If you’re looking for the ultimate recipe for soft and chewy sugar cookies, you’ve come to the right place. Not only are these cookies fantastically buttery, tender, and doughy; but they also stay soft for days on end. They’re incredibly easy to make and require no rolling out! Just like your favorite bakery cookies, but better.
There are two types of people in this world: The kind who prefer their cookies to be soft and chewy, and those that are wrong.
As much as I enjoy a thin, crispy cookie or a puffy, cakey cookie from time to time, nothing beats a chewy cookie that stays soft for days after baking-- if any manage to last that long. Am I right or am I right?
I mean, if anything at all makes you feel like a kid again, it’s smelling the warm vanilla and brown sugar as you sink your teeth into a freshly baked, irresistibly buttery, almost-but-not-quite underbaked cookie. That thought has been the basis of some of my all-time most favorite (and most popular) cookie recipes of all time* and it still is today.
I don’t take the business of baking lightly, so believe me when I say that this sugar cookie recipe was exhaustively, probably excessively tested, until I finally found a recipe that I truly feel comfortable calling the best. They're better than your grandma's. They're better than the ones from your favorite bakery. They're absolutely better than anything you could get from the store.
They are THE BEST. No exceptions.
You know what makes them even better? Not only are they the Best Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies ever, but they're also surprisingly easy to make.
There's no need for precisely rolling out, shaping, cutting, or meticulously decorating. This is not one of those recipes. Instead, this recipe takes the hard work out of making sugar cookies but ups the ante with more flavor, better texture, and a sugar coat that glistens just as beautifully as any royal icing job I could manage.
* I’ll link to those all-time most favorite chewy cookie recipes at the bottom of this post so you can check those out, too!
SELECTING YOUR INGREDIENTS
Most of the ingredients in this sugar cookie recipe are ones that shouldn’t surprise you-- flour, eggs, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract, for example. But there are also a few key ingredients that you might not have expected:
- Melted butter. Most cookie recipes call for creaming together room temperature butter with sugar, so using melted might seem like a strange choice at first. However, using melted butter results in a much chewier cookie! The science behind it is basically that melted butter won't cream together with the sugar when mixed in the same way that room temperature butter will, so it incorporates far less air into your dough. Airy dough = thick and cakey dough, whereas dough that incorporates less air stays dense and almost fudgy in consistency.
- Light brown sugar. Light brown sugar isn’t uncommon in cookie recipes, but most sugar cookies call for granulated sugar only. Mixing in a bit of light brown sugar makes the cookies moist and extra chewy (thanks to the molasses), and also gives the cookies a deeper flavor. If you'd like, you can also use dark brown sugar, but your sugar cookies will also turn out a bit darker and take on a more pronounced molasses flavor.
- Cornstarch. This one is probably the most unexpected of all the cookie ingredients, but I use cornstarch in all of my chewy cookie recipes. Why? Cornstarch will create a much more tender cookie as it softens the harsh proteins in flour, and encourages more chewiness as the it creates an interconnecting network of starch molecules to hold everything together.
GET CREATIVE
Once you have all of the ingredients I listed above, you can get started on making your cookies. But if you'd like to switch things up, don't be afraid to mix in some additional ingredients. Some ideas include:
- Food coloring. To make these cookies extra festive, feel free to add a few drops of food coloring to your dough. I think separating the dough into halves and using both red and green food colors could be fun for Christmas, while pastels would make beautiful cookies for Easter or a baby shower. Go wild with it! You could even clump pieces of differently colored dough together for a tie-dye effect.
- Sprinkles or colored sugars. I roll my cookies in extra granulated sugar or sanding sugar before baking, but you could get colorful and roll your dough in colored sugars or sprinkles instead, if you'd like. Or go the funfetti route and mix sprinkles them directly into the dough!
- Extracts. To keep these simple (and avoid allergies) I only use vanilla extract in these cookies, but if you really want them to taste special, add just a tiny bit of almond extract. It's delicious! Citrus flavors also do especially well. Try a bit of orange extract in addition to the vanilla, and grate in some fresh zest for good measure.
MAKING THE DOUGH
I make the dough simply in my stand mixer, but you can use a bowl and a hand mixer if you’d prefer. This recipe only requires 3 instances of mixing-- first, to combine the butter and sugars; then, to add in the eggs and vanilla extract, and finally, to mix in all of the dry ingredients.
After all of the ingredients have been added, a very soft (and somewhat sticky) dough will form. It will be difficult to handle at this point, but don’t worry, after a brief visit to the fridge it will be much more solidified!
