These easy and refreshing key lime pie bars are inspired by the classic pie. A delicious graham cracker crust and creamy fresh lime filling topped with whipped cream.

Looking for a light and fresh summer dessert? This is it! Lime juice, lime zest, vanilla, and a bit of cream cheese make this an irresistible treat!

Stack of two key lime pie bars garnished with whipped cream and sliced lime.

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These bars are
Ingredients needed
Recipe overview
Recipe tips
What type of limes to use
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Recipe

These bars are

Packed with lime: Fresh lime juice and lime zest add a light and refreshing flavor.

Sweet and tangy: The perfect balance of sweetness with tart and tangy flavors.

Easy: A simple press-in crust and a filling that comes together in minutes!

Perfect for feeding a crowd: Bars are much easier to serve than pie. Eat them with your hand or a fork.

Made with 8 ingredients: No long ingredient list. Only 8 basic ingredients needed for these key lime pie bars!

Ingredients needed

Graham crackers: Finely ground graham crackers make up the crust of these bars.

Granulated sugar: For the crust and a little extra sweetness in the filling.

Melted butter: For holding the crust together.

Limes: You can use key limes or regular limes. You will need both the zest and the juice.

Sweetened condensed milk: This is the primary sweetener in the filling.

Cream cheese: This helps to make the filling thick and creamy.

Egg yolks: For binding and richness.

Vanilla extract: Just a touch to round out the flavors.

Ingredients for key lime pie bars: limes juice, sugar, cream cheese, eggs, graham cracker, butter, milk.

Recipe overview

*Full recipe below in recipe card*

Crust: Combine graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter. Press into a greased and lined 8×8 or 9×9 pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes.

Graham cracker crust in a glass bowl and in a white baking dish.

Filling: Combine sugar, zest, and cream cheese. Beat in egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Beat in the lime juice.

Collage of how to make key lime pie bars (ingredients in a white bowl).

Bake: Pour the filling into the partially baked crust and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Recipe tips

Freshly squeezed lime juice works best. Use regular limes or key limes.
Remove the zest from the limes before juicing them.
Have all the filling ingredients at room temperature so that it blends smoothly.
Allow at least 5 hours for the bars to chill. Cool them to room temperature then refrigerate before cutting and serving.
Serve with homemade whipped cream.

Key lime pie bar topped with whipped cream and sliced lime.

What type of limes to use

Although this is called “key lime” pie you don’t have to use key limes. Key limes are often hard to find and they are very small which means you’ll need a lot of them.

I make this recipe using regular grocery store limes. Choose limes that feel plump and roll them on the counter before cutting and juicing. I used about 5 limes. If using key limes, you’ll probably need double that.

Don’t take a shortcut with bottled juice – fresh is best!