Cupcakes. It’s not easy to find the best cupcakes in America, but it is a traveler’s responsibility to taste them all and tell their friends where to go when they head out on their next trip. These cream-topped confections need to be moist, flavorful, but not too rich. Naturally they need to be beautiful too.
We’ve combed all fifty states with the help of our friends and a few fellow travelers to let you know what their favorite cupcakes are in their hometown and in the destinations they have visited. Did we miss yours? Tell us in the comments so we can continue to grow the list!
Keep in mind that these are people’s opinions, and everyone has one. It might not be your favorite, or maybe you never heard of it, but people like certain cupcake shops for all different reasons. Just ask the residents of Seattle who are still debating whether Cupcake Royale or Trophy Cupcakes is the best in town, and these are just two of several in the metro area.
Table of Contents
Alabama
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Dreamcakes Bakery, 960 Oxmoor Rd, Homewood, AL 35209
Alaska
- The Alaska Cake Studio, 608 W 4th Ave #102, Anchorage, AK 99501
Arizona
- Queens Creek Olive Mill, 2502 East Camelback Road #148H, Phoenix, AZ 85016. Kara at The Vacation Gals recommend the olive oil cupcakes.
Arkansas
- Ricks Bakery, 1220 College Ave, Fayetteville, AR 72703
- Cupcakes At Kavenaugh, 5625 Kavanaugh Blvd, Little Rock, AR 72207
- Patticakes, 2106 Robinson Ave, Conway, AR 72034
California
- Sweet & Saucy Shop, 3722 Atlantic Ave Long Beach, CA 90807
- Mission Minis!, 3168 22nd St, San Francisco, CA 94110
- Kara Cupcakes, 610 1st St Suite 19, Napa, CA 94559. Recommended by This is My Happiness.
- Little Cakes Cupcake Kitchen, 30 Main St #180, Vista, CA 92083. Mary from The World Is A Book says, “They were Cupcake Wars winners twice and have over 130 flavors on rotation.”
- Suzi Cakes, 2043 Westcliff Dr #104, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Recommended by Travel Mamas.
Colorado
- Mountain Brew, 427 Oak St, Steamboat Springs, CO 80487. FamiliesGo! loves the great flavors including Chocolate peanut butter, or spice cake with bourbon-vanilla icing and gingerbread.
Connecticut
- Bleu Squid Bakery and Cheese Shop, 27 Coogan Blvd, Mystic, CT 06355. Recommended by Travel Fearlessly.
- Crumbs Bake Shop, 48 West Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT 06830.
Delaware
- Still looking
Florida
- Sweet by Holly, 405 W Church St, Orlando, FL 32801 (shops in Jacksonville, FL, too)
- Blue Bird Bake Shop, 3122 Corrine Dr, Orlando, FL 32803
- Datz Dough, 2602 S MacDill Ave, Tampa, FL 33629. Recommended by TampaMama.com.
- DD’s Cupcake Shoppe, 121 Center St, Jupiter, FL 33458. Recommended by Word Traveling.com.
Georgia
- CamiCakes Cupcakes, 2221 Peachtree Rd, The Shops of Buckhead, Atlanta, GA 30309
Hawaii
- Sugarlina Bakeshop, 98-199 Kamehameha Hwy, Aiea, HI 96701. Recommended by Pintsize Gourmet.
Idaho
- The Cocoa Bean, 2545 S. 25th E., Ammon, ID 83406 (locations also in Rexburg, ID and Provo, UT)
Illinois
- Sweet Mandy B’s, 1208 W Webster Ave, Chicago, IL 60614
- Swirlz Cupcakes, 705 W Belden Ave, Chicago, IL 60614
- Sugar Bliss Cake Boutique, 115 N Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL 60602
Indiana
- Flying Cupcake Bakery, 423 Massachusetts Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46204 with 2 other locations in Indianapolis plus a shop in Greenwood and Carmel, IN. Recommended by Arrows Sent Forth.
