What temperature for baking cookies?

By Paulo de VriesLast verified 2026-05-225 sources~5 min readhigh consensus

Quick answer

Most drop cookies: 350-375°F (175-190°C) for 9-12 min. Sugar/cut-out cookies: 350°F (170°C) 8-10 min. Shortbread: 325°F (165°C) 14-18 min. Bakery-style thick cookies: 400°F (200°C) 10-13 min. Use lighter pans (silicone or parchment) for prevented over-browning.

5 variables shift this number5 cited sources3 common mistakes addressed~5 min read read below

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The full answer

The cookie-temperature-time tradeoff

Cookie baking is a tight 6-15 minute window. Wrong temperature = the difference between perfectly chewy and burnt-bottom.

Standard temperature targets by cookie type

Cookie style	Temperature	Time	Doneness signal
Drop cookies (chocolate chip)	350-375°F	9-12 min	Edges golden, center barely set
Bakery-style thick cookies	400°F	10-13 min	Set edges, soft center
Sugar cookies (drop)	350°F	8-10 min	Edges golden, surface dull (not glossy)
Sugar cookies (cut-out)	350°F	9-12 min	Edges starting to brown
Snickerdoodle	350°F	9-11 min	Cinnamon-sugar dimpled top
Peanut butter	350-375°F	10-12 min	Crisscross fork pattern set
Oatmeal raisin	350°F	11-13 min	Golden edges
Snowball / wedding cookies	325°F	18-22 min	Slightly golden bottom (no browning top)
Shortbread	325°F	14-18 min	Edges golden; center still pale
Linzer / sandwich	350°F	10-12 min	Edges set; centers may be slightly soft
Macaron	300°F	12-15 min	Feet formed; surface set
Madeleine	375°F	9-11 min	Hump formed (signature shell shape)
Biscotti (1st bake)	350°F	25-30 min	Log golden, firm
Biscotti (2nd bake)	300°F	8-10 min each side	Slices crisp, golden
Florentine / lace	350°F	8-10 min	Bubbly all over (spread to thin)
Macaroons (coconut)	325°F	18-22 min	Golden brown
Brownies (cookie-format)	350°F	22-30 min	Toothpick with moist crumbs
Bar cookies (blondies)	350°F	25-30 min	Toothpick clean

Why bakery-style cookies use 400°F

The classic NYT-style + bakery-style "thick chewy" cookies use 400°F. Why: - High heat sets crust quickly → traps moisture in center → chewier interior - Faster rise + spread before edges set → thicker shape - Better caramelization on top (more golden)

Risk: at 400°F, bottom burns quickly. Use: - Insulated baking sheets, or - Double-stacked baking sheets, or - Light-colored aluminum sheets, or - Silicone baking mats over the sheet

Why shortbread uses 325°F

Shortbread has no eggs, no leavener, high-butter content. The classic golden + crumbly texture requires SLOW even baking. At 350°F: surface browns too fast → tough bottom. At 325°F: butter melts slowly + dough sets gradually → tender crumb.

The cookie spread mystery

Three things control how much cookies spread:

Butter temperature at mix — soft = spreads more; cold = spreads less
Sugar type — white = spreads more; brown = retains moisture, holds shape
Oven temperature — higher temp + immediate set = less spread

For thick cookies: use cold butter + brown sugar + 400°F + chill dough. For thin crispy cookies: use soft butter + white sugar + 350°F + no chill.

Pan-temperature interaction

Dark pans absorb more heat → bottom of cookies cooks faster. Adjust: - Dark non-stick pans: reduce temp 25°F or watch closely - Light aluminum: standard temp - Silicone mat: standard temp + better non-stick - Stoneware: stays hotter, careful

Don't open the oven too early

For drop cookies: don't open before 8 min mark (lets oven temp drop). For thick bakery cookies: don't open before 9 min. The lost 25-50°F from open-door event causes spread + flatness in cookies relying on heat-set structure.

Doneness for chewy vs crispy

Chewy cookies: pull when edges are golden but center looks barely set. Will firm as it cools.
Crispy cookies: pull when center is fully golden + barely set. Continue baking 1-2 min for full crispness.

Cooling on the baking sheet for 2-3 min continues the cook ("carryover" baking). Move to wire rack after to prevent further sogginess.

Convection adjustments

For most cookies: convection at 350°F = conventional at 325°F. Reduce setpoint 25°F. Convection can produce more even cookies + faster bake, but watch the BOTTOM closely (more air circulation = faster bottom cook = burnt bottom risk).

Cross-reference: see /pages/how-long-does/cookie-dough-chill-time (existing) + /pages/what-substitute-for/baking-powder + /pages/what-substitute-for/butter + /pages/what-substitute-for/brown-sugar + /pages/how-to-convert/grams-to-cups-flour.

