When you need a dessert for a crowd that disappears fast, these Sheet Pan Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are the answer.
They’re everything you love about classic chocolate chip cookies: golden edges, soft and chewy centers, and plenty of melty chocolate chips. BUT you get all of that without scooping, rolling, or baking multiple batches. Simply mix the dough, press it into a sheet pan, and bake. That’s it!
Whether you’re making dessert for a birthday party, potluck, bake sale, family gathering, or after-school snack, these cookie bars are guaranteed to be a hit.
Why You’ll Love These Sheet Pan Cookie Bars
- No scooping or chilling required
- Ready in about 35 minutes
- Perfect for parties, potlucks, and bake sales
- Soft, chewy centers with perfectly crisp edges
- Easy to customize with different chocolate chips and mix-ins
- Freezer-friendly for make-ahead desserts
What Makes These Cookie Bars So Good?
Unlike traditional chocolate chip cookies, sheet pan cookie bars bake in one large pan, creating bars with different textures. The bars on the edge are chewier (like a brownie edge piece!) while the center stays softer and gooey.
Using a combination of brown sugar and granulated sugar gives these bars rich flavor and the ideal chewy texture. Mini chocolate chips ensure every bite is packed with chocolate.
Ingredient Notes
- Butter: 1 cup. Use softened butter for easy creaming and soft, gooey cookie.
- Brown Sugar: 1 ¼ cup, packed. Make sure it is soft (and not hard chunks). It adds moisture and creates the chewy texture everyone loves.
- Granulated Sugar: ¾ cup A little granulated sugar helps create those golden, slightly crisp edges.
- Eggs: 2 eggs to provide some structure to the bars. We use large, grade AA.
- Vanilla Extract: 1 tablespoon (yes, really). It enhances the chocolate flavor. If you want a really good flavor, try a Mexican vanilla extract or pure vanilla extract.
- All-Purpose Flour: 2 cups. Measure flour most accurately by spooning it into the measuring cup and leveling it off to avoid dry cookie bars.
- Baking Soda: 1 teaspoon. Provides just enough lift while keeping the bars soft instead of cakey.
- Salt: 1 teaspoon. Balances the sweetness and enhances the chocolate flavor. We like to use kosher salt or fine sea salt.
- Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: Mini chocolate chips distribute more evenly throughout the dough, giving you chocolate in every bite.
How to Make Sheet Pan Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Prep. Gather your ingredients and preheat your oven to 350°F. And grease a jelly roll pan (15×11”) pan or line it with parchment paper.
- Make the base. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract, mixing until fully combined, then stir in the flour, baking soda, and salt just until incorporated.
- Make the cookie bars. Fold in 2 cups of mini chocolate chips, then press the cookie dough evenly into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the top.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the center is just set.
- Let the bars cool completely before slicing into squares.
Best tips for making these cookie bars
- For extra gooey cookie bars, slightly underbake them by 1 to 2 minutes.
- Line the pan with parchment paper to make removing and slicing easier.
- Just like cookies, avoid overmixing the dough after adding the flour.
- Sprinkle flaky sea salt on top after baking for a bakery-style finish.
- Let the bars cool completely before cutting for clean slices. Use a plastic knife for a cleaner cut, too.
Variations and Mix-Ins
Try swapping some or all of the chocolate chips for:
- Milk chocolate chips
- Dark chocolate chunks
- White chocolate chips
- Peanut butter chips
- Butterscotch chips
- Chopped pecans or walnuts
- Mini M&M’s
- Toffee bits
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe is designed for a 15 x 11-inch jelly roll pan. This is not the same as a quarter sheet pan (generally 9x13x1”) or a regular half-sheet pan (18x13x1”). If you use a smaller pan, the dough will be thicker and require additional baking time, and may overflow over the edges if you use a quarter sheet. You will want to use a 9×13” baking pan (which has a 2” edge) if you want a smaller pan. If you make them in a larger half-sheet pan, they will be thinner and will cook quicker, as well.
Yes! Regular chocolate chips work well, but mini chips distribute more evenly throughout the bars.
The edges should be lightly golden brown, and the center should look just set. The bars will continue to firm up as they cool. Feel free to cook them longer if you like a crispier bar, or undercook them slightly if you like an extra gooey texture.
Absolutely. Let the bars cool completely, then place them in an airtight container or freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Store leftover cookie bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Storage Instructions
- Room Temperature: Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Refrigerator: Store for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: Freeze for up to 3 months.
For the best texture, warm individual bars in the microwave for 10 seconds before serving.
