These chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies are the perfect cookie with a soft and moist center, melty morsels of chocolate, and crisp edges. It’s the only chocolate chip cookie recipe you’ll ever need because it’s classic—not fussy, complicated, or time-consuming.
There’s no need for refrigeration, special tricks, or complex cooking techniques to get the best chocolate cookie. Our foolproof, classic recipe tastes exactly how it should—insanely delicious. After all, it’s the incredible flavor and easy-to-make recipe that keeps traditional desserts like Gingerbread Cookies, Banana Bread, and Baklava so popular for ages!
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Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
My high school used to sell the best chocolate chip cookies at lunchtime. They were soft, thick and irresistible. With this cookie recipe, I sought to recreate that memorable texture and this recipe takes me back to the days when I saved up my quarters for the rare treat of the cafeteria cookie.
There is no match for homemade chocolate chip cookies with chewy and soft texture, gooey chocolate chips, and the sweetest aroma coming from your oven. As America’s most loved cookie, they are perfect for every occasion, whether you’re making Christmas cookies, comforting a neighbor, or surprising your kiddos with a sweet after-school treat.
Just like with Chocolate Crinkle Cookies or Christmas Sugar Cookies, everyone needs a go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe, so here’s why this one is a keeper:
- The cookies stay soft for days
- Easy, straightforward recipe with tips to make it foolproof!
- No resting/refrigerating time—so you can satisfy your craving immediately
- Pantry staple ingredients
- True to the classic flavor everyone loves
- Stores and freezes well
- Make ahead option to always have dough on hand
Chocolate Chip Cookies Video
In this video, Natasha shows you how easy it is to whip up a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies. *Note that we updated the recipe and now use 1 tsp of baking soda because we loved the results even more.
Ingredients:
The best chocolate chip cookie recipe is made with pantry and refrigerator staples—nothing fancy or hard to find here.
- Unsalted butter – room temperature butter creates the best consistency to trap air for a chewy, airy dough with the best texture and rise.
- Granulated sugar – white sugar adds sweetness without adding moisture for the perfect spread
- Brown sugar – molasses keeps the cookie moist, soft, and chewy. Be sure to press the sugar tightly into the cup when measuring
- Eggs – room temperature eggs mix more evenly to bind the dough
- Vanilla extract – store-bought or homemade vanilla extract gives that classic chocolate chip cookie flavor
- All-purpose flour – be sure to measure correctly to get the right amount: fluff with a spoon and then scoop the flour into the measuring cup. Finally, scrape off the top. Be sure not to pat the flour down
- Baking soda – sift to eliminate clumps
- Salt – balances the sweetness of the sugars
- Chocolate chips – we prefer semi-sweet chocolate chips, but you can use milk chocolate or bittersweet chips for a slightly different taste. See our buying guide below – be sure to use the full amount because they add moisture and give good form to the cookies
Pro Tip:
If you don’t have time to let the butter come to room temperature, try this trick to soften the butter quickly, because it makes a big difference.
How to Buy Chocolate Chips
Chocolate chips come in different varieties. Here’s what to look for:
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips (46%-60% cocoa): the traditional chip for chocolate chip cookies. You can use full-size or mini chips, chunks, or even chopped chocolate. Nestle, Tollhouse, Ghirardelli, Guittard, Kirkland, Hershey’s….they all work!
- Milk chocolate chips (10% cocoa): these make very sweet cookies, so have your glass of milk ready. Try mixing with semi-sweet.
- Bittersweet chocolate chips (70% cocoa): less sweet and intensely chocolatey. These produce a more “adult” cookie.
Substitutions
It’s easy to make these cookies your own. You’ll need 2 cups of mix-ins, so if you’re feeling adventurous, try some of these fun alternatives to chocolate chips:
- Peanut butter chips
- Sprinkles
- Butterscotch chips
- M&M candies
- Macadamia nuts
- Chopped unsalted peanuts
- White vanilla baking chips
- Shredded coconut
- Pretzel pieces – the options are endless!
How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies
It’s so simple to mix up this easy chocolate chip cookie recipe with pantry staples and no refrigeration is needed.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and cover 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats. Cream the butter and sugars together for 5 minutes until light and fluffy—this is the most important step to get a chewy cookie. Be sure to beat for the full amount of time!
- Beat eggs into the butter mixture one at a time followed by the vanilla extract.
- Combine the dry ingredients (flour, salt, and sifted baking soda) in a separate bowl, and then add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in thirds. Finally, fold the chocolate chips into the dough. Be sure not to over-mix (this can cause the dough to become tough).
- Roll balls of dough or use a trigger release scoop to scoop 3 Tbsp balls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake one cookie sheet at a time for 12-15 minutes. The tops should still look a bit wet and not browned. We usually bake 1/3 of the cookies at a time and refrigerate or freeze the rest for later, so see our tips below.
