Like a party in cupcake form, these sweet confetti cupcakes are flecked with plenty of fun and colorful sprinkles. My from-scratch version has a nostalgic taste and soft, fluffy texture you’ll love. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Confetti Cupcakes From-Scratch
After several of you ran into issues with my original recipe, I went back to the drawing board to tweak these confetti cupcakes to perfection. My goal was to ensure they turned out beautifully no matter the kitchen, so I took a few notes from my well-loved white cupcake recipe. We kept the recipe similar–it already had a beautiful light color and fluffy, moist texture–but added sprinkles for fun color (of course!).
The result? Perfectly portioned, incredibly tender, colorful, and nostalgic cupcakes ready for parties or the occasional pick-me-up. You’re going to love them!
Why You Should Make Them
- Super light and fluffy texture thanks to a very important ingredient: whipped egg whites!
- Very customizable for any special occasion. Use holiday sprinkles for Easter, Halloween, or Christmas, color the frosting for your favorite sports team, or keep them classic for a celebratory birthday dessert.
- You can use just about any frosting, so pick your favorite! My vanilla frosting, classic buttercream frosting recipe, or strawberry buttercream is my favorite, but I provide several pairing suggestions below.
- Pretty cupcake shape, which you wouldn’t get if you were to make my classic funfetti cake recipe as cupcakes. Many of you have asked about using that recipe for cupcakes–while I’ve had success doing so in the past, some people have experienced the cupcakes sinking in on themselves and so this new version is the one I recommend!
Ingredients
Just a few ingredients today (plus whatever you need for your frosting)! I’ll review them briefly before we get into the recipe itself.
- Cake flour. A key ingredient for the softest, lightest confetti cupcakes. If you don’t keep this on hand, I highly recommend you start as it will be major game changer for your cakes and cupcakes (it’s a good ingredient to keep on hand if you enjoy making my gourmet cookies or my Lofthouse cookies, I use it in those too!).
- Eggs. Specifically the whites of the eggs only. Be very careful to get not even a tiny drop of yolk in with the whites. Also, make sure you are placing your whites in a clean, dry, grease-free bowl that is made from either metal or glass. All of this will ensure your eggs whip up into fluffy perfection!
- Buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, the best substitute is my easy buttermilk substitute (but admittedly the results aren’t quite as tender, flavorful or moist).
- Butter & oil. This combination is a staple in many of my cake and cupcake recipes (like my vanilla cake recipe)! It ensures that our confetti cupcakes will have a rich flavor (thanks to the butter) while also maintaining a moist and tender texture (thanks to oil!).
- Sprinkles. Of course! I like a mix of quins and jimmies as well as some edible gold stars (affiliate). Whatever you do, do NOT use nonpareils, as they will bleed into your batter/frosting. Save them for sprinkle cookies instead!
SAM’S TIP: Add a splash (¼ teaspoon) of almond extract in with the vanilla extract. It mimics that classic boxed Funfetti cake flavor!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Confetti Cupcakes
Cream the fats & sugars
Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until well combined, then stir in the oil and extracts. Mix again until the mixture is smooth and creamy. You’ll still see some grit from the granulated sugar–this is okay!
Add the dry ingredients & buttermilk
Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then measure your buttermilk.
Alternate folding the dry ingredients and buttermilk into the butter mixture; I usually like to do this with three rounds of the flour mixture and two rounds of the buttermilk (start and end with the dry ingredients!).
It is very important that you use a spatula for this step–do NOT use a mixer! Over-mixing at this point can create dry, dense cupcakes that taste like cornbread. If that was what we wanted, we would just make corn muffins!
Whip the eggs
I know this extra step can seem intimidating (and no one loves an extra bowl to wash), but I promise it isn’t hard. The most important thing is to use a completely grease-free bowl (don’t use a plastic one) and beaters.
If you’ve made my whipped cream recipe or meringue cookies before, you’re already familiar with the concept of stiff peaks. If not, this just means that when you pull the beater out of the eggs, they hold a stiff “peak” without folding or receding back into themselves.
Place the egg whites in a separate clean, dry, grease free bowl (I know, yet another bowl 😅). Beat with a mixer until the they have greatly increased in volume, then keep beating until they reach stiff peaks.
Fold in the sprinkles
Gently fold in the whipped eggs until halfway combined. Add the sprinkles and keep folding until you have a uniform batter. Be gentle and take care to not overly deflate the eggs, as their fluffy texture is key to the fluffy texture of the cupcakes!
Bake & cool
Portion the batter into your lined muffin pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. The tops of the cupcakes will be pretty pale–that’s totally fine! If you wait until they are golden, you’ll likely over-bake them.
Once cooled, frost with your favorite frosting (suggestions below!), and don’t forget some extra sprinkles on top too!
