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Get It NowI originally created this keto cream cheese frosting for my keto carrot cake (my favorite spring cake!), but since then, it’s become my go-to for so many treats. It’s so versatile! You can pipe it on low carb cupcakes, spread it on keto cakes, and even use it as a keto icing for cookies… all without any powdered sugar. Grab your hand mixer and make this sugar free cream cheese frosting with me in just 5 minutes!
Why You Need My Keto Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
- Creamy, tangy, and sweet – I know many of you love my keto buttercream frosting, but I think this keto cream cheese frosting is even better. And unlike many frosting recipes, mine uses more cream cheese than butter! It’s extra creamy, with a tangy flavor that brightens up any keto dessert.
- Keto friendly and gluten-free, with no aftertaste – I firmly believe you don’t have to compromise between taste and eating better. Even my friends and family (who aren’t low carb) love this stuff.
- 5 ingredients, 5 minutes – My sugar free cream cheese frosting is quick and easy! Just as easy as the regular kind.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my sugar free cream cheese frosting recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Cream Cheese & Butter – For smooth blending, make sure both are softened at room temperature. I recommend unsalted butter, although you can add a pinch of salt if you like.
- Besti Powdered Monk Fruit Allulose Blend – Making cream cheese frosting without powdered sugar is pretty much the same as the regular kind, but the problem is that many sugar substitutes can leave a gritty texture. I used to make this keto cream cheese frosting with powdered erythritol, and when it did manage to dissolve (which wasn’t always!), it would crystallize later. That’s why I always use Besti now — it dissolves completely and won’t crystallize. You can also use Wholesome Yum confectioners allulose, but increase the amount to 2/3 cup. I don’t recommend any other powdered sweetener, as other brands of monk fruit and stevia typically contain erythritol.
- Heavy Cream – This thins out the frosting for a creamy consistency. Full-fat coconut milk works as a substitute if you’re out of cream. Avoid regular milk, which isn’t keto friendly.
- Vanilla Extract – I like this brand.
How To Make Keto Cream Cheese Frosting
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Beat the butter and cream cheese. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the cream cheese and butter, until fluffy.
- Add powdered Besti and vanilla. Beat them in until the sweetener dissolves.
- Add the cream. Blend again, until your keto cream cheese frosting reaches a smooth, creamy consistency. Adjust the cream as needed to get just the texture you want.
My Recipe Tips
- Forgot to soften your butter and cream cheese? This usually takes 30 to 45 minutes at room temp, but it depends on your kitchen temperature. For a shortcut place both on a plate, and fill a large stainless steel bowl with boiling water. After 5 minutes, empty and dry the bowl, and place it inverted over the plate. Your butter and cream cheese will soften from the residual heat!
- Feel free to adjust the cream cheese to butter ratio. I like a 4:1 ratio, which makes it very tangy. If you prefer it milder, reduce the cream cheese to 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) and add an extra 4 tablespoons of butter (for 6 tablespoons total). You can play with any ratio you like — you just need 10 tablespoons total between the butter and cream cheese combined.
- Your kitchen temperature and humidity can play a role. If it’s very warm or humid, this can make your frosting runny as well.
- Don’t beat too long. You want the butter and cream cheese to become fluffy, but beating too long can warm them up so much that your frosting becomes runny, or introduce air bubbles.
- Want to add flavors? Try mixing in a dash of cinnamon or pumpkin spice, lemon or orange zest, or a few spoonfuls of cocoa powder (you can experiment with how much — I use the same amount as my keto chocolate frosting).
- Don’t have a piping bag? I have this set, which includes reusable bags, a variety of tips, and a box to hold them all. But you can easily scoop the frosting into a zip lock bag, snip off a corner, and you’re ready to pipe.
- How to pipe this sugar free cream cheese frosting: For cupcakes or round shapes, start in the center and spiral outward, then spiral back in to finish in the center.
Ways To Use It
You can use cream cheese frosting without powdered sugar in the same ways you would the regular kind! Here are some of my favorite ways:
- Cakes – Like I mentioned earlier, I first whipped it up for my keto carrot cake, but I also use it for my keto yellow cake and keto red velvet cake. You can even spread it on keto chocolate cake for something different!
