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Our easy Butterfinger cake recipe starts with a cake mix, so it’s a snap to make. Uniquely moist, flavored with chocolate and caramel, and topped with a thick, generous layer of whipped topping and crushed Butterfingers. The flavor is off the charts delicious! Perfect any time you need a yummy, easy dessert to feed a crowd!

This Butterfinger Cake recipe serves up a dessert that’s super moist and super sweet. If you’re looking for the perfect sweet cake to serve after dinner, this Butterfinger Cake can’t be beaten.

Try my Chocolate Poke Cake for another poke cake option, or Coca-Cola Cake, or my Texas sheet cake for more rich, chocolatey pan-style favorites. And if you’d like even more dessert inspiration, don’t miss my full Cake Recipes collection.

Why You’ll Love This Cake

Super easy to make!
Deliciously Decadent Chocolate!
Incredibly Moist!
Butterfinger candy is incredibly delicious!

What Are Butterfingers?

Butterfingers are a very popular American candy bar with a buttery, crispy, layered filling covered in chocolate.

What Is Butterfinger Cake?

Butterfinger Cake is, quite honestly, exactly what it sounds like! It’s a cake that’s literally infused with caramel goodness, topped with – you guessed it – Butterfinger candy. Our recipe is made with chocolate cake mix, making it incredibly simple to put together.

There are two secrets to Butterfinger Cake, and neither secret has anything to do with the actual cake part of the cake.

The first secret is the Butterfinger cake frosting or topping. Sweetened condensed milk and whipped topping give the frosting just the right texture to impart even more moisture to your cake.
The second secret is this: my recipe for this dessert could actually be considered a Butterfinger poke cake.
- Whether you make it with a box mix or from scratch, the trick is to poke holes in your cake so that the topping can permeate it. The result is an even sweeter cake. It’s truly like eating candy for dessert! Nothing wrong with that!

Once you’ve tried our Butterfinger cake, I’m sure you’ll want to play around with the recipe. Believe me, I’ve tried many. I’ve come up with a Butterfinger cheesecake, a Butterfinger layer cake, and I’ve even tried my hand at a Butterfinger cake with angel food cake instead of chocolate.

Butterfinger Cake Ingredients

Chocolate Cake Mix: Use your favorite brand. Bake cake per the box instructions with the ingredients required in those box instructions. Switch things up and try a yellow cake mix.
Condensed Milk + Caramel Dessert Topping: Pour evenly over the warm cake.
Whipped Topping: For convenience, you can use thawed Cool Whip topping or freshly whipped cream using heavy whipping cream, sweetened with powdered sugar, and flavored with vanilla extract.
Butterfinger Candy Bars: The star of the show, or shall I say cake! Chopped Butterfingers coarsely.

Recipe Notes For Butterfinger Cake:

Making Holes in Cake: We want to make the holes in the cake while it’s still pretty hot out of the oven. The reason for this is that we want to pour the yummy milk and caramel over the cake while it’s still warm, so the cake absorbs the liquid. The holes help the liquid penetrate the cake, allowing it to reach the bottom and inside. For some cakes, like my Strawberry Tres Leches Cake, when I pierce the top, I like to use a fork. You may encounter other recipes that suggest you use a fork for this cake. I say do not use a fork, use the end of a wooden spoon! Only use a fork for recipes that suggest piercing the top when it’s completely cooled. If you use a fork when the cake is warm, big chunks on the surface of the cake peel up when you pull it out. It’s a total mess!
Thaw Time – Remember that frozen whipped topping needs to be thawed properly before using it in the recipe. Otherwise, the topping won’t fully infuse into the poke cake, and the dessert just won’t be the same.
Cake Mix – In this recipe, the type of cake mix you use doesn’t make a great deal of difference. My preference, however, is the name-brand mixes. I just don’t think the store brand cake mixes work quite as well. For the best results, try Betty Crocker, Duncan Hines, or another reputable brand.
There are three things to keep in mind when making this recipe.
- First, follow the instructions on the cake mix box. Remember to check your cake a few minutes before it’s due to come out of the oven because some ovens run hotter than others.
- Secondly, remember that timing is key. You’ll need to allow your cake to cool for about 5 minutes before you start poking holes in it.
- Third. Then, make sure you apply the caramel and sweetened condensed milk mixture while the cake is still hot so the mixture absorbs well into the cake.
Cake Pan: I used a Pyrex 9X13-inch baking pan.

Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead

How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? This Butterfinger poke cake can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. This can not be stored at room temperature.
Can You Freeze This? Hotel wrap individual slices and/or place them in a resealable plastic bag. These can be stored in the freezer for 4 months.
Make-Ahead Tips: This recipe is best made a day in advance. You can also freeze the cake as mentioned above as a make-ahead option.
Food Safety: For more information on food safety, check out this link.

How Long Do You Bake Butterfinger Cake?

Depending on the cake mix you choose, the baking time for a Butterfinger cake may vary slightly. Follow the box directions and check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. When the toothpick comes out clean, your cake is done baking.

Because there are a couple of steps after the cake is baked, it’s not one of those desserts you can put in the oven when your family sits down to dinner, and serve it when it’s time to clear the table!

Most Butterfinger cakes will take around an hour to make. That includes the bake time. The good news is that you can actually prepare the cake in the morning (while the kids are at school and aren’t begging to lick the beaters, leaving you the first shot at them!) and serve it for supper that night. The beauty of making it early in the day is that the topping will have all day to absorb into the cake. That means a sweeter, denser, moister cake for you and your family.

What’s The Difference Between Butterfinger Cake And Better Than Anything Cake?

I’ve passed along this recipe to a few of my friends, and they’ve compared it to Better than Anything Cake. So, what’s the difference between the two?

Very little, but enough to make a difference! Better than Anything Cake is a poke cake, just like this one. The biggest difference between the Butterfinger cake and the Better than Anything cake is that Better than Anything Cake often uses Heath Bars.

That might not make much difference if you’ve never tried this recipe before. But Heath bars just… do something different to the taste of the cake! Bottom line, if you’re looking for a super sweet way to end your supper, a Butterfinger cake is the way to go!

How To Make Butterfinger Cake

Bake the cake as directed on the back of the box. After baking, poke holes in the hot cake. Use the end of a wooden spoon.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and caramel. Pour the mixture evenly over the cake. Cool completely.
Spread the whipped topping over the cake.
Sprinkle the top with crushed Butterfinger.

***See the full instructions below.

🍰 More Easy Sheet Cake Recipes

Pineapple Sheet Cake – Ultra-moist with sweet pineapple flavor and a buttery glaze that soaks right in.

Strawberry Sheet Cake – Soft, fluffy, and packed with fresh strawberry flavor in every bite.

Pig Pickin’ Cake – A light, fruity classic with mandarin oranges and a fluffy whipped topping.

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – Incredibly moist and rich with that classic tangy-sweet frosting.

Yellow Cake – A simple, buttery classic that’s perfect for any occasion.

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

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