The Best Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
This is hands-down the best carrot cake ever! Simple and straightforward, it is ultra moist, fluffy, and incredibly delicious.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is the best carrot cake I have ever tasted! Incredibly moist, but not too moist, and so much flavor!! -Sarah
Why This is The Best Carrot Cake Recipe
Hundreds (and hundreds!) of reviewers have rated give this carrot cake recipe a 5-star review. It really is the best, and here is why:
- It is a one-bowl recipe. Mix the batter together by hand (no need for a stand mixer!).
- The cake is incredibly moist, soft and fluffy.
- Bake the cake as a layer cake, sheet cake, bundt cake or as cupcakes.
- The cake is perfectly spiced with just the right hint of warm baking spices.
- The creamy frosting is absolute perfection with the moist carrot cake.
Key Ingredients Notes
- Carrots: Finely shred the carrots for the best texture. I use a food processor fitted with the fine shredding disk (no need to peel the carrots before shredding, just trim off the ends).
- Sugar: This cake recipe uses both brown sugar and granulated sugar for flavor and moistness.
- Eggs: Use large-size eggs for this recipe. The total weight of the eggs will be 200 grams out of shell.
- Oil: I prefer using vegetable, canola or other neutral-flavored oil.
- Unsweetened applesauce: The original recipe used all oil (1 1/2 cups total). Over the years, I’ve subbed 1/2 cup of the oil with unsweetened applesauce and can’t tell a difference in the baked cake. If you don’t have applesauce or don’t want to use it, use the full 1 1/2 cups oil in the cake.
- Flour: I use unbleached all-purpose flour for this cake.
- Spices: Pantry-friendly spices like ground cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves perfectly flavor the cake batter.
- Cream cheese: Full-fat cream cheese is recommended for the frosting.
- Sour cream: A small amount of sour cream is added to the cream cheese frosting to cut the richness and add a bright counter balance to the flavor.
When making the cake batter, mix the batter JUST until it is incorporated. Avoid over mixing as it can create a denser, heavier cake.
Pan Size Variations for Carrot Cake
The following pans can be used for this recipe:
- 9X13-inch baking pan
- Two 9-inch round cake pans to frost as a layer cake, if desired
- Cupcake pans for a yield of 24 to 30 cupcakes
- 12-cup bundt pan
The recipe can also be easily halved (for a 9X9-inch square baking pan, one 9-inch circle pan, or fewer cupcakes).
Frosting and Decorating Carrot Cake
The cream cheese frosting in this recipe is ultra-soft and creamy, which makes it perfect for swooping and spreading around the edges of a layer cake or on the top of a sheet cake, but the frosting is a bit too soft to hold up to piping.
If you’ve never added a tiny bit of sour cream to cream cheese frosting, the small amount adds a wonderful dimension and depth of flavor to the super sweet frosting. I never make cream cheese frosting without it.
I do not like adding nuts to carrot cake batter (or any cake batter, for that matter). But toasted pecans do add a tasty crunch and texture to the outside of this carrot cake. I usually sprinkle them on top of the frosting (whether it is a layer cake or sheet cake).
The Best Carrot Cake Ever
This cake stays moist for days, making it a wonderful make-ahead dessert. Fully frost (to seal in the moisture) and store in the refrigerator. Who knew that chilled carrot cake is a food straight from heaven?
This really is the best carrot cake ever. The flavor is spot-on. The cake is soft and sturdy. It is moist and absolutely magnificent.
This carrot cake is such a tried-and-true, foolproof recipe, that I haven’t had a need or desire to try another classic carrot cake recipe in over 15 years. Just read through the reviews, and you’ll see that I’m not alone in this sentiment! I’m so excited for you to have the best carrot cake recipe at your fingertips.
