Speculoos is a biscuit originally manufactured in Belgium. Although the name is similar to speculaas, speculoos is a different product. The biscuits are made without the mixture of spices used in speculaas.
The main ingredients of speculoos are wheat flour, candy syrup (from beet sugar), fat, and sometimes cinnamon.
Fewer spices are involved in the process of making Belgian speculoos compared to the Dutch speculaas, as the spices were much more expensive to import to Belgium as opposed to the Netherlands. Speculoos was developed in the 20th century around the area of Verviers and made as an alternative for people who could not afford Dutch speculaas. The origins of speculaas are much older. In the 2020s the names speculaas and speculoos are sometimes used interchangeably in Flanders.