Crockpot Mac and Cheese
116 Comments Feb 08, 2023
Updated Jun 12, 2025
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This crockpot mac and cheese has that classic, creamy texture thanks to a blend of real cheeses—no shortcuts, just comfort food done right.
What I love most about my crockpot mac & cheese recipe is that there’s no need for a flour and butter roux to make the sauce. Instead, cream cheese does the work of thickening it up. This version uses freshly shredded cheese—no Velveeta or cheddar soup here!
Key Ingredients
No complicated steps—just these pantry-friendly ingredients. Full Recipe is in the recipe card below the images.
- Elbow Macaroni: Use large or small elbows
- Cheese Combo: A mix of sharp cheddar and white cheddar gives the sauce its rich, classic flavor.
- Cream Cheese: Adds extra creaminess and helps the sauce stay smooth.
- Milk: Thins the cheese mixture just enough to coat the noodles perfectly.
- A Large Crockpot: This recipe makes a big batch, so be sure to use a 6-quart or larger slow cooker to avoid overflow.
Cook’s Tips and Variations
A few things to keep in mind for the best texture and flavor:
- Cook the pasta separately—the slow cooker doesn’t get hot enough to properly cook dried noodles.
- Don’t overcook the pasta on the stove; it’ll keep softening while it cooks in the crockpot.
- Mac and cheese doesn’t freeze great—this one’s best eaten fresh within a few days.
- Sharp cheddar is the way to go—mild cheddar doesn’t have enough flavor for a dish like this. You can swap the white cheddar for more sharp cheese, or try Swiss, Gouda, or Fontina.
- Try other shapes like shells, penne, or cavatappi if you want to switch things up—they hold up well.
What to serve with this
Crockpot macaroni and cheese is a fantastic dish that can be served as-is or with other dishes to create a full-course meal. Here are a few meal ideas to pair with it:
Mac and cheese goes great with holiday mains like crockpot ham, or turkey.
Other great main dishes we love to serve this with are grilled burgers, slow cooker cube steak, slow cooker whole chicken, crockpot drumsticks, or crockpot ribs.
If you want more sides that pair well, try my green bean casserole or honey garlic carrots.
Featured Comment
“This is such a great recipe. I love that it’s in the slow cooker and the whole family loves it.”
– Christine
Crockpot Mac and Cheese Recipe
How to Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- nonstick cooking spray
- 2 cups dried elbow noodles, large or small, (see instructions on how to prepare)
- 8 oz. cream cheese,, cubed
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 2 cups shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
For topping:
- 1 cup shredded cheddar sharp cheese, (optional)
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions on the stove top and not any longer. Get other ingredients ready while pasta cooks.
- Spray the slow cooker with nonstick spray or rub down with oil or butter. Drain the pasta immediately after done cooking and add to the slow cooker add remaining ingredients and stir.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours. Stir the pasta twice during this cooking time, once at the hour mark and then and the 1.5 hour mark. Be gentle when you stir.
- When the cooking time is up add more cheese on top, add the lid and let melt for 5-10 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Pasta Recipes
Pesto Chicken Pasta and Slow Cooker Chicken Penne are two easy, creamy chicken dinners packed with flavor.
For classic Italian comfort, try Slow Cooker Lasagna or Crockpot Spaghetti and Meatballs—both are hearty and hands-off.
Family loved this even more than my Mac and cheese made with a homemade cheese sauce from scratch! This was so much easier to make. Though I did leave it on a little too long and it dried out a bit easy fix added more milk and stirred up. Cream cheese makes this recipe so good. Thank you!
I used a box of rigatoni pasta…which equals about 3X the recipe cooked. i used 3 bricks of cream cheese, two 2c pkgs sharp white cheddar, two 2c pkgs sharp cheddar, 4c milk. I added chopped up ham about a half hour before cooking was finished. It is creamy, and so tasty. the noodles are NOT mushy, but perfect texture for mac and cheese…….mac and cheese, in my experience was never al dente. I also notice someone said it was grainy or something like that…i dont know how that could have happened, because this is creamy and smooth. I also did not find it to be buttery or oily one bit!!! I will make this again and again. It is an exceptional recipe!!
i just wanted to add, i boiled the pasta for 7 minutes exactly. in case anyone wanted to know how long it boiled it for.
Thanks
Looks good except that you add cooked pasta and then you cook for another 2 hrs. I like my pasta Al Dente and this seems like it would be over cooked
Then slow cooker mac and cheese probably isn’t for you. I don’t think it’s over cooked but it is not al dente.
Nope. Not what I’m looking for. This was grainy… and VERY buttery/oily. I followed the directions exactly. I’m looking for creamy, yet sturdy noodles… without tasting like Velveeta. Don’t make this if you want creamy mac n cheese.
This is what mac and cheese tastes like without velveeta. I apologize for the confusion.
Many of the comments I read saying the cheese was grainy and or separated has to do with the fat content of the cheese and cheddar loves to separate so may I suggest adding your cheese to a mixing bowl and put about a tablespoon of flour in with the grated cheese and fluff it together and this should stop the separation of the fat and cheese when cooking and makes it creamy.
Would this recipe also work cooked in the oven?
I don’t see why not.
Do you cook for longer if you double the recipe?
You may need to do an extra half hour.
C
Family loved this so I think it was cream cheese. Didn’t t know about. Also first time in chock potT Thank you. Marilyn
Your recipes looks delicious
Can’t wait to try that Mac and cheese in the crock pot
Thanks
Good recipe Thanks
My family ate it all up and keep asking to make it again