This is truly the BEST Pumpkin Muffins recipe — they’ve been carefully tested to be soft, fluffy, moist, and loaded with fall flavor! My recipe is easy (no mixer or pastry cutter needed!) and takes just 10 minutes to prep. Recipe includes a how-to video.
Top-Rated Pumpkin Muffins
These easy pumpkin muffins are every bit as delectable as my pumpkin cupcakes, but slightly more suitable for breakfast! With their buttery streusel topping and their moist and flavorful pumpkin-y centers, they rival my banana muffins in terms of favorite muffins ever.
The streusel is what takes these muffins from delicious to irresistible. It’s buttery and crisp against the super soft and moist pumpkin muffin interior. The best part? Instead of using cold butter and working it into the sugar and flour with a pastry cutter, my recipe uses a simpler method with melted butter. It’s not only easier, but it also lends itself to a more buttery streusel–yum!
What you’ll love about my recipe:
- Only 10 minutes to prep!
- Uses simple ingredients with incredibly moist and tender results.
- No mixer or pastry cutter needed.
- Includes an easy (optional) 2-ingredient glaze!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients in my pumpkin muffin recipe:
- Sugar. I like to use both white and brown sugar. The brown sugar adds subtle molasses tones that really complement the pumpkin and the spiced fall flavors.
- Butter. Let your butter cool after melting, otherwise it will melt your sugars, yielding flat, sub-par results.
- Canned pumpkin. Make sure you use pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling, which has other additives that can keep your muffins from tasting as they should.
- Milk. Since it’s such a small amount, really any kind will work. I use whole milk.
- Pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can always whip up a batch of my homemade pumpkin spice!
SAM’S TIP: These pumpkin muffins would look so nice in my parchment paper muffin liners! They’re extremely easy to make and have a pretty and professional look.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Pumpkin Muffins
- Stir the sugars, eggs, pumpkin puree, and milk into the (cooled) melted butter until combined.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then gradually fold them into the wet ingredients. With muffins, it’s important that you don’t over-mix the batter, so do this step by hand (with a spatula) and be gentle. Don’t use an electric mixer here (!) and stir until just-combined.
- Evenly portion your batter into a lined muffin tin and set this aside while you prepare your streusel.
- Whisk together the flour, sugars, and cinnamon.
- Pour melted butter over the mixture and toss with a fork until clumps form.
- Sprinkle the streusel over your prepared muffins and bake for 17-19 minutes.
- Let the muffins cool before topping with vanilla glaze (if using).
SAM’S TIP: The key to good streusel is a mixture that’s nice and clumpy, so don’t break up the clumps that form as you stir in your butter. If you over-work your streusel, you’ll end up with a paste rather than the crumbly topping that we’re aiming for.
Frequently Asked Questions
These will be fine at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days. They could be refrigerated, but the fridge tends to dry out muffins and so I don’t recommend it.
Yes! Your bake time will be different though (less time for mini, likely about 14 minutes, and more time for jumbo), so keep an eye on them.
You could, but I’d recommend making my pumpkin bread instead. It’s meant to be baked in a loaf pan and has a perfectly dense crumb that’s designed to be sliced without crumbling (which might happen if you use this recipe!).
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
The Best Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled at least 10 minutes
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten (room temperature preferred)
- 1 cup (240 g) canned pumpkin puree¹
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups (156 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice (click the link for instructions to make your own pumpkin spice)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Streusel Topping²
- 1 ¼ cup (156 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar tightly packed
- ⅓ cup (66 g) sugar
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 Tablespoons (85 g) salted butter³ melted and cooled until no longer warm to the touch
Glaze (optional)
- ½ cup (65 g) powdered sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons milk
Recommended Equipment
- Muffin pan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F (190C) and line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners (or lightly grease and flour). Set aside.
- Combine melted, cooled butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar in a large bowl and stir well.¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar
- Stir in eggs. Add pumpkin puree, milk, and vanilla extract and stir well.2 large eggs, 1 cup (240 g) canned pumpkin puree¹, 2 Tablespoons milk, 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon until well-combined.1 ¼ cups (156 g) all-purpose flour, ¾ teaspoons baking powder, ¾ teaspoons baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Add your dry ingredients into your wet and gently stir until just combined, taking care to not overmix the batter.
- Evenly divide muffin batter into prepared muffin tins (filling each ¾ full). Set aside while you prepare your streusel.
Streusel
- Prepare your streusel by whisking together flour, sugars and cinnamon.1 ¼ cup (156 g) all-purpose flour, ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar tightly packed, ⅓ cup (66 g) sugar, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pour the melted butter into the mixture and, using a fork, stir until crumbles form. Don't overwork the streusel or you'll end up with a paste, you want it to be nice and clumpy!6 Tablespoons (85 g) salted butter³
- Using your hands, evenly divide streusel over muffin batter, piling the streusel over the batter and gently pressing the topping into the batter.