SAM’S TIP: Remove the cupcakes from the tin after a few minutes to keep them from getting oily on the bottoms. I like to use a butter knife to gently lift each one from the pan.
Frequently Asked Questions
I don’t recommend it. Liquid egg whites (the kind from a carton) tend to provide inconsistent results, and the last thing I want is for you to waste time and ingredients on confetti cupcakes that bake up flat and gummy.
Instead, separate your own eggs and follow my tips throughout this post for protecting your egg whites so they whip up nicely.
If you don’t want to waste your egg yolks, I have several recipes you can use them in including my lemon crumb bars, fruit tart, key lime cheesecake, german chocolate cookies, or lemon cheesecake. All of them use exactly three egg yolks!
While you can substitute all-purpose flour (instructions below), I really recommend investing in a box of cake flour if you want stellar results. Cake flour has a much lower level of protein compared to all-purpose flour, which means your cupcakes will have a much softer, lighter texture when made with cake flour. To me, it’s well worth it for exceptional confetti cupcakes!
Also, if you’re at all concerned that you won’t have a use for a whole box–don’t be! I have plenty of recipes to help you use it up, whether it’s my blueberry muffin cookies, coffee cake cookies, or my birthday crumb cake.
I recommend my funfetti cake recipe instead–it’s one of my top recipes (and has been for years) and has even been featured on TV 🤩
More frosting suggestions:
- Cream cheese frosting
- Chocolate fudge frosting
- Fruity pebbles frosting
- Raspberry buttercream
- Lemon frosting
- My favorite chocolate frosting
- Swiss meringue buttercream
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! Subscribe to my newsletter to be notified of all the newest recipes, and find my free recipe tutorials on YouTube 💜
Confetti Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons (42 g) unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil (may substitute canola or vegetable oil, or other neutral cooking oil)
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional but recommended)
- 1 ½ cups (175 g) cake flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ½ cup (120 g) buttermilk room temperature preferred
- 3 large egg whites (room temperature preferred)
- ⅓ cup (60 g) colored sprinkles (use jimmies/standard sprinkles or quins, do not use nonpareils)
- Vanilla frosting (or your preferred frosting, see note)
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a 12-count cupcake tin with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar and use an electric mixer to beat until lightened and well-combined.3 Tablespoons (42 g) unsalted butter, ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- Add oil and extracts and stir until smooth and creamy and completely combined.¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil, 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well-combined.1 ½ cups (175 g) cake flour, ¾ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon table salt
- Using a spatula, alternate adding the dry ingredients and buttermilk to the butter mixture. Start by adding about a third of the dry ingredients, gently fold into the butter mixture with a spatula, then add half the buttermilk and fold this into the batter until just combined. Repeat until all the buttermilk and flour mixture are added.½ cup (120 g) buttermilk
- Pour egg whites until a clean, dry mixing bowl (preferably glass or metal – do not use rubber, silicone, or plastic).3 large egg whites
- Use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites until stiff peaks have formed (mixture will be thick and white and if you remove the beater from the mixture, the peaks that form should hold their shape and not fold over on themselves).
- Add the whipped egg whites to the batter and use a spatula to gently fold into the mixture until about halfway combined. Add sprinkles and continue to gently fold until batter is uniform.⅓ cup (60 g) colored sprinkles
- Evenly divide batter into prepared tin and transfer to center rack of 350F (175C) oven. Bake for 17 minutes/until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs (no wet batter).
- Allow cupcakes to cool in the tin for 5-8 minutes before carefully removing to a cooling rack (I use a butter knife to gently pry them up and carefully remove them – be careful, the tin and cupcakes will still be hot!) to cool completely before frosting.
Notes
Cake flour substitute
Cake flour is ideal for this recipe and will give you best results, but if you need to substitute all-purpose flour you will need 1 ⅓ cup + 1 Tablespoon (or 175 grams, yes, the weight will be the same regardless of which flour you use) of all-purpose flour.Frosting
I like these cupcakes with my vanilla frosting. A full batch will allow you to generously decorate all of the cupcakes and will leave you with a little bit leftover. If you’re not feeling vanilla, see my catalog of frosting recipes and choose your favorite – strawberry frosting would be excellent here too!Storing
Store in an airtight container. Cupcakes will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (though the fridge tends to dry them a bit).Original recipe
I published the original recipe in 2017 but updated it in 2025. I now recommend this version, but if you are looking for the original you can find the original recipe here.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
I originally published this recipe in December of 2017, but after several people had issues with the cupcakes sinking on themselves I updated the recipe to ensure it was successful in every kitchen. If you’re looking for the original recipe you can find it linked in the recipe card (above).