The Best Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 pound medium carrots, 6 to 7 large carrots, ends trimmed (no need to peel)
- 1 ½ cups (318 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (106 g) packed light brown sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable, canola or other neutral-flavored oil (see note)
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce (see note)
- 2 ½ cups (355 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
Cream Cheese Frosting (*see note for doubling):
- 8 ounces (227 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 5 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups (143 g) powdered sugar
- Toasted chopped pecans, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position.
- Lightly grease preferred baking pans (see note below for pan options) and line bottom with parchment (optional but helpful for 9-inch round pans). Set aside.
- For the carrots, finely shred the carrots in a food processor or on a box grater for about 3 cups/400 g total. Set aside.
- For the cake batter, in a large bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and eggs until well combined.
- Add the oil and applesauce and whisk until the batter is light in color and the oil is thoroughly emulsified in the batter.
- Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cloves. Mix until just a few dry streaks of batter remain.
- Add the carrots and mix until evenly combined (don't over mix).
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake until the top springs back lightly to the touch and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. 9X13-inch pan: 45 to 50 minutes9-inch round pans: 32 to 35 minutesCupcakes: 17 to 20 minutesBundt pan: 50 to 60 minutes
- For round cake pans or a bundt pan, let the cakes cool for 5 to 7 minutes before turning them out to cool completely on a parchment-lined wire rack (this helps the cakes not stick to the rack as they cool).
- For cupcakes, remove from the pan a minute or two after they come out of the oven and cool completely on a cooling rack.
- For a 9X13-inch pan (or other sheet pan), let the cake cool completely in the pan.
- For the frosting (IMPORTANT: see note below about doubling), with a handheld or stand electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla at medium speed until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and creamy.
- Frost the cake as desired. Top with toasted pecans. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: Cooks Illustrated (with my notes included)
Recipe originally posted March 2008; updated February 2025 and March 2026 with new photos, recipe notes, etc.
Fabulous carrot cake! I did the applesauce/oil split and the cake was still super moist–not oily– even three days later when the last piece was eaten. I have to admit the only problem with the recipe was that it didn’t say if I should squeeze the juice out of the grated carrots or not. I checked out the original Cook’s Illustrated recipe and since they didn’t mention any squeezing, I left the carrots as is. Beautiful recipe, and easy to make since my husband volunteered to grate all those carrots for me.
What an awesome cake!
I had been craving carrot cake and made your recipe, amazing!
Thank you.
Thanks, Martha!
I made this for Easter. I’m not a fan of nutmeg so I adjusted the spices by adding a touch less of that and a touch more cinnamon. I also put in only 3 larger carrots and about a half cup of crushed pineapple (old habits die hard).This was the best carrot cake I have ever had without exception. Thank you for a fabulous recipe.
Thanks, Laura! And thanks for including your changes.
I made this a year ago for my son’s 1st birthday and since then I was diagnosed with celiac and have had to cut out dairy. When you reposted this recipe I was sad thinking I’d never be able to eat it again. But ingenuity soon beat up hopelessness and I made the cake with bob’s red mill gf baking 1 to 1 flour and it was amazing! The spices were a little dimmed (per the norm when subbing a gf flour) but it was moist and flavorful and didn’t sink in the middle and and and. .. I did have to increase the baking time by quite a bit and I found/created a different frosting (Buttercream with coconut oil instead of butter and soured almond milk to make it tangy) but honestly it was the best gf thing I’ve ever baked! This recipe is so good that it doesn’t need gluten to have amazing taste and structure!
I’m so happy to hear this!
Delicious! FYI: for me, a half recipe made 33 mini cupcakes or a six-inch pan two layer cake. (I grated the carrots much finer for the mini cupcakes since the baking time was so much shorter.)
I made this this last weekend and it was a HIT!!! I was worried that it wouldn’t get eaten (because weren’t having a lot of company), but the problem was that it got eaten a little too quickly! This is going to be a yearly tradition of ours for sure! Thanks for another winning recipe, Mel!
Thanks for reporting back, Jaci! Glad it was well-received.