- Cupcakes & Muffins – I originally made a raspberry frosting for my sugar free cupcakes, but I end up using this one just as often (as pictured on this page). You can also make your keto muffins feel more dessert like with a swirl of keto cream cheese frosting on top.
- Cookies & Bars – I think this frosting pairs particularly well with pumpkin, like my healthy pumpkin bars and keto pumpkin cookies. It also works well on keto sugar cookies and sugar free gingerbread cookies. If you really love cream cheese, spread it over my low carb cream cheese cookies!
My Tools For This Recipe
- Hand Mixer – I’m obsessed with mine! It’s powerful, has great storage for all the attachments, and has many speeds.
- Piping Bag & Tip Set – I love the variety of tips, but what I love even more is they come with a storage box and reusable bags.
Keto Cream Cheese Frosting (Sugar Free)
Make my sugar free, keto cream cheese frosting without powdered sugar in 5 minutes! It’s creamy, sweet, & perfect for your low carb desserts!
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Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the cream cheese and butter for 2-3 minutes, until fluffy.
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Beat in the sweetener and vanilla, until the sweetener dissolves. (Note: You can use powdered Besti or powdered allulose, but most other sweeteners won't dissolve well.)
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Add the heavy cream and beat again, until creamy. You can adjust the amount of cream to get the consistency you like.
Did You Like It?
Leave a rating to help other readers (this also helps me continue to provide free recipes on my site), or get the recipe sent to your inbox.
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 2 tablespoons
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you prevent runny frosting, my hack to soften the butter and cream cheese fast, several ways to adjust the flavor, and piping tricks.
- Store: Keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Let it come to room temperature before spreading or piping.
- Freeze: You can freeze this sugar free cream cheese frosting for up to 3 months. I recommend using a zip lock bag — just squeeze out all the air. Thaw in the fridge overnight, bring to room temp, then give it a quick beat before using.
- Recipe yield: This recipe makes 3/4 cup of frosting. Feel free to double or triple it if you need more.
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead.
Keto Cream Cheese Frosting
313 Comments
Gina
0This is delicious! It saved me tonight!! I put it on my chocolate mug cake! I don’t like anything too sweetened (perks of being on keto) so I eased the Swerve in and use about 2/3 – 3/4 of what was called for. I actually used the granulated Swerve since it’s all I have on and it’s still awesome – I don’t mind the graininess at all. So happy about this, it’s my new jam.
Shayna Creeger
0Hi. I’m trying to input this recipe in my fitness pal. I’ve tried twice, putting the exact ingredients in, and no matter what I do, it still says 17 carbs per serving. Advise?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Shayna, Our nutrition info comes from the USDA Food Database, which is more reliable than 3rd party calculators. Unfortunately I can’t troubleshoot 3rd party calculators, but the nutrition info on the recipe card is correct.
Mel
0I only have powdered stevia or swerve. What would be their portion to use instead?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Mel, Stevia can vary by brand and you can check the amount in my sweetener conversion calculator. Be aware that Swerve and most brands of stevia are typically over 99% erythritol, so they will crystallize when storing.
Sondra
0Total game changer, YUM
Glynis Cole
0I Iooove this frosting, thank you. I can’t find powdered sweetener in the shops here in Aus, Natvia used to make one but they said it didn’t sell! I’ve tried grinding the granules in a coffee grinder and with the stick blender, but it still comes out grainy. The only solution I have found us to heat the mixture in the microwave, so it will dissolve. Perhaps I should dissolve the sweetener in water before adding it to the other ingredients – what do you think?
Anthoinette Palma
0I put the granulated swerve in a bullet blender it was amazing it turned into powdered sugar in no time
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Glynis, I don’t recommend adding water to this. You could try seeing if the sweetener will dissolve in the cream cheese if you heat that a bit, but I haven’t tried it to say for sure. A better alternative might be to use a food processor to grind the sweetener (might work better than your coffee grinder) or order the powdered sweetener online.
