Edible Glue substitute

Best substitute

Plain water on a brush

A few drops, applied with an almost-dry brush

Best for small fondant decorations

Close match

Free, invisible when dry, and genuinely the right tool for small light pieces: a fondant flower onto a cake, a dot onto a face, a ribbon around a base. Because it works by dissolving a hair's depth of sugar, it makes a true weld rather than sitting between the two pieces. Its limit is strength, and it has no body at all, so it cannot fill an uneven join.

Other edible glue substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Tylose or CMC gum glue
Close match
¼ tsp powder to 2 tbsp warm water makes plenty for a whole cake
The actual product, made at home for pennies.
What changes
It dries invisible and hard, holds far more weight than water, and gives you a few seconds of grab before it sets so you can nudge a piece into place. Stir the powder into warm water, cover, and leave it an hour or overnight; it thickens into a clear slippery gel.
Best for
gum paste flowers, heavier fondant pieces, attaching limbs and features on figures, joins that must hold at an angle
Store it in a small lidded jar in the fridge, where it keeps two to three weeks. Discard it if it turns cloudy, smells sour or grows anything. Gum tragacanth works the same way if that is what you have.
3Fondant slurry
Close match
A marble-sized piece of fondant mashed into about ½ tsp water
Thicker and more forgiving than water, and it has body, so it fills a slightly untidy join rather than just wetting it.
What changes
Because it is fondant, it dries to the same finish as the sugar around it. The catch is that it is opaque, so on black, red or navy fondant a squeezed-out bead of white slurry shows clearly along the seam.
Best for
filling gappy joins, attaching medium fondant pieces, building simple figures
Colour the slurry with a scrap of the same fondant you are working with and the join disappears. Mash it completely smooth or lumps will telegraph through a thin piece.
4Piping gel
Different texture
Use the same amount brushed on thinly
A ready alternative if you already have a tub for decorating.
What changes
It is tackier than water straight away, which helps when you are holding a piece in position, and it stays slightly flexible rather than drying brittle. The downsides are that it never fully hardens, so a heavy piece can creep or slump overnight, and a thick smear leaves a faint gloss where it squeezes out.
Best for
medium fondant pieces, attaching decorations to a crusted buttercream cake, same-day fixes
Use it sparingly and wipe any excess with a clean damp brush before it skins over. It is water-based, so flooding a join with it will soften the fondant.
5Light corn syrup or glucose syrup
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount in the thinnest possible film
Very strong initial grab, which makes it tempting, and it is the traditional trick for sticking sugar pieces together.
What changes
The problem is that a syrup never sets: a decoration attached with corn syrup can visibly slide down the side of a cake over a few hours, and the join stays permanently tacky and collects dust, crumbs and stray sprinkles.
Best for
small light pieces used the same day, sticking sugar pearls and sprinkles in place
Only worth using when the piece is small and gravity is on your side. For anything vertical or heavy, gum glue or royal icing is a far better bet.
6Royal icing
Taste and texture differ
Use as much as the join needs, at stiff-peak consistency
The strongest edible bond available in a home kitchen and the honest answer when a join has to carry real load, which is exactly why gingerbread houses and tiered sugar structures are built with it.
What changes
It dries bone hard and does not move. What you give up is invisibility: it dries opaque and matte, so a bead of it shows as a pale ridge unless you colour it to match or pipe it neatly as a deliberate seam.
Best for
gingerbread houses, load-bearing joins, attaching heavy fondant or gum paste pieces, structural sugar work
Give it several hours to set properly before moving the piece, and prop the join with something such as a mug or a folded towel while it dries.
7Melted chocolate or candy melts
Taste and texture differ
Use as needed, applied warm
Sets firm in minutes, a real advantage when you do not want to stand there holding a piece.
What changes
It is the practical choice for gingerbread and for sticking cookies or wafers together, and it tastes good. It is not right for fondant work, because it sets as a visible dark line and it bonds badly to a damp or fridge-cold surface.
Best for
gingerbread and cookie construction, sticking wafer and cookie pieces, attaching decorations to a chocolate surface
Chocolate seizes on contact with water, so make sure both surfaces are dry. White chocolate is less conspicuous on pale work than dark.

What is Edible Glue?

Edible Glue is Edible glue, also called sugar glue, gum glue or fondant glue, is a clear sticky liquid, usually a little tylose or CMC powder dissolved in water, that sugarcrafters use to fix fondant and gum paste pieces to each other so the join dries invisible.

Cooking tips

Edible glue's job is adhesion and nothing else, so you need far less than instinct suggests. A join that squeezes glue out when you press it has too much, and that excess is exactly what shows once it dries.
Any piece heavier than a coin needs mechanical support as well as glue. A short length of dry spaghetti or a wooden skewer pushed through the join carries the weight while the glue holds the position. Tell whoever cuts the cake, and remove skewers and toothpicks before serving.
Glue works best on a slightly firm surface. Freshly rolled fondant is soft and moist enough to grip on its own, while fondant that has been out for a day is dry and needs real gum glue rather than water.
Water dissolves lustre dust and edible paint, so glue your pieces on first and dust or paint afterwards. Brushing glue over a dusted surface leaves streaks and bare patches.
If a piece will not stay put, the problem is usually a greasy surface rather than weak glue. Buttercream and shortening both block adhesion. Wipe the spot with a clean damp brush, let it dry for a moment, then glue.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave edible glue out?

Often yes. Any decoration that sits flat on a soft iced surface, such as a fondant plaque laid on fresh buttercream or a cut-out pressed onto just-covered fondant, will stay put on its own. You need glue when the piece has to hold at an angle, sit on a dry or already-set surface, or carry its own weight.

Is edible glue the same as piping gel?

No, though each can cover for the other. Edible glue is a thin watery tylose solution that exists only to stick things and dries clear and hard. Piping gel is a thick sweet sugar gel meant to be piped, tinted and used decoratively, and it stays flexible. Piping gel makes a reasonable glue; edible glue is useless for piping.

How long does homemade edible glue keep?

Two to three weeks in a small lidded jar in the fridge. It has no preservatives, so throw it out if it clouds, separates permanently, smells sour or shows any growth. Making a fresh 2 tablespoon batch takes about a minute of work plus an hour of waiting, so there is little reason to hoard it.

Will the glue show once it dries?

Water and tylose gum glue dry completely invisible if you use a small amount. Fondant slurry, royal icing and melted chocolate are all opaque and will show along the seam unless you colour them to match or hide the join. Corn syrup and piping gel dry clear but leave a faint gloss where they squeeze out.

What can I use to stick sprinkles or sugar pearls to the side of a cake?

A thin film of piping gel or corn syrup brushed on with a small brush, then press the decorations on while it is still tacky. On buttercream you need nothing at all if the surface has not yet crusted over. On set fondant, gum glue works but is fussy across a large area, so piping gel is the easier choice.

Related substitutes

More baking substitutes

Edible Glue substitute

Other edible glue substitutes

2Tylose or CMC gum glue

3Fondant slurry

4Piping gel

5Light corn syrup or glucose syrup

6Royal icing

7Melted chocolate or candy melts