- Rest the cookies on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Store cookies in an airtight container on the counter for 5 days. To warm the cookies, try toasting in a toaster oven or baking at 350 for 2-3 minutes.
Pro Tip:
For a prettier cookie, press a few extra chocolate chips into the top of each cookie dough ball just before baking.
Common Questions
Room temperature butter and eggs, beating the butter and sugars thoroughly, and not over-mixing create the best cookies! No need for fancy techniques, because the best chocolate chip cookies are easy to make!
These homemade chocolate chip cookies spread perfectly without flattening.
Over-baking is the #1 cause of hard cookies, so remove them before they brown, when the edges are just turning golden. The top should still look a bit raw.
Once baked, store the cookies in an airtight container to keep them soft. You can even place a piece of bread in the container to maintain moisture.
Usually, cookies go flat when a recipe doesn’t include enough flour. Be sure to measure the ingredients correctly. Also, check to be sure your baking soda is still fresh by placing 1 tsp baking soda into a cup with a splash of vinegar. It should fizz, but if it doesn’t, replace your baking soda.
This usually means you use too much flour. Be sure to fluff and spoon your flour into a dry ingredient measuring cup, and don’t pat it down. Also, be sure not to make the cookie dough balls too large, or they may take longer than the cooking time to spread in the oven.
Make-Ahead
Our homemade chocolate chip cookie dough is refrigerator and freezer-friendly, so you can always have dough on hand. To make a few days ahead, mix the dough as directed and store:
- To Refrigerate: put dough into an airtight container, or cover rolled dough balls on a cookie sheet in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and then bake as usual. It may take 1-2 minutes longer if starting with chilled dough.
- To Freeze: Scoop the dough onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet and freeze for 1 hour. Then, once the dough balls are frozen, store them in a freezer zip-top bag until ready to bake.
- To Bake: thaw in the refrigerator and bake as directed. You can bake from frozen, but the cookies will take a few more minutes to bake.
You will love these homemade chocolate chips with melty chocolate, a chewy cookie center, and an irresistible aroma. Our easy recipe uses pantry staples without unnecessary techniques! Grab a glass of milk because this will soon become your go-to recipe!
More Cookie Recipes
If you love this chocolate chip cookie recipe, then you won’t want to miss these other delicious cookie recipes.
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Snowball Cookies
- Russian Tea Cakes
- Shell Cookies
- Cranberry Cookies
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Thumbprint Cookies
Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, (16 Tbsp), softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, tightly packed
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, measured correctly*
- 1 tsp baking soda, sifted
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, (12 oz), divided reserving 1/4 cup for the top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or Silpat liner. In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, combine 2 sticks of butter, 1 cup of packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup of white sugar. Beat 5 minutes on medium/high speed until creamy and light, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Add 2 eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition, scraping down the bowl as needed, then beat in 2 tsp of vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, combine 3 cups of flour, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tsp of baking soda (sifted to eliminate lumps). Add the flour mixture to the creamed butter in thirds, mixing to incorporate with each addition. Fold in 2 cups of chocolate chips.
- Use an ice cream scoop to get even balls of dough (3 Tbsp each). Place scoops of dough onto lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Mine fit onto 3 cookie sheets and made 26 cookies. Roll balls lightly with your hands then stud tops of cookie balls with reserved chocolate chips. Bake right away or cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.
- Bake one cookie sheet at a time for 12-15 min at 350˚F (we bake 12 minutes), until edges are just turning golden. The tops should still look under-baked. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet 5 min then transfer to a rack to cool.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
hi Natasha! i’m attempting to try this recipe but can i cut the chocolate chip cookie recipe in half? can it affect the consistency of the cookies? thank you!
Hi Isabella, Yes, simply halve the recipe and it should turn out!
Hi Natasha, the video says baking powder and I remember I made them with baking powder, but the recipe says baking soda. Which one is correct? Did you change it?
Hi Sam, we now use 1 tsp baking soda because we loved the results even more.
I made these yesterday, and they were so yummy with my glass of cold milk! I put some in the refrigerator so that I could bake them today while we were eating lunch, and they were a hit with my son, his wife and my grandson was a big fan! Almost everything we had for lunch was from your blog!
I am so glad you and your son loved the cookies! Thank you so much for your awesome feedback, Melanie.
I think my family and I just went to heaven…. these cookies are amazing!!! I’m glad I found this recipe because my kiddos and husband are chocolate chip cookie lovers. I can’t say it enough, AMAZING!!! wish I could post a picture of the work of art 🙌🏽
That is so awesome! Thank you so much for your wonderful comments.
