THE BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies (Bakery-Style)

Name: The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies (Bakery Style)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 ¾ cups (250g) all-purpose flour*; ¾ tsp baking soda; ¼ tsp salt ((or ¾ tsp salt if using unsalted butter)); 10 tbsp (140g) salted butter, (at room temperature); ¾ cup (165g) packed dark brown sugar**; ⅓ cup plus 1 tbsp (80g) granulated sugar; 1 tsp (5ml) pure vanilla extract; 1 tsp (5ml) honey or corn syrup; 1 large egg, (at room temperature); 7 oz (200g) dark chocolate (55-70% cocoa),; flaky sea salt

Updated: May 4, 2026 by christina.marsigliese · 782 Comments

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Your search for the BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies ends here because THIS IS IT. My perfected recipe for bakery-style chocolate chip cookies yields cookies that are golden caramelized around the edges with crispy edges, super chewy and a bit gooey chewy insides. They are exactly what you'd expect at a high-end bakery and they are HEAVEN. This recipe is designed with science to make cookies that stay chewy for days and aren't just good the day you make them. It comes from my cookbook called "Scientifically Sweet Chocolate". You can order it on Amazon and it features SO MANY other incredible chocolate cookie and bar recipes, as well as cakes, pies, tarts and delicious desserts. Be sure to read down below in the post to learn about cookie science and see my expert baking tips for achieving the best chocolate chip cookies. If you love this recipe, then I think you will also enjoy my Bakery Style Double Chocolate Cookies as well! I also have the viral Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe (a reader favorite) and my chef's choice Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies.

bakery-style chocolate chip cookies on baking sheet

WHAT MAKES THESE THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES?

Rich butterscotch flavor - these cookies have a deep rich buttery brown sugar flavor that is not overly sweet with underlying notes of natural vanilla.
Perfect size - each cookie is a nice large size (but not too large) to give you a great contrast of textures. The ideal cookie size for me is about 3 inches across and ½ inch high. If you want huge cookies, check out my Levain Bakery Copycat Cookies.
Crisp edges and soft gooey middles - to me, bakery-style doesn't just mean BIG - it's about the textures and the flavor! Just like the cookies from a great bakery, these have crisp golden caramelized edges, and they are soft in the middle.
Super chewy chocolate chip cookies - if you like chewy cookies, these are certainly for you! They stay chewy for days thanks to my secret ingredient that you can read about below.
Deeply golden - say goodbye to pale cookies. These bake up with a bakery-worthy golden brown surface which is a testament to their rich caramelized flavor.
Dark chocolate chunks - puddles of melted dark chocolate chunks instead of chips takes these to a whole other level!
Easy method - the recipe is simple and I actually find the best results come from when you mix it by hand with a wide spatula.

bakery-style chocolate chip cookies on baking sheet with chocolate chunks

COOKIE SCIENCE: WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

You can certainly expect some secret tips from me since I am a Food Scientist after all. The secret to the best chocolate chip cookies comes down to chemistry. Firstly it is about ingredient ratios. The amount of butter, sugar, flour and egg is very important.