Michelle
This recipe does NOT say to put the egg yolks in as well – it only says to whip the egg whites and fold them in. Very confusing, and our cupcakes completely sunk in.
Sam
Hi Michelle! That is correct, there are no egg yolks in this recipe.
Samantha Olsen
They are delicious but all of mine sunk a bit 🙁 I followed the recipe perfectly and all of my ingredients are super fresh. Any ideas?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Oh no! 😞 This usually means they were either overmixed or underbaked. We’re glad they still tasted great though!
Lynne
Although I usually prefer more chocolatey baked goods, I’ve made this recipe multiple times because these are some of the softest & most delicately delicious cupcakes I’ve ever had!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cupcakes so much, Lynne! 🙂
Nelson
Good Morning, I made your confetti cake, and it was such a hit, now I need to make 25 confetti cupcakes, can I just double this recipe? will the cupcakes come out to heavy or dense? I want that lite and fluffy texture.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Nelson! This recipe will double just fine. Enjoy 🙂
Zofia
Hi Sam! Is it possible to freeze cupcakes without icing like you would cheesecakes?
Thanks!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yes! Wrap them tightly and plastic wrap and foil, then store in an airtight container in the freezer 😊
Zofia
Thank you! And what about freezing the butter cream frosting?
I made a 2 layer funfetti cake and cupcakes with rest of batter- but will be making all the frosting.
Sam
The buttercream frosting should hold up just fine in the freezer. 🙂
Blair Guilbeau
Hello there, ma’am! Your cupcakes were quite beautiful to look at, but I want to try and make them as a gift for Mother’s Day! I have one question: is there a way to remove the egg YOLKS entirely from the batter? I want to color these cupcakes purple and don’t want the yellow tint from the egg yolks to make them look brown.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Blair! Our white cake recipe uses no egg yolks and can easily be made into cupcakes. We suggest you use that recipe instead 😊
nayel
cant wait to try this recipe this weekend they look so good
Adele Esposito
They are perfect cupcakes
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you think so, Adele! Thanks so much for trying our recipe and coming back to leave a review 😊
Sara
Hi dear Sam❤️
I have 3 questions.
1.Can I use cake flour to have lighter cupcakes or it’s not really necessary?
2.There is buttermilk in your recipe.But you don’t use any baking soda.Isnt it necessary to activate the buttermilk?
3.And my last question,can I substitute sour cream for buttermilk?does it also work for this recipe?
Thank you so much
Always love your recipes ❤️
Sam
Hi Sara!
1) I don’t think it’s necessary here, though you could if you substitute properly.
2) Correct, I do not use baking soda as the buttermilk is primarily for texture and flavor rather than to work with the leaveners.
3) Unfortunately I am not sure how that would work as I haven’t tried it.
I am so glad to hear you have been enjoying the recipes, thank you so much for commenting!
Cian Eckford
I have been testing out a lot of cupcake recipes in preparation for my daughters 3rd birthday at the end of the year. These are by far the best I have tried, I ate 3 within 5 mins.
Thank you for such an amazing recipe I’m going to attempt a double batch over the weekend to take into work!
Sam
I’m so glad you have enjoyed them so much, Cian! 🙂
Marilyn
Hi! I made these cupcakes and they were a hit. Thank you so much!
Now I was wondering if this recipe can be used for cake too ?
Sam
Hi Marilyn! I actually have a funfetti cake that is very similar to this. 🙂
Marilyn
Thank you so very much ! I can’t wait to try this next week! ❤️
Faye
I made these for my mom’s birthday. We were doing a nailed it home edition. The recipe was great except for when you mix the eggs, not really described well. Other than that, it was delicious!
Stefanie
Recipe says 1/3 of a cup or 43 g. For me, when measuring, 43 g is 1/4 of a cup.
Now I am not sure which measurement to go by, the gram weight or the liquid cup measurement?
Sam
Always go by weights when possible 🙂
Miranda
Beautiful and tasty! I made a double recipe and it wasn’t too much batter to handle. I frosted with the recommended buttercream frosting, which was tasty. I divided it into seven colors in order to form stripes within the icing piping bag, which made a delightful rainbow swirl on top.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Miranda! 🙂
Judi
Just made these and everyone loved them, including my picky funfetti expert son……loved them even though they were made from scratch!😋
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Judi! 🙂
Jada
Hi, I will be making this recipe soon. It will be my first time making confetti cupcakes, I’ve noticed there isn’t a viedo. I’m more of a visual learner. I was wondering if you ever planned on making a video step by step on making confetti cupcakes?
Sam
Hi Jada! Unfortunately I don’t have a video for these yet. I do plan on getting videos on all of my posts eventually, but there are a lot to do. I’m sorry. 🙁 I hope you love the cupcakes. 🙂