Highest-rated ice cream shops in Santa Cruz by diners
Highest-rated ice cream shops in Santa Cruz by diners
Nothing makes people quite as happy as a trip to the ice cream shop. Thankfully, there are endless options offering enough goods to tantalize anyone's palate. Across the U.S., nearly 17,800 ice cream shops serve up tasty treats to satisfy Americans' cravings.
While most of us would agree that there's no such thing as bad ice cream, there are still elements that keep customers coming back to one ice cream shop over another. A sense of newness and surprise are two big draws. Shop owners aim to please by using quality ingredients to experiment with new mashups—consider the rising trend of ice cream combined with pie. Some put unique spins on global treats, like Japanese mochi and Italian gelato. Others create giant Instagram-ready concoctions that become the highlight of social media.
Consumers have learned that smaller scoop shops may be more adaptive to real-time reactions, which means embracing new concepts, such as delicious dairy-free options. They can also ditch chemicals and give plant-based food coloring a try to see how it resonates with their customers.
But where artisanal shops really shine is in their ability to push the envelope to create amazing new flavors and limited-edition offerings that have customers eager to not miss out on what's next.
Seasonal ice creams feature fresh ingredients and flavors that evoke a particular time of year. Partnerships with local businesses can result in crave-able combinations highlighting local specialties. Many local shops also dabble with exotic flavors—savory ice cream, anyone?
To find out who's scooping up the best options, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated ice cream shops in the Santa Cruz area using data from Yelp. Data is as of June 24, 2025.
Businesses were selected using Yelp's ranking system, which calculates an adjusted rating value that takes into account the number of ratings as well as the rating score itself. Only businesses with at least 20 reviews and within a 10-kilometer radius of Santa Cruz were considered. Also, in an effort to highlight independent businesses and local chains, those with more than 10 locations nationally, based on our Yelp data, were not included.
#26. Loard's Ice Cream
- Rating: 2.7/5 (58 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 307 Beach St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Coffee & Tea
- Read more on Yelp
#25. Sno-White Drive In
- Rating: 3.0/5 (185 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 223 State Park Drive Aptos, California
- Categories: Burgers, fast food, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#24. SandCastle Cafe
- Rating: 3.4/5 (40 reviews)
- Address: 110 Stockton Ave. Capitola, California
- Categories: Coffee & Tea, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Bubble Tea
- Read more on Yelp
#23. Marini's At the Beach
- Rating: 3.8/5 (120 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 400 Beach St. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Candy Stores, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Juice Bars & Smoothies
- Read more on Yelp
#22. The Penny Ice Creamery
- Rating: 3.8/5 (68 reviews)
- Address: 262 Mount Hermon Road Ste 104 Scotts Valley, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Desserts, Caterers
- Read more on Yelp
#21. Marini's Candies
- Rating: 3.8/5 (203 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf 55 Municipal Wharf Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Candy Stores, Desserts, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#20. Soul Sweets
- Rating: 3.9/5 (176 reviews)
- Address: 222 Mount Hermon Road Ste K Scotts Valley, California
- Categories: Coffee & Tea, Bubble Tea, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#19. Top A Lot Yogurt
- Rating: 4.0/5 (148 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 738 Water St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#18. Cruz Creamery
- Rating: 4.0/5 (204 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 815 Ocean St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Juice Bars & Smoothies
- Read more on Yelp
#17. The Penny Ice Creamery
- Rating: 4.2/5 (372 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 820 41st Ave. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#16. The Penny Ice Creamery
- Rating: 4.3/5 (58 reviews)
- Address: 141 Aptos Village Way Ste 2 Aptos, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#15. The Penny Ice Creamery
- Rating: 4.4/5 (2326 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 913 Cedar St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#14. The Ugly Mug
- Rating: 4.4/5 (263 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 4640 Soquel Drive Soquel, California
- Categories: Coffee & Tea, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Bakeries
- Read more on Yelp
#13. Pacific Cookie Company
- Rating: 4.4/5 (897 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1203 Pacific Ave. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Desserts, Bakeries, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#12. Rocko's Ice Cream Tacos
- Rating: 4.4/5 (165 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: Santa Clara, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Food Trucks, Coffee & Tea
- Read more on Yelp
#11. Mission Hill Creamery
- Rating: 4.4/5 (499 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1101 Pacific Ave. Ste B Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Coffee & Tea, Bakeries
- Read more on Yelp
#10. Polar Bear Ice Cream
- Rating: 4.5/5 (173 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 104 Stockton Ave. Capitola, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#9. Sherri's Cookies
- Rating: 4.5/5 (62 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 1855 41st Ave. Capitola, California
- Categories: Bakeries, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#8. Marianne's Ice Cream
- Rating: 4.5/5 (2502 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1020 Ocean St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#7. Marianne's Ice Cream and Market
- Rating: 4.5/5 (426 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 218 State Park Drive Aptos, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#6. Bay Area Ice Cream Catering
- Rating: 4.6/5 (41 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5446 Thornwood Drive San Jose, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp
#5. Donnelly Fine Chocolates
- Rating: 4.6/5 (228 reviews)
- Price level: $$$
- Address: 1509 Mission St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Candy Stores, Chocolatiers & Shops, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#4. Pleasure Point Juice
- Rating: 4.7/5 (170 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 3520 Portola Drive Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Juice Bars & Smoothies, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Acai Bowls
- Read more on Yelp
#3. Izzy's Ices
- Rating: 4.8/5 (24 reviews)
- Address: 106 Lincoln St. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#2. Ice Cream on Fair
- Rating: 4.9/5 (20 reviews)
- Address: 1201 Fair Ave. Santa Cruz, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
- Read more on Yelp
#1. Golden State Ice Cream
- Rating: 5.0/5 (21 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 330 Race St. San Jose, California
- Categories: Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Food Trucks
- Read more on Yelp
