Snickerdoodle cookies are a classic cookie we have made our whole lives. The family is obsessed with them and fortunately you guys are too! With over 3,000 FIVE STAR reviews, this recipe has been made and enjoyed by thousands of you each year and we cannot tell you how happy that makes us.
What are Snickerdoodles? Snickerdoodles are soft, chewy sugar cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar. What really sets them apart from regular sugar cookies is cream of tartar, which gives them their signature tangy flavor, soft texture, and crackly tops.
This easy cookie recipe was first made by my mom decades ago and was one of the first recipes we ever shared here on Lil’ Luna. To us, the best snickerdoodles are soft and chewy in the center, lightly crisp around the edges, generously coated in cinnamon sugar, and have that signature tang from cream of tartar, and this recipe is just that. We haven’t changed the recipe over the years, but we have added more tips and tricks to help make sure they turn out just right every time.
These are truly the best for Christmas or changed up just slightly like our Chocolate coated Christmas Snickerdoodles and Brown Butter Snickerdoodles.
Why You’ll Love it + Why it Works:
- Soft + Chewy. Soft centers, lightly crisp edges, and plenty of cinnamon sugar make these a family favorite.
- No Chill Time. The dough goes straight from the bowl to the oven, so they’re quick and easy.
- Simple Ingredients. They’re made with basic pantry staples we usually have on hand.
- Cream of Tartar is Key. It gives snickerdoodles that classic tang and helps create their signature chewy texture.
- Barely Softened Butter. This is our trick for keeping the cookies soft without letting them spread too much.
Snickerdoodle Ingredients
Cookie
- All-purpose flour (2¾ cups): Gives the cookies structure. For the most accurate result, spoon and level the flour rather than scooping directly from the bag.
- Cream of tartar (2 teaspoons): Adds that signature tang and chewy texture Snickerdoodles are famous for.
- Baking soda (1 teaspoon): Helps the cookies rise just the right amount.
- Salt (½ teaspoon): Balances the sweetness.
- Unsalted butter (1 cup, just softened): Creates a rich, buttery base.
- JUST SOFTENED >> This is KEY! When you press in finger into the butter, you want it to barely indent. Too hard, and the dough won’t be just right – too soft and your cookies will be flat.
- Sugar (1½ cups): Sweetens and helps create the crackly texture.
- Eggs (2): Add moisture and help the dough bind together. Room temp eggs incorporate best.
- Vanilla extract (1 teaspoon): Enhances flavor and adds warmth.
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- sugar (1/3 cup): The base of the sweet coating.
- cinnamon (2 tablespoons): Adds warmth and that iconic Snickerdoodle spice.
Cream of Tartar
- Why the Cream of Tartar in Snickerdoodles? Cream of tartar gives snickerdoodles their signature tang and works with baking soda to help create their soft, chewy texture and crackly tops. You can make them without it, but the flavor will be closer to a cinnamon sugar cookie.
- No Cream of Tartar?
- For this recipe, replace the 2 teaspoons cream of tartar and 1 teaspoon baking soda with 2 teaspoons baking powder. The cookies will still be soft and delicious, but they won’t have quite the same signature tangy Snickerdoodle flavor.
- For a substitution that keeps a little more of that tang, you can replace the cream of tartar with 1½ teaspoons white vinegar or lemon juice and keep the baking soda as written. The texture and flavor may be slightly different from the original.
How to Make Snickerdoodles
BATTER. In a medium bowl, stir the 2¾ cup flour, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand mixer) cream together 1 cup butter (barely softened) and 1½ cups sugar until light and fluffy (at least 2 minutes) Add 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix until it is well blended.
SHAPE. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix well, and then shape the dough into 1-inch balls (no need to chill).
COAT. In a small bowl, combine ⅓ cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon. Roll the dough balls into the cinnamon and sugar mixture – TWICE.
BAKE. Place on an un-greased pan or baking sheets 2 inches apart (flatten with the bottom of a cup if you like your cookies thinner), and bake at 350°F for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are set but the centers still look slightly underdone.
Let them sit on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
To Chill or Not to Chill?
This is the main question we get asked about this snickerdoodle recipe so we decided to test it for you to show the differences. The results speak for themselves!
- NOT CHILLED – our preferred method – you can see that the cookie is not too flat, has all the cracks on top and is PERFECT.
- CHILLED – the cookie is more poofy, doesn’t have as many cracks on top and does not expand as much.
- CHILLED + FLATTENED – this cookie expanded the most, but became almost too flat
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- BUTTER IS KEY. Make sure you are using real butter for this recipe (no margarine), and make sure it is JUST SOFTENED. If it’s too soft, your cookies will spread too much.
- DON’T SKIP THE CREAM OF TARTAR. It gives the cookie that famous tangy flavor!
- DOUBLE ROLL. Don’t skip rolling the cookie dough balls in the cinnamon-sugar mixture twice – it ensures that sweet goodness is in every bite and gives that beautiful crackly coating we all love.
- DON’T OVER-BAKE. Snickerdoodles might look a little underdone when you pull them out of the oven, but trust me, take them out! They’ll continue cooking on the pan and stay soft and chewy inside.
- CHILL IF NEEDED. If your kitchen is warm or the dough feels sticky, pop it in the fridge for 20 minutes.
