what's the difference between muffins and cupcakes?!

Muffins are usually made with plain flour, baking powder and fruit with no toppings and cupcakes are smaller, made with self raising flour and have some sort of icing on top of them.

www.vintageandcake.co.uk

This company creates some fab cupcakes

I've been wondering that myself and could get no straight answers from the people I know. Thanks to I LOVE ME for the links to Wikipedia (I don't know why I didn't think to look there myself) the main differences are these...

According to Wikipedia:

"A muffin is an American English name for a type of bread that is baked in small portions. Many forms are somewhat like small cakes or cupcakes in shape, although they usually are not as sweet as cupcakes and generally lack frosting."

whereas...

"A cupcake (British English: fairy cake; Australian English: patty cake or cup cake) is a small cake designed to serve one person, frequently baked in a small, thin paper or aluminum cup. As with larger cakes, frosting and other cake decorations, such as sprinkles, are common on cupcakes."

So it seems that the main difference is that a Muffin is a type of bread, while a cupcake is a type of cake. It has little or nothing to do with frosting, as some contend, because cupcakes can certainly be served without frosting (though that seems pointless!). Nor does it have to do with sweetness, since I have had muffins that are just as sweet as any cupcake. I have also eaten muffins with frosting, like carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting.

Cupcakes usually have icing on them and are supposed to be little, miniature cakes. They're for special occasions. Muffins are usually eaten at breakfast, don't have icing on them, and often contain fruit of some sort. Blueberry muffins are popular in the US. Some people put butter on them, and they are eaten warm, if possible.

I take it you mean American muffins not actual muffins ? Cup cakes are minni sponge cakes , American muffins are more like a sweet bread but are still a cake . Real muffins are a type of bread .

Edit ; Yes it does because they are two entirely different things . I've been to Oz and what you call muffins are American muffins .

Muffins are denser and not as sweet. You can make sweet or savory muffins, but cupcakes are mini desserts. Neither art form is above the other, but thats how they differ.

cupcakes have frosting and are sweeter, like cake
muffins do not have frosting, and are wheatier, like bread

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muffin

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupcake

Muffins- bread with fruits like blueberries
Cupcakes-bread with frosting.

frosting!

Name and taste.