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Flat cookies on the left and thick cookies on the right.
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5 from 2 votes

Why are my Cookies flat? 14 reasons & how to fix them!

At one point or another, many bakers will find themselves asking why are my cookies flat? This ultimate cookie guide covers the top reasons for flat cookies and the best remedies to keep them from spreading out too much in the future. I will also share the best baking secret with you on how to fix flat cookies
Prep Time5 minutes
Total Time5 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 51kcal
Author: Katalin Nagy

Ingredients

  • 1 Cookie

Instructions

1. The butter was too soft

  • How to fix it? Use room temperature butter that is plible but not too soft or runny

2. The oven is too hot

  • Use an oven thermometer to measure the correct oven temperature

3. Hot cookies sheets were used

  • Purchase multiple cookie sheets and allow time between batches to let them cool

4. Ingredients were not measured correctly

  • Use a digital scale to measure your ingredients for even something as simple as cookies

5. The wrong kind of fat was used

  • Use the fat that is required in the recipe eg. do not replace butter with margarine or crisco

6. The dookie dough was not chilled before baking

  • Respect the chilling time in the recipe

7. The butter and sugar were under mixed or over mixed

  • Be sure to start with room-temperature butter. Cold butter won't properly cream. Typically it will take 2-3 minutes to cream the butter and sugar, but depending on if you're mixing with a rubber spatulahand mixer, or stand mixer, this time could slightly differ.

8. The cookies were rolled out too thin

  • When rolling out cookies, be sure to refer to the recipe and use a ruler to measure the correct thickness. 

9. Greased cookie sheets were used

  • Rather than greasing your cookie sheets, using silicone baking mats or parchment paper will keep your cookies from sticking.

10. Baking soda old or expired

  • Replace your baking powder and baking soda regularly to maintain freshness. Once opened, each should be replaced every six months.

11. Too many cookies baked at the same time

  • Be sure to give the cookie dough balls at least 2-3 inches of space to avoid accidentally baking one giant cookie. Additionally, always bake one tray of cookies at a time on the center rack.

12. Too few mix-ins

  • Be sure to follow the chocolate chip cookie recipe closely and use the listed amount of mix-ins.

13. Low quality ingredients or substitues were used

  • Try to purchase the best quality ingredients you can accesss eg. good qualuty chocolate and butte. Avoid substitues unless you are an experienced baked and know how to reformulate the recipe.

14. You are using an unrealiable recipe

  • It's important to use recipes from trusted and experienced bakers. Check the ratings and reviews others gave on the recipe card.

Nutrition

Calories: 51kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 35mg | Potassium: 9mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 9IU | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 0.3mg