Funfetti Cake from Scratch
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My light and fluffy, completely from scratch Funfetti cake recipe has over 600 five-star reviews and has even been featured on TV! ⭐️ It’s a soft white cake speckled with sprinkles and iced with buttercream frosting, perfect for beginners and advanced bakers alike. Makes the perfect homemade birthday cake! Recipe includes a how-to video!
Homemade Funfetti Cake Recipe
My fluffy Funfetti cake (also known as confetti cake) has been one of my most popular recipes for years (right up there with my “worst” chocolate chip cookies). Flecked with sprinkles, a plush, super soft texture, and a buttery, caramelized vanilla flavor–what’s not to love?
Developing this cake took me weeks and is still one of my proudest accomplishments (right there with my French macaron recipe). When I finally nailed it, I found that there were a few key ingredients that really made a difference, namely, whipped egg whites.
For maximum, fluffy softness (and snow-white color), this recipe calls for plenty of egg whites (and no egg yolks–save those for your tiramisu!). You’ll whip these separately with an electric mixer until they reach stiff peaks and then fold them (gently!) into the cake batter. This is easy and quick to do, and it’s critical for a light and fluffy white cake (don’t get me started on yellow Funfetti cakes–there should be no such thing!).
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Perfect taste, perfect texture. Largely thanks to the afore-mentioned whipped egg whites and a combo of butter and oil in the cake batter. Oil adds moisture, while butter adds flavor, so by mixing the two you achieve perfect balance. This is how I’ve designed so many of my cake recipes, and once you try it you’ll see why.
- Bright white color. This serves as the perfect backdrop to colorful sprinkles. This Funfetti cake gets its pristine color from using egg whites only, clear vanilla (instead of regular vanilla), and a neutral oil.
- So soft and fluffy. This gorgeous texture comes from a critical ingredient: whipped egg whites. I’ve repeated this technique in several recipes since, including my lemon cake, strawberry cake, and Oreo cake. All have a plush, light-as-air texture!
- Frosted with an easy peasy classic buttercream, though you could technically use any frosting you like. Fruity pebbles frosting, strawberry frosting, and cream cheese frosting are all nice alternatives!
What You Need
For the Cake Layers
- Flour. Back when I was first developing this recipe, cake flour was difficult for me to find and when I could, it was pricey. I developed this recipe specifically with the intention of achieving a light fluffy texture with regular ol’ all-purpose flour (and it worked *perfectly* if I do say so).
- Egg whites. It’s important that you separate your own eggs (do not use eggs from a carton) and make sure not to get even a drop of yolk in the whites. Room temperature eggs work best, so try to remember to set yours out ahead of time if you can. If you forget, use my trick to quickly bring eggs to room temperature (just make sure to thoroughly dry the eggs before cracking them).
- Milk. Whole milk is my preference, but I suspect a milk substitute (like almond milk) would work just fine. Whatever you use, ideally let it come to room temperature before adding it.
- Butter & oil. As mentioned above and used in my white cake and vanilla cake, a blend of the two balances flavor and texture of this Funfetti cake perfectly. For the oil, opt for a neutral cooking oil like canola, vegetable, or avocado oil (I like avocado oil, but it’s a bit more yellow and so colors the cake slightly). Using a particularly yellow butter or oil can affect the color of your cake.
- Baking powder. Not baking soda! It will seem like a lot, but it’s not (we’re making a big cake!). There is no baking soda in my Funfetti cake recipe, and that’s intentional. While this isn’t the main reason I don’t use baking soda, baking soda encourages browning and adding it would actually make the cake more golden inside.
- Vanilla. To maintain that pristine white color, I use clear vanilla in the cake layers. If you would rather opt for natural vanilla flavoring it will work perfectly well, just know your cake may be tinted a bit more golden.
- Sprinkles. Your sprinkle choice matters! Nonpareils can bleed into your batter and ruin that pristine white color. Stick with jimmies or quins–they add color without any bleeding.
SAM’S TIP: If you want to use cake flour instead of all-purpose flour, you must substitute properly. If you are using weights, the weight is the same; if you are using cups, you will need 4 1/2 cups of cake flour.
Frosting
This is a big three-layer cake, so you will need quite a bit of frosting to cover and decorate it. Just giving you a fair warning before anyone is alarmed by the amount of butter you’re about to see 😉.
