Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies
These thin and crispy oatmeal cookies are absolute perfection! Crispy, buttery, and completely addictive – I dare you to eat just one!
I am a soft and chewy cookie fan all the way, but there is something about these thin and crispy oatmeal cookies that is absolutely irresistible.
They are so classic and so delicious!
Key to a Crispy Cookie
The cookie dough for these oatmeal cookies is very straightforward. Nothing fancy about it!
The reason the cookies end up being thin and crispy instead of soft and chewy are due to a couple of reasons:
- higher butter to flour (and eggs) ratio
- more granulated sugar, less brown sugar
- old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats
- slightly longer baking time (don’t underbake!)
The dough can be mixed in a stand mixer or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer.
The key is to not over mix the dough once the dry ingredients are added.
Old-fashioned Oats vs Quick Oats
The recipe for these thin and crispy oatmeal cookies calls for old-fashioned rolled oats.
Subbing in quick oats will change the texture and outcome of the cookies. They’ll likely be thicker and puffier instead of thin and crispy. (It also doesn’t work to sub in steel cut oats.)
It’s important to use old-fashioned rolled oats for the best outcome!
A Tried-and-True Favorite
It goes without saying that these delightful oatmeal cookies are delicious dipped in a glass of cold milk. YUM!
This recipe has over 1,000 5-star reviews for a reason! So many of you have fallen in love with them, too.
Grace says: This is my all time favorite recipe I’ve used for years, after trying this you won’t be able to go back to any other oatmeal cookie recipe and all other oatmeal cookies will taste inferior. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
MM says: Amazing cookies! I’m afraid to make them again because I ate 18 cookies in 4 days. They’d be good with chocolate chips in them too. Maybe I’ll try it when I get better at sharing… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sara says: OK. I didn’t think these would be as good as they are. I’ve had oodles and oodles of oatmeal cookies and these are now our favorite. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Linda says: These are wonderful..Buttery, chewy and crisp. I’m eating them with a glass of cold milk. I baked them 16 min. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
FAQs for Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies
Yes, the dough freezes great!
I use salted butter.
I usually store them in a covered container but if you want them to stay extra crispy, you can try storing them uncovered.
In this recipe, you definitely want to use old-fashioned rolled oats. If not, the cookies won’t spread the same and the texture could be completely off.
Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (142 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 14 tablespoons (198 g) butter (I use salted), softened but still slightly cool
- 1 cup (212 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (53 g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups (250 g) old-fashioned rolled oats
Instructions
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl (of a stand mixer or with a handheld electric mixer), beat the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar together until just combined, about 20 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue to beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute longer. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat on medium-low until well mixed, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again. Add the flour mixture and mix until barely incorporated, 10-20 seconds. It's ok if there are a few dry spots.
- Gradually add the oats and mix until well-combined, about 30 seconds to 1 minutes. If needed, give the dough a final stir with a wooden spoon to ensure that no flour pockets remain and that the ingredients are evenly distributed.
- Scoop out about 2 tablespoon-sized mounds of dough and roll them to form balls. Place the cookies about 2 1/2-inches apart on the baking sheet(s) – about 8 cookies per sheet. They will spread quite a bit. Lightly press each cookie to about 3/4-inch thickness (I found after baking one sheet of these that I didn’t need to press them at all so use your best cookie judgment).
- Bake 1 sheet of cookies at a time until the cookies are golden brown, edges are crisp, and centers are still very slightly soft, 13 to 16 minutes. Cooling the cookies completely on the baking sheet will yield crispier, more perfect cookies.
Notes
Recipe Source: adapted ever so slightly from The Cook’s Country Cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen (used salted butter instead of unsalted)
Recipe originally published June 2013; updated November 2022 with new photos, recipe notes, etc.
Just baked this, it is indeed delicious. I reduce the white sugar by 1/4 cup. It is perfect. Crispy but not flat like the usual crispy cookies. Love it. ❤️
While I AM a staunch “crispier the better” cookie lover, oatmeal cookies have never been one of my favorites.