Ratio of Butter: Butter should be the main flavor in these bakery-style chocolate chip cookies. Getting the right amount of butter to egg ratio is very important to achieve the crisp edges, deeply golden color and even spread for a cookie that's not too thin and not too thick (ie. the perfect bakery-style size and shape). Too much egg in this particular recipe will dominate the taste and also make the texture more cakey rather than chewy.
Sugar ratio: Chocolate chip cookies should have a high ratio of brown sugar:granulated sugar as this is what differentiates it from a regular sugar cookie. I always recommend dark brown sugar as it has twice as much molasses compared to light brown sugar. Molasses will give these cookies their characteristic butterscotch taste as well as contribute to the soft and chewy texture.
Egg ratio: The liquid in egg serves to help dissolve sugar in the dough but too much will prevent the edges from becoming crisp and also delay browning. That means you will need to bake the cookies longer to develop the color, and they will often become dried out before that point.
Amount of Flour: It is so important to either weigh your ingredients using a scale, or measure your flour correctly without packing it into your measuring cup. Too much flour will lead to thick cookies, but they will be more doughy and less gooey. Too little flour will make a very soft dough that will spread too much and lead to greasy cookies.
Baking soda: Not only is baking soda important to help the cookies spread, but it also gives them color. Baking soda is an alkaline ingredient (the opposite of an acid), and the Maillard Browning reaction is encouraged in an alkaline environment. Too much baking soda means the cookies will spread too much and may burn too quickly, while not enough means the cookies will not spread much at all and will be pale in color.
No baking powder: I say it in my cookbooks all the time, but I don't trust a chocolate chip cookie recipe with baking powder (haha). Baking powder will lead to a paler color, less flavor development and sometimes cakier cookies. You only need baking soda to raise and spread a good chocolate chip cookie dough because the acid from the brown sugar is enough to react with it while leaving just enough residual unreacted soda to encourage Maillard Browning (see below).
A bit of honey or corn syrup: This is my secret ingredient. It serves two purposes. Firstly, honey and corn syrup are humectants which means that they are water-binding ingredients. They will lock in the moisture and keep these cookies chewy. Secondly, honey in particular is a source of fructose which is a reducing sugar (a type of sugar with a specific chemical composition) and it will react with proteins more readily in the delicious browning reaction called "Maillard Browning". Use a light-tasting and light-colored honey (not amber honey) so that it doesn't overpower the flavor.
Chill the cookie dough: Cookie dough that is not chilled will spread more, have less browning and have a coarser texture with less chewiness. Time in the fridge allows the flour to hydrate and absorb this moisture while also letting the baking soda to evenly absorb for more pronounced Maillard Reactions that will develop richer flavor in the cookie dough. A chilled cookie dough also guards against over-spreading which leads to thicker and more uniform cookies.

bakery-style chocolate chip cookies stacked

WHY DO YOU NEED TO CHILL COOKIE DOUGH?

Refrigerating cookie dough serves so many purposes and not just to prevent spreading. It improves flavor, color, texture and controls spread. Many sources will tell you that refrigerating cookie dough merely chills it down to firm up the butter and make a colder dough which slows spreading during baking. While this is true, it is not the sole purpose. Chilling cookie dough is important to allow the dough time rest, as opposed to resting at room temperature which would pose a food safety issue.

You can't rush this step by freezing because TIME is the secret. Refrigerating cookie dough serves the following purposes:

Hydrates the flour - this resting time allows flour to absorb free water (moisture from eggs and brown sugar). Rested dough feels drier to the touch, but the moisture held up by flour improves texture to keep cookies moist and chewy in the middle yet still crisp around the edges.
Promotes uniform baking - time allows baking soda to fully hydrate and incorporate evenly into the cookie dough for enhanced browning and even baking. This browning also means that cookies will have a richer flavor with more pronounced butterscotch flavor (see image below for reference). Basically, they will be more delicious!
Increases shelf life - chilled cookie dough has a greater potential to retain moisture during baking and will remain chewy for longer.

If you are short on time, or you simply want to bake cookies right away, try my No Chill Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe that is designed to give you rich flavor and chewy texture without any wait.

showing impact of chilling cookie dough and how it affects baking results

Reader Review

bakery style chocolate chip cookies review

"These cookies are a game changer with the addition of honey in the recipe. Trust me, you need to try these cookies ASAP! Run, don't walk to your kitchen and start baking!"

- @bakelikebecca

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BAKING POWDER AND BAKING SODA?

Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate, which is an alkaline (basic - high pH) compound that will react with acids when when dissolved in liquid to react rapidly and create carbon dioxide gas bubbles. In generally creates a more coarse, open texture.

Baking powder is a mixture of baking soda and powdered acids so it does not need additional acid ingredients to react. Once it comes into contact with a liquid, the powdered acid and base dissolve and react with each other to create carbon dioxide bubbles. Most retail baking powder products are double acting, which means that they contain two different powdered acids that react at different speeds and with different stimulants. One reacts immediately upon mixing with water while another only reacts after exposure to heat during baking. Baking powder generally creates a finer, more crumbly texture.

WHAT IS MAILLARD BROWNING?

Maillard Browning or the "Maillard Reaction" is a delicious chemical reaction between the amino acids in proteins and certain sugars (called reducing sugars) that creates the beautiful brown color and flavor of chocolate chip cookies. When the proteins from egg and flour react with these sugars, they form brown compounds that taste like caramel, toffee, roasted nuts and toasty bread. YUM! This is the same reaction that happens when you sear a steak or bake bread.