Do I have to reduce the amount of sugar if the cocoa content in my chocolate chips is only 30 %?
Hi Ri, I would suggest using a little less chocolate chips if you want a cookie with less sweetness.
Natasha, I just baked these and had my first taste with a glass of cold milk! They are so yummy! I appreciate all of your tips in getting them to turn out their very best! I can’t wait to see my family’s reaction to them!
That is so awesome, Melanie! Good job and so happy to hear that your first time making these cookies was successful.
I tried your chocolate chip cookie recipe with all the tips and tricks and they seemed to have turned just fine but I’m not sure if it’s suppose to be a soft cookie over all or just in the centre . Any comments ?
Thanks for sharing, Alicia. It’s soft cookies so I think you did just fine.
Oh Natasha! These cookies were simply perfect!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these!
Are there any substitutes for unsalted butter? I can only find salted butter.
Hi Rosily, that should work fine. You might add a little less salt if using salted butter.
Hi Natasha, In your video you say to use baking powder, but in recipe you have baking powder. I’ve been using B.P. So which one is it? Love Love these cookies!
Hi Dee Dee, we first published this chocolate chip cookie recipe in 2012. We are always working on perfecting our recipes so we modified the recipe with a tad more salt and switched to 1 tsp baking soda. This resulted in a softer, chewier cookie that spread perfectly with or without chilling the dough.
This recipe turned out to be perfect. I did tweak a few measurements, however, followed all the listed steps. These cookies look and taste fantastic.
Thank you Natasha!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it Sean!
Hi Natasha, Thank you for the cookies recipe. My kids and I loved it. I tried so many cookies recipe but it always turned out too wet and not easy to form it. Your recipe is so easy and perfect. Thank you again and All the best.
Aww that’s the best when kids love what we parents make! I’m so happy you found this recipe!
The first time I made these cookies I used 3 cups of flour and they never spread and were more like scones. I then tried them with 2-1/4 cups flour and they are perfect and delicious.
The best chocolate chip cookies
and very additive.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Rose! Measuring dry ingredients can be tricky. This post on measuring is our go-to.
Hi Ms Natasha! Would like to ask if i will bake the refrigerated cookie dough, shall i bake it right away or have to be in room temp before putting inside the oven? Thanks in advance for your reply
Hi Marilyn, it should work right away! I hope you love this recipe!
Hi Natashia, your recipes are awesome and I love watching your videos! I am visiting my son and I do not have my KitchenAid mixer here– can I use a hand mixer to make these chocolate chip cookies?
Hi Angela, You could definitely use a hand mixer instead. If the batter gets too thick for your hand mixer, just use a spatula to mix the rest of the way.
I like to weigh out my flour, could you update the recipe to show this. 12 3/4 oz or 360 gm. I get better results.
Hi, if you click “Metric” in the recipe card, you will see the measurements displayed in grams.
Anyway to cut the recipe in half???
I only half a cup of butter that’s why I’m asking and I really want to make them tonight?
Hi Liana, you can definitely halve this recipe.
Hi baking soda is same baking powder in UK?
Hi Catherine, I”m not sure about the naming in the UK but baking soda is 4 times stronger than baking powder and very different in the US.
What about all purpose flour? I’m not sure which one I go for plain or self rising flour. I have look google it’s say plain flour and I’m very interested your blog
Hi Catherine, all-purpose flour is plain flour, not self-rising.
Love your recipes.
The written recipe indicates baking soda and the video indicates baking powder. I read the update that you now use baking soda but you do not mention if this is in addition to or instead of the baking powder.
Hi Claudia, that will be instead of.
Can I use baking powder instead of baking soda and if so is the amount the same?
Hi Stacey, We tried this with baking powder in our testing but had better results with baking soda. Keep in mind baking soda is 4 times stronger than baking powder so you would need more baking powder.
Hi Natasha, is it possible to use almond flour instead of all purpose?
Hi Leah, I haven’t tested that to advise but here is what one of our readers wrote “I used almond flour instead of multipurpose flour and all white sugar because my brown sugar was too old to use. They are soooooo yummy!!! Natasha’s recipes are soooo good! I love the video instructions too!!!” I hope that helps.
Thank you! I’m going to try it and let you know!!!
Ps all your recipes are amazing! My favorite go to’s are your crockpot lasagna and banana bread!
Sounds good and thank you so much!
Love this recipe!!! Thank you Natasha!
Thank you, Alejandra! I’m so glad you loved it.
Hello Natasha,
I LOVE this recipe. Thanks for sharing. I even tried the chocolate cake recipe.. LOVED it! Wondering if adding oatmeal could option? Or do you have any chocolate chip oatmeal cookie recipes. Thanks again
I’m so happy you enjoyed that Tracey! I have not tested that with Oatmeal to advise.