This easy vanilla cupcake recipe makes the best, ultra moist vanilla cupcakes from scratch. They’re topped with my favorite vanilla buttercream frosting that’s light and fluffy with just the right amount of sweetness. You can’t go wrong with classic, homemade vanilla cupcakes for birthdays, holidays, or any special occasion!
Looking for more cupcakes? Here are all my best cupcake recipes. You might also love these perfect chocolate cupcakes.
I think everyone needs a quick and easy cupcake recipe that they can make in a pinch. I have made many cupcakes over the years, and this is my best vanilla cupcake recipe yet. You can literally come home from work and have cupcakes in the oven 10 minutes later.
Thousands of readers have made these vanilla cupcakes and loved the dense, sponge-like texture. These cupcakes stay moist for several days, and they’re packed with vanilla flavor. I topped these with classic vanilla buttercream; you can’t go wrong with that combination.
Why is This Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe So Good?
Everyone’s opinion of what a vanilla cupcake should be is very different. Readers love this recipe because it’s truly moist, a little dense, and not too sweet. They stay fresh for several days after baking.
- 10 minutes to prepare. This recipe uses oil, so it comes together very quickly. Oil makes the crumb and texture a bit more tender and tighter.
- Plenty of flavor. This recipe calls for a whole tablespoon of vanilla extract. Be sure you get a high-quality vanilla for the best results
- They’re super moist. The sour cream in this recipe is a non-negotiable for me. It’s really what keeps these soft and tender for several days.
- Very versatile. You can make this for any holiday or celebration, it can even be turned into a cake.
Ingredient Notes
These are the important ingredients you’ll need to make these cupcakes. Refer to the recipe card for the full, printable list with ingredient amounts and step-by-step recipe instructions.
- Oil – I make my cakes and cupcakes with oil instead of butter. It’s the first secret to super moist and fluffy cupcakes! Choose a neutral-flavored oil, like canola or vegetable oil.
- Sour Cream – Bring this to room temperature. If you don’t have sour cream, plain Greek yogurt is a good substitute.
- All-purpose Flour – Make sure to measure your flour correctly. If you can’t weigh your flour using a kitchen scale, spoon the flour from the bag into your measuring cup. Then, level off the top with the back of a knife. Never scoop straight from the bag, which results in overmeasuring. I recommend sifting the flour for these cupcakes to remove any lumps.
- Milk – Whole milk, 2% milk, or any kind you have on hand. This should also be at room temperature.
How to Make Vanilla Cupcakes
I’ll show you how to make vanilla cupcakes from scratch! Follow this quick step-by-step overview.
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Combine the sugar with the wet ingredients. First, combine the sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract until well incorporated. Then, add in the sour cream and beat until well combined.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients. Add half the dry ingredients and half of the milk and mix just until the flour starts to incorporate. Repeat until all ingredients have been added.
- Fill the pan. I recommend using a large cookie scoop, which is about 3 tablespoons. It ensures an even amount of batter for each cupcake, and they will bake more evenly.
- Bake! In my oven, these bake for about 15 minutes. I bake both pans on the top rack, and I test the middle of the cupcakes with a toothpick to make sure they’re baked through all the way.
Seriously, The Best Vanilla Buttercream
I promise this will become your new go-to frosting recipe. It’s the perfect consistency for piping, and the texture is amazing. What makes this frosting so good?
- Butter temperature. My secret is to use cold butter, straight out of the fridge. The butter is whipped in the beginning for several minutes, so the mixture softens the butter for you.
- You have more control over the consistency. You don’t have to worry about the butter being too soft, resulting in a runny buttercream that doesn’t hold its shape.
- Whipped to perfection. You’ll be doing extra mixing with this recipe and adding some heavy whipping cream, which helps reduce the sweetness and incorporate air into the frosting.
If you’ve never made frosting before, be sure you visit this tutorial that walks you through it step-by-step.
How to Decorate Cupcakes Like a Pro
Want to make beautiful bakery-style frosted vanilla cupcakes? A simple trick is to use jumbo piping tips for the frosting. Start from the outside edge of the cupcake, working your way up towards the middle, and only fill your piping bag a maximum of 2/3 full. I have shared tons more tips for decorating cupcakes and also coloring buttercream for any occasion.
Cupcake Decorating Ideas
This vanilla cupcake recipe is so versatile. Decorate your baked and cooled cupcakes for any occasion following the tutorials I’ve included here! You can also change up the frosting with chocolate buttercream or cream cheese frosting, or any of the cupcake frosting ideas below.
Tips for Perfect Vanilla Cupcakes
- Use room temperature ingredients. Make sure that the sour cream, milk, and eggs that you use to make your cupcake batter are at room temperature before you start. Room temperature ingredients combine and blend more smoothly than ingredients that are cold from the fridge.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing cake batter causes the gluten to overdevelop, leading to dense cupcakes that won’t rise properly.
- Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to fill the pan. will ensure that there’s an even amount of batter in each cupcake liner. This means the baking times will also be consistent.
