The best easy recipe for chocolate cream cheese frosting! Made with cream cheese, butter, cocoa powder, milk, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar this frosting will be your new favorite chocolate frosting. This frosting has a delicious tang from the cream cheese creating a perfectly sweet, not overly sweet frosting recipe!

To me you need a good cake and good frosting, having a good cake without good frosting is pointless, and the same goes for a bad cake and good frosting.
I often find that American buttercreams are very sweet, in my opinion, sickly sweet. I find that I like a Swiss Meringue Buttercream or a Cream Cheese Buttercream much better.
Cream cheese provides two things, a delicious tang flavor that helps counterbalance all the sweetness, and a luscious creamy texture. So its a win-win in my book.
This frosting is perfect on top of a chocolate, yellow, white, or coffee cake. The options are really endless!
Let's get to the recipe .
What are the ingredients for Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting?
- Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature,
- Unsalted Butter, softened to room temperature
- Cocoa Powder ( I prefer Dutch-process- Bensdorp Cocoa Powder)
- Salt
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- Whole Milk or Heavy Cream
- Powdered Sugar/ Confectioners Sugar
How do you make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting?
I can not stress enough how important it is to make sure your cream cheese and butter are softened to room temperature.
To speed up the process of softening them I suggest cutting them into small chunks. I find that microwaving either the cream cheese or butter is too risky, you can end up melting the solids.
You can make this frosting in a stand mixer, in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer, or by hand- but be prepared for a workout!
Beat the softened cream cheese and butter for 2 to 3 minutes on medium to high speed. The mixture should be light and fluffy and fully combined.
While the cream cheese is beating sift the cocoa powder into a clean bowl and sift the powdered sugar into another clean bowl. Sifting the powders helps prevent a lumpy frosting. You do not have to do this but I find that cocoa powder especially is often lumpy.
The absolute last thing you want is lumpy frosting when you are going to the trouble o making it from scratch. Take the two minutes and sift it! Trust me!
When the butter and cream cheese mixture is light, fluffy, and fully combined add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract. Beat the frosting for one minute, mix it on low with any powders you risk creating a cloud so mix it on low until the powder is incorporated.
If the mixture is very thick add a splash of milk or heavy cream.
Add in 2 ½ cups of the powdered sugar and mix on low for one minute, when the powdered sugar is combined increase the mixing speed to medium-high and let the frosting mix for 3 to 4 minutes.
If you desire a thicker frosting add the remaining powdered sugar.
Can you make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the frosting and store it in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to a week before use.
Can you freeze Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting?
Yes! Make sure you store it in an air-tight container. Place the container of frosting in the fridge the night before you want to use it. The next day see how much the frosting has thawed, if you need to let it sit at room temperature for a little bit before re-whipping in the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl with a hand-held mixer.
Here are some of my other favorite frosting recipes:
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Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
The best easy recipe for chocolate cream cheese frosting! Made with cream cheese, butter, cocoa powder, milk, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar this frosting will be your new favorite chocolate frosting. This frosting has a delicious tang from the cream cheese creating a perfectly sweet, not overly sweet frosting recipe!
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: Enough to Frost an 8 inch 2 Layer Cake
Ingredients
- 8oz Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature
- 4oz (½ Cup) Unsalted Butter, softened to room temperature
- 70 grams (Scant ¾ Cup*) Cocoa Powder ( I prefer Dutch-process- Bensdorp Cocoa Powder)
- Pinch of Salt
- 2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1-2 Tablespoons Whole Milk or Heavy Cream
- 313- 375 grams (2 ½- 3 Cups) Powdered Sugar/ Confectioners Sugar
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer beat the softened cream cheese and butter for 2 to 3 minutes on medium to high speed. You can also do this in a large bowl with a handheld mixer. The mixture should be light and fluffy.
- While the cream cheese is beating sift the cocoa powder into a clean bowl and sift the powdered sugar into another clean bowl. This helps prevent a lumpy frosting.
- When the butter and cream cheese mixture is ready add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and beat for one minute, if the mixture is very thick add a splash of milk or heavy cream.
- Add in 2 ½ cups of the powdered sugar and mix on low for one minute, when the powdered sugar is combined increase the mixing speed to medium-high and let the frosting mix for 3 to 4 minutes. If you desire a thicker frosting add the remaining powdered sugar.
- Prep Time: 10
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Mix
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: chocolate frosting, frosting recipe, cream cheese frosting
Michelle says
I did this recipe and it didn’t taste like chocolate just like cream cheese. So disappointed.
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Michelle, I am so sorry you were not happy with the frosting. The chocolate flavor comes from the cocoa powder so using a good quality one is key, and the recipe is designed to taste some of the tang from the cream cheese to set it apart from a standard chocolate buttercream. Again so sorry you were not happy with it.
Alice says
I also tried this recipe with Hershey's cocoa powder and it didn't work out. I definitely didn't let the butter soften enough but then somehow it didn't work between the cream cheese and the cocoa. I definitely recommend using better quality cocoa for the frosting. I didn't even use all of the cocoa either. Also, the frosting didn't really seem to firm up.
★★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Alice, thanks for reporting back. I deftinley think not softening the butter properly will impair the way the cream cheese and butter blend together thus affecting the frosting texture and look. Being a cream cheese-based frosting it will not firm up the way a standard buttercream would. I am so sorry it was not what you were hoping for!! 🙁 Liz
Gail says
Love this frosting! It is not super sweet - perfect with a sweeter cake. You could make it sweeter with additional confectioner's sugar, but I did not. Creamy dreamy wonderfulness! Use good quality cocoa - I used Scarffenberger (unsweetened of course). Ditto the cream cheese. Good ingredients equals good results.
★★★★★
Elizabeth Waterson says
Thank you so much for the 5-star review Gail, I just made this frosting again last week and it truly is so yummy, glad you agree!! Take care. XX Liz