National Cookie Day 2025: A Sweet Celebration

Cookie enthusiasts rejoice! Thursday, December 4, 2025, marks National Cookie Day, a beloved unofficial holiday dedicated to indulging in everyone’s favorite baked treat. From freebies and discounts to exciting new flavors, bakeries and chains across the nation are rolling out special offers to sweeten the day.

The History Behind the Holiday

While cookies have been enjoyed for centuries, National Cookie Day itself has a more recent origin. The concept first appeared on Sesame Street’s calendar on November 26, 1976, with Cookie Monster famously advocating for the holiday. However, it wasn’t until 1987 that Matt Nader, founder of the Blue Chip Cookie Company, officially moved the celebration to December 4, where it has remained ever since.

Irresistible Deals and Freebies on December 4th

This year, numerous brands are participating with enticing promotions:

• Chip City: Score free Chewies (available in chocolate chip, triple chocolate, confetti, s’mores, or oatmeal) with any in-app purchase for pick-up.
• Panera Bread: MyPanera members can enjoy a buy-one, get-one (BOGO) cookie reward through any ordering channel.
• Dunkin’: Dunkin’ Rewards members will earn 3x points on all espresso beverages, including their seasonal Cookie Butter Cloud Latte and other cookie-inspired sips.
• Jimmy John’s: JJ Rewards members can snag a free Holiday Magic Cookie (a sugar cookie with red and green M&Ms) with any digital purchase of $5 or more.
• Gopuff: Get 25% off Chrissy Teigen’s The Perfect Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix.
• Harry Potter Shops: The first 100 fans at New York and Chicago locations will receive a free Sweater Cookie.
• Pepperidge Farm: Starting at 9 a.m. ET, visit PepperidgeFarmHoliday.com to send a free cookie gram, which includes two full bags of Chessmen and Milano Mint Chocolate cookies, plus a personalized note (while supplies last).
• Insomnia Cookies: The first 100 Insomnia Rewards members at each store will receive a free, warm, limited-edition Snowball Classic Cookie. Additionally, one lucky winner at each bakery will find a hidden purple buttercream in their Snowball Cookie, granting them free cookies for a year.
• Great American Cookies: Rewards members can enjoy a free regular Original Chocolate Chip or Sugar Cookie in-store via the app, no purchase necessary.
• Dairy Queen (DQ): From December 1-7, DQ Rewards members can get $3 off any small Blizzard Treat. Plus, receive a free mini Frosted Sugar Cookie Blizzard Treat (or any mini Blizzard) with the purchase of a Signature Stackburger Combo or a 6-piece Chicken Strip Basket.
• maman: Upgrade your 8-cookie box to a 12-cookie box with online purchases using the code COOKIEDAYUP4 at checkout.
• Crumbl: Customers who purchase a 6-pack will receive a 7th dessert free in-store. The first 100 customers will also get a limited-edition 6-7 sticker.
• Milk Bar: In partnership with McCormick, select Milk Bar locations in New York, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles will give away exclusive McCormick x Milk Bar Eggnog English Toffee Cookies to the first 50-100 customers.
• Subway: Customers making an order of $25 or more through DoorDash (Dec 2-17) or Uber Eats (Dec 1-14) can receive a free six-pack of cookies.
• Toll House: Nestlé Toll House fans can visit TollHouse.com/CookieTacos at 2 p.m. ET for a chance to win a limited-edition Cookie Taco kit, which includes a cookie dough roll, chocolate morsels, a taco stand, a $25 gift card, and recipe cards (while supplies last).
• Bang Cookies: The New Jersey-based bakery is offering a free cookie for the first 100 online purchases using code CHOCHIP, and for the first 100 in-store guests in Brooklyn, NY, and Ocean Township, NJ.
• Operation Cookies: Use promo code CHOC_CHIP at online checkout to get a half dozen chocolate chip cookies free when purchasing a dozen (through Dec 5).
• REAL Cookies: Enjoy 20% off with promo code Cookiedays25 from December 4 through 8.
• The Maui Cookie Lady: Get 10% off your order with promo code ALOHAEATS2025 from December 3 through 9.

Looking Ahead: Girl Scout Cookies 2026

Beyond National Cookie Day, the world of cookies continues to evolve. The Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) recently announced a new addition to their iconic lineup for the 2026 season: “Exploremores.” This Rocky Road-inspired treat is a chocolate sandwich cookie filled with a creamy blend of chocolate, marshmallow, and toasted almond-flavored crème. The introduction of Exploremores comes as two other flavors, S’mores and Toast-Yay!, are set to retire at the end of the 2025 season, as reported by digitaltrendstoday.com. The new cookie, along with returning favorites like Thin Mints and Samoas, will be available when the annual cookie season kicks off, typically from January through April.

A Sweet Reminder: National Donut Day

For those who also appreciate other baked delights, it’s worth noting that November 5, 2025, marked a second National Donut Day celebration this year. While the more widely recognized Donut Day is in June, this November date saw Krispy Kreme refreshing its menu with nine new flavors, expanding its everyday lineup to 16 full-sized doughnuts. This strategic move followed the conclusion of Krispy Kreme’s partnership with McDonald’s on July 2, 2025, a decision driven by the inability to achieve a sustainable business model for the venture, according to digitaltrendstoday.com.

Whether you’re grabbing a free treat, enjoying a discount, or anticipating new flavors, National Cookie Day 2025 offers plenty of reasons to celebrate. So, go ahead and treat yourself to a sweet moment!