- Use an oven thermometer. Most ovens take much longer to preheat than you think. Using an oven thermometer to monitor the internal temperature of your oven will help ensure it’s not over- or under-heated.
- Make it gluten-free. You can swap out the all-purpose flour with a measure-for-measure gluten-free flour to make the most amazing gluten-free cupcakes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can. I have adapted this cupcake recipe to make a vanilla layer cake or a sheet cake.
Personally, I don’t freeze cupcakes if I can help it. I don’t think they taste the same when thawed. However, if you need to freeze your vanilla cupcakes, I suggest freezing them unfrosted. See below for storage and freezing tips.
How to Store Frosted Cupcakes
- Refrigerate. I recommend refrigerating cupcakes that are frosted and allowing them to come to room temperature before serving. Since this frosting is all butter-based, it will melt in hot or humid environments. If you are serving your frosted cupcakes at an outdoor party, be sure to keep them out of the sun, especially if temperatures are hot that day. Otherwise, I store my cupcakes in a cool, dry place in an airtight container for up to 3 days once they are frosted.
- Freeze. Flash-freeze the unfrosted vanilla cupcakes on a baking sheet for 15 minutes. Then, transfer the cupcakes to an air-tight, freezer-safe container. Thaw to room temperature before frosting.
More Cakes and Cupcakes Recipes
Moist Vanilla Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 24-26 cupcakes
- Category: Cupcake
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Description
I’ll show you how to make the best moist vanilla cupcakes from scratch! This easy, fluffy vanilla cupcakes recipe is perfect for birthdays and holidays, frosted with creamy vanilla buttercream frosting.
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 2 cups (380g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (118 ml) vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon (14.8 ml) vanilla extract
- ½ cup(120g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (350 g) all-purpose flour sifted
- 3 teaspoons (11.2 g) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) salt
- 1 ¼ cups (296 ml) milk (any type), at room temperature
For the Frosting
- 1 1/2 cups (339 g) unsalted butter, cold
- 5–6 cups (780g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) vanilla extract
- 2 ½ tablespoons (37.5ml) heavy whipping cream
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Beat on medium speed until the eggs and oil are well incorporated and the batter is lighter in color, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Next, mix in the sour cream and beat until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt. Add half the dry ingredients and half of the milk, and mix just until the flour starts to incorporate. Add the remaining ingredients and mix until well combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and stir the batter from the bottom to the top to ensure it’s well mixed.
- Using a large cookie scoop, divide the batter evenly, filling each liner 2/3 full.
- Bake at 350°F for 14-16 minutes. Test the cupcakes for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cupcake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cupcakes are done. Cool Completely.
For the Frosting
- Cut the butter into pieces. Using the paddle attachment, whip the butter for 5-7 minutes, scraping down the bowl occasionally, beating until the butter is very fluffy.
- Alternate adding 2 cups of powdered sugar at a time with the liquid ingredients: vanilla extract & heavy cream. Ensure the powdered sugar is well combined, and whip for 1-2 minutes before adding more powdered sugar.
- Once all the ingredients have been added, increase the speed to medium-high and beat for another couple of minutes to whip additional air into the frosting. Pipe these cupcakes with a large piping tip and top with sprinkles.
Notes
- The batter will be quite thin. It’s important that you stir the batter after mixing, to ensure everything on the bottom of the bowl is well mixed.
- Sour Cream: You can substitute the light sour cream for Greek yogurt. You can also use full-fat sour cream if needed.
- Gluten-free option: This recipe has been tested with a measure for measure all-purpose gluten-free flour that already contains xanthan gum.
- To make 12-14 cupcakes, halve all the dry and wet ingredients, but use 2 whole eggs, 2/3 cups milk
- Storage suggestions: If you live in a hot and humid environment then I would suggest that you refrigerate cupcakes that are frosted and allow them to come to room temperature before serving. Otherwise, they can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature.
- Make-ahead: These are best served within 2 days of preparation but will proper storage they can stay fresh for several days.
- Freezing: If needed, flash-freeze the cupcakes on a baking sheet for 15 minutes than transfer them to an air-tight, freezer-safe container. Thaw to room temperature prior to serving. If possible, it’s best to store them unfrosted.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 46.9g
- Sodium: 118.6mg
- Fat: 17.9g
- Saturated Fat: 11.8g
- Carbohydrates: 58.3g
- Fiber: 0.4g
- Protein: 3.1g
- Cholesterol: 57.1mg
I loved this recipe! I just made 5 dozen cupcakes for my household and 3 dozen of them are for my friend’s birthday today at work! I also added strawberry jam inside after baking for a surprise filling! They turned out so delicious!
The addition of the jam sounds delicious! I am so happy you found this recipe, thank you for sharing your feedback!
Seriously the best vanilla cupcake recipe I have found!! It’s simple but makes the most fluffiest and moist cake. Not too sweet absolutely perfect!!
I am beyond excited to hear that Crystal, thank you!
