The Best Cookie Decorating Kit

Buying Guide

Whether it’s for a birthday, holiday or just everyday treats, a cookie decorating kit makes it easier to design creative cookies without needing to hunt down individual items. You can find many options to fit your preferences — whether you want to avoid the hassles of baking or you plan to bake the treats themselves using your own ingredients. Some kits offer supplies that will allow you to decorate cakes and cupcakes in addition to cookies.

If you want the most convenient option, you can look for no-bake cookie decorating kits. These include pre-baked cookies along with icing, sprinkles and other decorating essentials. Often featuring themes related to holidays, characters or seasons, these kits are especially good for introducing kids to cookie decorating. They also work well for parties and beginner-level bakers.

Other types of cookie decorating kits come with specific supplies, so you’ll want to consider what you already have at home to find a good fit. Some options might have one type of decorating tool, while others include a full collection.

Comprehensive cookie decorating kits are a great option if you want a lot of variety and need to build your collection. These tend to come with several icing tips and couplers so you can create different designs on your baked goods. While some kits have dozens of tip options, others include just the basic ones. You’ll usually be able to see a picture of these so you can choose the kit that has the tip designs you like.

You can expect cookie decorating kits to come with several disposable icing bags with ties and a container for storing your tools. Other common items include icing scrapers, a spatula, tools for adding flowers and cleaning brushes. 

If you already have plenty of supplies at home, you might opt for a cookie decorating kit that focuses on a specific item type or purpose. For example, you can find kits that include food-safe pens for writing messages on cookies, cookie cutter collections, icing applicator bottles, decorating brushes and stirring tools.

• If your kit comes with ready-to-decorate cookies, check the ingredients if you have any food allergies. For example, some of the cookies may contain nuts and the icings might include dyes.
• It can be hard to tell decorating tips apart since many of them look similar. Thankfully, most manufacturers put numbers on them and provide a reference guide that gives you a better idea of the decorative icing design to expect from each tip.
• To make it easier to squeeze your icing bag, fill it up just around halfway to start. When holding the bag, you should use your palms to press the icing out.
• You might find that your icing tips clog, especially if you let the icing sit long enough to harden. You can try using water to soften up and remove the clogged icing from the tip, or you could push a toothpick through the tip. For major clogs, though, you might need to remove the tip and coupler to get the dried icing out.
• While you may be eager to start decorating your freshly baked treats, you should let the cookies fully cool down before you start adding any icing. Otherwise, the icing can melt and your design may turn into a mess.
• When rolling out your dough and using cookie cutters, try to aim for a thickness of around 1/8 inch. Once you press the cookie cutter down, avoid moving it around so you don’t disrupt the design. Also, note you can have a better experience with cookie cutters made of metal.
• Some types of cookies are better than others for decorating. Sugar cookies are a classic choice for a reason: They have a flat surface. Gingerbread works great, too, especially for holiday cookies.
• Be sure to let the base layer of icing dry on the cookies before you begin doing any detail work.
• If you find your icing too dense and hard to work with, you can use milk or water to thin it out. If the icing is too runny, try adding powdered sugar to make it thicker.