Glynis Cole
0Hi Maya
Yes, the sweetener does dissolve in the heated cream cheese, but unfortunately I don’t have access to power often as I am a full time traveller and only use 12 volt or rechargeable appliances.
I tried powdering the granules with my stick blender but it still came out grainy. I don’t have a food processor, just the rotating blades on the blender.
The postage to buy confectioner’s (powdered) sugar online is prohibitive and takes too long to arrive as it isn’t available in Australia & I don’t stay in one place for more than a few weeks.
Could I safely heat the cream cheese in a pot on the stove?
Thanks
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0You can heat the cream cheese in a double boiler on the stove instead. It might burn if you put it directly over heat.
Tommy
0I was easy to make. I used an 1/8 cup of Lakanto powered monk fruit sweetener w/erythritol in it. It was sweet enough with the 1/8 cup. I also used 8oz of cream cheese and about 3-4 oz of Kerrygold Irish butter. It was more like a buttercream. I also used 12 oz of heavy whipping cream and about a tablespoon of vanilla. The flavor kicked A**!!! I’m diabetic , after all the taste testing and licking the whipping blade on my blender, blood sugars hit 115.
I plan on putting the cream on some little Keto Blueberry loaves I made
Jackie
0This. Frosting. Is. Incredible! Not incredible compared to other sugar free frosting, but compared to all cream cheese frosting recipes. Wow. My family of four adults gives this recipe five stars. Thank you!
Karen
0Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is one of my all-time fave foods. I always disliked too much sugar so this will suit me – I just cut down.
and, this is going to sound strange, but, I have been looking for a butter-cream combo that I can keep warm. Then the keto people – like me – at dinner can pour on the roasted cauliflower along with diced and crisped bacon. It is a bit of a headache but I have one person who is lactose intolerant and another hates sauces of any kind. so, do you think you can help me out here? I have a gravy boat that sits on a candle. thanks for this site
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Karen, I hope you’ll like the carrot cake and frosting – you can find the low carb carrot cake here. As for the sauce, the closest I have right now is this keto alfredo sauce recipe, but it does include dairy. A butter sauce would have dairy by definition, though. If you’d like you can use the Recipe Request link in the top menu to request a recipe if you’re looking for something different.
Susan
0This sounds delicious! If I wanted to make a boozy frosting, how much bourbon would need I to add? TIA 🙂
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Susan! Sorry, I haven’t tried that. You could just add it to taste, I’m sure, but may need to skip the heavy cream so that it’s not too thin.
Michele
0This is amazing thank you! Best sugar-free frosting recipe yet (ps. I used 1/4 cup pure organic stevia instead)
Susanne
0This is a brilliant recipe, first one I have made that is near the real thing. I downsized it as I’m getting fed up making desserts no one will eat, wish I had made this bigger!
Kelly
0Tastes amazing!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Kelly!
Doreen
0OMGoodness!! This tastes so much better than the high sugar version I remember. Thank you Maya! I tried this today as I had a migraine coming on and had a craving for something really sweet – this really hit the spot!! Thank you xx
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked it, Doreen! Thanks for stopping by!
Marcelle
0I cannot wait to try this! But do you get a cooling effect from the erythritol? Can you use powdered xylitol to prevent any cooling effect?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Marcelle, I don’t notice the cooling effect since the cream cheese masks it pretty well, but if you find that you notice any powdered xylitol will work fine. You’d need less of it – check the calculator here.
KARI SMITH
0DEAR LORD IN HEAVEN!!!! This is thee best recipe I have ever used!!! Made Low Carb Pumpkin Pie and it is a match made in heaven THANK YOU!!!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy to hear that, Kari! Thank you!
Serina Harvey
0Tasty!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Serina!
Julie
0This was better than I even hoped for, thank you!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I love to hear that, Julie! Thank you for stopping by!
Claudine Delacour
0Have just finished making these and they are delicious. I made mine in a silicone mould made for mini loaves. It made 14 and the frosting is to die for. I have messed up my diet for today as I had to eat one (well maybe two)
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked the frosting, Claudia!