I refrigerate my dough for at least an hour, which allows the butter time to solidify and the flavors time to meld before baking. You can refrigerate your dough for up to 3 days, if you need to.
BAKING SOFT SUGAR COOKIES
After the dough has been chilled, it’s time to bake! Well, almost.
Remember how I mentioned that a lot of sugar cookies require rolling out the dough with a rolling pin? This recipe requires a different-- and much easier-- type of rolling before you can pop those cookies in the oven.
Scoop the dough and shape into balls, and then roll the cookie dough balls in extra sugar. This gives a glistening finish to the sugar cookies and ensures that the first thing to hit your tongue is a quick-dissolving, light layer of sweetness. I often use additional granulated sugar for this step, but as I briefly mentioned earlier, larger-grained sugars like sanding sugar or decorating sugar also give a beautiful finished effect.
Then, I simply pop the sugar-coated cookie dough balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and get ready to stick them in the oven. The parchment paper is important as it prevents the cookies from browning too quickly on the bottom or spreading too much as it serves as a barrier between the hot pan and the dough. Still, be sure you give your cookies plenty of room to spread, as they will get quite big. I like to limit 6-8 cookies to one baking sheet, to be safe.
When it’s finally time to bake, put the cookies into a 350 degree oven for about 14 minutes, or until they’re just beginning to turn golden brown around the edges with a puffed, undercooked center. The center will settle as you allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet (<-- that’s important!) and you’ll wind up with unbelievably chewy, super soft sugar cookies.
MORE TIPS FOR SUCCESS
These cookies aren't hard to make, but for the absolute best results, keep these tips in your back pocket:
USE QUALITY INGREDIENTS
There aren't a lot of ingredients in these cookies, so you wind up with a lot of flavor coming through from the butter and vanilla extract. This is one of the occasions where I'll say that springing for the higher-quality options is definitely worth it for a better result.
MAKE SURE YOU'RE MEASURING YOUR FLOUR CORRECTLY
When measuring out your flour, don't ever scoop straight from the container with your measuring cup. This will cause you to use too much flour, as scooping packs the flour down. Instead, fluff up the flour in the container with a spoon, then use the spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup. You then can use a knife to level out the flour across the top of the measuring cup.
START WITH ROOM TEMPERATURE BAKING SHEETS
After taking a batch of cookies out of the oven, you might be tempted to reuse the still-warm baking sheets to start baking the next batch. Beginning with warm baking sheets would cause the cookies to spread too much, too quickly. Resist the urge and use a separate sheet instead!
DON'T OVERBAKE. IN FACT, UNDERBAKE THEM.
I'll say it again because I can't stress this enough: TAKE YOUR COOKIES OUT WHEN THEY STILL SEEM UNDERBAKED. They will finish baking as they cool on the tray! That's the biggest secret to the most amazing, soft sugar cookies you'll ever bake.
CAN I ROLL OUT THESE COOKIES AND CUT, IF I WANT?
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but these cookies are too delicate and spread too much for rolled cookies to work well. The same ingredients that make them extra buttery and chewy simply won't allow for those sharp edges you want with a cut-out cookie recipe.
CAN I ICE THEM?
Yes, you can decorate the cookies with icing or flavored glaze! Just be sure that you skip the whole "roll in more sugar" step in that case, as frostings, icings, and glazes all contain plenty of sugar as it is.
HOW LONG WILL THE COOKIES STAY SOFT?
Perhaps my favorite thing about this recipe-- besides the fact that the cookies taste so ridiculously good-- is that they stay so soft, thanks in part to the cornstarch and lower baking time. Stored properly in an airtight container, these will stay soft for several days, or even up to a week. Of course, the fresher the better, but they do stay soft for surprisingly long!
WATCH THE "SOFT AND CHEWY SUGAR COOKIES" VIDEO
MORE CHEWY COOKIE RECIPES TO LOVE
- The Best Chewy Café-Style Chocolate Chip Cookies
- The Best Chewy Café-Style Peanut Butter Cookies
- Chewy Chai Snickerdoodles
- Chewy Cherry Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies
- Soft and Chewy Lemon Sugar Cookies
The Best Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies
- Total Time: 31 mins
- Yield: 16-24 cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled for 5 minutes
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar + additional ½ cup sugar to roll
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with the cookie whisk attachment, beat together the melted butter, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, and the light brown sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until just combined and smooth.
- Add in the flour, cornstarch, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Mix until well combined, but be sure not to over-mix. Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Scoop a 2-3 heaping tablespoons of cookie dough at a time and roll into balls, then roll the balls in sugar to coat. Place onto the prepared baking sheet, giving plenty of room for spreading. You should be able to fit 6-8 cookies per tray.