I recently started dating a man who loves oatmeal cookies, so to earn “brownie points”, I decided to make him a batch. This recipe floored him! He couldn’t stop raving about them.
Coming from an oatmeal connoisseur, I was quite impressed! I must admit I love them, too . Happily, we are still seeing each other. The problem is, however, I don’t know whether it’s me or the cookies he is sticking around for!
Haha! Loved this! Glad the cookies were a hit. 🙂
I made this last week and pretty sure I got my butter measurement wrong. Tasted so good but everyone was pretty much overdosed with butter. Will make it again next week and will half my butter this time, I added cranberries and dark choc chips.
Do u have a scale? I believe it is 7 oz
My go-to recipe every time for oatmeal.
This cookie recipe is incredible!! This is the second time I have made it and me and my husband love it! It is our go-to cookie!
Sorry, forgot the stars!!!!
Perfect cookie!!!! I’m so sick of recipe’s for fat, soft cookies. I love oatmeal and thought I’d give these a try. I did use less granulated sugar, and used 1/2 regular flour and 1/2 coconut flour. I also added 1/4 cup raisins, ans 1/4 cup chopped dates. They turned out nice and flat, and crispy for a wonderful change. Easy recipe and fun to tweak. But not necessary since they are so good just the way they are. Thank you!
Gluten-Free Version: I followed this recipe exactly except used King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free all-purpose flour, for people with Celiac. They came out amazing…my dad said that gluten-free or not, they are the best oatmeal cookies he’s ever had.
The original recipe said to put two-tablespoon scoops, but that makes huge balls that come out like big cookies, so I assume they meant two teaspoons? I am going to add cinnamon to the next batch. I tried with chocolate and walnuts, and prefer it without anything. Excellent post thank you!!
I substituted stevia for white sugar. They came out great.
Hi can you please tell the temperature at which these need to be baked for 13-16 minutes?
They bake at 350 degrees F.
Do you have weights for the ingredients?
I haven’t added weight measures to this recipe yet, but I will hopefully update the recipe soon!
Awesome cookies ! Thanks for the recipe!
I love these cookies.
I have been searching for a recipe for crispy oatmeal cookies that I would like to make more then once…. I found it.
I did add a bit less sugar , omitted 1/4 cup of the white sugar (I don’t my cookies too sweet.)
I did bake them for 2 extra minutes (18 minutes, I like them real crispy) and left them on the cookie sheet to cool for 10 minutes before placing them into a cookie container.
They are very crispy and taste great.
Printed and saving this recipe forever.
This is the best oatmeal cookie recipe I tried so far. Compare with the other recipes I tried before, this one contains more percentage oatmeal inside and less other ingredients – I think this is why the cookie tastes so great 🙂
Thanks for posting it.
Oh my goodness! The first time I made these cookies was in 2007 after receiving the recipe in a Cook’s illustrated magazine which was lost in a move in 2010. I have been looking for this recipe since then! These are THE ultimate oatmeal cookies from heaven and I am thanking you for finally being able to have this recipe again! Just in the “Nick” of time for our church’s Christmas in July dinner fest this coming Saturday. I am in charge of deserts and wanted this one to be on the list! KUDDOS!
Hi Mel please tell me the weight measurement of butter. 14 tabs sounds like an awful lot for 1 cup flour. Many Thx Von
7 ounces
Beware: If you make ice cream cookie sandwiches out of these and leave them in the freezer for a day, your life will be forever changed. It’s unreal.
Yum!
oh my gosh ur right! These would be the perfect cookies to recreate an It’s It ice cream sandwich…my faves were w coffee ice crm.
This recipe is awesome! Buttery, crunchy and super tasty! I’ve been looking for a recipe that utilizes oats but always stumble upon the cinnamon-ginger-raisin type.. This is a butter cookie (mmm!) with oats in the starring role, just the thing I wanted!
