Crumbl Cookie Copycat Recipe (Thick, Soft & Bakery-Style)

I've been making big bakery-style cookies at home for years, but I'll be honest — for a long time, mine came out either too flat or too cakey. Nothing like those thick, slightly underdone Crumbl cookies that my kids keep begging me to buy. So I did what I always do: I made it my mission to figure it out at home, and after a few failed batches, I finally cracked it.

What makes these work is the combination of chilling the dough and pulling them from the oven while the centers still look a little soft. That part drove me crazy at first — I kept overbaking them because they looked underdone. But that's exactly the move. The carryover heat finishes them on the pan, and you end up with that dense, chewy center that makes Crumbl cookies what they are. I also added cornstarch to the dry ingredients, which helps them stay thick and soft for days.

Zainab is the cookie person in our house. Saad will eat them, sure, but Zainab is the one who stands next to the oven watching the timer. These are her favorite thing I make, and she's asked for the frosted version twice now for her birthday. If you want to go full Crumbl-style, there's an optional buttercream frosting at the end — I'd put it on everything if I could. If you're in the mood for more no-fuss dessert ideas, my Caramel Apple Dessert Cups are another one that disappears fast around here.

One thing to set expectations on: this recipe makes big cookies — about ¼ cup of dough each. You'll get roughly 16 cookies from one batch, and I almost always make a double batch because a single batch is gone within two days. These aren't quick little drop cookies. Budget about an hour including chill time. The wait is worth it.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• That thick, soft center: This is the whole point, right? The cornstarch in the dough and the intentional slight underbake are what give you that dense, almost gooey center that holds together when you pick it up. I've eaten a lot of disappointing thick cookies that were just raw in the middle — these aren't that. The edges set properly, the center stays soft. It took me three tries to get the timing right, but now I've got it down.

• Pantry ingredients, nothing special: I don't have a stand mixer. I use a wooden spoon and a big mixing bowl, and these come out just fine. The ingredient list is flour, butter, two kinds of sugar, eggs, vanilla, leaveners — nothing you'd need to run out and find. The only slightly unusual thing is the cornstarch, and every grocery store carries it.

• Completely customizable base: I think of this dough as a blank canvas. Chocolate chips are the default, but once you have the base down, you can take it in any direction — stuffed with caramel, loaded with Oreos, frosted in pink like a classic Crumbl sugar cookie. The dough itself is buttery and vanilla-forward, so it works with pretty much any mix-in you throw at it.

• Freezer-friendly dough: I almost always make a double batch and freeze half the dough balls on a sheet pan, then transfer them to a zip-lock bag. On any random Thursday when someone wants cookies, I pull out four dough balls, let them sit for 10 minutes, and bake. Add about 2 extra minutes to the bake time from frozen and they come out exactly the same.

• Fraction of the Crumbl price: I'm not going to pretend I've never paid $5 for a single Crumbl cookie — I have, and I don't regret it. But this whole batch costs maybe $6–7 in ingredients and makes 16 cookies. If you're making these for a gathering or a birthday, the math makes a lot of sense.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (pure, not imitation — it matters here)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (or mix-ins of your choice)
• Optional Frosting:
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2–3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Food coloring or sprinkles (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven: Set your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. I use a regular sheet pan from Walmart — nothing fancy needed here.
2. Cream the butter and sugars: In a large bowl, beat together the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until the mixture looks light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. If you're using a hand mixer, great — if not, a wooden spoon and some elbow grease works fine. The butter needs to be genuinely soft here, not melted, or your cookies will spread too thin.
3. Add eggs and vanilla: Mix in the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each one before adding the next. Then add the vanilla and mix until everything is smooth and combined. This is where the flavor foundation gets built, so don't rush it.
4. Mix the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add this gradually to the wet mixture — I do it in three additions — stirring just until no dry streaks remain. Stop there. Overmixing is how you get tough cookies.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips: Add your chocolate chips (or whatever mix-in you're using) and fold them in gently with a spatula until evenly distributed.
6. Portion and chill the dough: Scoop the dough into balls about ¼ cup each — a large cookie scoop makes this faster, but two spoons work too. Place them on a plate or small sheet pan and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Don't skip this step. The first time I made these I was impatient and skipped the chill, and they spread into thin puddles.
7. Bake: Transfer the chilled dough balls to your parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them about 3 inches apart. Bake for 12–14 minutes, until the edges look set and golden but the centers still look a bit underdone and soft. Pull them when they look like they need another minute — that's the right moment.
8. Cool on the pan: Let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for 5 full minutes before you move them. They'll finish setting up as they cool. Transfer to a wire rack and try to wait at least 10 more minutes before eating one. I know. It's hard.
9. Optional frosting: If you're making the frosted version, beat the softened butter until fluffy, then gradually add powdered sugar, cream, and vanilla. Beat until smooth and spreadable. Spread on completely cooled cookies. Add food coloring or sprinkles if you want that classic Crumbl look.

Tips for Success

• Don't skip the chill time: I know 30 minutes feels like forever when you want cookies right now, but this is what keeps them thick. Cold dough spreads slowly in the oven, which means the edges set before the center has a chance to pancake out. If I'm really planning ahead, I chill the dough balls overnight and bake them in the morning — they come out even better that way.

• Measure your flour properly: I used to scoop flour straight from the bag with my measuring cup, and my cookies were always a little dense and dry. The right way is to spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with a flat edge. That one change made a noticeable difference in texture. Too much flour and the cookies get cakey instead of chewy.