I made this cake for Easter and everyone loved it! My husband went so far as to say it was as just like his favorite carrot cake from his favorite bakery! *fist bumps!* Oh, and I couldn’t get the image of me literally diving head first into a vat of cream cheese frosting while frosting and eating this cake. Ha!
Hahahahaha!
Last night everyone agreed this is absolutely delicious! It is my go to carrot cake recipe and cream cheese frosting recipe from this day forward!!!
So happy to hear that, Yvonne!
I need this to be in sheet cake form (feeding a crowd). I notice you also have a sheet carrot cake recipe on the site. Which one do you prefer? And has anyone ever tried this one as a sheet cake (12 x16)? Is the difference between the two recipes worth doing the math to convert it?
My heart was set on making this for Easter for a group of 12, but that group has turned into 21. I know you have a sheet cake carrot cake recipe, but wondering if this works as a sheet cake? Would you double ingredients or just settle for a thinner cake? I just don’t think the layered way will feed that many. Thanks Mel!
Hi Jenny – it’s been a long time, but I remember making this recipe in a large, rimmed baking sheet pan (like, 12X17 or so) and it seemed to work fine. If you try it, just make sure not to overfill the pan. I think I remember that one batch of this cake fit in a large pan, but I can’t remember exactly and don’t want it overflowing in your oven.
Mel~ I made this carrot cake this past weekend for my Dad’s birthday. Carrot cake is his absolute favorite and he said it was the best he had ever had! I am not a huge fan of carrot cake but this one will now be on regular rotation at our house for special treats!
That’s the best compliment, Jessica!
Hi Mel – I am wondering if I make this cake today (Wednesday) and keep it tightly wrapped (unfrosted), if it will be okay on Saturday.
If you aren’t going to frost it, I would wrap the layers in plastic wrap and freeze if you need it to hang out that long.
I did not make the cake (hope to in near future), but did use the frosting recipe for your carrot sheet cake recipe…amazing! I needed to double the batch, and then had leftovers that I used to eat just about anything and everything with. The sour cream indeed does give it that certain something, and with the added taste of carrot cake…yum!!!
Have you ever tried crushed pineapple in your frosting? Specifically on carrot cake, it is quite delightful!
I haven’t, but someone else told me about that once – said it was divine!
It really is! Trying your carrot cake today to see if it beats my go-to recipe! Thanks for all the recipes you have added to my rotation over the years, you are my go to!
I baked this cake so many times( at last 10 times) … it is the best carrot cake!
Do you use convection setting when baking? Your post about the cookies the other day got me thinking you use often while baking – I hardly ever do. If so, do you have to adjust the temp or time? I’d like to use my convection feature more often, but feel like when I do it doesn’t work out. I’m sensing a “Let’s Talk” post about convection feature 😉 Come to think about it, a “Let’s Talk” post would be great on the difference between neutral oils. I always want to try avocado oil but chicken out and stick to whatever is listed in the recipe. Thanks Mel, my family would starve without your blog!
Hi Jan – I do use my convection bake often – but I always test the recipes I post on standard bake (and unless I specify in the recipe, it’s meant to be standard baked, not convection baked). Having said that, most recipes can be adapted to convection bake (I always do 25 degrees lower). Maybe you are right – some posts are in order! (And if you can find avocado oil, you should use it – it’s my fave!)
Wow. This does look amazing. I’m going to give a try for an Easter pot-luck we were invited to. I’ll leave off the nuts though. I feel like these days, everyone is allergic to something – is that an LA thing? Anyway. Simple and delicious sounds perfect.
Don’t mind me while I drool all over my keyboard.. Ha! Such a wonderful idea, I absolutely love carrot cake. I’ll be using this recipe at home!
I hope you’re having a wonderful Thursday,
Michael
https://www.mileinmyglasses.co.uk
This reads like my Grandma used to make I think she added cut up raisins as well. Can’t wait to make it!
