Easy pumpkin muffins made with cake mix are loaded with pumpkin flavor and the warm fall spices that you love, without a lot of effort.

These easy pumpkin muffins with cake mix are a cinch to make and will satisfy your pumpkin spice cravings.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. If you make a purchase, this site may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

Pumpkin-flavored everything is a trend I don’t see disappearing anytime soon and I’m not mad about it.

I love pumpkin season and pumpkin treats!

And these pumpkin muffins made with spice cake mix are so easy to whip up as soon as there’s a chill in the air.

It’s the perfect recipe to try if you’re new to the movement but it’s also something seasoned pumpkin spice lovers will appreciate.

This recipe is not quite a dump cake, as the pumpkin spice muffins batter does require a minute or two of mixing.

But they are literally made with just four ingredients, three of which you can find in the baking aisle at your grocery store.

The sour cream is optional but it adds moisture and it’s one of my favorite secret ingredients to use in baking.

Muffins are one of my favorite grab and go treats. Generally, they cook faster than cake, they freeze well, and as long as I can resist the temptation to eat more than one, they are perfectly portioned.

My Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins and my Pumpkin Banana Muffins are delightfully delicious but also a bit decadent with their cheesecake and streusel toppings.

When you need a muffin that’s easy and quick, full of flavor, and not over the top, these cake mix pumpkin muffins are where it’s at.

If you’ve got 5 minutes, you’ve got time to mix up these spice cake pumpkin muffins.

More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love:

• Pumpkin Crunch Cake (with Cake Mix)
• Easy Pumpkin Bundt Cake (from a Mix)
• Grandma’s Pumpkin Bread
• Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
• Soft & Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Easy Pumpkin Muffins With Cake Mix

For some reason, people have come about the idea that using a cake mix in home baked goods is cheating.

Sure, it will save you some time, but there is nothing magical in a box of cake mix.

They are simply pre-measured portions of flour, sugar, leavening plus spices or cocoa depending on the flavor of the cake mixes.

Cake mix recipes are a fabulous shortcut and shouldn’t be written off! There’s no shame in using a box mix as a great way to save time and give yourself a head start on an incredible sweet treat.

Plus, we’re putting our own spin on the box of spice cake mix.

This recipe skips the water, oil/butter and eggs and replaces it with a can of pumpkin puree and sour cream.

Both ingredients act as a binder, provide the necessary fat and moisture, and give the muffins flavor.

You can even skip the sour cream altogether if you prefer muffins a little on the lighter side.

Delicious and easy is the name of the game here. You’ll save time and you’ll be enjoying some of the tastiest muffins you’ll ever sink your teeth into.

It’s a winning combination!

How to Make Cake Mix Pumpkin Muffins

It’s really easy to make pumpkin muffins with spice cake mix.

Ingredients You’ll Need:

• Spice Cake Mix
• Pumpkin Puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
• Sour Cream
• Pumpkin Pie Spice

How to Make this Easy Pumpkin Muffin Recipe:

(Full printable recipe card is available below)

Prepare the muffin tin. First you’ll preheat the oven to 350F and grease the wells of a muffin pan (if using muffin liners, you may want to also give the paper liners a spritz with baking spray or cooking spray).

Make the batter. Next, you’ll combine cake mix, pumpkin puree, sour cream, and pumpkin pie spice in a stand mixer or with a handheld electric mixer. You could also mix well by hand in a large mixing bowl.

Bake the muffins. Last, you’ll scoop the batter into the prepared pan (a cookie scoop is useful for this!).

Bake in a preheated oven for 16-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool and serve.

Notes and Adaptations:

• If you don’t have sour cream on hand, you can omit it and these muffins will still turn out well. However, I think the sour cream gives it a much better texture, so I prefer to add it. You could also use plain Greek yogurt if you’d like.
• Feel free to use homemade pumpkin puree if you have it.
• If you can’t find spice cake mix, you can try making these with a box of yellow cake mix or white cake mix, but you might need to increase the pumpkin pie spice a bit.
• These are divine served with whipped cream–it’s like pumpkin pie in muffin form! 🙂 You could also add a smear of cream cheese frosting.
• You do not need to include the eggs, oil, and water called for on the box of cake mix. Just the ingredients listed in the easy recipe!
• Store leftover pumpkin cake mix muffins at room temperature in an airtight container. You can also freeze cooled muffins if you’d like–just wrap them well with plastic wrap before placing them in a container.
• Feel free to add in chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, or chopped nuts if you’d like! You could add 1/2 – 1 cup, depending on your preference.
• You can make the streusel topping from my pumpkin banana muffins recipe if you’d like. Mix 3 TBSP sugar, 3 TBSP brown sugar, 2 TBSP flour, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon in a small bowl. Using your fingers to mix, add 2-4 TBSP vegetable oil, just until the mixture resembles wet sand. Sprinkle over muffin batter before baking.