Every Starbucks cake pop + the recipe
Starbucks Cake Pops
All four cake pops on the Starbucks menu right now, what is inside the famous pink Birthday Cake Pop, and an easy cake pop recipe (from scratch or with a cake mix) with fixes for every common problem.
Quick answer. Starbucks sells four cake pops in October 2026: Birthday Cake, Chocolate, Hedgehog and Unicorn. Each is a bite-sized ball of cake and buttercream on a stick, dipped in a chocolaty coating, with 150 to 170 calories. A Birthday or Chocolate Cake Pop costs about $3.95. At home, 24 home version birthday cake pops take about two hours, most of it chilling time.
- Calories: 170
- Average US price: $3.95
Checked October 2026. Prices are average US prices and vary by store.
The Starbucks Cake Pop Lineup
| Cake pop | Inside | Coating | Calories | Sugar | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate | Chocolate cake + chocolate buttercream | Chocolaty icing, white sprinkles | 150 | 16 g | 38 g |
| Birthday Cake | Vanilla cake + vanilla buttercream | Pink chocolaty icing, white sprinkles | 160 | 16 g | 38 g |
| Hedgehog | Vanilla cake + buttercream | Chocolaty icing, chocolate sprinkle “spikes” | 160 | 15 g | 41 g |
| Unicorn | Vanilla cake with confetti sprinkles | White chocolaty icing, unicorn face | 170 | 17 g | 42 g |
Seasonal cake pops: Starbucks also releases limited-time designs, such as frog, polar bear, raccoon, snowman and Valentine cake pops, that come and go with the seasons. Check the Starbucks app to see what your store has, or browse the seasonal pages for the fall and holiday menus.
Prefer chocolate? See the chocolate cake pops page for the Starbucks Chocolate Cake Pop and a from-scratch chocolate recipe.
Inside the Birthday Cake Pop
The pink Birthday Cake Pop is Starbucks’ classic cake pop. According to its ingredient list, it has three parts:
- Cake: a vanilla cake made with sugar, flour, oil, eggs, egg whites, butter flavor and vanilla extract, mixed with vanilla buttercream so it is dense and fudgy rather than fluffy.
- Coating: a white “chocolaty” coating (sugar, palm kernel and palm oil, milk solids) tinted pink with vegetable juice and annatto extract.
- Topping: white nonpareil sprinkles.
| Birthday Cake Pop (38 g) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Calories | 160 |
| Total fat | 8 g (4.5 g saturated) |
| Carbohydrates | 21 g |
| Sugars | 16 g |
| Protein | 2 g |
| Sodium | 95 mg |
Because the coating is a candy coating rather than real chocolate, it sets with a snap and keeps its pink color. That is why most home recipes use candy melts.
Cake Pop Prices and Where to Buy
The Birthday and Chocolate Cake Pops cost about $3.95 each at average US prices; check the app for the character pops at your store. Starbucks cake pops are sold in Starbucks cafés and through the Starbucks app. If you need a dozen or more for a party, making them at home is the easier option. Starbucks Rewards members can use their free birthday reward on a food item, so a birthday cake pop on your birthday is a popular choice; see the Starbucks deals page.
How to make Starbucks Birthday Cake Pop
This cake pop recipe makes 24 pops that match the Starbucks style: a dense vanilla center bound with buttercream, a pink candy shell and white sprinkles.
Ingredients
- For the vanilla cake:
- 1 ¼ cups (155 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 egg white, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120 ml) milk
- For the buttercream:
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup (90 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon milk and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- For coating and decorating:
- 16 oz (450 g) white candy melts, or white chocolate plus 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- Pink oil-based (candy) food coloring, if your melts are white
- 2 tablespoons white nonpareil sprinkles
- 24 lollipop sticks (6-inch)
Instructions
- Bake the cake. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease an 8×8-inch pan. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, then beat in the egg, egg white and vanilla. Mix in the flour in two additions, alternating with the milk. Spread in the pan and bake 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.
- Make the buttercream. Beat the butter, powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth.
- Crumble and bind. Crumble the cooled cake into fine crumbs with your hands, removing any dark crust. Add the buttercream 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until the crumbs hold together like soft dough when squeezed. You may not need all of it.
- Roll the balls. Scoop level 1½-tablespoon portions (about 25 g) and roll into smooth balls. Chill on a parchment-lined tray for 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Attach the sticks. Melt the candy melts in a tall, narrow mug in 30-second bursts, stirring between each, and tint pink. Dip 1 cm of each stick into the coating and push it halfway into a ball. Chill 10 minutes so the stick sets.
