Hustling to find a Halloween costume, plan a party and dream up all the spooky treats you want to bake by the 31st? Same here. But not to worry—we’re here to help, girls and ghouls. Read on for 60 Halloween cookies to tackle this fall that are equal parts festive and delicious. There’s a sweet for everyone in your coven, whether you’re looking for something spooky-chic (see the spiced palmiers and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies) or covered in googly eyes (we're looking at you, Halloween sugar cookies and flying bat Halloween cookie pops). Pair it with the perfect spooky movie, and you're golden.
60 Halloween Cookies to Bake This Spooky Season
•
Published Aug 31, 2023
PureWow editors select every item that appears on this page, and the company may earn compensation through affiliate links within the story. All prices are accurate upon date of publish. You can learn more about the affiliate process here.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
- Serves: 24
And you thought Oreos were good. These soft-baked beauties are bursting with cheesecake.
- Time Commitment: 3 hours and 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 24
Don’t want to be stressed come the night of the party? Make the eight-ingredient dough ahead of time and bake it just in time for your guests’ arrival.
3. Milk Chocolate-Stuffed Jack-O’-Lantern Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 30
Could these spiced brown sugar cookies be any cuter? We think not. The cinnamon sugar coating really takes these over the top, for some next-level Halloween cookies.
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 36
Turn on a scary movie, bundle up on the couch and get ready to eat way too many monster eyes.
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, make ahead
- Serves: 48
Alexa, add five-pound bag of candy corn to my shopping cart. This autumnal take on the classic monster cookie is loaded with Reese's Pieces too, but you could substitute any candy you'd like.
6. Giant Brown-Sugar Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 10
Because you can only have so many cinnamon-sugar cider doughnuts. (Just kidding, we’ll never get sick of them or snickerdoodles.)
- Time Commitment: 4 hours and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, make ahead, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 24
A French treat with an autumnal spin that's perfect for a fancy dinner party, thanks to cinnamon, cardamom and cloves.
9. Sweet Potato Sugar Cookies with Marshmallow Topping
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 15
Sweet potato casserole always felt like dessert to us anyway.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, make ahead, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 12
These cookies will make you forget all about that trick-or-treat candy stash.
11. Pecan Brittle Bark Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 30
Melted chocolate anchors the homemade, crackly brittle to the dough so it doesn’t totally liquefy in the oven. Science, y’all.
12. Itty-Bitty Sandwich Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
- Serves: 36
Way better than storing that extra candy in the freezer (and way cuter, too). Trust.
13. Caramel-Stuffed Gingerbread Crinkle Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 24
A gloomy, blustery fall day is no match for warm spices, molasses, dark brown sugar and soft caramel.
14. Brown Sugar Cookies with Dulce de Leche
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes (plus chilling)
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 24
We usually whip these stunners up for Christmas, but all it takes for a fall remix is using a pumpkin-shaped or leaf-shaped cookie cutter. Voila! You've got yourself a Halloween cookie.
15. 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, gluten free, one bowl
- Serves: 18
For when you realize you forgot to pick up dessert at the supermarket and your guests are arriving in ten, this is the ultimate lazy person's Halloween cookie.
16. Flying Bat Halloween Cookie Pops
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy, <30 minutes
- Serves: 5
Psst: The googly eyes are vegan, since they're made from nothing but powdered sugar, corn syrup and cornstarch.
17. Brownie Brittle Peanut Butter Cookie Ghost Cups
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 12
The only spirits we want to be haunted by are the ones made of cream cheese frosting.
18. Paleo Witch Finger Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, gluten free, Paleo-friendly, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 16
Coconut flour cookies stuffed with homemade jelly? And they’re vegan? That’s some strange magic.
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 60
Bake the easy sugar cookies, then decorate with everything from Oreos to candy eyes to sanding sugar.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, no bake
- Serves: 24
You only need three ingredients and a refrigerator to pull these ghoulish poppables off. Halloween cookies have never been this cute.
21. Halloween M&M’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Time Commitment: 4 hours and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 16
Eleven-minute brown butter cookies with a touch of autumn—what's not to like? Mix things up by using peanut M&M's, white chocolate chips or butterscotch chips.
22. Monster Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, make ahead, one bowl
- Serves: 18
Think Reese’s Pieces, chocolate chips and leftover trick-or-treat candy. Even better, you’ll only need to dirty one bowl to make them.
23. Pumpkin Butter Rugelach Cookies
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 48
Spiced, classy and totally chic, this is the Morticia Addams of Halloween cookies. They're just the coffee pairing for your grown-up Halloween party.
24. Frosted Chai Spice Snickerdoodles
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 20 to 24
Presenting a chai tea latte in the form of a Halloween cookie. We'd layer the vanilla bean frosting on thick if we were you.
25. Double-Stuffed Pumpkin Pie Oreos
- Time Commitment: 3 hours (includes resting time)
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 18
Your childhood favorite, but homemade with a fall twist. Be sure to have a glass of milk at the ready for dunking.
26. Candy Corn and White Chocolate Soft-Batch Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours and 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, make ahead
- Serves: 20
These Halloween cookies will keep for up to four months in the freezer, meaning you can celebrate spooky season through Valentine’s Day.
27. Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
- Serves: 24
A solid way to use up all the leftover candy the trick-or-treaters didn’t devour if we’ve ever seen one.
