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These gooey butter cookies are prepped in 5 minutes and have a perfectly addicting chewy texture making them one of our go-to cookies!

Gooey butter cookies stacked on top of each other on white plate.

Cake Mix Cookies!

We love making cookies with the kids, and these gooey butter cookies are a family favorite! This cake mix cookie is pretty much half a cookie and half a cupcake, and you really can’t go wrong with that. You may also want to try our Gooey Butter Cake!

When you need a quick and easy cookie recipe, cake mix cookies are the way to go! They’re so convenient, and you can easily switch up the flavors depending on the mix—like these Frosted Lemon Cookies, or Funfetti Cookies.

WHY WE LOVE IT:

  • Mix it up. Easily change the flavor by using your favorite flavor of cake!
  • Soft and chewy. They are made with cake mix, butter, and cream cheese and are so soft and moist.
  • Easy. Simply dump, mix, roll, and bake. The batter is prepped in only 5 minutes!
Ingredients for gooey butter cookies on white counter.

Ingredients

  • 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese – softened
  • ½ cup unsalted butter softened How to Soften Butter Quickly
  • 1 egg room-temperature incorporates best
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 (15.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix or another flavor like strawberry or chocolate cake mix
  • 1 cup powdered sugar – plus more for dusting
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How to Make Gooey Butter Cookies

  1. BATTER. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer (or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment) to beat 8 ounces cream cheese, ½ cup butter, 1 egg, and ½ teaspoon vanilla with a hand mixer until fluffy.
    • Add the cake mix powder and mix until combined. Chill for 30 minutes.
  2. PREP. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  3. BAKE. Place 1 cup powdered sugar in a shallow bowl. Scoop and roll dough into 1½-inch cookie dough balls then roll in powdered sugar until well coated. Place onto a lightly greased baking sheet.
    • Bake for 10–12 minutes.
    • Let cookies sit on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool.
  4. ENJOY! Sift more powdered sugar on top, if desired.
Gooey butter cookies recipe stacked on top of each other on white plate.
4.99 from 440 votes

Gooey Butter Cookies

By: Lil’ Luna
Made easy with a yellow cake mix, these gooey butter cookies are prepped in 5 minutes and have a perfectly addicting chewy texture!
Servings: 24 cookies
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Chill time: 30 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 egg
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 (15.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, plus more for dusting

Instructions 

  • In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, egg, and vanilla with a hand mixer until fluffy.
  • Mix in cake mix until combined, and chill for 30 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  • Place powdered sugar in a bowl. Scoop out and roll dough into 1½-inch balls and roll in powdered sugar until well coated. Place onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
  • Bake for 10–12 minutes.
  • Let cookies sit on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, then remove to a rack to cool.
  • Sift more powdered sugar on top, if desired.

Video

Notes

Variations. Other cake mix flavors such as strawberry, chocolate, and Funfetti can be used. 
Store cookie dough. Place the dough in an airtight container or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days or see How to Freeze Cookie Dough.
Store cookies. Place cooled cookies in an air-tight container on the counter for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie, Calories: 57kcal, Carbohydrates: 5g, Protein: 0.3g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 4mg, Potassium: 4mg, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 129IU, Calcium: 2mg, Iron: 0.04mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Recipe FAQ

How to store the dough?

Place the dough in an airtight container or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days or see How to Freeze Cookie Dough.

How to store?

Place cooled cookies in an air-tight container on the counter for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

About Kristyn

Kristyn Merkley is a published cookbook author, wife, mom of six, and major food enthusiast! For the past 15 years, she has been sharing foolproof, family-friendly recipes—each one tested in her kitchen—that anyone can master. As a seasoned recipe creator, she loves making cooking simple, stress-free, and totally doable for everyone!

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4.99 from 440 votes (332 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




430 Comments

  1. Kelly says:

    5 stars
    I made them and they were great! I love lemon so I made them with a lemon cake mix super good!

  2. Renee says:

    5 stars
    I just made these & they were so good! I made them small so 1 batch made over 60 cookies.

    1. Lil' Luna says:

      Glad you liked these!! And glad you were able to get 60 out of it! Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a great day!

  3. Jennifer says:

    5 stars
    I have made these and they are DELICIOUS!!!!! Love, love them. I have tried them with not only vanilla cake mix but strawberry, chocolate, lemon and mixed in chocolate chips, dried fruit, m & ms. Very versatile and always delicious!

    1. Julie says:

      Have you tried it with chocolate icing?!

      1. Lil'Luna Team says:

        I haven’t! But you could certainly frost the tops. I imagine it would taste delicious!

  4. Laura says:

    5 stars
    These were a huge hit at work! Had plenty of people asking for recipe! I added white chocolate chips to them and yum!! I will definitely be making these again! Thanks so much for the recipe!

    1. Linda Ping Wise says:

      Will be making these. Looks delicious!!!!

      1. Kristyn Merkley says:

        They are! I hope you like them! Thank you!

      2. Dani says:

        Delicious! Should they be refrigerated after baking?

      3. Brittany says:

        I made a mistake and mixed all the ingredients including the cake with my mixer. (My phone kept freezing so I just guessed on the prep) are they going to bake right or should I start over?

      4. Lil'Luna Team says:

        Hi Brittany! I’m curious how the cookies turned out. I imagine they would be fine, but I haven’t added the powdered sugar to the batter before. So I’m not sure how that may have affected the taste/texture. I’d be curious to hear!

      5. Rob D. Trinket says:

        5 stars
        Holy smokes, these are an absolute addiction..ive been around the block with my cookies and these are hands down the best. I tried them for the first time using the lemon cake mix. Let me tell ya, they didn’t last much longer than a few hours..highly recommend these for ANY occasion, its truly a perfect recipe. You will never bake another type of cookie again with all the variations you can do with these. Just prepare to eat them way to fast. Especially when served alongside some lemon skunk kush! Sharing this recipe to everyone 🤤

      6. LilLunaTeam says:

        Awe, that makes me so happy to hear that you liked them so much! Thanks for sharing this with everyone! 🙂

      7. Julia says:

        Rob, did you use the vanilla when you did the lemon version? Thanks!

    1. Monica Williams says:

      I want to try lemon! — have you ever added nuts or coconut?

      1. Lil' Luna says:

        I haven’t but the lemon cake mix with coconut on top would be awesome!!

      2. Heather says:

        How much powdered sugar?

      3. Kristyn Merkley says:

        No set amount. Just enough to roll the dough in 🙂

      4. Heather says:

        You could put it on just at the end so it gets toasted and sticks in the cookie a little. I’m trying these today the original way.

      5. Lil'Luna Team says:

        That’s a great idea! Hope you enjoyed the cookies!