Baker's percentage & hydration calculator
Baker's percentages express every ingredient as a percentage of the flour. Use this calculator to check a formula, compare recipes, or hit a target hydration.
Check a formula
Enter grams. If you add starter, its flour and water are included in the totals.
100 for equal parts flour and water
Total hydration
72.7%
550 g flour, 400 g water in total
Salt
1.8%
Yeast
0%
Starter (pre-fermented flour)
9.1%
Share of total flour
Total dough weight
960 g
Water for a target hydration
Water needed
350 g
Ignoring any starter
Save every recipe you find, in one place
Bakewell imports recipes from TikTok, Instagram and the web, and includes these calculators (plus more) right inside the app.
Common baker's percentages
- Water (hydration): 60–80% for most loaves
- Salt: about 2%
- Instant yeast: 0.3–1%
- Sourdough starter: 10–30% of the flour weight
Working in baker's percentages means you can scale a recipe to any size: multiply each percentage by the amount of flour you want to use.
Frequently asked questions
What is baker's percentage?
Baker's percentage expresses every ingredient as a percentage of the total flour weight, which is always 100%. It lets you compare and scale bread formulas easily.
How do I calculate dough hydration?
Divide the weight of the water by the weight of the flour and multiply by 100. For example, 350 g of water with 500 g of flour is 70% hydration.
How does sourdough starter affect hydration?
A starter contains both flour and water. A 100% hydration starter is half flour and half water by weight, so both amounts are added to the totals before working out the percentages.
What hydration should my bread be?
Sandwich loaves and bagels sit around 55–65%. Most sourdough and country loaves are 70–80%. Ciabatta and focaccia can go above 80%, and are stickier to handle.
What is a normal salt percentage?
Most bread uses about 1.8–2.2% salt, based on the total flour weight.