INGREDIENTS FOR CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Butter - there is no substitute for butter in chocolate chip cookies in my opinion! It is the foundation of the rich butterscotch flavor after all. In this recipe, you can use salted or unsalted butter, but if you choose unsalted then I recommend doubling the added salt to ½ teaspoon. I like to use salted butter because it adds another level of richness.
Granulated sugar - this recipe uses a combination of simple white granulated sugar and brown sugar. White sugar helps create the crunchy caramelized edges. I wouldn't recommend reducing the sugar because it will compromise the chewy texture.
Brown sugar - I highly recommend dark brown sugar for this recipe as it has twice as much molasses as light brown sugar and will make a big difference to the flavor. It will also make the dough more acidic which means it will react more thoroughly with the baking soda so that you won't be left with a soapy taste (a defect I find common in many chocolate chip cookie recipes). If you only have light brown sugar, then I recommend using 200g light brown sugar with 45g granulated sugar.
Egg - you'll need one whole egg for this recipe. It's the perfect amount of moisture to make these cookies chewy and not cakey.

bakery style chocolate chip cookies ingredients

bakery style chocolate chip cookies stacked on cooling rack with melty chocolate

Pure vanilla extract - good vanilla is absolutely essential to making delicious chocolate chip cookies. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
Salt - don't leave out the salt! It really elevates the rich buttery, caramel flavors! It also enhances the chocolate taste and balances the sweetness. I also love to top these cookies with flaky sea salt after they're baked and while the chocolate is still warm.
All purpose flour - regular unbleached all-purpose flour makes the best chewy chocolate chip cookies in my opinion.
Dark chocolate chunks - I highly recommend chopping chocolate from a bar instead of using chips. Why? That's because chocolate that is made into bars, also known as "tablets", has a higher cocoa butter content so that it can be poured into molds at the factory and it typically melts smoother than chocolate chips to give you puddles of chocolate in the cookies. I love this effect! Chocolate chips will hold their shape and spread less.
Honey or corn syrup - it's the secret ingredient! Honey is a moisture trap so it will keep the cookies soft and chewy for days. You need any type of liquid/runny honey. Use a light-tasting and light-colored honey (not amber honey) so that it doesn't overpower the flavor.

WHY BAKING SODA IS BEST FOR CHEWY COOKIES

My preferred chocolate chip cookies are golden, chewy and slightly gooey inside with crisp edges. The reactions that make all of this happen are accelerated in alkaline conditions which are created by the addition of baking soda (bicarbonate of soda). There is enough acidity from the molasses in brown sugar to react with it and the residual bicarbonate will help keep the dough slightly alkaline so that delicious Maillard Browning reactions are encouraged. Baking soda produces cookies that are more deeply brown with a denser texture. One of the most important ways to control your cookie shape and texture is by changing the quantity of baking soda (see the FAQ section below to learn how to make thicker cookies with less baking soda).

Chocolate chip cookie recipes with baking powder typically take longer to brown and don't spread which often leads to over-baking in order to achieve a darker color so that the resulting cookie is dry. Baking powder generally produces puffier, cakier cookies that rise higher during baking, producing a more crumbly texture from the fine air bubbles. They also have smoother, shinier tops and a muted flavor so the cookies tend to be more bland.

bakery style chocolate chip cookies on cooling rack with flaky salt

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

STEP 1). Cream together butter and sugar. You can use an electric stand mixer, a handheld mixer or do this by hand with a spatula. You want to mix until slightly pale and a bit fluffy, but not overly creamed. It will still look like a thick paste or damp sand and this will leave us with chewy cookies. Over-mixing at this point would make more crisp cookies.
STEP 2). Mix in the secret ingredient. Add honey or corn syrup and mix until combined and smooth.
STEP 3). Mix in egg. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until well incorporated.
STEP 4). Combine dry ingredients. Blend flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl and whisk it to blend evenly. Then, add it to the butter mixture and mix it in until evenly combined.
STEP 5). Fold in chocolate chunks. I only ever use dark chocolate chunks for these bakery-style cookies. Chop it up and fold it into the cookie dough. Dark chocolate with a higher cocoa content will melt better to give these luxurious pools of chocolate. Chips will hold their shape and won't melt into the cookie. I find milk chocolate too sweet for these cookies and they also don't melt as well due to the high sugar content.
STEP 6). Chill the cookie dough. This is crucial to developing the chewy texture and rich caramelized flavor and golden color. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours for best results.
STEP 7). Bake until golden on the edges and still soft in the middle. Do not over-bake as they will continue cooking on the hot baking tray.