Iowa
- Crème Cupcake + Dessert, 543 28th St, Des Moines, IA 50312. This shop was a finalist on Cupcake Wars and has incredibly inventive flavors. Also, the bakery turns dessert bar at night with dessert and drink pairings.
Kansas
- Three Women and an Oven, 14852 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park, KS 66223
- Smallcakes Shawnee, 6638 Monticello Rd, Shawnee, KS 66226
Kentucky
- Still looking
Louisiana
- Sweetchic Cupcakes Bakery Boutique, 341 E Prien Lake Rd, Lake Charles, LA 70601. Recommended by This Girl Travels.
Maine
- Cupcake Charlie’s, 345 U.S. 1 #10, Kittery, ME 03904. Recommended by We3Travel.com.
Maryland
- Georgetown Cupcake, 4834 Bethesda Ave, Bethesda, MD 20814
Massachusetts
- Sweet Cupcakes, 49 Mass Ave, Boston, MA plus locations in Downtown, Newbury Street, Harvard Square, Chestnut Hill Square and Beacon Hill
Michigan
- SugarHigh Bakery, 925 S Main St G1, Frankenmuth, MI 48734. “Order the Lemon Lime–you won’t be disappointed,” says Deb Thompson at Just Short of Crazy.
Minnesota
- Groundswell, 1340 Thomas Ave W, St Paul, MN 55104. Great line of berry cupcakes.
Mississipi
- Still looking
Missouri
- Smallcakes, 2450 Grand Blvd, Kansas City, MO 64108
Montana
- Bernice’s Bakery, 190 S 3rd St W, Missoula, MT 59801
Nebraska
- Jones Bros. Cupcakes, 2121 S 67th St, Omaha, NE 68106. They were on Food Network’s Cupcake Wars. Recommended by The Walking Tourists.
Nevada
- Sprinkle’s Cupcakes, 3545 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109.
New Hampshire
- White Mountain Cupcakery, 2757 White Mountain Hwy, North Conway, NH 03860. Recommended by Luxe Recess.
New Jersey
- Cupcakes by Carousel, 192 E Ridgewood Ave, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
- Sugar Rush, 37 E Front St, Red Bank, NJ 07701
- Bakers Treat Catering and Café, 42 NJ-12, Flemington, NJ 08822 (they randomly make cupcakes. Call ahead first.)
- House of Cupcakes, 32 Witherspoon St, Princeton, NJ 08542. Recommended by Jersey Kids.
- Buttercups Bake Shoppe, 450 Count Road 519, Stweartsville, NJ, 08886. Shannon Etin at 100 Routes Across America says, “my son says these are the ‘best cupcakes he ever tasted’ and he’s not even really a cake kid.”
New York
- Sugar Sweet Sunshine, 126 Rivington St, New York, NY 10002. Recommended by Anna from The Baby Bump Diaries.
- Billy’s Bakery NYC, 184 9th Avenue, b/w 21st and 22nd, New York, NY 10011 plus locations in Tribeca and The Plaza Food Hall
- Magnolia Bakery New York, 200 Columbus Avenue at 69th Street, New York, NY plus locations in Grand Central Terminal, Rockefeller Center, Bleeker Street and Bloomingdale’s on 3rd.
- Two Little Red Hens, 1652 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10028
- Sprinkles Cupcake ATM New York, 780 lexington avenue, new york, new york 10065. Recommended by Pint Size Pilot.
- Baked By Melissa, 14 locations around the city!
North Carolina
- Cloud 9 Confections, 225 E 7th St, Charlotte, NC 28202. Recommended by Have Baby Will Travel.
- The Cupcake Shoppe Bakery, 104 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh, NC 27603. Recommended by Family Travels On A Budget.
- Gigi’s Cupcakes, 4732 Sharon Rd, Charlotte, NC 28210. Recommended by The Unpaved Road.
