This vegan cream cheese frosting recipe is perfect for cakes, cupcakes, bars, and more! With just 4 ingredients, it's creamy, tangy, and easy to make.
This vegan cream cheese frosting recipe is creamy, tangy, sweet…and totally dairy-free! If you ask me, it’s just as delicious as classic cream cheese frosting, and I love that it’s easy to whip up with 4 simple ingredients. I use this frosting on my vegan carrot cake, cinnamon rolls, and more. Spread it on any vegan (or regular) baked good for a pop of rich, tangy flavor.
I’ve been experimenting with vegan frosting recipes for over a decade at this point (see the cashew one on this chocolate zucchini cake or the sweet potato(!) one on this vegan chocolate cake). This recipe is the closest I’ve come to a traditional cream cheese frosting. It uses store-bought dairy-free staples like vegan cream cheese and vegan butter, and it’s sweetened with powdered sugar, which makes it easy to adjust the thickness. You’ll find my best tips for making it below. I hope you love this vegan frosting as much as I do!
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
You only need 4 ingredients to make this recipe:
- Vegan cream cheese – I’ve tested many brands of dairy-free cream cheese in this recipe. For the thickest results closest to classic cream cheese frosting, look for a brick-style vegan cream cheese that comes in a cardboard box. Violife makes a great one. You can also use spreadable vegan cream cheese that comes in a tub. While it’s easier to find, it yields a thinner frosting (pictured here). It’s still creamy and delicious! My go-to brand is Kite Hill.
- Vegan butter – A stick-style butter will give this frosting the thickest texture. I like Earth Balance.
- Powdered sugar – It sweetens and stiffens the frosting. If you want your frosting to be thick and fluffy, use more powdered sugar. If you want to make a softer glaze, use less.
- And vanilla extract – For warm depth of flavor.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
This vegan cream cheese frosting is easy to make:
1. Let the vegan cream cheese and vegan butter soften slightly. I let them sit at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes so that they’re easy to mix together. Just be careful not to let them get too soft so that the frosting isn’t runny.
2. Beat together the cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl. An electric hand mixer or stand mixer is ideal for this, but in a pinch, you can mix together the frosting by hand using a spatula.
3. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat on low speed to incorporate the powdered sugar (if you mix on medium right away, it will poof up into a powdered sugar cloud), then increase the speed to medium and mix until smooth. Add more powdered sugar if desired for a thicker frosting. The frosting will thicken up more in the fridge.
That’s it!
Recipe Tips
- Brick-style cream cheese yields a thicker frosting. Spreadable vegan cream cheese is more common, but if you need a thick, fluffy, pipeable frosting for layer cakes or cupcakes, seek out the brick-style stuff. Like regular brick-style cream cheese, it comes in a cardboard box. Violife is my go-to brand.
- The frosting will thicken in the fridge. If your frosting seems soft right after mixing it together, pop it in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill and thicken up. If you’d still like it to be thicker, mix in more powdered sugar at that point.
- Warm baked goods and frosting don’t mix. Feel free to whip up this frosting while your goodies bake, but don’t frost them as soon as they come out of the oven. Instead, pop the frosting in the fridge, and wait to decorate your baked goods until they cool completely. Otherwise, the frosting will melt!
How to Use Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
This dairy-free cream cheese frosting recipe is a perfect topping for cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and more! Try it on any of these vegan baked goods:
- Vegan Carrot Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Cinnamon Rolls (made with coconut oil instead of butter)
- Vegan Banana Bread
- Carrot Cake Cookies
Craving more vegan treats? Check out these 27 Best Vegan Desserts next!
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 8 ounces vegan cream cheese*, slightly softened
- 3 tablespoons vegan butter, slightly softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar, more for a stiffer frosting, sifted if lumpy
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat the vegan cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat on low speed to incorporate, then increase the speed to medium and mix until smooth. If you prefer a stiffer frosting, beat in additional powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Spread on cooled baked goods right away, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
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I had my doubts about this recipe as the cream cheese wasn’t very tasty out of the package, but oh! the frosting made with it turns out to be delicious, if a bit runny. I added more powdered sugar as suggested to thicken it a bit. I used some of it on gingerbread muffins and then added cocoa to the remainder to make a chocolate frosting for chocolate cupcakes.
My question: can the frosting be frozen for use later successfully?
Thank you for this site; I’ve gotten so many excellent recipes from you! (The bean burgers are the absolute best!)
Hi Mary, I’m glad you liked it! For a thicker version, Violife makes a block-style cream cheese now (if you try it, you may have to add a little plant milk to it, it’s very thick). We haven’t frozen this, but I think it might be fine?
I’m so glad you’ve loved the bean burgers!