The baking times where on spot (13′ for a 1tsp cookie, 16′ for a 2tsp cookie) and the crunchyness was …mmm..! On the down side (thus I didn’t gave 5 but 4,5 stars) they are overly sweet to my taste. Even though in this fisst try I’ve already substituted 1/4 cup of white sugar with packed brown (resulting in 3/4 cup white +1/2 brown) they .. I will definately make them again (and again, and again…) with less sugar! Definately a keeper!
Can I had raisens and nuts. If so, how mich?
Sure! I haven’t done that so you could experiment with quantities – maybe 1/2 cup each?
Loved them, and I’m picky about my oatmeal cookies. I tweaked it a bit, adding coconut flower, cinnamon, and milk.
Opps. Flour, not flower.
I added mini semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon to the recipe and they were IRRESISTIBLE. They didn’t last 30 minutes in my house. I only wish it yielded more cookies, but I will just have to make another batch. 🙂
Hi Mel,
I found this recipe and made these cookies today. I was so happy to have finally found a recipe for crunchy cookies :). They were super easy to make and everything was going well until they went in the oven. Why did they smell and taste like the smell of microwaved butter popcorn?
Are they suppose to be those sweet yummy oat cookies….cause my ones were a bit sweet but had a sort of a tangy smell and taste to it…one I can only resemble to microwaved butter popcorn (the way they smell not taste). I’m trying to figure out what it could have been as all my ingredients were fresh and just been bought.
I really don’t mean this in a rude or a bad way, but I thought I might just ask because from reading all the comments I’m pretty sure something went really wrong for me.
Thank you for sharing your recipe though, I might give it another try because the crunchiness was amazing!
Kind regards,
Mary
Hi Mary – it might be related to the brand of butter/oats you used. These cookies do have a crunchy, almost caramelly/toffee like exterior because of the crispy nature of the cookies. You might have made them exactly right!
I would very much like to know how many carbs per cookie. I have a sweet tooth and am a diabetic 2 so trying to find a healthy recipe
I’m not sure; I’ve never calculated the carbs in this cookie recipe. Sorry about that!
I wonder if You could use almond flour and half splenda
Omg!!! These cookies are the best!! Finally a great recipe!!! These cookies are so delicious!! Came out better than expected! Thanks so much for sharing!!
These are fantastic. My new go to oatmeal cookie. The first batch spread quite a bit and were very thin and crispy- perfect to my mind! The 2nd time they were thicker and needed to bake longer. With the first batch the butter was still cool, and and very soft and more room temp with the 2nd. It seems like results should have been the reverse. The 2nd batch aI also used a hand beater all the way thru, so maybe that made a difference. Either way, a terrific cookie.
Hello,
Do you mind advice the measurement in gram for the ingredient as i do not have a cup measurement,
1 cup all-purpose flour
14 tablespoons butter (1 3/4 sticks), softened but still slightly cool
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
Thank you so much for your advice.
http://www.rapidtables.com/convert/weight/ounce-to-gram.htm
You can.plug it in. 1c=16 oz 14 tablespoons =7 oz 1/4c = 2 oz
I noticed there is no eggs in this recipe. Is that the reason for them being so crispy?
It definitely helps contribute to the crispiness. 🙂
I am confused , because your recipe for the crispy oatmeal cookie DOES have 1 egg. Is there a different recipe with no egg? I am looking for one with no egg, but I am going to try your recipe today! Sounds like everyone loves them.
Thanks,
You have every right to be confused! There IS an egg in this recipe…I was obviously confused when I commented back that response. I was thinking about another recipe – but when I went and checked, it also has an egg. So basically, I should just keep my mouth shut. 🙂
I used quick oats and they were the best
It is the best crispy oatmeal cookie! Baked longer for color and crispiness. Can these keep out on the counter for a week? Thank you so much!!!
BJ
I’ve made a lot of oatmeal cookies and this one doesn’t require cinnamon nor raisins. I found that strange at first but I never made cookies as crispy as that. Thanks for the recipe, perfect with my milk in the morning!