Oh crap this is a BAD time to start a diet
Mel–I am going to make this, because I have yet to dislike ANYTHING you post. The roasted asparagus and penne with balsamic was AHHH-mazing! 🙂 So thanks for that one!
We have a Mexican restaurant down here in TX called Rosa’s, and my family seems to think that they make THE BEST carrot cake. They add walnuts, but very finely chopped walnuts, to the cake itself. It’s not overly spiced and the cream cheese frosting is fabulous (unlike any cream cheese frosting I’ve ever had… makes me wonder if there’s copious amounts of butter, as it’s not overly sweet or tangy?) Anyway, thought I’d share, as you asked what we thought made for great carrot cake. My family’s vote is with Rosa’s Café, and my vote is for any cake LOADED with cream cheese frosting 🙂 Thanks, Mel! Keep up the awesome-ness and have a great week!
This looks amazing! I’m totally making this on Easter Sunday!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Can I just say, I LOVE that you are reposting these classics and updating them. I remember making this in 2008 and ever since then. I’m with you about just carrots. My husband is more the everything but the kitchen sink kinda carrot cake guy usually–but he also LOVES this recipe. And it’s comforting to know it’s still the best!
Thanks, Emily!
It looks delicious! Will try it soon! Thank you!
My sister-in-law makes a carrot cake with EVERYTHING in it: raisins, pineapple, nuts, coconut, chocolate chips, etc. It’s actually very good, but I prefer mine either plain (but with tons of cream cheese frosting) or with lots of chocolate chips (and still tons of cream cheese frosting). Nuts are okay with me. As soon as I get back to the USA and an oven I will make this. I make many of your recipes that don’t require an oven (it’s way too hot to use one here in the Philippines, even if I had one) but you would be humored by the many substitutions I use in the recipes. Thanks Mel, your site is a sweet tie to home.
Thanks, Ann! It would be a kick to see what kinds of substitutions find their way into recipes – you are a trooper!
Can’t wait to try this one- Sounds delicious!
Just last night, I was explaining to my son, who thought I hated carrot cake, I love it, as long as it doesn’t have “stuff” in it.
Thanks!
Well….my idea of the perfect carrot cake is no carrot cake. Chocolate all the way for me!
I love carrot cake but developed a cinnamon allergy several years ago. Do you happen to know if this cake would be good without the cinnamon? Or maybe there is a substitute? It is definitely one of the foods i miss since not being able to eat cinnamon.
Hey Angie – I’ve never made it without cinnamon but I’d say it’s definitely worth a try! I’d probably bump up the other spices just a bit.
Hi! I’m allergic to carrots, do you think I could substitute broccoli instead? Just kidding!!
I just wanted to high-five another supporter of cake purism, as it should be. A long time ago, I had flown out to meet the family that I would later claim as in-laws. My husband’s father enjoys being in the kitchen and made quite a meal. Carrot cake was the dessert, and it was alllllllll in there. Raisins, pineapple, and nuts everywhere. But smile and chew! The things we eat for those we love. 🙂
Hahaha….both to your initial question and to your grin and bear it attitude about the kitchen sink carrot cake. Seriously, made me laugh out loud. And if you had been honestly asking about subbing something for the carrots, I probably would have quit blogging for good. 🙂
My husband adores carrot cake and I can’t wait to try your recipe and see if it can rival his mom’s. ;p I’m wondering though, if I could substitute butter for the oil in the cake batter (or half butter half oil for that matter)? I just personally LOVE butter and love the buttery flavor in my cakes. Do you think it would affect the texture of the cake if i do the substitution? If it’s possible to substitute, how would you do it to preserve the texture of the cake? Thanks for sharing all your awesome recipes!
I’d probably do half oil/half butter (and melt the butter). Good luck!
I made this for the first time last Easter when it was just your “unbelievable” carrot cake. I completely agree, best ever! And you are 100% correct there should never, ever, under any circumstances be raisins in carrot cake or any of that other junk! Blah! I think that’s why I never loved carrot cake before, it was always wrong, now that I’ve made yours, I’m a fan and it will most likely be our Easter staple forever!