- Butter. Yes, we are using a full pound (or four sticks) of butter here. Remember, this is a big Funfetti cake! I use unsalted butter and add salt separately, but if you use salted butter you likely won’t need to add any salt (taste-test the frosting and add a inch if needed — salt helps cut the sweetness and deepen the flavor).
- Powdered sugar. I highly recommend measuring your ingredients with a kitchen scale for the most accurate results (I link to the one I use in the recipe card, it’s inexpensive). It can be very easy to over-measure powdered sugar, much like measuring flour!
- Heavy cream. We’ll whip this into the frosting for a light and fluffy texture. Whipping cream or double cream would also work.
- Flavoring. For the frosting, I sometimes like to use Princess emulsion instead of vanilla (I also use this in my frosted animal cookies–another fun recipe). It accents the buttercream with notes of citrus and almond and keeps it from being overbearingly sweet. If you don’t have any or can’t find it, regular vanilla extract works perfectly.
SAM’S TIP: For that popular Milk Bar birthday cake look, frost your funfetti cake scantly on the outside and top with my confetti crumbs!
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 Funfetti Cake
Make the batter
When making the batter, you’ll want to start with an electric mixer or a stand mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment) to combine all of your ingredients thoroughly and properly. Creaming the butter in the beginning is actually important for the best texture.
You want to make sure everything is well-combined, but also be careful not to over-mix (this comes into play when adding the milk and then again adding the egg-whites). Over-mixing the batter can cause dense, dry, or sunken results.
Whip the egg whites
Before you begin, make sure your bowl and beaters are completely clean, dry, and grease-free. Even a tiny bit of grease can prevent your egg whites from whipping properly!
Stiff peaks are our aim here! This means your egg whites will have greatly increased in volume, they’ll be bright white in color, and they’ll be fluffy. To test that you’ve reached stiff peaks, lift your beaters straight out of the whites. The peaks should hold firm without folding over or falling back in on themselves.
Fold in the egg whites and sprinkles
Gently is the way to go! Gently stir in all of the egg whites at once along with your sprinkles.
Use a spatula for this step and not your mixer. Your aim is to NOT over-mix. Instead, the goal is to combine everything without deflating those egg whites we just spent all that time whipping. Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to ensure everything is well combined.
You will lose some of the volume as you fold the batter, but try your hardest to incorporate the egg whites gently without totally deflating them.
Bake
Use the toothpick to test your cakes for doneness; a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake should come out clean or have a few crumbs when inserted in the center of each cake.
It’s important to keep a close eye on your Funfetti cakes as they near the end of the bake time; underbaking your cake can cause it to sink, while over-baking can dry it out (even just a minute or two too long can do this).
The outsides of the cake bake into a pretty golden color, but don’t panic! The insides will still be snow white.
Decorate
Let the cake layers cool completely before you decorate the cakes. I recommend using my buttercream frosting (in the recipe card below) as it’s a classic Funfetti cake pairing, but I have a whole catalog of frosting recipes that would work well here. Just note that most of those recipes are for 2 layer cakes so you will have to scale up by at least 50%.
I also recommend doing a crumb coating on the cake before decorating. This mean applying a thin layer to the outside of the cake then freezing it for 15 minutes before continuing to decorate. This will catch any crumbs and help your frosting apply more smoothly.
SAM’S TIP: New to cake decorating? I have a guide on how to decorate a cake that’s perfect for for beginner cake decorators! You’ll learn everything from what equipment you need to how to do crumb coat.
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe makes about 12 cups of batter.
For a two layer Funfetti cake: I recommend you make my white cake recipe and add ⅓ cup of sprinkles. That recipe is actually the same as this one, but scaled down to fit two pans (and doesn’t have sprinkles, obviously!).
For a 9×13″ pan: you would technically need to reduce the recipe by ⅓. This can get tricky, so I usually recommend making the recipe as-is and using the excess batter for cupcakes (though they won’t have nice rounded tops–see below).
If you are looking for a good Funfetti cupcake recipe, I recommend making my confetti cupcakes or white cupcakes (add sprinkles) instead, as those form nice round tops. This recipe makes tasty cupcakes, but they bake up flat.
I do not recommend it, as they provide inconsistent results (and most say they are not meant for whipping). Instead, separate your own eggs and repurpose the yolks in another recipe like my pastry cream, crème brûlée, lemon crumb bars, lemon curd, key lime pie, or chocolate pie.