28. Chocolate-Drizzled Buttery Pecan and Caramelized Condensed Milk Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 20
Make sure you brag to your party guests that you whipped these up yourself—they look like they’re from a fancy bakery.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 12 to 16
Ah blondies, the chewy, crispy-edged cookie bars that never disappoint. These will work with just about any sweet add-ins that you have on hand.
30. Peanut Butter-Stuffed Chocolate Jack-O’-Lantern Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 12
Dark cocoa turns these chocolate sugar cookies black as night. Use both a pumpkin cookie cutter and pumpkin stamp to take them over the top.
31. Brown Butter Milky Way Oatmeal Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 32 to 36
Browning butter before adding it to the dough will give the cookies an irresistibly caramel-like, nutty flavor.
32. Peanut Butter Blossom Spiders
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 40
The PB cookie classic gets a creepy makeover. Trade traditional Hershey’s Kisses for peanut butter cups, then craft tiny spiders with black licorice and candy eyes.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, kid-friendly
- Serves: 30
Pumpkin purée and pie spice make these no-frills treats super festive. Hook your guests up with some Halloween sprinkles and let them take care of the decorating.
34. Mexican Chocolate Earthquake Cookies
- Time Commitment: 4 hours and 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 36
Sorry kids, you’ll have to sit this one out. These spicy cayenne- and chipotle-spiked gems are for the grown-ups.
35. Chai, Chocolate Chip and Coconut Cookies
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 30
The homemade chai spice including ground ginger, nutmeg and allspice is straight-up soul warming.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours
- Why We Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 20
The easiest way to turn your Halloween party into a real brouhaha? Serve these cookie-pretzel hybrids.
37. Vegan Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: vegan, dairy free, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 22
Because no one should have to miss out on dessert. The secret? Vegan butter and almond milk.
38. Double Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 10 to 12
We hope you aren’t afraid of the dark. These are beyond bold and decadent, thanks to dark cocoa powder and a trifecta of chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and peanut butter cups.
40. Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Ritz Sandwiches
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 8
We’re talking four ingredients and not a second of cook time if you use your trusty microwave instead of a double-boiler.
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 15
Use any confection, from Snickers to Rolos, in these simple cake mix cookies. We’re sure the kids won’t mind donating some from their stash, particularly when you tell them about the end result.
42. Caramel Apple Cider Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 48
All the tart sweetness of the quintessential autumn drink, plus a kiss of gooey caramel. They’ll taste even better dunked in hot homemade apple cider.
44. Salted Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookie Snickers Bars
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 18
Sweet-and-salty lovers, meet your new favorite candy bar. They're easier to make than you think, thanks to store-bought caramels.
45. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 24
Not that the O.G. needs any help being delicious, but a few spoonfuls of pumpkin puree and a slew of autumn spices take the classic to a whole new level. Did we mention the butterscotch chips?
46. Butterfinger Brown Butter Cookies
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 30
Sorry, what'd you say? We were totally distracted by these sweet, crunchy, salty cookies. Don't forget to garnish them with a flourish of flaky salt.
47. Decorated Halloween Sugar Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 40
Bust out the piping bag and flex your skills ahead of the Halloween party.
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 22
This grown-up dessert screams fall and is just right for an intimate spooky soirée. Rolling the dough balls in sugar before baking them gives the exterior of the cookies extra crunch.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 15
When fall pumpkin picking and summer bonfires collide, these ooey-gooey handhelds are the result. Don't be shy with the mini marshmallows.
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 24
They're only as epic as their toppings, so go wild with Halloween M&Ms, peanut butter cups and orange and black sprinkles. (Bonus points for including candy corn and mellowcreme pumpkins.)
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 6
Store-bought meringue cookies can easily star in this pumpkin pie-inspired masterpiece, but feel free to go the extra mile by making them yourself.
53. Snickerdoodle Peanut Butter Cookie Cake
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 1 9-inch cookie cake
The only thing better than a bunch of small cookies is one giant one. Yes, we're talking a Halloween cookie cake. And since the recipe calls for boxed snickerdoodle cookie mix, the dough will come together in a flash.
Photo/Styling: Katherine Gillen
54. S’mores Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 12
Campfire, shmampfire. We’re getting our autumn s’mores fix without an open flame, thanks to these gooey cookies.
Photo/Styling: Katherine Gillen
55. Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy, make ahead
- Serves: 12
Pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting? Call us basic, but we’re certain it’s a match made in autumnal heaven.
Quentin Baker/Go-To Dinners
56. Ina Garten’s Cinnamon-Spiced Shortbread
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 2 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 16 to 20
They're sweet, spicy, and they totally feel like fall.
Well Plated By Erin
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 12 to 14
Craving a light alternative to Halloween treats? Look no further.
Gimme Some Oven
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, make ahead
- Serves: 12 to 16
Invite your friends over for spooky season coffee — these are sure to be a hit.
Photo: Patrick Sporleder/Styling: Kerri Axelrod
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: ready in <30 minutes, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 8
Easy and secretly healthy... what could be better?
Half Baked Harvest
60. Cinnamon Spiced Sugar Cookies With Browned Butter Frosting
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy
- Serves: 60
This elegant cookie is bound to impress the gals and ghouls at your next Halloween party.
For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.
Taryn Pire is PureWow’s associate food editor. A former bartender and barista, she’s been writing about all things delicious since 2016, developing recipes, reviewing restaurants and investigating food trends at Food52, New Jersey Family Magazine and Taste Talks. When she isn’t testing TikTok’s latest viral recipe, she’s having popcorn for dinner and posting about it on Instagram @cookingwithpire.