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Have salted butter at room temperature for at least 2 hours so it is softened. — Have salted butter at room temperature for at least 2 hours until it is softened.

Combine butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth and fluffy. — Combine butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth and slightly fluffy.

Shape the dough into a slab, score it, wrap well and refrigerate.

The round shape helps them bake evenly and creates a chewier center. — The compact round shape helps them bake evenly and creates a chewier center.

Place onto parchment-lined trays with space between.

Sprinkle with flaky sea salt while warm.

Crisp and golden outside, soft and chewy inside.

EXPERT TIPS FOR BAKERY-STYLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Measure the secret ingredient precisely! You only need a level teaspoon (that's 5ml) of honey or corn syrup in this recipe is the key to making them stay chewy for days. Honey is a humectant which means it is an ingredient that binds water tightly and prevents them from drying out. It is also acidic so it will react with the baking soda to help the cookies spread just the right amount. You can use corn syrup, but do not use maple syrup as it wouldn't have the same effect.
Use light-tasting honey. Use a light-tasting and light-colored honey (not amber honey) so that it doesn't overpower the flavor. Functionally, though, any type will work.
Don't skip the salt. The right amount of salt is so important. I use salted butter because there's something about salted butter that provides an underlying richness that can't be quite copied by adding salt separately. You can use unsalted butter if that is all you have on hand, and in that case increase the total salt in the recipe to ¾ teaspoon. BUT, if you have salted butter then you will not regret it!
Use regular large size eggs. Large eggs weigh 57g. Using an extra large egg will add up to 2 teaspoons more liquid to the cookie dough which can throw off the moisture balance and make the cookies spread too much.
Refrigerate the cookie dough for at least 4 hours. Refrigerating cookie dough serves several purposes: 1) Flour hydration - time in the fridge allows the flour to fully hydrate from the moisture of the egg and the water in the butter. If the flour is evenly hydrated, the cookies will be thicker and they will bake more evenly; 2) Flavor development -as the baking soda becomes more evenly incorporated with the flour hydration, the cookies will brown more evenly which will help them develop flavor more quickly; 3) Chills the butter - butter in the cookie dough will also firm up in the fridge so that the cookies wont be so greasy after they've baked. Chilled fat will also spread less readily during the initial stages of baking so the cookies won't spread uncontrollably; and 4) Increases shelf life - chilled cookie dough makes cookies that stay chewy longer and slows staling.
Use couverture chocolate. Couverture chocolate is chocolate that is designed for enrobing, coating and dipping. It is the chocolate used by professional chocolatiers because it has a high cocoa butter content to make it more fluid. This extra cocoa butter gives chocolate excellent meltability so it will melt into the cookie dough during baking which helps it to spread and creates these glistening puddles of chocolate at the surface. It also creates a laminated effect of layers of chocolate between cookie dough as opposed to chocolate chips which have less cocoa butter and remain unchanged, holding their "drop" shape in the cookie dough. These couverture chocolate discs are incredible, or you can also chop chocolate from a couverture block.
Use a kitchen scale. For best results, weigh your ingredients according to the measurements in the recipe card below using a kitchen scale.
Use a cookie scoop to portion dough evenly so each cookie bakes at the same rate.

bakery style chocolate chip cookies stacked with melty chocolate

HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES WITH CHEWY TEXTURE

Do not overdo the creaming step. Mix the butter with sugar only until smooth and like a damp sand, but not until pale. Over-mixing will make cookies that are crisp, but not as chewy.
Use baking soda only - not baking powder. Baking soda is alkaline and promotes browning through Maillard reactions (delicious flavor reactions) to produce a nice rich flavor. Baking powder is more acidic and creates a cakier texture as well as a more pale color.
Measure flour accurately. Too much flour will leave you with dry and more crumbly cookies that will taste more doughy than butterscotch-y and caramel-like.
Do not over-bake. Cookies will continue to cook on the hot baking tray, so don't wait for them to get completely golden all over in the oven. Once they are golden brown around the edges and puffed on top with cracks, the are ready. They should still be soft in the middle and will deflate as they cool.

bakery-style chocolate chip cookie with bite

RECIPE FAQ

What is a substitute for honey?

