This is my favorite from-scratch vanilla cake recipe that was created after TONS of recipe testing in search of the perfect vanilla cake – one that has the light and fluffy texture of box cake mix, is packed with vanilla flavor, and super easy to make. This one checks all of those boxes and has become a go-to for me and for many of you, which makes me so happy! Pair it with vanilla buttercream and pretty sprinkles for the ultimate vanilla birthday cake, or pair it with any of my other frostings to mix it up. It goes well with everything!
One reader, Haley, says: “1000% this is the best vanilla cake recipe I have ever made. I quite literally NEVER leave reviews on things that I try, but there is no way that I could go without telling you how DELICIOUS this cake is.” ★★★★★
From-Scratch Vanilla Cake that Rivals Box Mix
I have a little confession to make: when I first started making cakes, my secret go-to for far too long was the box vanilla cake mix by Betty Crocker.
Phew. Now you know.
Since I became accustomed to the light and fluffy texture of said box mix, every time I tried to make a vanilla cake from scratch, the result seemed off. Blame it on the lack of Propylene Glycol Mono (or the handful of other ingredients in box mixes that you’ve never heard of), but my from-scratch vanilla cakes always ended up too dense, tasted a little cornbread-ish, and just didn’t have that fluffy appeal. Finding a go-to vanilla cake recipe from scratch felt like a mountain I had to climb, but after (what felt like) five hundred tries and a whole lot of not giving up, I’ve found a recipe that is beyond my wildest cake dreams.
Perfect Vanilla Cake Ingredients & Substitutions
This vanilla cake is soft and moist, so easy to whip up, and tastes like a dream. There are some key ingredients that make it this way, and I’ve listed them below. I’ve also shared some substitutions that can be made just in case you’re in a pinch:
- Cake Flour. To achieve the super soft texture in this cake, I swear by cake flour. It produces a much fluffier cake than all-purpose (or plain) flour because of its lower protein content (the more protein in your flour the stiffer the dough and less ability to maintain moisture). You can find cake flour at most grocery stores, but if all you’ve got is all-purpose flour in your pantry, here are instructions for how to make your own cake flour. Keep in mind that if you do use the homemade version, the gram measurement will weigh more (325g instead of 290g) since all-purpose flour is heavier than cake flour.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda. The leavening agents in this recipe. Using both makes it the perfect amount of fluffy.
- Unsalted Butter. The main fat in this recipe, which adds lots of moisture, great structure, and rich flavor. If you only have salted butter on hand, you can substitute that but be sure to omit the salt in the recipe if you do.
- Granulated Sugar. This not only sweetens the cake, it creates a tender crumb as well. You can substitute this with caster sugar if you wish and it will be even more soft.
- Whole Eggs + Egg Whites. I use two large eggs and two large egg whites in this recipe. The egg whites keep the cake lighter while adding the perfect amount of protein and binding power.
- Sour Cream. Sour cream adds the perfect amount of moisture to this cake. If you don’t have that locally you can substitute it for plain yogurt or Crème fraîche.
- Pure Vanilla Extract. I use an entire tablespoon of vanilla extract in this cake, which takes the flavor beyond! I recommend using a quality vanilla extract here (not imitation). You can substitute the extract for vanilla bean paste if you wish.
- Whole Milk. Since it has the highest fat percentage of any milk (aside from buttermilk), the whole milk creates a rich crumb while binding the ingredients together. You can technically substitute this for another kind of milk, but whole milk is going to yield the best results.
Vanilla Cake Baking Tips for Success
Even if you have all the right ingredients, it’s important to follow a few ground rules when it comes to baking this cake (or really any cake). Here are a few best practices that will really set you up for success:
- Start with room temperature ingredients. Cake baking is a science, and when ingredients like eggs, butter, and dairy are at room temperature, they form an emulsion which traps air in the batter. Once you place that batter in the oven, the trapped air expands and gives your cake a good rise and lovely, tender crumb. It’ll only happen when you use room temperature ingredients, so if you want your cake to live up to it’s true potential, don’t skip this step.
- Use fresh baking powder and baking soda. Each of these leavening agents are responsible for helping your cake to rise. Once their containers are open, they only have a six month shelf life! When they’re past their expiration date, the chemical reaction that causes your cake to rise won’t happen. If you want those cakes to rise beautifully, make sure your baking powder and baking soda are within that 6 month window.