More Easy Bar Desserts You’ll Love
- No Bake Biscoff Bars
- Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars
- Guava Cheesecake Bars
- Strawberry Shortcake Bars
- Caramelitas
Sheet Pan Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 1 ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 2 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 ¼ cup mini Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- In a large bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar and sugar. Add vanilla and eggs and combine. Fold in flour, baking soda and salt.
- Mix in 2 cups of mini chocolate chips.
- Spray a 15 x 11-inch jelly roll pan with nonstick cooking spray and spread cookie dough out evenly in pan. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips on top.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until middle is set up and edges are golden brown. Let cool and cut into squares.
Notes
Nutrition
Video
Did You Make This Recipe?We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a review or a question in the comment section below the post.
These look incredible! I wouldn’t love to make them this weekend! What size sheet pan did you use?!
Would* lol
It’s about 15 x 11 inches. Just a cookie sheet size.
Delicious! I was browsing your link in profile page looking for a recipe and found this one. I don’t love the cookie process and LOVED that this was a one and done sort of deal. Super tasty and so easy!
Looking forward to trying this recipe. What size pan did you use?
I live in a camper during the summer, and use a 13×9 baking pan in an Oster convection oven. I’m going to try this, any suggestions?
This recipe is for a sheet pan. If you are using a 9 x 13 inch pan, your dough will be thicker in depth since the pan is smaller. It will need to cook longer. A lot of our bar recipes for 9 x 13 inch pans cook for about 30 minutes.
Hi Anne!
It is just a standard half sheet pan which measures 18″x13″. Thanks!
So easy and delicious! Will definitely make again!
One piece of this slice is 6200 calories really?
Sorry about that. We were having problems with our site for a few days.
Will this recipe work as a round cookie cake that can be still cut into slices a day or two after it’s baked? Also, would the cooking time be the same if baked in a standard cookie cake pan?
We cooked this recipe in a 13×18 inch pan. If you use a smaller pan your batter would be a lot thicker, which would need more cooking time so it would cook all the way through. So you would have to watch it closely if you change the pan size. You will want to cover them if you do not cut them or eat them for a few days after making. You might want to bake them and then let cool. Cut into pieces and freeze in a freezer container until ready to thaw and eat.
Made these today and they are perfect!
Hi Judi. Thanks for leaving a sweet comment on the cookie bars. So glad you liked them and thanks for stopping by our site. Have a great weekend.
I’m so disappointed! These did not turn out as there are too many chocolate chips! They all melted together in the middle so the cookie to chocolate ratio is off. Are you sure 2 1/4cups is accurate? I ask because it took more than a regular 10oz bag to make as directed. Don’t want anyone else to make the same mistake!
Hello, my little girl loves to decorate sugar cookies, but she doesn’t like how they taste. Would this work if I use cookie cutters after it’s baked instead of cutting into squares? I’ve made several of your other recipes, and I haven’t been disappointed yet. Thanks in advance!
The chocolate chips are divided. Use 2 cups to add into the dough which is roughly a 10-11 ounce package. The other chocolate chips are to sprinkle on top before baking. That is totally optional.
Do you pack your brown sugar when measuring? I found that 20 mins was too long and it made the bars too crispy. Missing the chewy texture…
We don’t pack our brown sugar a lot. Just a generous measurement of the brown sugar. Sorry they turned out too crispy.
Camping, using what I have! I was short 3/4 cup of chips. They came out amazingly! Best cookies I have made in a long time!
Followed this recipe to a T. Dough was SUPER thick and impossible to work with and was not enough to spread in a sheetpan. Not sure what happened 🤷♀️
Just made this recipie using a 9×13, left out about 1/2 cup of dough, turned down to 325 and cooked for 35 min and they turned out perfectly! My new go to cookie recipie!!
Just made this. The half sheet pan was too big…not enough dough to spread around. A quarter sheet pan works perfectly. Baked for 27 min and they turned out perfectly. The extra chips on top weren’t needed. I added walnuts. Delish!
This reminds me of a teacher when I was in high school she use to sell these for 1.50 and I’d get like 6 of them a day I finally broke and asked her for the recipe and she actually gave it to me I ended up losing it however this is MS SIMPSON EXACT RECIPE
These were so amazing! Perfectly chewy and delicious! I used a 17 x 11 inch baking sheet and spread the cookie dough out with my hands. I baked for 25 minutes but I think 22 would have worked great! So delicious, thanks for the recipe!
Could I make these ahead of time and freeze them?
These will freeze great in an airtight container or freezer bag.
Made these tonight and they was sooooo good!!
I used a 9 x 13 pan at 340° in my convection oven. Took a little longer to bake. But they are delicious. I don’t care for a lot of chocolate chips so I cut way back to 3/4 cup. I also cut back the sugar to 1 1/3 cups and added walnuts . I definitely be baking these again .
