Favorite Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Name: Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature; 4 – 5 cups (480-600g) confectioners’ sugar (see note); 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk, at room temperature; 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract; salt, to taste

A staple in any baker’s kitchen, vanilla buttercream frosting is deliciously soft, creamy, and sweet. My favorite recipe for American vanilla buttercream is simple to make and is easily piped onto cakes and cupcakes for a truly memorable dessert.

vanilla buttercream frosting in a glass bowl

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Finally! A completely separate post for the most common recipe in any baker’s repertoire: vanilla buttercream frosting. This is my favorite vanilla buttercream recipe. There’s nothing fancy, crazy, or complicated about it, but the flavor and texture will certainly taste like you added something special.

But guess what? You didn’t. It’s our little secret.

How to Make American Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

American vanilla buttercream is incredibly simple and much easier than, say, Swiss meringue buttercream. From mixing bowl to decorating cupcakes in less than 10 minutes! Here’s how to make it:

Beat butter until creamy. Make sure your butter is softened to room temperature before beginning. Use a hand or stand mixer to beat until smooth and creamy.
Add sugar, cream, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until these ingredients are incorporated, then bump up the mixer to medium-high speed. At this point, you can add more confectioners’ sugar if the frosting is too thin or a splash of heavy cream if it’s too thick.
Taste and salt. Add a pinch of salt to offset the sweetness. Trust me on this one!

cupcakes on a plate topped with vanilla buttercream and sprinkles with pink polka dot cupcake wrappers

Buttercream Frosting Ingredients

Buttercream ingredients hardly differ between recipes, but the ratio of ingredients does vary. I’m here to tell you that this careful buttercream formula works EVERY time—my recipe is perfection.

Butter: We can’t have buttercream without butter. Though salted is fine, I recommend using unsalted butter so you can control the added salt. Whichever you use, make sure you are using room temperature butter.
Confectioners’ Sugar: Sweetens vanilla buttercream and adds stability and pipe-ability to the frosting.
Heavy Cream: Though whole milk or half-and-half are perfectly acceptable, use heavy cream for maximum creaminess and richness.
Pure Vanilla Extract: Adds that glorious vanilla flavor. And if you use homemade vanilla extract, even better.
Salt: Offsets the sweetness and adds that little something extra.

This recipe also serves as the jumping point for strawberry buttercream frosting and the cinnamon-swirl frosting from snickerdoodle cupcakes.

For something lighter and less sweet, I recommend this whipped frosting.

Decorating with Buttercream Frosting

The word “creamy” doesn’t even do this stuff justice. But even though it’s supremely creamy, this vanilla buttercream holds its shape beautifully. It’s perfect for piping even the most complicated and intricate designs. When decorating cakes and cupcakes, I gravitate towards the following 5 piping tips. Each creates a completely different look, so that’s why it’s a great collection if you’re just starting out. And these tips won’t break the bank—they’re each pretty inexpensive.

Wilton 1M (Rose) – a classic piping tip and the easy buttercream rose is a staple decoration. This same tip can also produce a decoration that resembles soft serve ice cream.
Wilton 8B – one of my all-time favorites.
Ateco 849 – it’s a pretty wide piping tip. You can make a rose, a soft-serve swirl, or a super easy ruffled look.
Wilton 12 small round – since it doesn’t have any detailed edges, I love using this tip for silky creamy frostings such as salted caramel frosting and cream cheese frosting.
Ateco 808 large round – it’s also a round tip, but it’s much larger. Its decoration looks like a big fluffy cloud!

Want to see how to decorate cupcakes? Here’s my how to use piping tips video. And here is how we use this frosting to decorate easy Halloween cupcakes!

a plate of cupcakes decorated with vanilla buttercream using various piping tips

How to Rid Vanilla Buttercream of Air Bubbles

Over-whipping vanilla buttercream creates air bubbles. The taste is no different, but the buttercream is no longer smooth and velvety. Here’s how to get rid of air bubbles in your frosting:

Ditch the mixer. Grab a wooden or metal spoon and begin stirring the buttercream by hand. Mash the frosting up against the side of the bowl to “pop” the bubbles. Do this until most of the air bubbles pop, about 1–2 minutes. This trick requires a lot of arm muscle!

vanilla buttercream in a glass bowl with wooden spoon

Can I add flavor to this buttercream?