- Cosmic Cookie Bakery, 8535 Hankins Rd Suite F, Charlotte, NC 28269
North Dakota
- Still looking
Ohio
- Cake In A Cup, 6801 Central Ave, Toledo, OH 43617
- Main Street Cupcakes, 238 N Main St, Hudson, OH 44236
Oklahoma
- Sara Sara Cupcakes, 7 NW 9th St, Oklahoma City, OK 73102. Recommended by This Girl Travels.
Oregon
- Toadstoll Cupcakes, 868 W. Park Street, Eugene, OR 97401. Recommended by Road Trips for Families.
Pennsylvania
- Kretchmar’s Bakery, 664 3rd St, Beaver, PA 15009
- Bethel Bakery, 5200 Brightwood Rd, Bethel Park, PA 15102. Recommended by Sand and Snow… and Everywhere In Between!
- ICED by Betsy Cupcakes and Coffee, 145 Main St, Royersford, PA 19468
- The Cupcake Shoppe, 20 W 2nd St, Greensburg, PA 15601
- Ye Ole Sweet Shop, 402 State St, Erie, PA 16501
Rhode Island
- Duck and Bunny, 312 Wickenden St, Providence, RI 02903
- Silver Spoon Bakery, 58 Main St, East Greenwich, RI 02818
- LaSalle Bakery, 993 Smith St, Providence, RI 02908. Recommended by We3Travel, whose “favorite cupcake ever” is the red velvet cupcake from this shop.
South Carolina
- Cupcake DownSouth, 433 king street, Charleston, SC 29403
- Sugar Bakeshop, 59 Cannon St, Charleston, SC 29403
South Dakota
- Oh My Cupcakes!, 5015 S Western Ave #290, Sioux Falls, SD 57108
Tennessee
- Magpies Cakes, 846 N Central St, Knoxville, TN 37917
- Muddy’s Bake Shop, 5101 Sanderlin Center #114, Memphis, TN 38117
- Sweet 16th,311 N 16th St, Nashville, TN 37206
Texas
- Hey Cupcake, 1511 S. Congress, Austin, TX 78704. Rebecca from R We There Yet Mom says, “They started out of an airstream trailer on South Congress Ave and now have shops/trailers all over the city!! They also have cool names like the Michael Jackson, John Lemon, and more!”
Utah
- The Sweet Tooth Fairy, 1334 Foothill Drive, Salt Lake City, UT plus ten other locations across Utah, Arizona and Florida.
Vermont
- My Little Cupcake, 217 College Street, Burlington, VT. Recommended by Find and Go Seek.
Virginia
- Twisted Sisters Cupcakes, 2724 Virginia Beach Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23452. Recommended by Casual Travelist.
Washington
- Cupcake Royale, 2052 NW Market Street, Seattle, WA 98107
- Trophy Cupcake, 1815 North 45th Street, Seattle, WA 98103
- Yellow Leaf Cupcake Co., 2209 4th Ave, Seattle, WA 98121
Washington D.C.
- Georgetown Cupcake, 3301 M St NW, Washington, DC 20007
- Baked & Wired, 1052 Thomas Jefferson St NW, Washington, DC 20007
- Cake Love, 1506 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009. Recommended by Twenty-Something Travel.
West Virginia
- My Little Cupcake LLC, 318 W Main St, Clarksburg, WV 26301
Wisconsin
- Gigi’s Cupcakes, 554 N Midvale Blvd, Madison, WI 53705
- Dessert First Bakery, 2425 Seymour Rd, Eau Claire, WI 54703. The vanilla cupcakes are the best I’ve ever had says by MarocMama.com.
Wyoming
- Still looking
Where is your favorite cupcake shop or bakery?
Tell us in the comments so we can add them!
Wow -a fun new goal – to taste as many of these as possible! And if I may add a few – Sprinkles in Las Vegas, Nevada and Gigi’s Cupcakes in Charlotte, NC. Happy Tasting!
Just added Gigi’s! Sprinkle’s is so hard cause it is everywhere!
Okay so I’ve been to like 80+ cupcake shops all around the US…I’ll have to look through my list and find some you should add!