Hi Sheryl. So glad you liked the Sheet Pan Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. You might also like our Six Sisters Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies. They are a family favorite. Have a terrific weekend.
I’m sorry to ask this but isn’t 1 tablespoon of vanilla a lot? I use pure vanilla and I’m wondering if I still use 1 tablespoon? Also, thank you for having the BEST recipes ever!! You are my number one go-to for ANY recipe. We have the same taste!!
Yes, it’s one Tablespoon of vanilla. But feel free to cut that in half if you think it will be too strong.
This one of my go to recipes now. We love them a little too much 😬😊 I also don’t always use that many chocolate chips if I don’t have enough on hand and they’ve still turned out great 👍 thank you for a great recipe!
My husband and I made the cookies and he had the idea of using a rolling pin to press out the dough on the cookie sheet. We used it lightly it cut the time in half of patting the dough all over the coookie sheet. We put pan sprayed wax paper down before using the rolling pin. Turned out wonderful.
Can you use normal chocolate chips if you don’t have mini chips? Do you have to cut back the amount then?
You can easily sub in regular chocolate chips in this recipe. Just add in the same amount, or a regular package of 11 ounce choc chips.
Thanks!!!
Made these today and they were a hit. Thanks! I used a 17.25×11.5 inch pan as thought was closest to a 18×13” which I don’t own. Is that standard? I have 4 cookie pans (none of which are 18×13”) and didn’t pay attention to the dimensions until I found this recipe. Do your cookie pans have those dimensions on them? Just curious.
Using the 17.25×11.5” pan I did notice the cookies were a dark golden brown at the 18min mark so I turned off the oven and let it sit in there for 2 more minutes. Pulled it out then let them cool down in the oven for about 20-35 minutes. The center pieces were perfection! The sides were good but much crisper than my family prefers. We’re definitely soft batch cookie types only! Wondering if I should’ve pulled them out of the oven as soon as they were golden brown instead of dark golden brown or would it cause the center to be under cooked? Or did I let them sit in the tray too long? Would’ve preferred not having them be too crispy on the edges in the future. Like I said though center pieces were perfect! Open to Suggestions??? Thanks in advance for your input!
This is basically the toll house cookie recipe on the back of the Nestle chocolate chips. ??? Also it is one TEASPOON of vanilla, not a tablespoon. Hhhmmmm.
Followed recipe to the letter. Something is off. They taste very….fake. Thought it was just me. When the second person to taste them also wrinkled their nose, I ended up throwing them out. I don’t know how to describe it, but not good. Also, they didn’t even cover the whole pan.i suggest using one smaller if you like this. Disappointing as I usually love everything Six Sisters put out.
I know you’re waiting for a reply from one of the Six Sisters, but in my opinion, 1 tablespoon, for sure! I didn’t realize until a few years ago how big of a difference more vanilla made in chocolate chip cookies. Yum!
Yes, It’s one Tablespoon.
Thanks Carrie for catching that comment! Yes, 1 Tablespoon.
I’ve made these and they are great. Wondering if you could put them in muffin pans with silicone cups. If so, what would the cooking time be?
I’m sure you could. We don’t have an exact cooking time for you. Just until the middle is set and the edges are golden. Watch them closely. Let us know how they turn out!!
Wanted to make these again so good. I ran out of normal white sugar. Can raw cane sugar be used in the same amount instead? Or will it change the texture etc
I really liked these! The second time I made them I substituted 2T. of cream cheese for 2T. of the butter. So yummy.
can I subsituite regular sized chocolate chips and if i can how much?
You can use regular sized chocolate chips, just add 2 cups. (1 package)
Has anyone made this into a fruit pizza crust-extra baking ,cream cheese topping, and then fruit when cooled.
Taste pretty darn good.. Thought it had a little to much flour pretty stiff. Will fix again.
The recipe is great but it got slightly over done in my oven at 18 minutes so keep a
close eye on it!
Thank you for the tip of using wax paper and a rolling pin. I was having a hard time spreading the batter. My butter was not as soft as I think it should have, was part of the problem.
We appreciate your concern. This recipe is different than the Nestle recipe. We have had this recipe for a long time. We hope you enjoy it and have a wonderful New Year.
Made these and loved them!
We are so glad you liked them. They are so easy and one of our faves!!
My daughter made this for FHE tonight and it was a hit.
Yum! The perfect family night treat!! So glad the family liked them!
We loved these bars, and it was nice to have a recipe for a bigger pan. Followed the recipe almost exactly—used margarine instead of butter. We also liked using the mini chocolate chips.
