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These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft, tender, and packed with warm fall spices and plenty of melty chocolate chips. Pumpkin keeps them wonderfully moist, while a little cream cheese gives them fluffy centers and lightly crisp edges. Best of all, there’s no chilling, no blotting the pumpkin, and no eggs needed!

If you love baking cookies, try my Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies, Pumpkin Spice Cookies, or Pumpkin Sugar Cookies next, or find even more favorites in my Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes collection.

✨ Before You Begin

A few quick things to know before you start:

✨ There are no eggs in this recipe. That’s intentional! The pumpkin adds plenty of moisture, while the cream cheese helps create soft, tender cookies. Don’t add an egg.

✨ Don’t blot the pumpkin. Measure the pumpkin puree straight from the can. This recipe is formulated with that moisture in mind.

✨ Keep the cream cheese cold. Cut it into pieces straight from the refrigerator. Your butter, on the other hand, should be softened to room temperature.

✨ Expect a soft, sticky dough. That’s exactly how it should be. These cookies don’t spread much on their own, so you’ll flatten the tops slightly with damp fingers before baking.

Ingredients + Key Notes

Pumpkin Puree: Use 100% pure canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling. There’s no need to blot or drain it for this recipe—measure it straight from the can.

Cream Cheese: Keep it cold and cut it into small pieces before mixing. Along with the pumpkin, it gives these cookies their wonderfully soft, tender texture. Use full-fat block-style cream cheese, not the spreadable kind from a tub.

Butter: Use unsalted butter softened to room temperature, but make sure it isn’t overly warm or greasy. Properly softened butter helps create those lightly crisp edges while keeping the centers soft.

Spices: Cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice give the cookies their warm fall flavor. For the best flavor, make sure your ground spices are still fresh and fragrant.

Chocolate Chips: Semisweet chocolate chips give you a nice balance against the sweet, spiced pumpkin cookie. Milk or dark chocolate chips will work too if you prefer.

🥣 How to Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F (177ºC) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice in a small bowl.

Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugars. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, cold cream cheese, brown sugar, and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.

Add the pumpkin. Beat in the pumpkin puree and vanilla just until combined.

Make the dough. Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing just until no streaks of flour remain. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Scoop and flatten. Scoop the soft, sticky dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Use damp fingers to flatten the tops slightly.

Bake. Bake for 12–15 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until the cookies are set. Cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

⭐ Pro Tips

⭐ Measure the flour carefully. Too much flour can make pumpkin cookies dry and overly puffy. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off rather than packing it in.

⭐ Don’t overmix the dough. Once you add the dry ingredients, mix only until the flour disappears. Overmixing can make the cookies tougher instead of soft and tender.

⭐ Don’t worry about the sticky dough. This dough is naturally soft and sticky because of the pumpkin. If it sticks to your cookie scoop, lightly dampen the scoop before portioning.

⭐ Give them a little help spreading. These cookies won’t spread like traditional chocolate chip cookies. Gently flatten each scoop with damp fingers before it goes into the oven.

⭐ Watch the cookies, not just the clock. Pull them when the edges and tops are set. Overbaking is one of the easiest ways to lose their wonderfully soft, moist texture.

⭐ Let them rest before moving them. The cookies are delicate when they first come out of the oven. Give them 5 minutes on the baking sheet to firm up before transferring them to a cooling rack.

⭐ Make them your own. Chopped walnuts or pecans are delicious with the pumpkin and chocolate. Toffee bits are another great addition for a little buttery crunch.

Storing + Freezing + Make Ahead

Storing: Let the cookies cool completely, then store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Place parchment or wax paper between layers to keep them from sticking together.

Freezing: Freeze completely cooled cookies in a freezer-safe container or bag for up to 3 months. Separate layers with parchment paper. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature before serving.

Make Ahead: You can bake the cookies a day or two before you need them and refrigerate them in an airtight container. For the best texture, let them sit at room temperature for a few minutes before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

◆ Are pumpkin chocolate chip cookies supposed to be cakey?

Pumpkin cookies are naturally softer and fluffier than traditional chocolate chip cookies because pumpkin contains a lot of moisture. These cookies are intentionally soft and tender with fluffy centers and lightly crisp edges rather than dense and chewy.

◆ Do these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies have eggs?

No. There are no eggs in this recipe, and that’s intentional. The pumpkin provides moisture and helps bind the dough, while the cream cheese adds richness and tenderness. Don’t add an egg.

◆ Do I need to blot the pumpkin puree?

No. While some chewy pumpkin cookie recipes remove excess moisture from the pumpkin, this recipe is designed to use the puree straight from the can. Blotting it would change the moisture balance of the dough.

◆ Why didn’t my pumpkin cookies spread?

These cookies don’t spread as much as traditional chocolate chip cookies. The dough should be soft and sticky, and the scoops need to be flattened slightly with damp fingers before baking.

◆ Can I use pumpkin pie filling instead of pumpkin puree?

No. Use 100% pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling contains added sugar and spices that will change the flavor and balance of the recipe.

◆ Why are my pumpkin chocolate chip cookies dry?

The most likely culprit is overbaking or too much flour. Measure your flour carefully and remove the cookies from the oven as soon as the edges and tops are set. They’ll continue to firm up as they cool.

◆ Can I add nuts or other mix-ins?

Absolutely! Chopped walnuts or pecans are especially good with pumpkin and chocolate. Toffee or Heath Bar bits are another delicious option if you want a little buttery crunch.

Still have questions? Drop them in the comments — I love helping you cook with confidence! 💗

More Pumpkin Dessert Recipes

Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting – Soft, warmly spiced pumpkin bars topped with rich cream cheese frosting.

Pumpkin Pie – The classic creamy, warmly spiced Thanksgiving dessert.

Pumpkin Bundt Cake – A moist pumpkin cake finished with a sweet cinnamon glaze.

Pumpkin Crunch Cake – An easy layered pumpkin dessert with an irresistible buttery, crunchy topping.

Impossible Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes – Individual pumpkin treats with all the creamy, spiced flavor of pumpkin pie.

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Tried This Recipe?

If you make these Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, I’d love to hear how they turned out! Leave a comment and star rating below — your feedback helps other readers and means so much to me.

And if you added your own twist, like chopped nuts, toffee bits, or a different kind of chocolate, tell me about that too! I love hearing how you make my recipes your own.

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today — happy cooking, friends! ❤️ Kathleen.

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