- Bake for 12-16 minutes, or until the edges are JUST beginning to set and the centers are still puffy and soft and seem underbaked. Remove from the oven and let cool FULLY on the baking sheet to set the cookies.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 16 mins
Stacey says
I made these today and they were amazing. Over the holidays I've tried four sugar cookie recipes and this one was the best. Thank you for this delicious recipe!
Jason says
I don't suppose you'd consider putting weighted measures in you recipes, preferably grams? I am an engineer, and I cook that way, so volume measurements in baking always make me really uncertain, especially with flour!
Thanks!
Megan C. says
I really like wishing my for too! I will check the nutrition info on the side of the flour bag and use that to figure out grams. So my all purpose flour at 30g per 1/4 cup comes out to 360g for this recipe.
Jessica says
This isn’t difficult to figure out…. 120g = 1c flour 200g = 1c sugar (brown or white)
Phil says
Must be a pretty terrible engineer to not be able to figure the conversion out. Google is also an option if you're still struggling
Erin says
This is a pretty unfair comment. If someone provides a recipe based on cups, and it has been measured that way for a long time, it is very possible that the weight required for the recipe is actually greater than the conversion number. This is because often flour packs when people scoop with cups. I tested this myself using the recommended method for adding flour to a measuring cup (spooning it in gently). It still came out heavier than the conversion number.
So maybe try to be humble, because comments like yours not only make you look arrogant, but they can make you look unintelligent, too (which ironically is how you were trying to make the engineer look).
Alyssa says
These look amazing and i can't wait to make them. Any thoughts on how i might make this into a giant "pizza" cookie for a birthday "cake"? Thanks!
Alyssa says
These are amazing! I made them gluten free by subbing in a gluten free flour (Namaste to be exact) and they were great!
Vicky says
There is something absolutely delectable about a good sugar cookie! Can't wait to try out this recipe!
Morgan says
Right? I love any kind of cookie but I really have a weakness for giant chewy sugar cookies. They're dangerous, haha. I hope you enjoy them, Vicky!
Tisha says
These are perfect! Soft chewy sugar cookies are perfect for any occasion!
Adrianne says
What perfect cooked these are! They look delicious and underbaking the is a great tip!
Katherine says
Mmm soft and chewy sugar cookies are the BEST! Thanks for the recipe.
kim says
I love this recipe! I couldn't believe how easy and delicious these cookies turned out. Will definitely be making again!
Simone says
This recipe is amazing. When I made the cookies they were the best I had ever tasted. I loved them so much and definitely would recommend it to anyone I come across
Morgan says
Aw that's so great to hear, Simone!! Thanks! 🙂
Tirza Keating says
It was exactly what I look for in a sugar cookie! I hand mixed it and it turned out perfect (if anyone wondered if an electric mixer was absolutely necessary.
Stacy says
These are perfect. Rolled them in cinnamon and sugar. Took 11 to 12 minutes. Used dark brown sugar.
Katie says
I am obsessed with this recipe. I love these cookies! The only thing I do differently is adding some nutmeg. My family always puts nutmeg in sugar cookies 🙂
Thanks!
Aaron Burke says
They were delicious but I screwed up somewhere the cookies ran together Too by of dough balls? Or not enough baking soda? If anyone knows that would be cool
Paige says
These cookies are incredible and so easy to make. My husband says they are the best he has ever had! I like rolling them in rainbow sprinkles for the added texture, thank you for the amazing recipe!
Emily says
Amazing!! I substituted king Arthur gluten free flour blend and they came out perfect and delicious! If they're this good GF i can't even imagine how phenominal they'd be with regular flour.
Marilyn Gleue says
Can’T wait to try them!
Kim says
Finally made these after seeing people rave about them on reddit, and they did not disappoint! My bf and I agree these are the best sugar cookies we’ve ever had! Took your advice and added a splash of almond extract because I love almond flavored things. Thanks for an amazing recipe!
Lyndsey says
These sound amazing and right up my alley. But with holidays coming and baking taking over, I like to make dough ahead of time and freeze so we can just have a baking day. Would this dough freeze well or would this only work out using fresh?
Lauren Renfroe says
Really, really good!! Better than a bakery! Crisp edges and chewy center, perfect drop sugar cookie! And do allow room on the cookie sheet for the cookie to spread as directions note.
Morgan says
I'm so glad you liked them, Lauren!
Terry says
Is one tablespoon of vanilla correct?