This recipe is different. I compared them before I made it because I questioned the pan size. This one definitely contains more vanilla and brown sugar and also flour, I believe.
The best chocolate chip recipe, saved a lot of time and energy making individual cookies as a sheet cookie, and still tastes great
Made this for a chirch group gathering. They were a great hit! So moist, gooey chocolate, and boy did they make my kitchen smell good coming out of the oven. The recipe was fine as is, Im not sure why some people had issues with it. Definitely will make these again!
Can use regular chocolate chips
You can use milk or semi-sweet. They both taste great in this recipe.
I only have self rising flour do you think this recipe would still work?
Excellent recipe! I used a 12oz bag of mini chocolate chips (approx 2 cups), still reserving one quarter cup to sprinkle on top. I had some walnuts to throw in; I think it was about half a cup. Next time I will chop them up a little better, but they were still good. After adding the flour and mixing, I kneaded the dough like bread. Did the same to mix in the chips. Spreading it out on the half sheet pan (18 x 13) was a little challenging as the dough was thick, but it’s possible. Turned the oven off at the 19 minute mark and let them stay in a couple more minutes. Perfect! Thanks for the recipe.
I found this for you on self rising flour vs regular flour. I know that they are referring to cookies, but Bars are a pretty close second. What happens if you use self-raising flour instead of plain flour in cookies?
If you’re looking to bake lighter, crunchier cookies, self-rising flour might be an ideal substitution. Although the flavor itself won’t be affected by swapping self-rising flour for the all-purpose flour that your recipe calls for, the finished cookie will have a slightly different consistency and a lighter texture.
I hope this helps.
Can I use parchment paper on the bottom of the pan to help keep the cookies from sticking?
Made these cookies today for a New Years Eve party at a friend’s house. They came out amazing. I followed the exact recipe except I used the regular size chocolate chips. Will try the minis next time. I lined the pan with sprayed parchment paper. The smallest bit of the edge of the cookie came out crunchy, but the rest of the cookie is soft and chewy. Definitely will make this again.
Very thin and flat. I should’ve known the 13 x 18 pan is too big, as my other bar cookies I bake in it require at least 4 cups of flour vs. this one’s 2. Next time I make this, I’ll use a 9 x 13 pan.
These work best in a 9×13 or 10×15 inch pans.
Yes, parchment paper will work to line your pan.
I made this recipe exactly as directed and it turned out so well that I plan to make it again next weekend !
I love this recipe! I use vanilla I brought back from Mexico and also add about 2 tbsp of cinnamon to the flour mixture. My boys eat these up! So easy.
These were easy to make and a great last minute recipe for making cookie bars for my staff for teacher appreciation week. I also gave some to a few students and they loved them. I snuck a few pieces too and yes these are moist and the flavors are perfect. Will make again!
Just baked these, so delicious! My college aged Son’s were so happy! Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I love this recipe so much and have made it many times in the past few years and it always turns out perfect. But the last two times I made them something is different. The dough is so much softer. Usually have to press it into the pan and the past two times it has been so soft that I could spread it with a rubber spatula. And it just isn’t cooking the same. Has something changed with the recipe? It’s almost like they need more flour. It says 2 cups but did it used to be more?
The recipe hasn’t changed, but it could be any number of things, including how humid it is in your kitchen, altitude, or even using a different brand of an ingredient. If you feel the texture is too sticky/thin, you could always try adding more flour a little bit at a time to get to that consistency where you can press it in the pan.
This recipe is delicious and so much easier than making cookies! Love it!
I Love Baking, Yes Even In The Summer, But This Recipe Is Great, It Doesn’t Get My Kitchen Overly Hot, I Can Early
In The Morning Or Evening.
This has become an absolute staple in my house! I make it for every football team dinner, my coworkers ask for it all the time. So much easier than baking cookies six at a time. I don’t even know how many people I have given this recipe to. It’s one of my all time favorites.
Disappointed with the recipe. I believe too much brown sugar and white sugar in the recipe. The mini chocolate chips pretty much melted together.
Too much brown sugar. It should have been 3/4 cup instead of 1 1/4 cups. I had to throw the pan out. Such a waste
Made this today and it was way too much for the size of pan in the directions. It overflowed in my oven, burned and made a huge mess. Took it out because of all the smoke and they weren’t even done. Very disappointed
This recipe is our go-to for chocolate chip cookies! However, this time I used organic brown sugar and they turned out much , more chewy and caramel than usual. Do you think it’s because the organic brown sugar is different?
What do you think about butterscotch chips with pecans on top? , or would the nuts have to be mixed in?
That sounds delicious!