Honey is more functional than flavor in this recipe as it creates an ultra chewy texture, longer shelf life and enhanced browning (which produces color and flavor). Although any type of honey will work, I recommend a light-tasting honey and not a dark amber one. If you don't have honey, you can use an equal amount of corn syrup. I do not recommend maple syrup since it has a higher moisture content and different sugar composition which will not produce the same results.

Can I use light brown sugar for chocolate chip cookies?

I highly recommend dark brown sugar for this recipe as it has twice as much molasses as light brown sugar and will make a big difference to the flavor. It will also make the dough more acidic which means it will react more thoroughly with the baking soda so that you won't be left with a soapy taste (a defect I find common in many chocolate chip cookie recipes). If you only have light brown sugar, then I recommend using 200g light brown sugar with 45g granulated sugar.

What type of chocolate is best for bakery style chocolate chip cookies?

For the best results, use dark chocolate with over 60% cocoa solids, and use a high quality block of chocolate that you chop into chunks.

Do I need to chill the cookie dough?

Chilling this cookie dough is so important for the best results. Of course you can bake them right away, but they will not be as golden, as thick or as chewy and flavorful as they could be if you chill the dough. Ideally you would chill the dough for a minimum of 4 hours, and overnight (8 hours) will lend the richest flavor and chewiest texture. Chilled cookie dough also makes cookies with a longer shelf life so they will stay chewy for longer and be slower to stale.

What if I don't have time to chill the cookie dough?

If you only have time to chill the dough for 2 hours (this is the very minimum that I would recommend), then I suggest reducing the baking soda to ½ teaspoon. This will control the spreading because a dough that hasn't had time to absorb the moisture will spread more than one that is chilled.

Why did my cookies spread too much?

If your cookies spread a lot, then it could be that the dough wasn't chilled long enough, there was too much honey added (you only need just 1 level teaspoon), too much baking soda, or you did not add the right amount of flour. Too little flour will mean the cookies will not have enough structure to hold their shape and the dough will be too wet. The best way to measure the flour is using a scale to ensure you use the right amount. Too much will make the cookies thick and less chewy, but too little will mean they will be crispy and thin.

How do I make thicker chocolate chip cookies?

If you prefer thicker cookies, you can reduce the baking soda to ½ teaspoon instead of ¾ teaspoon. The cookies will be thick and even gooier in the middle. You can also add 2 tablespoon of additional flour (that would be 18g).

How do you get melty puddles of chocolate in chocolate chip cookies?

To get melted puddles with irregular shapes like in these photos, use chopped chocolate from a bar with over 70% cocoa solids. The darker the better when it comes to meltiness because the higher the total cocoa content, the more cocoa butter it will have and that high fat content is what makes chocolate melt and spread easier. Also, block chocolate is tempered as a block that you will break up and expose all sorts of jagged edges whereas chips are tempered in a specific shape that will stay in place.

Why is bar chocolate better than chocolate chips for chocolate chip cookies?

When you chop chocolate from a block you make a variety of different shapes and shards that will get in all the crevices of the cookie dough. So, use your favorite dark chocolate - the kind that you snack on. Using block chocolate instead of chips will also give you better texture in the cookies. Block chocolate has a higher cocoa butter content so it will melt more evenly and readily to create pools of chocolate that will melt into the crevices. It also helps the dough spread. You can also use dark chocolate feves, callets or discs which are often made from couverture chocolate (high cocoa butter chocolate).

STORAGE AND FREEZING

How do I store bakery style chocolate chip cookies?

These cookies are best stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days. They stay nice and soft and chewy!

Can I freeze chocolate chip cookies after baking?

Just place the cooled cookies in a resealable freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. They just need 5-10 minutes to thaw.

How do I freeze chocolate chip cookie dough?

You can freeze the cookie dough two ways:
1) Wrap all of the dough (or any leftover dough) in plastic wrap, then place it in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, thaw the dough and bake as directed.
2) Scoop and portion the dough into balls, then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze individually. Once frozen, place them in a freezer bag and keep frozen for up to 3 months.

How to serve chocolate chip cookies?

With nothing more than a tall glass of cold milk!

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