- Use the paddle attachment on your stand mixer. Also known as the “flat beater” attachment, the paddle attachment helps incorporate just the right amount of air. Other attachments might add too much air to your cake batter, causing them to become over-mixed and potentially sink in the baking process. If you don’t have a stand mixer, an electric hand mixer works just fine.
- Be careful not to over or under mix. Under-mixing the batter will prevent important chemical reactions from happening in your cake batter, and over-mixing will lead to too much gluten development (aka a dense cake). In order to help you mix for the right amount of time, I’ve listed all of the mixing times in the recipe below. Follow those exactly for best results!
- Know your oven. I’ve written this recipe (and all of my recipes) for a conventional oven. If you have a convection or fan-assisted oven, you’ll want to reduce the baking temperature to 325ºF (163ºC) and check for doneness a few minutes earlier than specified.
Here’s a quick video to show you the process for making this vanilla cake:
If you love recipe videos like this one, be sure to check out my YouTube channel! I’ve got a growing collection of cake recipes, decorating tutorials, and Cake Basics over there. Hit the subscribe button on my page so you never miss a new video.
What Frosting to Pair with Vanilla Cake
This vanilla cake pairs well with so many buttercream flavors, but if you want to keep things on the vanilla spectrum, try pairing it with a double batch of my Vanilla Buttercream Recipe. It does not disappoint!
If you’d rather switch things up, a double batch of any of my frosting recipes will work great! I’ve got recipes for alternative cake fillings here as well.
Updates
In 2022: I slightly changed the measurements of these same ingredients to make this cake even more soft and light! The original recipe is in this youtube video if you’ve come to love that one.
In 2025: I finally updated the photos to show more of the inside of the cake! The exterior decoration changed to reflect a simpler design as well. Basically a smooth buttercream finish, these pretty rainbow sprinkles, and swirls on top created with Wilton Tip 4B.
Perfect Vanilla Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Vanilla Cake
- 2 3/4 Cups (290g) sifted cake flour* DIY recipe in notes
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 Cup (170g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 Cups (300g) granulated white sugar
- 2 large eggs + 2 egg whites, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream, room temperature
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 Cup (240ml) whole milk, room temperature
Vanilla Frosting
- 2 batches vanilla buttercream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare three 6-inch cake pans or two 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with a cooking spray (Baker's Joy is my favorite) and fitting a parchment paper circle to the bottom of the pan.
- Sift the cake flour and then measure by spooning and leveling it in your measuring cup. Add the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer (a handheld mixer works fine too!), beat the butter on high for two minutes until it's light and creamy. Add in the sugar and continue to mix on medium-high for another two minutes. Turn the mixer to low and add the eggs and egg whites, one at a time, mixing until just combined and scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed. Add the vanilla and sour cream, turn the mixer to high, and beat for one full minute. It will look curdled at this point, but don’t worry – it will become smooth cake batter at the end.
- Add in the dry ingredients all at once and turn the mixer to low speed. Mix until just combined, then slowly pour in the milk. Continue to mix on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and give it a few stirs with a whisk to make sure there are no lumps. The batter will be slightly thick.
- Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes. They're done when they spring back to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pan for five minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack for an additional few hours of cooling. Make sure they're entirely room temperature before filling and frosting with a double batch of my vanilla buttercream (or any frosting!).
Finally a perfect Vanilla cake recipe. I made this cake for my husband’s birthday and I must say that it’s the best Vanilla sponge ever❤️Wanna Thank you from the bottom of my heart. So glad that I found this page, would love to try other recipes from your website. Loads of love
That makes me beyond happy, Nish! Thank you for letting me know 🙂
Hi there! I am going to use this recipe to make my sister’s wedding sheet cake and wondering if you know how many batches I would need to make a sheet cake in a 18″ X 26″ pan.
Thank you!
Hi Nicole! I have never tried this recipe in a pan that size, but from research it looks like it will require 14-16 Cups of cake batter. My recipe makes about 6 Cups of cake batter, so I think you’ll need about 2.5 batches. Hope that helps!