Morgan says
Yep! 🙂
Megan C. says
I really like weighing my flour too! I will check the nutrition info on the side of the flour bag and use that to figure out grams. So my all purpose flour at 30g per 1/4 cup comes out to 360g for this recipe.
Kevin c. says
Absolutely amazing perfect recipe and outstanding cookies
Pamela says
This is the best sugar cookie recipe I ever used. I made three batches within one week! One I subbed lemon extract one I split in half and rolled in rainbow sprinkles and other half in cinnamon and sugar and one original I rolled in water then sugar which gave it a crunchy sugar on top..best recipe!!
Stephanie Nicole Shouse says
My baby sister is turning 17 on Monday and we made them for her party today Oml literally the best sugar cookie I have ever had!!
Vanessa says
I’ve made these a few times. Sometimes they come out flat, like the picture, and other times they come out puffy. Could this me from over mixing? Although I don’t think I over mix
Shama ahmed says
I reaaaally want to make these but how much butter in grams. Im from the uk. So im not sure whats meant by stick of butter. Pleaseeee help
Tiara says
Can I half the recipe to make a test batch?
Dominic Martello says
Made these today subbed out two vanilla beans diffused Into a tablespoon and a half of water instead of vanilla extract and added ground candied lemon peel. They came out amazing.
Allie says
These Sugar Cookies were absolutely delicious! My mom and I used the recipe to make mini fruit pizza. I even was able to make cut out cookies with the dough after leaving it in the fridge over night! Love them ❤️
Terry Moore says
These are the easiest and best sugar cookies ever! Do you think I can use this recipe to make chocolate chip cookies?
Jackie V says
Perfection! Easy to make and turned out just a little crispy on the edges and chewy on the inside. Great recipe, thanks!
Jim says
I liked the dense and chewiness but they tasted a little gamey/eggy to me. I added a little cinnamon to the second baking to help offset that flavor. I will try this recipe again with maybe only 1 egg or none and see if that will give me the flavor I'm looking for.
Molly Daniel says
I’m so glad I made these! I was craving a sugar cookie and this recipe was perfect! I didn’t have cornstarch so I did not add it and I used dark brown sugar instead of light- I was a little nervous at first but OMG they are amazing! I divided the batch and made half with cinnamon sugar and the other half with sprinkles. Absolutely delicious thank you.
Kent says
I was looking forward to this recipe because it’s a little bit different, and… It’s good! The cookies tasted great, and were soft and chewy for 4 days. I got a few more days out of them with a damp paper towel reheat in the microwave. That had a bonus of browning & crisping just the edge.
That said, it would be helpful if you listed what size cookies you should expect for various ball sizes. The directions say “2- 3 heaping tablespoons” and that was way too much. It left me with a sheet pan size cookie.
For the second batch, I used a 1 tablespoon scoop and that gave a nice 3 1/2 inch cookie.
All in all, great recipe!
Autumn says
These were great, I made the dough the day before and baked them the next morning, I scooped them with whatever size disher wilton sells for cookies and did the test run (12 min for me) this one is definitely going in as a keeper
Valarie Webb says
After being in the hospital for a year and a half I made sugar cookies with my 7yr old son and my family. They loved them but we moved twice and I lost the recipe. I made this recipe tonight and my son, who's 14 now, asked me if I found the recipe because he's begging me to make them again. Thank you so much for helping me make him happy.
Ashi Agrawal says
The most amazing sugar cookies in the world! So so soft and chewy and the flavors are perfection.
Morgan says
Aw thank you Ashi, I'm so glad you like them!
Shelisah Piggee says
Wow! This is the BEST sugar cookie I've ever had! I followed the metric to the T. I rolled mine in a sugar/sprinkle mixture and added a dash of lemon extract. They're the perfect sugar cookie I was searching for.
Juan says
I made the dough just now but it is really sticky. I followed the instructions step by step and measure by scale everything for precision and my flour comes out at 360g for the recipe, but I had to add about 70 grams more in order for the dough to not be extremely sticky as it was. It’s still sticky but I just threw it in the fridge. Should the dough be like this?
Morgan says
The dough should be pretty sticky - It has a relatively higher moisture content than a lot of doughs, which helps with the softness and chewiness. It's hard to tell whether your dough was appropriately sticky or perhaps could have been a bit too sticky based off of humidity, measuring, or temperature differences, but it should be fine. It will firm up considerably in the fridge, and it's a very forgiving dough. I hope you love your cookies!
Tarhib says
These soft and chewy sugar cookies look absolutely irresistible! Your recipe is perfect for anyone craving a classic, melt-in-your-mouth treat. Thanks for sharing!