These No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars are made with only 4 ingredients to create a wholesome treat that is packed with whole grains, fiber, and protein!

Along with homemade granola bars, these soft and chewy peanut oatmeal bars are a simple, no-bake snack that everyone loves!

PB Oat Bars stack together on parchment paper next to tray of peanut butter oatmeal bars.

why you will love pb oatmeal bars

Easy Recipe. This recipe for oatmeal peanut butter bars comes together using just a handful of ingredients in less than 5 minutes. These snack bars don't even require baking. Easy-peasy!
Refined-Sugar Free. While these peanut butter bars taste sweet and decadent, they actually are naturally sweetened using honey or maple syrup.
Nutrient-Dense. When I am looking for a healthy snack for kids (or myself), I look for something that is made with whole grains, healthy fats, and protein. These peanut butter oatmeal bars check all those boxes!
Delicious. If you love peanut butter, you will love these peanut butter bars. They have a rich peanut butter flavor, are perfectly sweet, and soft, and chewy.
Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipe: These peanut butter oatmeal bars make a great snack for anyone looking for a dairy-free and/or gluten-free treat.

Notes on Ingredients

Ingredients for peanut butter oatmeal bars lableled.

Peanut Butter: This recipe works with natural peanut butter or shelf-stable peanut butter. I personally prefer using all-natural peanut butter, to keep these bars are pure and wholesome as possible, but either variety works.
Oats: Use rolled oats or quick-cooking oats to make these bars. Do not use steel-cut oats. Be sure your oats are certified gluten-free if needed.
Honey: I love the combination of honey and peanut butter together. However, feel free to use maple syrup if you would like to make these peanut butter oatmeal bars vegan-friendly.
Salt: Even if your peanut butter is salted, you want to add just a touch of kosher salt to the oatmeal bars to bring out the flavors.

Tips for The Best Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

These bars are super, super simple to make. But I do have a few tips to keep in mind that will make the process even easier and ensure perfect results.

Tip #1: Microwave the peanut butter with the honey. I recommend combining the peanut butter, honey, and salt in a glass measuring cup or medium heat-safe mixing bowl and microwave this mixture for 30-60 seconds. This will help to loosen up the peanut butter and honey and make it super easy to mix together.

Glass measuring cup with heated peanut butter and honey mixed together.

Tip #2. Use a handheld mixer to combine the ingredients. While you can use a spatula or spoon to mix the oats into the peanut butter mixture, I find it is quickest to combine them together using a handheld mixer on low speed.

Mixing bowl with peanut butter and oats combined together.

Tip #3 Use parchment paper. The mixture for the peanut butter oatmeal bars is quite sticky, therefore parchment paper will help tremendously. First, you want to be sure to line your baking pan with parchment paper as that will make the bars super easy to remove from the pan after they set. Secondly, I recommend using parchment paper to press the mixture into the lined pan. This will help prevent your hands from getting sticky.

PB oatmeal bars in baking pan lined with parchment paper.

Tip #4: Chill thoroughly. While you can certainly dig into the peanut butter oatmeal bars right away, I find it is best to allow the bars to chill for 30 minutes to set up and be easier to cut.

PB Oat Bars stacked ont top of eachother next to tray of peanut butter oatmeal bars.

recipe modifications

Add Chocolate: No one will complain if you add chocolate chips to these peanut butter oatmeal bars. Stir in up to 1 cup of mini or regular chocolate chips to the oat mixture before pressing into the pan.
Peanut-Free: It may sound odd, but you can make these Oatmeal Peanut Butter Bars peanut-free. Simply use almond butter or soy butter in place of peanut butter.
Vegan-Friendly Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars: Use pure maple syrup in place of honey to keep these bars vegan.

Storage Instructions

I recommend storing peanut butter oatmeal bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I don't recommend freezing the bars, as the texture is not the same once defrosted.

More Kid-Friendly Snack Recipes

If you tried these Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars, I would love for you to leave a comment and review below.

PB Oat Bar on parchment paper next to tray of snack bars.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

These No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars are made with only 4 ingredients to create a wholesome snack packed with whole grains and protein!

5 from 5 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 5

Chilling: 10

Total Time: 15

Servings:

Calories: 248kcal

Author: Kristen Chidsey

Ingredients

▢ 1 cup natural, creamy peanut butter
▢ ½ cup honey
▢ ¼ teaspoon kosher salt *see note
▢ 3 cup rolled oats

Instructions

Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.
Combine the peanut butter, honey, and salt in a glass measuring cup or medium heat-safe mixing bowl. Microwave this mixture for 30-60 seconds. After heating, stir the mixture well to evenly incorporate the honey and salt into the peanut butter.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats with the peanut butter and honey mixture. Mix the mixture together until evenly incorporated using a handheld mixer on low speed or by hand using a spatula.
Using an additional piece of parchment paper, press the oat mixture into an even layer in the prepared pan. Chill the bars for 10-30 minutes in the refrigerator to allow the bars to be easier to cut into squares.
After chilling, remove the bars from the baking dish. Cut the bars into 12 squares and enjoy.