Snickerdoodle Cookies
Ingredients
Snickerdoodle Dough
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, just softened
- 1½ cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, mix flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer, cream together butter (barely softened) and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and blend well.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine ⅓ cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon.
- Use a small cookie scoop to scoop out dough and roll it into a ball. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture TWICE.
- Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are set but the centers still look slightly underdone. Let them sit on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe FAQ
The edges should look set, but the centers may still look slightly soft. Take them out before they look fully baked because they will continue setting on the hot pan.
– Your butter was too soft or melted (it needs to be just softened.)
– Your baking soda or cream of tartar is expired. These two ingredients work together to give snickerdoodles their signature soft, puffy texture. If they’re old, they won’t do their job, and your cookies will spread. Check those expiration dates!
– Over-mixing the dough – Once you add the dry ingredients, mix until just combined. Over-mixing can cause thinner cookies.
– Oven temperature is too low – If your oven runs cool, the butter will melt before the cookies have time to set. Use an oven thermometer to make sure it’s at 350 degrees.
Cover and store the dough from this snickerdoodle recipe in the fridge for 1-2 days. See How to Freeze Cookie Dough for tips.
Keep cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. Store in a freezer bag, or air-tight container in the freezer for up to 4 months.
More Like This
Snickerdoodle Treats
Classic Cookies
Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
15 mins
Frosted Sugar Cookies
25 mins
Easy Oatmeal Cookies
22 mins
Best Peanut Butter Cookies
1 hr 22 mins
Collections
This recipe was first published August 2012.
It is my goal to master these puffy. I thought I followed your tips but they’re flat. Please tell me what to do next time to have them puffy. I chilled them, put on cool baking sheet. Baked them 8/9 minutes, let them set a few min before moving to cooling rack. They taste delicious but would like them puffy. Thank you for the help and the recipe.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the flavor! If your snickerdoodles are spreading too much, the biggest things to watch are the butter and flour. Make sure the butter is only barely softened—not warm or melty—and measure the flour carefully (spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off). You can also try chilling the dough a little longer and rolling the dough balls slightly taller rather than perfectly round. And be sure your baking soda and cream of tartar are fresh, since they help give the cookies their lift. Hopefully those little tweaks will give you the puffy snickerdoodles you’re looking for next time! 💛
These are amazing. Easy to follow, fun to make with my 3 yr old. 9 minute cook time was the sweet spot!
So glad you both had fun making them! I’m happy to hear they turned out so well.
Hello! I’m looking to make this recipe for a friend’s birthday party. Snickerdoodles are his favorite, but he needs dairy free. Have you made this recipe with a non-dairy butter alternative before?
Just made these for my daughter’s bday because this is her favorite kind of cookie, they turned out just perfect! So yummy! I used gluten free flour so once mixed I let the batter “rest” in the frig for about 20mins (I have found GF batter turns out better if it rests before tossing in the oven). Gonna file this in my favorites and will definitely be making regularly! Thanks so much! 🥰
I’m thrilled they turned out perfectly for your daughter’s birthday, and thank you for sharing that helpful gluten free flour tip!
The baking time is off. The first batch I baked for ten minutes was way underdone. The second batch I baked for twelve minutes was still underdone. Finally the third batch I baked for a little over fourteen minutes and it finally came out right. I didn’t chill the dough either. I only got six good cookies because of this. The flavor also wasn’t as good as I was expecting.
I’m so sorry the cookies didn’t turn out as expected, which is always frustrating, and factors like oven temperature, cookie size, and pan type may have affected the baking time.
This sounds like an oven and/or user error, not a recipe error 🙄. It drives me nuts when people improperly rate recipes because they did something wrong.
Get a cookie sheet, place slices of bread on it, and bake the slices. You’ll see where your oven is running hot/cool.
Yuck! This recipe did not taste good, it ended up in the bin.
Brianna and Maria- Hi, we noticed these two reviews were posted one second apart from the same IP address under different names. We welcome honest feedback, and if you did make the recipe, we are sorry to hear it did not turn out well for you.
It would constantly be undercooked and when it wasn’t it didn’t even taste good
Maria and Brianna- Hi, we noticed these two reviews were posted one second apart from the same IP address under different names. We welcome honest feedback, and if you did make the recipe, we are sorry to hear it did not turn out well for you.
Easy to follow recipe. Yummy cookie. Helpful hints. Happy family!
I’m thrilled the recipe was easy to follow and that your family enjoyed the cookies!
Do you have the measurements in grams?
I do not weigh my ingredients and use measuring cups and spoons, but if it helps, here is what Google suggests:Approximate measurements are 330 grams flour, 6 grams cream of tartar, 5 grams baking soda, 3 grams salt, 227 grams butter, 300 grams sugar, 100 grams egg, and 5 grams vanilla. For the coating, use 67 grams sugar and 16 grams cinnamon.
I’m giving these as a gift. Do they stay soft for a couple days? Some snickerdoodles tend to get hard after a day or so.
Yes, they should stay soft for about 2 to 3 days when stored in an airtight container. The biggest tip is not to overbake them. Pull them out when the edges are set but the centers still look slightly soft, then let them finish setting on the baking sheet. You can also add a slice of bread to the container to help keep the cookies soft for gifting.