loy McCandless (1859–1940), American cattle rancher, industrialist and politician from Hawaii
Paul McCandless (born 1947), American jazz woodwind player and composer
Ray B. McCandless (1889–1931), American college sports coach
Stanley McCandless (1897–1967), widely considered to be the first theatrical lighting educator
William McCandless (1834–1884), Union Army officer in the American Civil War and later member of the Pennsylvania State Senate
Wilson McCandless (1810-1882), United States Federal Judge from Pittsburgh, PA