I’d also add Cupcake Charlie’s with locations in RI, MA and ME — so that might fill your Maine gap!
Sweet! One more state down!
I think I need this as an app on my phone so I can pull it up as I travel. Certainly don’t want to miss one! Great list. Thanks.
Now THAT is an idea!
Not really huge cupcake fans, but perhaps because we’ve never really tasted a good one?! Next time we travel to the U.S., we’ll definitely go to one of the bakeries you’ve listed to try some cupcakes! Meantime… if you happen to find some FANTASTIC cheesecake, let us know where! 🙂
Not really huge cupcake fans, but perhaps because we’ve never really tasted a good one?! Next time we travel to the U.S., we’ll definitely go to one of the bakeries you’ve listed to try some cupcakes! Meantime… if you happen to find some FANTASTIC cheesecake, let us know where! 🙂
Sadly I am not a big fan, but I had a great blueberry cheesecake in Atlanta that wasn’t the traditional tasting one.
I would also recommend Twisted Sisters Cupcakes in Virginia Beach, Va
Thanks Brianna! I’m adding it now!
I love this list because I loooove good cupcakes. I can’t go to Napa without stopping at Kara’s (last time I got a sampler box with mini ones. YUM!).
Suzi Cakes in Newport Beach, CA should be added to the list, IMO!
Thanks for the recommendation! I just added it Colleen!
My girl has Georgetown Cupcake on her list of places to visit when we go to Washington, D.C. Glad to see it on the list.
She will love it. My favorite was the milk chocolate on white cake. So simple, but so good.
ACK!!! Thanks for the catch. That definitely shouldn’t be there!
YUM! What a great list! I’ll keep sending you some as we come across them. Thanks for the inlclusion.
How fun! I may have an Ohio recommendation for you next week. I saw a cupcake bakery on my itinerary. 🙂
How fun! I may have an Ohio recommendation for you next week. I saw a cupcake bakery on my itinerary. 🙂
How fun! I may have an Ohio recommendation for you next week. I saw a cupcake bakery on my itinerary. 🙂
Wow! The House of Cupcakes looks too good. Now I’m going to be thinking about cupcakes all day. Thanks for that 😉
I LOVE cupcakes… we have an amazing baker in San Diego but she doesn’t have a shop. Just word of mouth weddings and parties. But, man oh man are hers delicious. You definitely procured quite the list 😉 Great work!!!
New York City is home and I would have to add Baked by Melissa for the best cupcakes. I love them because they are mini sized cupcakes. Great list!
Smallcakes Shawnee-12221 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Shawnee, KS 66216 (The specialty flavors they have are pretty amazing…right now, my favorite is Kentucky Bourbon), Smallcakes Olathe-14150 West 119th Street, Olathe, KS 66062, Smallcakes @ W 39th St by KU Med-1710 W. 39th St , Kansas City, MO 64111 (This location is so diverse and the people are very friendly…it’s great you can just pop in and grab something sweet while walking this area. It’s also great because on Friday’s & Saturday’s when I’m walking my dog, I can stop in and grab a pupcake for her!), Smallcakes St. Joe-5107 N. Belt Hwy, #110b, St. Joseph, MO 64056 (This location is really great, because it’s near all the stores that I frequent and some good eats, too!)
You have to list Cosmic Cookie Bakery located in Charlotte NC. They have outstanding cupcakes and deliver thru out the Metro area till midnight!
Small Cakes in Anniston Al
CAKE IN A CUP , 6801 W. CENTRAL AVE TOLEDO OHIO , was on food network, won top prize!
Ethereal Cupcakes, Hampton, VA. They are amazing!
Love this idea! Main Street Cupcakes in Chagrin Falls and Hudson, OH are to die for! Check them out!
Aloha @pintsizegourmet and @walkingontravels for recommending the Sugarlina Bakeshop cupcakes! We really appreciate that! We are happy to share our sweet treats with you! Hope to see you at the shop soon! Please let us know when you come to visit!