Orange County, CA Donut Trail-The Best Donuts in SoCal - Family Friendly Travel Destinations

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Are you looking for the best donuts in Orange County? Well you’ve come to the right place! After stumbling upon a SoCal donut road trip that covered 6 donut shops in 5 hours, we knew we could make a much better one and began planning the ultimate donut trail with some of the best and top rated donut shops in Orange County. Our donut trail is entirely within Orange County and if you really wanted to, you could make the loop in one day. We paced ourselves and spread it out throughout several weeks, though we won’t judge if you decide to visit them all in one day!

Each of the shops on our list is highly rated by locals and many have been around for years, with many generations enjoying the goodies. Some are known for specific donuts, some have themes and some are just really really good without being Instagram worthy. We wanted to skip the chains and instead focus on small, family owned businesses so you won’t see places like Krispy Kreme on our list. Whether you’re looking for the best glazed donut or a shop that has a unique theme, we’ve got you covered! Put on your loosest pants and come along to experience some of the best donut shops in Orange County.

Orange County donut trail, best donuts in Orange County — Map of the Orange County donut trail

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The Best Donut Shops in Orange County

Donut City, Seal Beach The first stop on our list is a local favorite. If you like apple fritters, this is the place for you! Dave said it was the best apple fritter he’s ever had and many agree. Milana chose the maple bar, which was great as well.

2. The Donuttery, Huntington Beach One of the best and most popular donut shops in Orange County is The Donuttery. They have a huge selection of donuts, including many vegan options. And the best part? They are open 24/7. One of our favorites here is the peanut butter and jelly donut, covered in yummy melted peanut butter and lots of jelly inside. Milana chose the red, white and blue sprinkle donut and we got a bear claw for Dave.

3. Sidecar Doughnuts, Costa Mesa From the day they opened, they have quickly become one of our favorite donut shops! They use fresh and natural ingredients and don’t bake their day’s supply all at once, meaning you are guaranteed to have a freshly baked donut no matter what time you come. They also offer seasonal flavors each month, so definitely check those out! My personal favorite is the banana cream pie in the summer. On this trip, we had their famous huckleberry, butter & salt and the salted malted chocolate chip cookie dough. They were all absolutely amazing!

4. Seaside Donuts Bakery, Newport Beach One of the few places that’s open 24 hours, this place has the best location! It’s located right at the beach so you can get your donuts and then go sit in the sand and eat. While you won’t find any crazy flavors here, the donuts are always fresh. But donuts isn’t what this little bakery is known for. They sell some of the best ham and cheese croissants in Southern California! If you need some real food to break up all the donuts, be sure to grab one, I guarantee it will be the best you’ll ever have.

5. South Swell Donuts, Laguna Beach After visiting the previous shop, you’re in for a treat while driving to this one! You’ll be taking Pacific Coast Highway from Newport to Laguna Beach, with some amazing ocean views along the way. The shop is right on PCH, not too far from the beach. Since we were doing multiple stops today, we opted to get just one donut from each location and chose the apple fritter from this one.

best donuts orange county ca — Apple fritter from South Swell Donuts

6. Dippity Donuts, Dana Point Not too far from location 5 is this popular spot in Dana Point. This shop is in a strip mall and has customers all day long. The donuts are always fresh when we go! We chose the jelly filled one from this location and it was awesome.

7. Surfin’ Donuts Coffee House, San Clemente In the surf town of San Clemente, you will find this aptly named donut shop. There are quite a few donuts to choose from and even picnic tables outside where you can eat them. We love lemon so we chose the one filled with lemon custard and it was great!

8. JD Flannel Donuts & Coffee, San Juan Capistrano If you’ve never been here, you’re in for a treat! Keep in mind that they are closed Monday and Tuesday. The donuts here are really fresh and made using all natural ingredients. They bake in small batches so that you’re guaranteed to get a hot, fresh donut no matter what time you come. Milana chose the maple bacon and I had their seasonal pumpkin and both were amazing!

9. Little Bean Coffee & Doughnuts, Mission Viejo Do you like themed donuts? Then this is the place for you! They had mermaid donuts, Halloween themed (we went in October), unicorn donuts-to name a few. The donuts were fresh and good and we came later in the day.

10. Krazy Eddy’s, Laguna Hills This place is very popular with locals and things here sell out fast, especially on weekend mornings. The donuts are fresh and good. We got an apple fritter, which was amazing here and the not fancy but always good glazed donut and it was fresh, yeasty and delicious.

best donuts orange county — Apple fritter and glazed donut from Krazy Eddy’s

11. Janny’s Donuts, Irvine Located in a strip mall, Janny’s donuts is a local favorite. Their donuts are simple but always fresh! We tried the sugared twist and Milana chose a sprinkle donut and both were fresh and good.

12. Oliboli Donuts, Tustin You are in for a treat when you visit this donut shop! The donuts here are amazing and super fresh. They have some unique flavors, don’t be surprised if you want to try them all! Milana chose the marionberry and I got the banoffee (seasonal) which had homemade banana whipped cream, banana slices, toffee sauce and streusel crumbs. It was served hot and was so delicious!

13. Donut Hub, Orange In an unsuspecting strip mall is this awesome donut shop. They have some unique flavors and all of their donuts are super fresh. We tried the lemon blueberry (amazing!) and orange creamsicle, which was great as well. They have flavors like matcha, banana caramel, nutella-to name a few. You’ll definitely find something you love!

14. Zombee Donuts, Fullerton Do you like Halloween themed donuts year round? Then this is a place for you! This cute donut shop has lots of super cute options that taste really good! They have their own parking lot in the back, which is a plus. We couldn’t decide which donut to try so we got an entire box. Definitely a must try and one of the best donut shops in Orange County!

15. Modoo Donuts, Buena Park Another place with themed donuts, this time offering animals, Sesame Street characters and seasonal ones. Milana chose the pig which was super cute!

16. Best Donuts, Stanton If you’re looking for a fancy shop with themed donuts, this isn’t it. But if you’re looking for fresh, traditional donuts from a family owned business, you’ll love this place! The owner is super nice and the donuts are always fresh and you’re supporting a local small business when visiting this place. Give them a try and see why locals love it!

17. OC Crafted Donuts, Fountain Valley You have made a complete loop around Orange County and reached your final donut shop! This place is super popular on weekends and if you have kids, they will get a free themed donut on weekend mornings. They have lots of unique flavors and you can even order a giant donut for parties which we did one year when Milana had a donut party. It was the size of a cake and so good! A great way to end the Orange County Donut Trail. We tried the banana cream pie, peanut butter and jelly and Milana chose a rainbow one. The free donut that weekend was a unicorn, which was super cute!