These delicious M&M Cookies have chewy edges, soft centers, and they are packed with M&M’s and chocolate chips. This recipe comes together quickly and easily – no chill time required.
These cookies were our first “viral” recipe several years ago. It’s a recipe we have made dozens and dozens of times. These cookies are a reader favorite and a family favorite, and for good reason – because they are incredible!
If you like cookies with crisp edges and soft centers these are the cookies are for you! I have perfected this recipe (and in the process consumed an unfathomable number of cookies). I have tips for helping them come out PERFECT! Prefer a THICKER COOKIE? THINNER COOKIE? Extra chocolate? Read on, friends!
Prefer the chocolate version: Chocolate M&M Cookies.
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These cookies are
- Made with basic ingredients
- Soft and chewy
- Packed with M&M’s and chocolate chips
- Easy to assemble
- Always a crowd pleaser
- Great for holidays or parties- use colored M&M’s based on the theme
Recipe overview
*Full recipe below in the recipe card*
Make the dough by beating butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar. The brown sugar will impart moisture, sweetness, and chew.
Add egg and vanilla extract.
Add the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Stir in M&M’s and chocolate chips.
Scoop the cookie dough into balls (big or small, see more on that below). Press some additional M&M’s on the dough balls and bake!
Remove baking sheets from the oven when the cookies are set around the edges, but still underbaked in the center.
Recipe tips
Follow these tips for making the BEST M&M Cookies EVER!
- Make sure your butter is softened but still cool to the touch. Using butter that is too soft will lead to cookies that spread too much in the oven.
- Your brown sugar should be soft and fresh. The moisture in the brown sugar helps make these cookies chewy.
- Mix some of the M&M’s into the batter and press the rest onto the top of the dough balls right before baking. This allows the M&M’s to be more visible, adding a nice pop of color to the cookies. Be generous with the M&M’s, as the cookies bake and spread out the candies will distribute over the top.
- When pressing M&M’s and chocolate chips into the tops of your dough balls, do NOT press so hard that you flatten the dough balls. When they enter the oven they should still be ball/dome shaped.
- DO NOT OVER-BAKE! For crisp edges and soft centers, do not wait until these cookies look done to pull them from the oven. Remove them from the oven just prior to being done and then they will finish cooking as they cool on the baking sheet.
- You can make these with regular M&M’s, holiday M&M’s, mini M&M’s, or a combination of M&M’s and chocolate chips.
How to make thick or thin cookies
For thin cookies:
Bake the cookies right after assembling the dough and use a slightly smaller portion of dough, about 1.5 tablespoons. Also, see my tips for getting perfectly round cookies.
For thicker cookies:
Scoop the dough balls then chill the dough balls in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to one hour before baking. Scoop the dough balls large, about 3 tablespoons of dough, and be sure the dough balls are mounded higher rather than wider. As these bake they will spread, but the center will stay thicker than the edges. Also, see my tips for getting perfectly round cookies.
How to get perfectly round cookies
Option 1: Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven place a round glass, bowl, or cookie cutter (larger than the cookie) upside down over the top of the cookie. Gently but quickly swirl the glass/bowl/cookie cutter in a circular motion. The edges of the cookie will bump against the inside of the glass creating a perfectly round shape. This only works when the cookies are hot, straight from the oven, and still on the warm baking sheet.
Option 2: Immediately after the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a round shape.
Holiday M&M cookies
Love M&M cookies? Try these recipes, too: Cookie Mix in a Jar and Christmas Cookies.
More cookie recipes
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Post and photos updated October 2022. Recipe remains the same.
Recipe
Soft and Chewy M&M Cookies
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (188g) all purpose flour*, see note
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (70g) brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (total) M&M's and chocolate chips, I use about 1 cup M&M's and ½ cup chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, whisk together flour (see note), baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and both sugars for 1-2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla extract, mixing until combined and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. On low speed, add in flour mixture and mix until just combined.
- Gently stir in M&M's/chocolate chips. Note: I usually add 1 cup (total) into the batter, the rest get pressed on top of the cookie dough balls before baking.