• Pull them early: The most common mistake I see people make with thick cookies is overbaking them. At 12–14 minutes, the centers should still look soft and slightly glossy — almost underdone. They firm up as they cool on the pan. If you wait until they look fully done in the oven, they'll be dry by the time you eat them.

• Press them down right after baking: This is a little trick I picked up after studying way too many Crumbl photos online. When the cookies come out of the oven, use the flat bottom of a glass or measuring cup to gently press the tops down just slightly. It gives them that uniform thick-disc shape instead of a rounded dome. Do it while they're still warm and soft — about 1 minute out of the oven.

• Give them space on the pan: These cookies are big and they do spread a little, even from cold. I fit 6 per standard sheet pan, not 8 or 9. If you crowd them, they'll bake into each other and you'll end up with one giant connected cookie slab — which, honestly, still tastes good, but isn't the goal.

Variations

• Frosted sugar cookie style: Leave out the chocolate chips entirely and add ½ teaspoon of almond extract alongside the vanilla. Bake as usual, let them cool completely, then spread with the buttercream frosting tinted pink. This is basically the Crumbl pink sugar cookie, and it's the version Zainab asks for on her birthday. If you want to go further with the frosted dessert idea, my Strawberry Cheesecake Lush uses a similar cream base and is just as popular around here.

• Cookies and cream: Stir in 1 cup of crushed Oreos and ½ cup of white chocolate chips instead of the semi-sweet chocolate chips. The Oreo pieces get a little toasty around the edges and the white chocolate melts into the dough in the best way. This one is my husband's favorite variation by a long shot.

• Stuffed cookies: Before chilling, flatten each dough ball slightly, press a square of chocolate (or a soft caramel candy) into the center, and wrap the dough back around it. Seal the edges and chill as usual. When these bake, you cut one open and there's a gooey center hiding inside. It's a little dramatic and completely worth it.

• S'mores cookies: Add ½ cup of mini marshmallows, ½ cup of chocolate chunks, and ½ cup of crushed graham crackers to the dough. The marshmallows melt and get sticky and golden on the edges. These are a little messier to handle but the flavor is excellent — very campfire-in-cookie-form. I'd pair these with something like a Gingerbread Martini for a cozy winter dessert table.

• Funfetti birthday cookies: Swap all the chocolate chips for ½ cup of rainbow sprinkles (jimmies, not the crunchy ball kind) and ¾ cup of white chocolate chips. Fold them in gently so the sprinkles don't bleed too much color. These look festive straight from the oven and go over really well at kids' parties — better than a cake, honestly, because there's no cutting required.

Serving and Storage

Serving

These are best served slightly warm — I'll microwave a stored cookie for 10–12 seconds and it tastes almost fresh out of the oven again. If you made the frosted version, serve at room temperature so the buttercream is soft and spreadable rather than cold and stiff. A cold glass of milk is the obvious pairing, but I've also served these alongside my Strawberry Cheesecake Nachos Box at a dessert table and they disappeared fast. For a holiday cookie spread, they sit nicely next to something like Cranberry Brie Bites if you're doing a mix of sweet and savory.

Storage

Store cooled unfrosted cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They stay soft — I think they're actually best on day 2. If you made frosted cookies, store them in a single layer (or with parchment between layers) in the fridge for up to 4 days; bring to room temperature before serving. For the dough: freeze raw dough balls on a sheet pan until solid, then transfer to a zip-lock freezer bag. They'll keep frozen for up to 2 months. Bake directly from frozen at 350°F, adding 2–3 minutes to the bake time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I freeze the cookie dough balls?

Yes, and I do this almost every time I make this recipe. Scoop the dough into balls, place them on a sheet pan, and freeze until solid — about an hour. Then transfer to a zip-lock bag. When you want cookies, pull out however many you need, let them sit for 10 minutes while the oven preheats, and bake at 350°F for 14–16 minutes. No thawing required.

Why are my cookies spreading too much and coming out flat?

Almost always, this is a dough temperature issue. If your dough wasn't chilled long enough — or if your kitchen is very warm — the butter softens too fast in the oven and the cookies spread before the structure sets. Chill for at least 30 minutes, and if your kitchen is hot, go 45 minutes. Also double-check that your baking soda is fresh; old leaveners can affect how cookies hold their shape.

Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted?

You can. Just reduce the added salt in the recipe from ½ teaspoon down to ¼ teaspoon so the cookies don't come out overly salty. The flavor difference is subtle — I've made these with salted butter in a pinch and they were still really good. I just make sure to adjust so it doesn't tip over into too-salty territory.

My cookies came out cakey instead of chewy — what went wrong?

The most common cause is too much flour. If you scoop directly from the bag with your measuring cup, you compact the flour and end up with significantly more than the recipe calls for. Use the spoon-and-level method: spoon flour into the measuring cup and level off the top with a straight edge. The second possibility is overbaking — cakey texture can also come from leaving them in the oven too long. Pull them when the centers still look soft.

Can I make smaller cookies instead of the big Crumbl-size ones?

Absolutely. Use about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie instead of ¼ cup, and reduce the bake time to 9–11 minutes. Check early — smaller cookies overbake faster. The texture will be slightly different since there's less mass, but still soft and chewy. You'll get around 32 smaller cookies from one batch, which is useful if you're making these for a large crowd.

These cookies have become one of those recipes I come back to over and over. Not because I'm trying to prove I can out-bake a professional cookie company, but because my family genuinely prefers these — and I can customize them based on what's in my pantry that week. The frosted