I made these today and they came out good. It wasn’t the type of cupcakes I’m looking for but I didn’t have any problems baking the cupcakes. A very easy recipe to follow. The cupcakes came out very moist and pillowy-like. Thanks for sharing ❤️
Thanks for sharing your feedback
I LOVE your frosting recipe and am deciding to try this out for vanilla cupcakes. Can you explain why you don’t use cake flour or if we are supposed to use cake flour for this? I keep hearing cake flour is better than all purpose, but I’m not sure.
This recipe was not deigned to be made with cake flour, it is a very thin and liquid heavy batter, producing a more dense and spongy texture. Cake flour is meant for recipes that are much lighter and fluffier. The two flours cannot be used interchangeably without further adjustments.
I made these today and they were super easy to make and tasted amazing. However, mine rose into a massive round dome almost the size of the cupcake underneath! I followed each measurement and I’m not sure if I’m doing something wrong 🙁 are they meant to have a dome or be relatively flat?
How full did you fill the liners? These are not supposed to be flat on top, you can see in my photos I have a nice dome, which is proportional to the cupcake. Overfilling the liners will definitely lead to a larger dome.
These were amazing! I made them first for my daughters 33rd Birthday and then this past Sunday I made 60 for my 2 year grandsons Birthdsy!!
Wow! That is incredible, thank you so much!
I made these cupcakes and followed the recipe to a t. But I feel they didn’t turn out. The tops baked looking like they were still wet batter and the taste was a little off….one bite was great the other was almost sour and tangy…I just don’t know what I did wrong
Hi Shelby, it does sound like something was off, if the tops looked lit wet batter, that’s a problem.
Thank you for the recipe, but you substitute the oil for the batter with avocado oil?
Thank you in advance.
Yes, that should work just fine.
This recipe is amazing! Made them for a gender reveal and my guests loved them. I did substitute a few ingredients due to I used what I had on hand. Used whole milk Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, light cream instead of milk and vanilla paste instead of extract, which made them so vanilla-ly. I topped them with a cream cheese frosting- so good!Thank you for my new go to recipe.
Amazing Nicki! Thank you for sharing your swaps, I am so glad you enjoyed these.
Such a hit!! The only way I will EVER make cupcakes. They are absolutely delicious. Have you ever added cocoa powder to this recipe to make chocolate cupcakes?
Oh my gosh wow!! Thank you so much! I made some adjustments for the chocolate version, the texture is quite a bit lighter. Here’s the chocolate cupcakes: https://beyondfrosting.com/moist-chocolate-cupcake-recipe/
This recipe is amazing!! I’ve made so many different vanilla cupcake recipes and none of them have come close to this one. Thanks so much for sharing! ❤️
That’s so kind of you Chloe, thank you so much!
In the oven now. I followed the recipe exactly ( except milk I used almond milk) mine made 30 cupcakes. Can’t wait to see how they turned out 🥰
These are the BEST vanilla cupcakes. They are moist with delicious vanilla flavor. Topped with vanilla buttercream frosting, this is the only vanilla cupcake recipe I use.
Wow Brenda! Thank you so much!
I make these often. The cupcakes are moist and the frosting is yummy!
Wonderful Dawn! Thank you so much for sharing your feedback. I love it!
I have used your cupcake recipe 2x within the last month! They are super moist and delicious!
That is fantastic Deb! Thank you so much!
Lovely recipe! They turned out delicious for my mom’s birthday. Love the flavor, texture, and color of the cupcake. It was a great make. Everyone liked them.
That’s just wonderful, thank you so much for sharing!
Hi! I am going to make your buttercream frosting recipe for my granddaughter’s birthday cupcakes, and I have a quick question. The frosting ingredients shown here indicate 6 cups powdered sugar and 2 tsp vanilla extract, whereas if I click on the link for the Perfect Vanilla Frosting, the ingredients are 5 cups powdered sugar and 2 1/2 tsp vanilla. Which do you recommend based on experience?
Thank you for your guidance on this.
Hi Jeanne, this recipe with work with either 5 or 6 cups. With 6 cups the frosting with have a slightly higher yield, and be a little bit more stiff. The additional 1/2-1 teaspoon of vanilla won’t make a difference in the consistency, only the flavor.
Hello, would I be able to add a box of instant vanilla pudding to this?
I have not tested it specifically.
Easy recipe and loved by all!
That’s wonderful Morgan, thank you so much!!
I highly recommend this recipe!! Over the years, I have tried a gazillion vanilla cupcake recipes and i’ve never been satisfied with any of them! They’ve either been too dry and dense or tasted like cornbread. But this recipe right here is PERFECTION!!! They have the best vanilla flavor and stayed sooo moist days after I made them! Thank you so much Julianne!! This will be my go-to vanilla cupcake recipe!!!
Amazing Crystal, thank you so much! This makes me so happy to hear!
This recipe (as well as the gluten free cupcake ones) is perfect for 3 six inch cake molds!
I made a 6 inch three tier cake, using this recipe and your buttercream recipe and it came out awesome ♥️!
In case readers need to know, my cakes cooked for 30 minutes.
Love your recipes Julianne. 🥰
That’s wonderful Brigitte! Thank you so much for sharing your adaptions, super helpful!