- Scoop 2-tablespoon portions of dough. Place the dough balls on a plate and transfer to the refrigerator for 30 minutes to one hour (see note about baking without chill time). The longer they chill the thicker the cookies will be. I usually chill the dough balls for 30 minutes while I clean up the kitchen.
- Using the remaining M&M's/chocolate chips, nestle several (5 or so) onto the top of each mound of dough. Keep in mind that the cookies will spread out while baking. Mound the dough balls so that they're higher rather than wider. Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheets leaving a couple inches for spreading.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are set but the center is still slightly underdone, this will create a soft cookie. For a crispier cookie, continue baking for another minute or two. See note about shaping the cookies to make them perfectly round.
- Place the baking sheets on wire racks and allow the cookies to cool completely. They will firm up as they cool.
Video
Notes
Option 2: Immediately after the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a round shape.
HOLIDAY VARIATIONS:
You can make these with regular M&M’s, holiday M&M’s, mini M&M’s, or a combination of M&M’s and chocolate chips.
FREEZING COOKIES AND DOUGH:
- Freeze baked cookies: Store baked cookies in the freezer for up to 3 months. TIP: Double wrap the cookies so they stay fresh. I place the cookies in a zip top bag and then place the bag in a freezer safe food storage container.
- Freeze cookie dough: Store portioned cookie dough balls, tightly wrapped, in the freezer for up to 2 months. Bring the dough balls to cool room temp before baking (or thaw in the fridge overnight). Depending on how cool the dough is you might need to add a minute or two to the bake time.
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Sheila Bucher
Used these for with mini peanut butter M&ms and skipped the chocolate chips since 1 cup of mini M&ms was bountiful!
Thanks turned out phenomenal and had 22 cookies.
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed them! 🙂
Lee-anne
Hi, just wondering if the temperature settings is for a conventional oven or fan forced oven? Thanks in advance 😊
Allison
Hi! My recipes are written for conventional/standard ovens. If you’re asking about a convection oven I believe you reduce the temp 25°. Here’s a resource: https://www.marthastewart.com/8071049/convection-oven-recipe-conversion
Ashbob
I’ve made these cookies multiple times and they always come out wonderfully – is it possible to use almond flour in place of all purpose flour?
Allison
Hi! Unfortunately that wont work. Almond flour lacks the structure that all purpose flour has. If you’re looking for a gluten free alternative you can try a 1:1 gluten free baking flour.
Julie O’Brien
How many dozen cookies does this recipe make?
Allison
About 15 cookies, the recipe can be doubled.
Nan
I just wanted to say thank you for the lovely recipe! This is my go to recipe for M&M cookies! I’ve been using this recipe for years and the cookies always get rave reviews!
Allison
Thanks for the kind review. 🙂
Rebecca
Hello, I tried this recipe for the holidays but my cookies came out hard and crunchy. I cooked them for 9 minutes hoping for a soft cookie. Did I use too much flour or mix my wet ingredients for too long?
Allison
Hi! That sounds like they were overbaked. Perhaps your oven runs warm and the temperature or bake time needed to be reduced a bit. Also, if your dough balls were smaller than 2-tablespoons they would have baked faster.
Jessica
These cookies came out flat and “watery”.
I’m a seasoned baker and I like to try new recipes around the holiday to change up my famous ones. I followed the directions exactly and even refrigerate them for about 40 mins. And it’s takes longer than 9-11 mins to bake them.
Allison
Sorry to hear that. Did you add the extra flour mentioned in the notes?
Connie
Do I sift flour before measuring?
Allison
No.
Iman
Yum! Super easy recipe, no fancy tools or expert skill needed. My kids loved them and so did I! My cookies turned out medium thickness with a good chew. Will be keeping this one in the rotation!
Allison
I’m so glad! Thanks for the kind review.
Jacqueline
These are so good! I made these with mini m&m’s with peanut butter inside, came out so chewy and delicious
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Lauren Thompson
Do you use light brown sugar or dark? Does it matter?
Allison
Either is fine. Enjoy!
Yo mommy
Put them in the oven for 11 minutes and they were still really soft and almost under cooked after letting them sit for 15 minutes however these where some great cookies and my teacher gave a B on the assignment