Yes! To do this, stir the food coloring into the batter before adding the egg whites. Gel food coloring is best for most vibrant color.
A big thank you to every one of you who has already tried my Funfetti cake recipe and reviewed it 💕 I appreciate you!
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 💜
Funfetti Cake from Scratch
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (recommended)
Ingredients
- 9 Tablespoons (127 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (236 ml) neutral cooking oil, Use canola, vegetable, or avocado oil
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 cups+ 2 Tbsp (516 g) all-purpose flour, (all of the flour goes into the cake batter, you will also need additional flour for preparing the cake pan)
- 4 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
- 1 ½ cup (355 ml) milk
- 9 (315 ml) large egg whites, room temperature preferred
- ½ cup (80 g) sprinkles, see note
Buttercream
- 1 lb (453 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 cups (750 g) powdered sugar
- 6 Tbsp (89 ml) heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons LorAnn Princess emulsion or vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare 3 8-inch round cake pans by generously greasing and flouring (be sure to shake out excess flour) and lining the bottoms of each pan with a round of parchment paper.
- In stand mixer (or using an electric hand mixer), beat butter on medium-low speed until creamy.9 Tablespoons (127 g) unsalted butter
- Add sugar and oil and beat until all ingredients are well-combined and creamy.3 cups (600 g) granulated sugar, 1 cup (236 ml) neutral cooking oil
- Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and then stir in your vanilla extract.4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt.4 cups+ 2 Tbsp (516 g) all-purpose flour, 4 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
- Measure out your milk. With mixer on medium speed, gradually alternate between adding the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Stir until each one is almost completely combined before adding the next. Pause occasionally to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.1 ½ cup (355 ml) milk
- In separate mixing bowl (use a clean, dry, and grease-free bowl, use glass or metal), combine your egg whites and stir with an electric mixer, gradually increasing speed from low to high and continuing to beat on high-speed until stiff peaks form.9 (315 ml) large egg whites
- Add egg whites and sprinkles to the batter. Using a spatula, gently fold your egg whites and sprinkles into your batter. Take care to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that ingredients are well-combined, and take care not to over-mix.½ cup (80 g) sprinkles
- Evenly divide cake batter into prepared pans.
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake layer comes out clean or with few crumbs (should not be wet). For best results, rotate your cake pans halfway through baking to ensure even baking. Cakes will be a light golden brown when done baking.
- Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Run a butter knife around the inside rim of each pan and carefully invert each onto a cooling rack.
- Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- Place butter in the bowl of a stand mixer in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Use the paddle attachment or an electric mixer to beat butter on medium-speed until smooth and creamy.1 lb (453 g) unsalted butter
- Add salt and beat again for about 20 seconds.¼ teaspoon salt
- Gradually, about 1 cup at a time, add powdered sugar, waiting until each cup is completely mixed before adding the next cup.6 cups (750 g) powdered sugar
- One Tablespoon at a time, add the heavy cream on medium-high speed, waiting until each addition is well-combined before adding the next 2 Tbsp.6 Tbsp (89 ml) heavy cream
- Add flavoring (vanilla extract or emulsion). and stir on medium-high for 30 seconds. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula to ensure all ingredients are well-combined.2 teaspoons LorAnn Princess emulsion or vanilla extract
- Transfer one layer of your cooled cake to serving platter. Use frosting to ice the top. Add the next layer, ice the top of that. Add your third layer on top and ice the top, and then do a thin “crumb coating” around the entire cake.
- Transfer to freezer for 10-15 minutes, then remove and apply a clean, thick coat of frosting around the entire cake. For more detailed decorating instructions, see my post on how to decorate a cake.
Notes
Sprinkles
Use sprinkles/jimmies or round sequin “quin” sprinkles, do NOT use nonpareils or they may bleed through your batter and ruin the coloring of your cake.Using 9″ pans
This cake may also be made in three 9″ pans, just decrease the baking time. Start checking the cakes for doneness at 25 minutes.Storing
Store this cake tightly covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This cake may also be frozen, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap then foil, for up to 3 months.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Recipe originally published 4/13/16 — text and photos updated Feb 2025
First time making this and I had to substitute with almond milk. Delicious. Not dry or plain tasting. Perfect flavor and a large batch of batter. Great for a party.