Yes, absolutely! You can add various extracts, in addition to the vanilla extract. If doing so, I recommend reducing the vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon. Extracts you can add include 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract, 1/2 teaspoon maple extract, 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract, 1/2 teaspoon orange extract, or 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Taste the buttercream, and, if desired, beat in an extra splash of extract. Instead of adding extracts, you can keep the vanilla extract as 2 teaspoons, and beat in 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. You could also try this Lemon Buttercream, Chocolate Buttercream, Chai Spice Buttercream, or White Chocolate Buttercream.

Is this buttercream sweet?

Yes, this is American-style buttercream and it’s sweet. If you’re looking for a less-sweet option, try this Whipped Frosting or Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

How do I make buttercream ahead of time?

There are 2 options. You can freeze the buttercream for up to 3 months, and those detailed instructions are in the recipe card below. You can also make it up to 3 days ahead and refrigerate it. Remove from the refrigerator and use a mixer to beat it with a splash of room-temperature heavy cream, half-and-half, or milk to help make it creamy and smooth again.

Can I color this vanilla buttercream?

You can keep the buttercream white or tint it with food coloring. To color it, beat in a drop of gel food coloring. (Here is my favorite brand.) I recommend gel food coloring instead of liquid food coloring because liquid can throw off the consistency. For lighter tints, I recommend using the tip of a toothpick to add color, rather than squeezing a whole drop into the bowl of frosting.

Does buttercream icing need to be refrigerated?

Buttercream frosting is typically fine at room temperature for up to 1 day. After that, it’s best to refrigerate it. That said, do what you feel comfortable with; if your kitchen is particularly warm, you may want to refrigerate it on day 1.

Ways to Use Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

I’ve used this vanilla buttercream more times than I can even fathom, but I love it most paired with chocolate cupcakes or vanilla cupcakes. If you scale it up (slightly) you can use it to frost a layered cake, like I do with my white cake recipe (use this how to assemble a layer cake post as a guide). If you add slightly more heavy cream, you can use this as the base for whipped buttercream, as I recommend with my vanilla sheet cake. It also tastes delicious with:

By the way, if you make my homemade vanilla extract, this buttercream tastes even more fantastic. 🙂

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 147 reviews

Author: Sally
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2.5 cups
Category: Frosting
Method: Mixing
Cuisine: American

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Description

This is my favorite vanilla buttercream. It’s the perfect vanilla frosting that’s simple, creamy and smooth and tastes unbelievable on vanilla cupcakes!

Ingredients

1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
4 – 5 cups (480-600g) confectioners’ sugar (see note)
1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
salt, to taste

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Instructions

With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 4 and 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, the heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 2 full minutes. Taste. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. I always add 1/8 teaspoon.
Adjust if needed: You can control the consistency at this point—add up to 1/2 cup more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin or more heavy cream if frosting is too thick (add only 1 Tablespoon at a time, beat together, then taste and add more if desired).
Use immediately or cover tightly and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. After thawing or refrigerating, beating in a splash of heavy cream or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed.

Notes

Freezing Instructions: Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. After thawing or refrigerating, beating in a splash of room temperature heavy cream, half-and-half, or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed.
Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand Mixer)
Quantity: This recipe is enough to frost 12-16 cupcakes or a thin layer on a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake. Follow the ratios written in this white cake for a two layer cake, or for a three layer cake use the ratios in this confetti cake.
Confectioners’ Sugar: If your confectioners’ sugar is particularly lumpy, I recommend sifting it 1-2x before measuring and using.
Heavy Cream: I love using heavy cream for the creamiest consistency. You can use half-and-half or whole milk instead if needed. The lower the fat, the less creamy your buttercream will be. Whichever you use, make sure it’s at room temperature. Otherwise your frosting could separate or appear grainy.
Decorating Tips: Be sure to check out my post on how to use piping tips (with video tutorial!), and my recommendations for essential cake baking & decorating tools.

Sally McKenney

Sally McKenney is a baker, food photographer, and New York Times best-selling author. Her kitchen-tested recipes and step-by-step tutorials have given millions of readers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch. Sally’s work has been featured on TODAY, Good Morning America, Taste of Home, People, and more.