Alison
0This is so perfect for the carrot and walnut cake. Love it. Thank you!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Alison! I am glad you liked the frosting and the cake sounds delicious too!
Joyce
0Erythritol, I am finding, does not dissolve as sugar does. Mine was gritty! What to do?? 🙁 First I used pure erythritol then went to monk fruit sweetener with erythritol in it. Both were gritty and I need a solution, please.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Joyce, Did you use granulated erythritol? If so, this would make it gritty. This recipe requires powdered.
Joyce
0I used granulated monk fruit sweetener which has erythritol. I have had this same problem with pure erythritol in other foods I had used it in and why I switched to monk fruit. I ground it with a coffee grinder which I use for other things such as flax seed, etc. It becomes as fine as powdered. I had also contacted Lakanto and they stated erythritol must reach a higher temperature to dissolve. I feel like I am the only person having this problem! 🙁
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0That is interesting, Joyce. I am glad you are happy with the monk fruit sweetener! It’s possible that grinding it yourself isn’t creating as fine a powder as the kind I used. Or, depending on how long the frosting sits, it might be crystallizing.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Yay! I love to hear that, Margie!
Heather
0We just switched to keto and I’ve always been a baker. Love seeing your recipes. I have my own cream cheese icing recipe I use normally, would the amount of powdered erythritol be equal to amount of normal powder sugar I would have used or is there a conversion?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Heather! I don’t recommend using same amount, you’d need less. The conversion for frosting seems to be different than it normally is in my chart. I’d just add it gradually to taste if using a different recipe.
Linda DeLaura
0Cream cheese frosting is one of my favorite things in the world! I can’t wait to try this!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I hope you like it, Linda! Thanks for stopping by!
Dana @ Pretty LIttle Apron
0This is a fantastic idea! Can’t wait to try it.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I hope you like it, Dana!
Rita Gresty
0Your sugar free, gluten free, low carb carrot cake is the best cake I’ve ever made! Absolutely delicious, so moist! I couldn’t find pineapple extract, but delicious without it. thank you!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked the cake, Rita! Thanks for stopping by! Please come back again soon!
Cat
0Delish! This would make really good fat bombs too, if you up the butter content and left our the cream. Yum! A butter cream frosting fact bomb. Probably have to store them in the freezer….. excuse me, heading to the kitchen to make this into fat bombs…..wonder what they would taste like dipped in chocolate…. Great recipe as always, Maya!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy to hear that, Cat! Please come back again soon!
Jo
0Is there a way to make a chocolate version of this frosting?
Wholesome Yum A
0I just made it. All I did was added two tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder. Tastes great!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you for sharing with us, Amanda!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Jo, I haven’t tried that yet, but it’s on my list!
Aimee
0I’m having a birthday party in a couple days and I was trying to come up with a good frosting for my cake that wouldn’t fall apart in a few hours, this is kinda what I was thinking of doing so I’m happy I found this recipe, sounds delicious.
If I put this on a cake and then leave it in the fridge, how long do you think it would stay stable for? I’m trying to figure out if I need to add it to the cake on the same day or if I can do it the day before. Thanks
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Aimee, Happy upcoming birthday (to you or is it for someone else?)! To be on the safe side, I’d make this the day-of. Sometimes it can crystallize in the fridge. Usually it’s not that quick, and most of the time it’s fine for a few days in my experience, but it can vary. Since it’s for a party, I’d just do same day, just to make sure. If you have leftovers, it’s fine to store in the fridge for a few days.
darra
0this.is.so.dang.good.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked it, Darra! Have a great day!
Hoa
0Hi, can we freeze the cake to eat later?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0The cream cheese frosting will freeze just fine. As for the cake, it depends on which one you made!
Caroline
0Hi, happy to have found your recipe. Can I use this recipe for a little girl with diabetes?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Caroline, Yes, absolutely! My kids love this frosting (while they are not diabetic, we limit sugar in our family). As always I don’t give medical advice and recommend consulting a doctor for any medical questions, but in general a low carb diet is great for diabetes. And, this sugar-free frosting is made with a natural sugar-free sweetener.