I am so glad that you enjoyed the cake and the almond milk worked well for you, Mrs. Lopez! Thank you for trying my recipe and for commenting. 🙂
If I have to bake the three layers separately because I only have one pan, will the sprinkles bleed sitting in the uncooked batter for so long?
Hi, Leah! You should be fine as long as you are NOT using nonpareils. Happy Baking! 🙂
Do you use salter or unsalted butter for the cake?
I reccomend using unsalted butter for this recipe. Enjoy, Makena! 🙂
Question…in your cupcake Funfetti recipe, you use buttermilk but in this cake recipe, you use milk…why the difference? I baked the cupcakes the other day and they were awesome…I was going to back a cake for Mother’s Day and noticed the difference…
Hi Deanie! It’s a personal preference. The buttermilk makes the cake a bit more moist and you can use it for the cake, but since the cake is stacked three layers and needs to be a bit sturdier I just use whole milk there. With the cupcakes, they don’t need to be quite as sturdy so I prefer the flavor of the buttermilk. I hope that helps 🙂
Is the calories 800 per slice?
Thanks!
Hi, Natalia! Yes, that is correct. 🙂
I want to make cupcakes. Just a dozen so I half recipe and just reduce cooking time
I am an avid baker and usually don’t stray from my own recipes but my husband really wanted a funfetti cake and since we moved to Germany I’ve had to relearn a lot of baking techniques due to the different measuring sizes and ingredients. I don’t have my own confetti cake recipe and all the reviews led me to this one. I’m not sure if it’s because of the slightly different ingredients but this cake was tooth achingly sweet. After two bites I couldn’t eat more. My husband ate his slice and another one but also said it was too sweet. I used a larger pan (10”) and made two rounds so it was a double decker cake instead of triple. I adjusted the bake time but when the cakes came out they were quite sticky and one of them even started caving in the middle – perhaps I should have let that one bake longer? I found the cake to be too moist and I didn’t feel it hold it’s shape as well as most cakes do. And the sweetness makes me stomach hurt just thinking about it. I won’t be making this again but I acknowledge there was probably some fault in my side.
Hi Elle, I’d love to help you troubleshoot this recipe to help you find success with it. This is one of my favorite cakes for its light but sturdy texture and I personally have never had an issue with it holding its shape. Based off of your other comment it seems we have different palates with regard to taste, and while reducing the sugar is not something I would recommend in general, it could be reduced in this recipe to your taste. You mentioned a difference in ingredients, could you elaborate on that?
If the cakes were sticky and started caving in then yes it was definitely not baked long enough, which would be why you found the cakes to be too moist and why they did not hold their shape as they should have (so one problem solved there!). It honestly may have contributed to the difference in taste as well. Look for the cakes to be a light golden on the exterior, to spring back if lightly touched in the center, and for a toothpick inserted in the center to come out clean or with a few moist crumbs. I really hope this helps and would love for you to be able to enjoy this recipe as much as myself and others have!
My son and his fiancé had to revisit their May 1 wedding. They wanted to keep their date and decided on an intimate ceremony in our backyard. My future DIL requested a funfetti cake. After a lot of research, I decided on your recipe (your commitment to your craft hooked me). I followed your recipe exactly and it was AMAZING! Everyone, especially my new DIL thought it was the best thing they ever had. Thank you for your part in making their wedding special.
That sounds wonderful! I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much! I appreciate you taking the time to tell me that story. 🙂
This was the first cake I have ever made from scratch. and it came out great. It was for my Granddaughter’s 11th birthday. Funfetti was her request. Your instructions are very detailed and easy to follow. I made sure had all my ingredients pre-measured, so there was not much down time while assembling everything. It took me a lot longer than your recipe indicates, but as mentioned, it was my first time, so I wanted to make sure that I was doing each step correctly.
The end result was very tasty, and not too sweet. I may never do a boxed cake again. 🙂
Thank you for posting this recipe, and keeping your blog going.
I am so glad that your granddaughter enjoyed her birthday cake! Thank you for trying my recipe, Renee! I am happy you found the instructions easy to follow and helpful. 🙂
Hi! Can I use buttermilk instead of milk?
Hi, Elaine! Yes, that will be fine. Enjoy your cake. 🙂
About to make this cake for my husband’s birthday.. I wish it was in grams.