You forgot to ask if coconut belongs in carrot cake. (I’m with you, by the way, although I wouldn’t even bother putting nuts on the frosting.)
Haha, yes, the coconut is a very valid question as well.
I second the motion for the favorite carrot cake! This carrot cake is so yummy. I’ve brought it to several family functions and it always gets rave reviews. I’ve even made a dairy free icing when I was df with coconut cream and it was so so yummy. One of the best things I ate while being df for my nursing daughters allergies.
Yum! The coconut cream substitution sounds delish!
I made these at least three times over the past three months, including last week. This is the best carrot cake EVER!!! I just bought more carrots to make more. I have used this recipe for carrot cake cupcakes too, and it is just as wonderful! Thank you for changing my carrot cake world and sharing this recipe.
That makes me so happy, Debby! Glad you love it.
Mel.. your cake sounds great but I really wanted to share my ” BEST ” carrot cake recipe with U & your followers
4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
2 cups grated carrot
2 cups grated apple
Whisk tog in large mixing bowl then Add right over top of above ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 tsp bkg pwdr
2 tsp bkg soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup poppy seeds, optional
1/2 cup sesame seeds
Handful dried currents, optional but adds a nice texture
Bake 350 30_40 min in 8×8 pan
Icing: for Mexico.. cream cheese comes in 190 or if lucky to find 210 gm pkgs
3 pkgs Philadelphia cream cheese..room temp
1/2 cup soft butter
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla
Beat creamcheese w electric mixer ; add butter; beat till well combined
Add icing sugar , beat till well combined & then vanilla till blended
This is my revised recipe that I originally got from a deli in Portland Oregon about 35 years ago !
I always make these as cupcakes & they are perfection! IF I don’t bring these to family functions (both sides) I get a tremendous amount of grief, lol!
That’s hilarious! It’s great to hear from others that this recipe works well as cupcakes!
did you find the cupcakes didn’t rise? in wondering how to make it so they rise nicely
This carrot cake is so good that when I burnt it terribly in an old school toaster oven from a yard sale, I was able to cut off all black crispy parts, frost & serve to ten family members for my mil’s birthday a couple of weeks ago. Compliments abounded; ev ry one loved it! (My Bosch gas range bit the dust, REFUSING to heat up the DAY of the birthday!) Fortunately, I was able to have a new GE gas range delivered the next week–I am Inlove w it! Thx for helping this kitchen queen have so much confidence that She was able to turn crispy blackened mess into delicious carrot cake. (People honestly couldn’t get over how delicious it was.) I usually make this cake w no add ins but may try all 3 at some point, since crushed pineapple, nuts & raisins appeal to me. I’ve done the pecans on top Once or twice & loved it. I will try & look at this pic in the future to remind me to top w pecans.
Oh my gosh, Lauren! That’s quite a dramatic carrot cake story! I CANNOT believe you salvaged that cake. You are my hero.
It actually was pretty dramatic; I should have taken pix! I wanted to mention that I served this carrot cake w vanilla BEAN ice cream which complimented the cake perfectly. Thx, Mel, for the heads up re: not pealing the carrots–I love that time saver!
Alright, mel. The picture alone is cookbook worthy
I am with you!! No, no and no! Nuts to the outside only!! Thank you for such a delicious recipe!! Needed this one for the upcoming holiday!!!
My daughter wants carrot cake for her birthday this weekend, but it needs to be decorated like a skunk! Can you pipe the cream cheese frosting? Thanks for another AMAZING recipe!
This version of cream cheese frosting would be way too soft to pipe, I think. Good luck with that skunk! 🙂
Good Morning,
Your recipe sounds very good, I was wondering if I could cook and mash the carrots in stead of shredding them; would that be ok as it would be much easier for me, an older senior? Please advise. Thank you
Could certainly try, George! Don’t know how it would affect the texture of the cake, though.