Caroline El Nagar
0Thanks for your answer. Can I change the erythritol to stevia?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0If you change to pure/concentrated stevia it might work but the consistency would be a bit different. If you use a granulated stevia blend, you’d need to powder it first using a coffee grinder or food processor, so that your frosting isn’t grainy. You can use my sweetener conversion chart here to determine how much to use.
Dondra
0This is incredibly good!!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked the frosting, Dondra!
Karyn M.
0This frosting has an amazing flavor- it takes exactly like the non-sugar free version. I loved it!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Karyn! I’m so glad you loved it.
Donna
0Hi, I’m GF, DF and Refined SF, Can I Use DF cream Cheese? And what can I use to replace the heavy cream?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Donna, Yes, dairy-free cream cheese should work. Not sure about replacing the butter, though. You can replace heavy cream with unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk, but would need less since those are thinner than cream.
Esther Erlich
0I can’t get powdered erythritol where I live in Australia. Is there any substitute? I can only get erythritol granules. There are no powdered artificial sweeteners at all.
Dondra
0I used xylitol with no problem. I’d probably use a little less than the recipe though.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Esther, You might be able to powder the granulated erythritol in a coffee grinder yourself. Also, erythritol is not artificial at all in case you wanted to know – it’s a natural sugar-free sweetener. 🙂
Natalie
0Hm, I don’t like the sweetener so is it possible if I make this without the sweetener? I think it’s still sweet with the butter and cream. Also, we will use it with cake, cupcakes or muffin so it would be delish in any case, isn’t it?
Rita
0I used Total Sweet pure natural Xylitol from supermarket & it was delicious. I only blitzed a cup for the frosting & used straight from packet for creaming butter for cake. Really worked well! No aftertaste some sweeteners leave. Product made from European birch & beechwood.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Natalie, From a consistency standpoint you probably could, but personally I think a frosting needs some sweetener. Up to you, though! If you omit the sweetener, you’d probably need less heavy cream.
Marcia Little
0Carrot cake is my all time favorite, please??
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Marcia, Carrot cake is coming soon!! 🙂
Ann
0Instead of using so much sweeter I sometimes use powdered milk. It helps to gives it the icing a little more volume.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Ann, That’s a great idea! That does add some carbs from the lactose, but I bet heavy cream powder would also work the same way. I do use a lot less sweetener in my recipe than traditional powdered sugar frosting recipes.
Jen Gosnell
0Hi Maya! This recipe came at the perfect time, as I’m about to have a kid birthday here. From reading, it sounds like the sweetener has to be powdered. I’m wondering if this is to the exclusion of other sweeteners like liquid stevia. Is there a consistency reason that it needs to be powdered?
Thanks!
Jen
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Jen, Yay, I love this for birthdays! Yes, the reason for the powdered sweetener is consistency. A granulated sweetener would make the frosting gritty, but a liquid one would make it runny. The powdered sweetener works to add not only sweetness but also bulk and adjusts the consistency.
Victoria
0This looks delicious! However, my body will only tolerate pure stevia, not any of the other sugar substitutes. I have powdered stevia that is very sweet. instead of 1/2 cup of sugar or erythritol, I would use 1 tsp. of my stevia. would that work for this recipe???
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Victoria, I haven’t tested it with pure stevia powder so am not 100% sure. I know granulated and liquid sweeteners will not work well, due to texture issues. Powdered pure stevia will not have the issues of being grainy or runny that granulated or liquid sweeteners would. But, it also would lack the bulk that using powdered erythritol provides. It would probably work ok but the texture would be a little different. Let me know how it goes if you try!
Linda Sutley
0My favorite way to use cream cheese frosting is atop a carrot cake with raisins and pineapple in the batter! Do you have that kind of magic up your sleeve, Maya?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Yum, sounds amazing! I’m actually planning a carrot cake recipe next month! It doesn’t have raisins and pineapple due to the carb content, though. But, adding raisins will be really easy to do if you decide to do that.