I am in the process of updating my recipes to include grams, Ama! Unfortunately, I do not have it for this recipe yet. I hope that your husband has a nice birthday and enjoys the cake. 🙂
Not having the measurements in grams is the only thing stopping me from using this recipe🙂
Just updated 😉 Enjoy!
I am going to make this cake for my granddaughter who is turning 12 on Friday. Her favorite cake is a funfetti cake, and I am about to make my first cake from scratch. I’m a bit nervous, but I should be fine. Is it better to use Cake Flour versus All-Purpose Flour, or does it make a difference.
Happy (early) Birthday to your granddaughter, Renee! I hope that she enjoys her cake and has a wonderful celebration. Either cake flour or all-purpose flour will work in this recipe. To substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour use 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour for every cup of all-purpose flour. I hope that she loves it! 🙂
I went ahead and used the All Purpose Flour, since it was my first time making this cake. It came out great. Thank you! Now my husband is requesting a spice cake for his birthday. Do you have a Spice Cake Recipe?
I am so glad that it turned out well and everyone enjoyed it, Renee! I do have a spice cake recipe. I hope that your husband loves it! 🙂
My 2yo chose this cake for his birthday yesterday. The recipe was pretty straightforward and it came out quite nicely! I wish I had used parchment rounds in my cake pans (a step I usually don’t skimp on, but left out yesterday as I was pressed for time). Just some minor sticking to the bottom of the pan, but I’d definitely use parchment next time. I also over-whipped my egg whites a bit (definitely didn’t need 5 mins in the stand mixer) and I had a LOT of batter. Ended up with 3 generous 9” layers (not that I’m complaining!). Thanks so much for sharing!
Oh and I should note that I subbed unsweetened vanilla almond milk and Earth Balance non-soy “buttery sticks” for the dairy products (one of my kids has a severe dairy allergy) and everyone still loved it!
Happiest of Birthdays to your son, Dee Dee! I am so glad that he choose my recipe to celebrate his special day! I am sorry that you had issues with the cake sticking but glad it turned out well and everyone was able to enjoy it! I appreciate the feedback. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
I made the cake portion twice in one day. The cooking time was very off the first time and I ended up with 1 cake round cooked and 2 not cooked. I didn’t realize they weren’t cooked until I was taking them out of the round pans and they fell apart. The cooked round from the first batch fell apart too.
The second time around, I let the 3 rounds sit in the round pans until they completely cooled. Well, when releasing them, they began to fall apart. I am going to put them in the freezer overnight in plastic wrap to see if that makes them stop falling apart.
I honestly think the cake is TOO moist. Since I had so many issues with the cakes being undercooked and falling apart, I will not be using this recipe again.
Thank you for trying my recipe, Mariah! I am sorry to hear that you are having issues with your cakes. If the cake pan was prepared correctly they should come out easily. Did you generously grease and flour your pans? As far as bake time, it really depends on the size pan that you used. If you used 8-inch cake pans it should take 35-40 minutes to bake. You do not want to remove the pans until you can insert a toothpick in the center of each cake layer comes out clean or with few crumbs (should not be wet). Also, did you rotate your cake pans halfway through baking to ensure even baking? Again, I am really sorry that you experienced issues. I am happy to troubleshoot further. 🙂
I did everything on your list except turn the pans halfway through baking. I used 8 inch cake pans.
Hello!
I made this cake today, I have to say that it has great flavor but found it too dense for my taste. I was expecting a lighter fluffier cake, did I do something wrong? I followed the recipe to the T. The cake is for tomorrow so I still have time to redeem myself, lol. Many Thanks 🤗
Thank you so much for trying my recipe, Lynette! Two things come to mind… over-mixing your batter or too much flour was added. When you over mix your batter, air get incorporated, when it bakes it falls or sinks becoming dense. If the cake is dry and not fluffy, it also makes me think that too much flour may have been added. This is the most common mistake in baking so I have created a guide on how to measure flour properly that can be used as a reference for next time. I hope that helps! 🙂
Hi Sam,
Thank You so much for your quick response. I filled up my cups of flour straight from the the pack, so that’s what I did wrong 😩Thanks for explaining me this. I’ll try the recipe again next week .
Many Blessings
Lynette
Absolutely! I am sorry that you had an issue, Lynette. I hope that this helps and your next cake comes out perfectly. 🙂