- Dip and decorate. Dip each pop straight down until covered, lift it out and tap your wrist gently so the excess drips off. Add nonpareils right away, before the coating sets.
- Let them set. Stand the pops upright in a foam block or a box with holes for 15 minutes, until the coating is firm.
Easy cake pop recipe with cake mix
Short on time? Bake one 15.25 oz box of vanilla or white cake mix in a 9×13-inch pan as directed and cool it completely. Crumble it and mix in about ½ cup of canned vanilla frosting, a spoonful at a time, until it holds together. This makes about 40 to 45 cake pops. Coat them exactly as above. Leftover cake works too: mix in frosting until the crumbs hold their shape.
Cake pops without frosting
Instead of buttercream, bind the crumbs with 2 to 3 tablespoons of softened cream cheese or a few spoonfuls of melted white chocolate. The pops will be slightly firmer.
Cake Pop Troubleshooting
| Problem | Why it happens | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Coating cracks | Balls are too cold (frozen) when dipped | Chill in the fridge, not the freezer, or let frozen balls sit 5 minutes first |
| Pop falls off the stick | Ball is too heavy or the stick was not anchored | Keep balls to about 25 g and set the stick in melted coating first |
| Coating is thick and lumpy | Candy melts are overheated or too thick | Melt slowly and stir in ½ to 1 tsp coconut oil |
| Coating seizes when tinted | Water-based food coloring | Use oil-based or candy coloring |
| Greasy, mushy centers | Too much frosting | Add frosting a little at a time; stop when it just holds |
| Cracks or leaks after setting | Air bubbles or temperature shock | Let pops sit at room temperature 10 minutes after chilling, before dipping |
Variations
- Chocolate cake pops: use chocolate cake and chocolate buttercream, dip in chocolate candy melts and finish with white sprinkles.
- Hedgehog cake pops: dip in brown coating, cover the back in chocolate sprinkles for spikes and pipe a face.
- Unicorn cake pops: fold confetti sprinkles into the cake, dip in white coating and pipe a golden horn and closed eyes.
- Strawberry cake pops: use strawberry cake mix and pink coating.
- Cookies and cream: bind crushed chocolate sandwich cookies with cream cheese instead of cake.
Storing Cake Pops
| Where | How long | How |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | 2 to 3 days | Covered, in a cool spot |
| Fridge | About 1 week | Airtight container; bring to room temperature to serve |
| Freezer | Up to 1 month | Freeze on a tray, then in a container; thaw in the fridge |
Watch: Starbucks Birthday Cake Pop at home
Pair your cake pop with a drink, or compare it with the other sweets on the Starbucks food menu. You can also find the cake pops in the treats section of the Starbucks menu.
Starbucks Cake Pop FAQs
How much is a cake pop at Starbucks?
About $3.95 for the Birthday Cake Pop or Chocolate Cake Pop at average US prices. Prices vary by store.
How many calories are in a Starbucks cake pop?
150 to 170 calories. The Chocolate Cake Pop has 150, the Birthday and Hedgehog Cake Pops have 160, and the Unicorn Cake Pop has 170, according to Starbucks.
What flavor is the Starbucks Birthday Cake Pop?
Vanilla. It is vanilla cake mixed with vanilla buttercream, dipped in pink chocolaty icing and topped with white sprinkles.
What cake pop flavors does Starbucks have?
In October 2026 the US menu lists four: Birthday Cake, Chocolate, Hedgehog and Unicorn. Seasonal designs such as frogs, polar bears and Valentine’s pops come and go during the year.
Can I get a free cake pop on my birthday at Starbucks?
Starbucks Rewards members get a free birthday reward that can be used on a drink or a food item. See the Starbucks deals page for how it works.
How many cake pops does one cake mix make?
A standard 15.25 oz box of cake mix baked in a 9×13-inch pan and mixed with about ½ cup of frosting makes roughly 40 to 45 cake pops of about 1 ¼ inches.
How long do cake pops last?
2 to 3 days covered at room temperature, about 1 week in the fridge in an airtight container, or up to 1 month in the freezer.
Nutrition, ingredients and descriptions are from starbucks.com (checked October 2026). The homemade recipe is our own home version, not an official Starbucks recipe. Prices are average US prices and vary by store. starbukmenu.com is not affiliated with Starbucks Corporation.