- Bake on 375F (190C) for 17-19 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Allow muffins to cool in muffin pan for 5 minutes before carefully removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Glaze
- If desired, make glaze by whisking together powdered sugar and milk. Drizzle over cooled pumpkin muffins½ cup (65 g) powdered sugar, 2-3 teaspoons milk
Notes
¹Pumpkin Puree
Make sure you buy puree that is 100% pumpkin and NOT “Pumpkin Pie Filling”, which contains other ingredients.²Streusel topping
These pumpkin muffins can be made without the streusel topping, they may just need a minute or two less in the oven. A few people have commented that the streusel recipe made more than they needed for their muffins. The amount listed is exactly as much as I use and as is shown in the photos and in the video, but feel free to reduce the amount in half if you don’t like a lot of streusel.³Salted vs unsalted butter
If you don’t have salted butter on hand, just use unsalted and add ¼ teaspoon of salt to the dry ingredients for the streusel.Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Muffins may also be tightly wrapped and frozen for several months.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
I originally published this recipe 10/3/2018. Post updated with new pictures and more notes, recipe is the same.
Foodiewife
I’ve been following your wonderful blog, and videos, for some time. I made these muffins and they were so simple, and really delicious! Thank you for a great recipe.
Michelle
Any changes for high altitude? Above 5,000 feet?
Sam
Hi Michelle! Unfortunately, I don’t have much experience with high altitude baking so I can’t say for sure. 🙁
Julie Anderson
Our staff thought these were the best pumpkin muffins they’ve ever had😁
Robin
How can I freeze these?
Sam
Hi Robin! Let them cool completely, wrap tightly and place in the freezer. 🙂
Robin
Do you mean wrap them individually, like in foil?
Sam
Yes you will want to wrap them individually. I use plastic wrap and then place the individually wrapped muffins in a larger freezer bag and then freeze. 🙂
Jody
I want to try this recipe but wanted to make mini muffins. How should I adjust cooking time?
Sam
Hi Jody! They would likely need to bake for about 14 minutes, but be sure to keep an eye on them so they aren’t over-baked. 🙂
Fran
Help! I love all of your recipes. When I made these they came out delicious. The next day the bottoms of the muffin liners were greasy. What did I do wrong???
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Fran! Did you leave the muffins in the tin too long? Sometimes the steam in the muffin tin can cause this.
dsm
As an experiment, tried this recipe with modifications for creating a grain-free option! And wow, ooh so good! Thanks for posting this recipe, even grain-free, these muffins are moist and light.
Tami
Made this today because my son loves pumpkin bread and I was cleaning out my pantry. Oh my word! This muffin is delicious. Very tender, pumpkin flavor is the star. I’m saving this recipe for the fall but I probably won’t be able to resist making it again before then. I did increase the vanilla to two teaspoons but that is the only change.
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Tami! 🙂
Donna L
I made these muffins today and hands down, they are the best! Full of flavor and moist! This recipe does not disappoint! The crumble topping adds a nice touch. I made three adjustments. I used two teaspoons of cinnamon for the crumble topping and eight tablespoons of butter. I also added a little pumpkin spice to the drizzle on top. This is the perfect bakery muffin!
Judy
These are in the oven and smell delicious. I have tried so many pumpkin muffin recipes and hope these are as good as they look. Taking a little longer to bake.
Judi
These are indeed the best pumpkin muffins! I used 11/2 t cinnamon and 1 t pumpkin pie spice just because and didn’t need quite all the streusel but otherwise followed the recipe as written. They were so tender and delicious and looked impressive. I’ll be making these regularly. Thank you for sharing.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Judi! 🙂
Teresa W
Thank you for the wonderful recipe. They were delicious!
George
Quick and easy – excellent results. Muffins were moist and tasty. Not too sweet.
Lisa
These muffins turned out great! I did use the whole can of pumpkin and baked it for 25 minutes. Next time I will only make half of the streusel topping.
Leah Greene
I made these delicious muffins this morning, and I’m so glad I did. They are amazing! I will be doubling the recipe next weekend to take to our Church Coffee Hour. Thank you, Sam! 😋
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Wonderful! Thanks for trusting our recipes, Leah 🥰
Kim
I made these muffins for my granddaughter’s birthday and carefully followed all directions. If Sam tells you the recipe is perfect, believe her! These are gourmet muffins! The streusel recipe is very generous, but can there ever be too much? I am going to layer my next batch of muffin batter with the extra streusel, swirl through with knife, then top the batter with more streusel, as done with coffee cake.
Thanks, Sugar Spun Run!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So happy they were a hit for you, Kim! Enjoy 🥰
Lee-Ann Frye
Hi! I absolutely love these muffins!! Can these be baked into a loaf?
Sam
Hi Lee-Ann! I actually have a pumpkin bread recipe that I’d recommend. 🙂