Chocolate Buttercream Frosting (6-Minute Recipe)

This American Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is silky, whipped, decadent, and chocolatey with just the right amount of sweetness. It has 6 simple ingredients and takes just 6 minutes to make.
This Chocolate Buttercream spreads and pipes beautifully over chocolate cakes and cupcakes so it’s perfect for all of your baking projects.

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We love homemade frosting recipes from Vanilla Buttercream to Cream Cheese Frosting and of course, this easy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting. In fact, we loved it so much that I even used it on my daughter’s Chocolate Birthday Cake in Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook. Homemade frostings use higher-quality ingredients and taste way better than store-bought.
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Chocolate Buttercream RecipeThis chocolate buttercream frosting is thick and fluffy. It holds its shape well, just like Swiss Meringue Buttercream so it’s great for decorating and piping. It also has a rich chocolate flavor.

How much frosting does this make? Frosting Cupcakes? This recipe yields about 2 1/4 cups frosting and generously frosts 12 cupcakes or lightly frosts 24 cupcakes.
Frosting a Cakes? To frost a 9” 2-layer cake, increase the recipe by 50% (i.e. 1 1/2 cups butter, 4 1/2 cups sugar, etc).

The Key to Great Chocolate ButtercreamSoften Butter Correctly – For the best-textured buttercream, make sure the butter is at the correct temperature. Properly softened butter should be left at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours, or watch our video on how to soften butter in 5 minutes.
Your butter should feel cool to the touch and you should be able to indent it with your fingertip. Never melt or over-soften butter for the frosting or it will become too thin and greasy.
Scrape down the bowl several times while mixing to ensure your chocolate and sugar are incorporated with the butter. If you don’t scrape down the bowl, your frosting will have streaks of cocoa and won’t be uniform in color. It will be especially obvious if you pipe the frosting.
Ingredients for Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Unsalted butter – should be softened at room temperature. Use unsalted so you can control the salt in the recipe.

Confectioners sugar – also known as powdered sugar. This is measured before sifting (sifting is not necessary).

Cocoa powder – natural unsweetened cocoa powder or Dutch process.

Heavy whipping cream – lightens up and thins the frosting.

Vanilla extract – we use real vanilla extract for the best flavor.

Salt – balances the sweetness of the buttercream. It’s the secret ingredient in buttercream that makes it taste not too sweet. We use fine sea salt.

How to Make Chocolate ButtercreamThe best Chocolate Buttercream is easier and takes less time than you think!

Beat butter in a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment on high speed for 3 minutes until creamy and lightened in color.

Add remaining ingredients – powdered sugar, cocoa powder, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt.

Beat together on low speed until powdered sugar is incorporated then on medium/high speed for another 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl several times. Add more cream at the end if needed to thin the frosting.

Pro Tip:Use a silicone spatula to scrape down the bowl several times while mixing to ensure the frosting is evenly blended and even in color and texture.

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is the best cocoa powder to use? You can use unsweetened natural cocoa powder such as Hershey’s brand, or use Dutch process cocoa powder to make chocolate buttercream.
Can I Substitute Heavy Cream? You can thin the frosting with milk instead of heavy cream, but you may need slightly less. Add it until you reach your desired texture.
Can I double the recipe? You can easily double the recipe, increasing your mixing times slightly.
Do I need to sift the dry ingredients? Funny story, I spent years sifting the dry ingredients for this recipe until I decided to skip the step one day and found it did not make a difference. The ingredients will be incorporated easily without sifting.
How to Serve Chocolate Buttercream This frosting is delicious over cakes, cupcakes, sweet bread, cookies you name it! Here are some of our favorite ways to use Chocolate Buttercream frosting:

Chocolate Cupcakes
Sugar Cookies
Vanilla Cupcakes
Honey Cupcakes
Greek Yogurt Cupcakes
Chocolate Cake or Vanilla Cake – scale it up by 50% for a 2-layer cake.

Enjoy this easy 6-minute Chocolate Buttercream Frosting. It’s one I’ve been making for years and I will never stop loving this recipe.
Make-Ahead

To Refrigerate: Store in an airtight container or ziploc bag for up to a week (do not store near fish or meat as it may absorb those fridge odors). Bring to room temperature and re-whip to make the frosting fluffy.
Freezing: Package the same way as for refrigerating, then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight then bring to room temperature before re-whipping to a fluffy consistency.

More Homemade Frosting RecipesIf you love to bake, here are the frosting recipes that you should have in your recipe box. They are my go-to’s for cakes and cupcakes: