Chewy Oatmeal Cookies
These are the best oatmeal cookies, with rich buttery flavor, a hint of cinnamon, and lots of chewy oatmeal texture.
They’re not fancy. They’re not even very pretty. They’re just basic drop cookies filled with oats and a hint of cinnamon. Dessert possibly couldn’t get any less sophisticated.
BUT, sometimes simple is best. And these chewy oatmeal cookies really are the best. They’ve got a great chewy texture, delicious buttery-brown sugar flavor, and they’re so nostalgic. I dare you to stop at just one!
Table of Contents
- Ingredients you'll need
- Have fun with mix-ins! (if you want)
- How to make these chewy oatmeal cookies
- My best cookie tips
- Get the recipe
- More classic cookie recipes
Ingredients you’ll need
Let’s get baking, shall we? Here’s everything you need to make these delicious oatmeal cookies (full recipe below):
- Butter
- Light or dark brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour
- Old-fashioned rolled oats
- Baking soda
- Salt
Have fun with mix-ins! (if you want)
These oatmeal cookies are perfect on their own, but sometimes it’s fun to add something a little extra! Feel free to add 1 cup total of mix-ins such as:
- Chocolate chips
- Chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans
- Raisins, dried cherries or dried cranberries
- Mini M&Ms
How to make these chewy oatmeal cookies
Like most drop cookies, these simple oatmeal cookies are made using the creaming method:
- “Cream” butter and sugars. Beat with an electric mixer and paddle attachment (if you have one), until mixture is light and fluffy. Scrape down bowl at least once.
- Add eggs and vanilla. Mix after each addition.
- Add dry ingredients. Add all at once and mix until almost combined.
- Add oats and mix-ins. Mix until just incorporated.
- Scoop. Use a medium or large cookie scoop to portion dough and arrange a few inches apart on sheet pans lined with parchment paper.
- Bake. Bake in an oven preheat to 350°F for 8-10 minutes for smaller cookies, 10-12 minutes for larger cookies.
- Enjoy! These cookies will keep at room temperature for about a week, but are best within a few days of baking.
My best cookie tips
- Have butter at the right temperature. Butter should be soft enough that a pressed finger will leave an indent, but not soft enough that your finger can press all the way through. If it’s shiny or melty at all, the butter is too warm and your cookies may spread.
- You can use salted or unsalted butter in these cookies, but I love the additional flavor that comes from using salted butter.
- Be sure to measure flour correctly! All of my recipes are tested using the spoon and level method (more info through that link).
- These pre-cut parchment sheets are perfect for cookie baking.
- Use a cookie scoop. For show-stopping cookies like you see in this post, I like to make them big and use a large cookie scoop (3 tablespoon). More traditional sized cookies can be shaped with a medium cookie scoop (1½ tablespoon).
- If cookies come out slightly misshapen, use a spatula to press them back into a circle right after they come out of the oven. See more of my tips for how to bake pretty cookies.
- Add flaky salt. While completely optional, I love to sprinkle baked cookies with coarse or flaky salt for a bit of flair and additional sweet and salty flavor.
- Cookie dough freezes really well. I like to keep a stash in the freezer for fresh-baked cookies on demand.
Get the recipe
Chewy Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 grams) butter , at room temperature
- 1 cup (213 grams) packed light or dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (200 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 cups (297 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats , not quick cooking
- Optional add-ins: 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, chopped nuts, dried fruit, or M&Ms
- Coarse of flaky salt , for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or in large bowl with hand-held mixer, beat butter, brown sugar and sugar until creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add vanilla and mix until well combined.
- In medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and oats. Add to butter mixture all at once and mix on low until combined.
- Use a medium (1½ tablespoon) or large cookie scoop (3 tablespoon) to portion dough and arrange a few inches apart on sheet pans lined with parchment paper.
- Bake until edges just begin to turn golden, about 8-10 minutes for smaller cookies, 10-12 minutes for larger cookies.
- Repeat with remaining cookie dough.
- Sprinkle baked cookies with coarse salt, if desired. Let cookies cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy within a few days!
Video
This recipe was originally developed in partnership with Go Bold with Butter in September of 2016. View the recipe on their website. Thank you for supporting partnerships with brands and campaigns I believe in, which make it easier for me to bring you new and creative content. All opinions are always my own.
More classic cookie recipes
These cookies came out great! I divided my dough into 3 sections, and added chocolate chips to one section dried cranberries to another and raisins to the last. Gave me a variety. DELICIOUS! will be making these again.
Love all of those mix-in options!! 🙂
The best chewy, crispy cookie I have ever made. I made them HUGE and only got 12 cookies but they were amazing!!
The worst cookie I’ve ever made. They didn’t spread out at all and I ended up with raw inside and overcooked on the bottom.
Oh dang, sorry Sarah! Though I’m curious how you measured the flour? If I had to guess what went wrong, it would be that there was too much flour.
THANK YOU for this perfect recipe! I lost my old recipe and have been searching for a good simple oatmeal cookie that is soft and chewy, and not too sweet. I have made it 3 times already in the past week.
For my friends that do not consume eggs, I tried a vegan variation using Country Crock Plant Butter olive oil sticks instead of butter and for the eggs used Bob’s Red Mill Egg Replacer 2 TBSP + 3 TBSP water + 2TBSP avocado oil. Everyone loved both your original and the eggless variation. Thank you again. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
I made these today, and only had the quick-cooking oats on hand. They were perfect. I added raisins and pecans. They didn’t flatten but did spread just enough to make them slightly dense. This is now my go-to recipe for oatmeal cookies.
Pretty much perfect! Cooked evenly, tastes awesome. Not too sweet either. Thank you!
Perfection! Absolute perfection!
Just saying “a hint of cinnamon”, is all the hint we get, seeing as there’s none in the recipe, eh?
Dayton, I just double-checked and the recipe ingredients list 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon. Sorry you missed it! I’m sure these cookies were delish even without it though. 🙂
This a wonderful recipe. It has become the family favorite for oatmeal cookies. It lends itself well to all kinds of additions – dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, coconut, apricots, apples) nuts, and most any kind of chip (chocolate, cinnamon, toffee). Thank you for another wonderful addition to our recipe box!
Really tasty. Love the texture. Keeps well for at least a week.
Recipe was dry not buttery and chewy 🙁
Hi Sally! I’m sorry this recipe didn’t work for you. May I ask if you measured the flour properly? I’m willing to bet that may be the reason why. If you’d like to troubleshoot, I’d be happy to help! Email me anytime at completelydelicious@gmail.com.
The first time I made this dish was extremely successful and I really love this dish. But this time I made this cake, I changed the recipe a bit so that my son invited his friends to play his flappy bird game because they love the taste of cake. Luckily the taste is still great.
Meh. Not that flavorful. Moist but not chewy, that caramel like, chewy texture is not this recipe. Won’t be a keeper. Will keep looking.
The most delicious batch of oatmeal cookies I’ve had. I threw in some almonds, raisins, and chocolate chips
It’s become my favorite Oatmeal Cookie recipe. It really out beats the Original Quaker Oats recipe. I added chopped cranberries & coconut flakes, so yummy ?