Thanks Whitney for all of your great suggestions and tips! You have been such a big help. I have had a home based cake business for a long time. My question is the price of butter is getting so high that I wanted to ask how would it change your recipes if I used a good quality of vegetable oil for the butter in your cake recipes? I’ve been using half butter and half Crisco in my icing recipe, for years, along with meringue powder plus Dream Whip, a powdered whipped topping mix ( I add this as a powder). Found this recipe many years ago and it is a high temperature/humidity icing that tastes great. (was reading your comments about what you do to adjust your recipe for high temperatures. Would appreciate any suggestions about using oil verses butter in you cake recipes. Thanks so much!
Hi Mary! I haven’t ever tried subbing oil for butter in my recipes so I’m not sure what the final result would be. I will certainly let you know if I test that someday and if you decide to experiment let me know how it goes!
Hi, I’m making this cake right now, and everything was at room temp when I added it all but the batter still looks split. I’m not sure if my butter was at room temp for too long (it was very very soft when I added it, almost like it was melted although I didn’t add any heat). It’s smooth when I tasted it so I’m not sure if the look of it is from the sour cream or if I did something wrong.
Hi Emily! Does the batter look split after mixing in the milk at the end or after mixing in the sour cream? The batter tends to look curdled after adding the sour cream but should come together into a smooth consistency by the end of the recipe. It does sound like the butter was too soft, which can definitely affect the consistency of the batter and outcome of the cake. Usually the cake can sink in the baking process if the butter is too warm. How did the cake turn out?
Hi Whitney, I saw this cake recipe on your instagram and I’m so excited to try it! In the post you used a pink frosting with funfetti and I was just wondering if this was the vanilla bean frosting with colouring added or another frosting entirely? It looked so pretty and I wanted to match it perfectly. Thank you
Hi Leah! That pink cake I posted on Instagram is this same cake recipe and same vanilla buttercream recipe, just decorated differently! Here’s the buttercream recipe (double batch for a 3 layer cake): https://sugarandsparrow.com/vanilla-buttercream-recipe/
Hi Whitney!
I did put my question on your Instagram post today as well. Sorry for asking twice! I have enjoyed many of your cake and frosting recipes but can’t recall if I have tried your vanilla cake. With your changes, I am going to give it a go! In the past, I have made cakes, namely vanilla, with a combo of all purpose and cake flours, splitting the amounts equally. Do you have any thoughts on the outcome for this cake if I was to do the same? Thank you.
Hi Paula! I have never tried that before, but you are welcome to experiment! The reason I use all cake flour is to make the cake softer/fluffier, so I would imagine that subbing half with all purpose flour would make the cake slightly more dense. Let me know if you try it!
Hey Whitney! I am so thankful I found you, and your recipes. They have shown me a passion I never knew I had!
I am making a 1/2 sheet cake for my friend for thanksgiving this year and I really want to use this perfect recipe, but I’m not sure if I need to double or how to go about it. can you help?
Thank you so much!!
Hi Tana! I’m so happy you’ve found a passion for baking and that my recipes are helping! I’m cheering you on. So for the 1/2 sheet, if you’re baking in a short (1″ tall) pan, you’ll just need one batch of this recipe. It should only need about 10-15 min in the oven at 350F. If it’s a taller pan, you’ll want to make 1.75 batches (or round up to 2 batches and be sure to fill the pan no more than 1/2 full). This will take longer to bake, about 25-30 min. Hope that helps!
Hi! Can I ask how come you use granulated sugar and not caster sugar? We usually use caster sugar in Ireland for cakes so I’m just wondering is there any reason or does it matter?
Hi Saoirse! We don’t have caster sugar readily available in the US (granulated sugar is the most widely used here), but you can absolutely use caster sugar in my recipes! It should make the cake even more soft 🙂
What’s the consistency of the batter? I’m trying to make a tiger cake and put stripes on the inside. My first attempt failed so I want to try your recipe. Also would food gel affect the batter.
Hi Olivia! The batter is fairly thick. I’ve never tried a tiger striped cake before though! That sounds so cool!
I made as cupcakes for a bridal shower over the weekend and they were soo delicious! Moist and the perfect vanilla flavor. Your recipes are bomb.com! Thank you 🙂
Yay, Melissa! I’m so happy this recipe was a hit!!
Hi Whitney, this is a lovely recipe, when I made it my sponges (divided into three 6’’ pans) didn’t rise that much, they came out level and just about the same height as the batter. Not sure what I did wrong as I used the exact leavening process. Any ideas ?