Time ranges by condition

Condition	Duration	Note
Standard chocolate chip cookies	9-12 min at 350-375°F	Edges golden, center barely set
Bakery-style thick cookies (400°F)	10-13 min	Set edges, soft center; insulated pan
Sugar cookies (cut-out)	8-12 min at 350°F	Edges starting to brown
Shortbread (low + slow)	14-18 min at 325°F	Edges golden, center pale
Biscotti (first bake)	25-30 min at 350°F	Then slice + bake again at 300°F 8-10 min/side

What changes the time

Cookie type. Standard drop = 350°F. Bakery-style thick = 400°F. Shortbread = 325°F. Macaron = 300°F.
Chewy vs crispy desired. Pull early at golden edges + center barely set = chewy. Pull when center fully golden = crispy.
Pan type. Dark pans cook bottom faster → reduce temp 25°F. Insulated/double-stacked = best for bakery thick.
Convection. Reduce 25°F + watch bottom; faster cook + risk of burnt bottoms.
Dough temperature. Chilled dough (24-72hr) = thicker + more flavor. Room-temp dough = spreads thinner.

Common questions

Why are my cookies burning on the bottom but raw on top?

Pan absorbs too much heat. Three fixes: (1) Use a lighter-colored aluminum pan (vs dark non-stick). (2) Use insulated baking sheets (also called "airbake") or double-stack two pans. (3) Use silicone baking mat over standard pan. (4) Reduce temperature 25°F. Burnt bottoms are almost always a pan-thermal-mass issue, not an oven issue.

How do I get bakery-style thick cookies at home?

Three keys: (1) High oven temp — 400°F for 10-12 min. (2) Cold butter + chilled dough — refrigerate 24+ hours after mixing. (3) Large dough balls — 1/4 cup or 2 tbsp+ per cookie. Result: bakery-thick chewy cookies. The classic NYT-style chocolate chip recipe uses this exact approach. Don't skip the cold-dough step; it's what creates the structure that allows thickness at high heat.

My oven says 350°F but cookies are over-cooking — what's wrong?

Oven is running 25-50°F hotter than dial says (very common with home ovens). Buy a $10 oven thermometer to verify. Standard ovens can be 15-50°F off, especially older or cheap models. Fix: identify your oven's offset + adjust the dial. If oven runs +25°F hot: set to 325°F for recipe calling 350°F. Some oven dials can be recalibrated; most cannot.

Sources

We cite primary research, expert practice, and authoritative reference. Higher-tier sources weighted heavier. See methodology.

Tier 1 · peer-reviewed / governmentalTier 2 · editorial referenceTier 3 · named practitioner

T2America's Test Kitchen — Cookie Recipe Testing — Tested temperatures + times across cookie types
T2Cook's Illustrated — Cookie Variations — Side-by-side temperature comparisons (350° vs 375° vs 400°)
T2King Arthur Baking — Cookie Temperature Guide — Authoritative published reference
T2Stella Parks, "BraveTart" — Scientific approach to cookie chemistry + temperature
T2Shirley Corriher, "BakeWise" — Detailed chemistry of cookie baking

Verify this answerEvery number, range, and recommendation on this page traces to a cited source listed above. Click any source to read the original. See how we verify for the full source-tier discipline, or browse the citation graph to see every source we cite across 223 answers.

What could change this answer

honest uncertainty

We don’t know your specific equipment, ingredient batch, or environment. This answer is the best directional estimate from cited sources. Here’s where it’s less certain:

5 factors shift the answer. Your specific cookie type, chewy vs crispy desired, pan type (and more) can move this estimate in either direction. The table below shows the documented ranges.
Range spans 5 documented conditions. Pick the row that matches your scenario; halfway between two rows is your best estimate. The widest condition you can imagine is the safer upper bound.
Treat as a directional starting point. Real-world equipment, ingredient batch, and ambient conditions cause natural variance the table cannot capture. Use sensory checks (sight, smell, touch, internal temperature when relevant) alongside this answer — not instead of it.
Backed by 5 cited sources — verify if precision matters. See the Sources section for primary references. Cross-check the cited materials when stakes are high: commercial production, food safety, allergens, dietary or medical considerations.
Verified today. If you found a better-sourced answer or our answer no longer matches reality, tell us — corrections are public and dated. The page exists to be accurate, not to be unchanged.

Cite this page

de Vries, P. (2026). What temperature for baking cookies?. AskedWell. Retrieved 2026-05-22, from https://askedwell.com/pages/what-temperature-for/cookie-baking-temperature

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Last verified: 2026-05-22 · Published 2026-05-22

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