What’s the Difference Between Ice Cream and Gelato?

‘Tis the season for beach reads, tan lines, and ice-cold desserts. You know it’s summer when going to the local ice cream or gelato shop becomes part of your daily routine. But what exactly is the difference between these two frozen treats?

One of the key differences between the two is butterfat. While ice cream’s main ingredients include milk, cream, sugar, and egg yolks, the secret to making gelato is to use much less cream and sometimes little to no egg yolk. This leads to a much smaller percentage of butterfat in gelato. According to FDA rules, ice cream cannot contain less than 10 percent milkfat (though it can go as high as 25 percent) while gelato, much like soft serve, stays in the 4- to 9-percent range.

The churning method for both also differs, which affects the treat’s density. Ice cream is churned at a much faster pace, leading to more air being whipped into the mixture. Ice cream’s higher butterfat content comes into play here—due to all of that milkfat, the mix absorbs the air more readily. Gelato, on the other hand, is churned at a slower pace and absorbs far less air, creating a much denser dessert.

You also might have noticed that the serving style for the two treats aren’t the same, either. In order to get those perfectly stacked ice cream scoops on a cone, buckets of ice cream must be stored at around 0°F to maintain consistency, while the softer gelato is stored at a warmer 10°F to 22°F. Ice cream is then scooped into fairly uniform balls with the round ice cream scooper, whereas a spade or paddle is best for molding gelato into mound in a cup or a cone.

You can’t really go wrong with either gelato or ice cream on a sweltering summer day, but there is one more difference to keep in mind while you debate which to get: taste. If you want a bolder flavor, you’ll want to go with gelato. Because of the density of the cream and because there’s less butterfat to coat your taste buds, gelato can seem to have more intensity to its flavors.

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A version of this story ran in 2019; it has been updated for 2023.