Thanks
Victoria
Hi Victoria! The cake layers should rise to about 2 inches tall in the baking process. Did you make any substitutions in the recipe? Also, are your leavening agents (baking powder and baking soda) less than 6 months old?
Hi Whitney,
Thanks for all the beautiful content you share. I’m making my daughters 1st birthday cake and want it to be your vanilla cake. I did a practice run last month with my 6” x 3” pans x3. They didn’t come out as high as what I expected, I used everything to a T including proper cake flour. I then worked out 290g is actually only 2cups ? So was then confused by your recipe…2 3/4 cups weighs 400g? (I went by the 290grams and it must not have been enough) I’m nervous to use this recipe again but really want to, but need your help to know if you use your cups or grams measurement for the flour when you make this?
My second question is we are having 32 adults and 12 children (aged over 1) so I was going to make this x3 6” cake as her main cake. But double the recipe and do some mini cupcakes and an extra 2 layer cake that won’t be decorated that I will pre cut, do you think this will be enough or should I triple the recipe? Am I okay to use this recipe for cupcakes or should I use your actual cupcake recipe for this?
Thanks so much,
Emma
Hi Emma, I’m not sure how you’re getting that gram measurement for 2 3/4 Cups of cake flour. Are you using US cups to measure? And are you sifting the flour before measuring? The common weight for one Cup of sifted cake flour is only 105g and that’s about what I get when I measure out one cup of sifted cake flour.
I think that will be enough cake for your guest list and the recipe works well as cupcakes. Fill the tins no more than 2/3 full and bake at 350 for 15-18 min. Here’s a blog post I wrote about cake serving sizes that might help: https://sugarandsparrow.com/cake-serving-guide/
Hey Whitney,
Thanks for replying I really appreciate it. I’m in Australia – I just did a second test and sifted out exactly 290g grams of cake flour and it’s giving me exactly 2 cups. I used my Pyrex jug to see how many cups it gave me. It was exactly 2 cups. I then checked it and put the flour into my plastic individual measuring cups and it’s still giving me 2 cups out of that 290grams. Maybe Australian cups are a lot less than US cups?
I don’t know what to go off? Since I didn’t get enough batter last time when I went off the weight measurements maybe I should do the cup measurement instead? I’m very unsure.
Okay thank you, so if I wanted enough batter for a 6” x 3” x3 layer cake + 2 extra layers as the extra cake and some mini cupcakes should I double the recipe or triple ?
Hi Emma, Australian cups are slightly larger than US cups which makes sense why you’re getting less than the 2 3/4 Cups of cake flour listed. For this recipe you’ll want to use the gram measurement. This recipe makes enough for three 6″ x 2″ layers. If you’re using 3″ tall pans, I’d suggest making 1.5x the recipe and dividing the batter evenly from there for the main cake. For the 2 extra layers, you’ll need one batch of the recipe. For the mini cupcakes, a half batch of the recipe will yield 36. I’d make a triple batch to have enough for all of that.
Hello Whitney! My two twins birthday is coming up and I really want to do this recipe ,but I’m not sure that the pan sizes I want to use is enough. Do you think a 5 layer 6 inch for this would be enough for 11 people?
Hi Avery! That will be more than enough cake for 11 people. I’d make a 3 layer 6-inch cake for that amount, since that size serves 12-15 people. Here’s a blog post I wrote about cake serving sizes in case that’s helpful: https://sugarandsparrow.com/cake-serving-guide/
Heya! How did you get this sponge to be so white? I made your updated recipe but my sponge is much more yellow than yours. If I use just only egg whites how would you recommend I adjust the method? Xx
Hi Victoria! The egg yolks make this cake more yellow than white, especially if your yolks are super saturated (dark in color). If you’re looking for a vanilla cake that is white, try the white cake recipe from this Berry Chantilly Cake instead: https://sugarandsparrow.com/berry-chantilly-cake-recipe/
I love this vanilla recipe, looking for a like a cookies and cream recipe. But i don’t wanna change to a different base recipe, could I add oreos to this cake ?
Yay, Mary! I’m so happy you love this recipe! I’ve never tried adding Oreos to this cake batter but you can certainly try folding some in. That sounds amazing! I do have this Cookies and Cream Cake recipe if you don’t want to experiment: https://sugarandsparrow.com/oreo-cake-recipe/