I made this cake this week, and it was very good! But I have one question…I had left a sheet of aluminum foil on the bottom rack from when I seasoned some cast iron skillets earlier in the week when I cooked the cake. I cooked it for the required time, and when I tested in the center with a toothpick, it came out clean. I let it cool in the 9” x 11” pan for about 15 minutes. The middle of the cake sunk a little, but I wasn’t too worried. When I flipped it onto the cooling rack, sadly it kind of fell apart because the middle was pretty much completely raw, while the sides were quite well done. I ended up cutting off the cooked edges and frosting them as cake bars, and put the rest back in the oven and made “carrot cake crumble” with all the pieces. Do you think maybe the aluminum foil someone affected the heat conduction in the oven or something like that? I’ve never had such a problem before! The cake was delicious! It just didn’t come out very pretty.
Hey Mel – that’s a great question and honestly, I don’t know, but it seems as though the cake probably just needed more time in the oven. Every oven can differ on exact oven temperature and I’m guessing a few extra minutes would help the cake regardless if there is aluminum foil in the oven.
Hi mel! I tried to do this carrot cake by Reading all’ positive comments you Have. I don t know if i Have the wrong Cup mesure but i think there is too much sugar in this cake: with my Cup mesure is more than 400gr of sugar and when i tasted the cake it was too much. Could you traslate the recipe in grams?maybe i have the wrong Cup mesure but this is the only One i found in Italy(where i live);-) thank you very much Sara
Hi Sara – there are several online calculators that can help you translate the cake into grams. Sorry I can’t do that for you (I’m not familiar with the conversions and don’t want to mess you up!).
There are 200 grams in a cup. I’m sure it will taste much better with the correct amount!
Make that 200 grams per cup for granulated sugar. Brown sugar is 220 grams per cup. Hope this helps.
I made this cake today for dinner/dessert with my family and the grandparents. It was absolutely THE best carrot cake I have ever had. Everyone loved it! And I am so glad that there is a little left that I can eat tomorrow!!! Once again, you have shared an absolutely awesome recipe! Thank you for all you do.
This was the best carrot cake I’ve ever had or made, and I sorta consider myself a carrot cake connoisseur. I made the recipe exactly as written, but I added a tsp of ground ginger for a little kick. I made it in two 9″ pans and although they fell in the center (I live at 6100 feet so I’m used to this!) it was nothing an extra dollop of the yummy frosting couldn’t cover. This was our Easter dessert and I just finished the last piece today – still as good as ever! Although now I’m sad we’re out of carrot cake :(!! Thanks for the awesome recipe, Mel!
I live at 7000 feet. If you use 3/4 cup of applesauce and oil each, reduce baking powder to 1 teaspoon. and baking soda to 3/4 teaspoon. and reduce the white sugar to 1 cup and brown sugar per recipe, you won’t have any problems. Add two eggs.
Also, preheat to 375 degrees and reduce the heat to 350 when you put the cakes in.
If you do muffins instead, bake at 375 degrees, watch at about 12 minutes for doneness, and make the above changes, except for the sugar, you can use 1 1/4 cup, the same for brown sugar, and 1 1/4 baking powder and 1/2 tsp baking soda. The cupcakes set faster and are going to be beautiful! GOOD Luck!
In case anyone wants to make this into a bunt cake, it works fine. I baked it at 350 for 50-60 minutes.
Hi, just wanted to say thank you for this recipe. It worked beautifully. I made it in a 9″ square tin and 6 muffins. Gifts for my neighbours for Easter. Delicious!
You said to use medium sized carrots, could I use baby carrots instead? Thanks!
Sure!
Should I refrigerate this cake if I plan to make it ahead of time?
If it’s frosted, yes. I usually take it out a couple hours before I want to serve it.
As any one made this with out a standing mixer? Did it still turn out well? Thanks! Ps Mel I love all your receipes!!!
I haven’t tried it but I’m guessing you could whisk/stir and it would be fine.