Tried your recipe, absolutely the best oatmeal cookies, I have baked ever, thank you for sharing. We love them, this recipe is definitely a keeper. Also, first time making them without the cinnamon, best choice ever!!!!
Glad you liked them, Paula!
These are the most satisfying crunch-offering cookies. They spread out to a perfect thin but with substance thickness and you can’t stop biting them. They taste wonderful as well, but I cannot get over the crunch!
These are fabulous, just perfect. I added a cup of raisins at the end, and they made the cookies even better. I have been looking for a great crispy oatmeal cookie recipe, and this one is it. Thanks so much Mel.
they only came out crispy on the edges..they were still chewy in the middle and i let them cool down completely before tasting them.
They look exactly like yours tho and they weren’t underbaked
Second time I’ve made these, great recipe. I used 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup white, used almond extract instead of vanilla, added raisins. Purposely over baked to get extra crispy. The almond adds a nice secondary flavor. I’ll bake recommended time next go round, this recipe is getting saved.
I used oil instead of butter and dates+ raisins instead of sugar. Works fine but lost some of the crisp.
Stil great taste though!
Peter
Omg best oatmeal cookie ever.
No more buying from Starbucks
I love love these! I accidentally left the second pan in too long and they got caramel brown. I might love them the most! Thank you for the amazing recipe! Your blog is the only one I follow where I actually make the recipes.
OH God I cant thank you Enough for this Recipe! Ve made oats cookies so many times before..but this time it was actually perfect! I added chocochips and bit of cocoa .FINAlly a recipe m going to use for life! <3
I added 1/2 cup of chia seeds! So good!
Have you tried to make these cookies sugar free? I subsituted truvia brown and white sugar and the cookies tasted good but they didn’t spread and therefore were not crispy.
Please help.
I haven’t tried making them sugar free, Ruth. Sorry!
I didn’t add enough sugar and same thing happened didn’t spread or get crispy. Needs real sugar I think.
Still a great recipe! I did make them according to recipe the first time and they turned out perfect.
Can I add walnuts?
You could certainly experiment!
I have been searching for the “ultimate” crispy oatmeal raisin cookie for my husband. I came across this recipe and decided to try them. Today is his birthday and he is going to be so delighted to get these. Not only are they crispy, they are delicious. (Make sure you follow the directions and let them cool completely on the baking sheets.) I just added one cup of raisins to the recipe. Next time I will try to add a little cinnamon. I have this recipe bookmarked to make again.
Hi Mel,
i just finished making your cookies and they are soooooo good. i love crispy cookies and these are perfect!
Thanks a lot for this recipe
I was in a large home store today that offers products from around the world and they offered a crispy oatmeal cookies at check out but didn’t try one until I finished with check out. It was a great light crispy cookie. I knew I had the ingredients at home so I googled “crispy oatmeal cookie” and found this one and so glad I did! It is as good or better since it is fresh home baked. I used a heaping teaspoon since it does spread and it makes the perfect size for us. Thank you for sharing 🙂
I just make thin and crispy cookies today. It was so darn good. Thank you for the recipe. I’ll bring it to my brother’s family house for Christmas. Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year (smile)
Hi Mel,
I was thinking of making these for some family that are gluten intolerant – do you think these would work with GF oats and GF flour? Thanks and these look great!
I haven’t tried it that way but it’s certainly worth experimenting. Good luck!
I’ve been looking for a cookie like this for years. YUM YUM!!
these were called Oatmeal Favorites back in the day, nice to see the recipe. A bit of history, they go back to the 1800’s 😀
Has anyone tried adding raisins and or white choc chips? Would love to make these as a bday treat for someone!
Best cookies ever. 🙂
Omg best cookies ever, better after a few days:) I increased the brown sugar ,used a half a cup, a Tablespoon of Molasses drizzled thru last mix. Best ever. Been looking for this type of oatmeal cookie for 35 yrs. I don’t like the thick ones. These are almost Florentine type. Thank you! My husband and friends just devoured them:)