Baker’s Percentage Calculator.
Enter what is in your dough and see every ingredient as a baker’s percentage of the total flour, with the flour in your sourdough starter counted. Works in grams, ounces and pounds.
Added, not counting starter
g
Added, not counting starter
ml
Active starter in the dough
g
g
100% = equal flour and water
%
Baker’s percentages
% of total flourHow it works
What baker’s percentages are
Baker’s math describes every ingredient as a percentage of the total flour weight, and flour is always 100%. A dough with 75% water has 75 ml of water for every 100 g of flour, however big the batch is. That is why bread formulas are written this way: they are easy to compare, scale and tweak.
total flour = flour + starter flour starter flour = starter ÷ (1 + starter hydration) baker’s % = ingredient weight ÷ total flour × 100
- Total flour includes the flour inside the starter, so the starter’s flour and water are not left out.
- The dough total is more than 100%, because the other ingredients are added on top of the flour.
Worked example
500.0 g flour, 350.0 ml water, 100.0 g starter at 100% hydration, 10.0 g salt. Total flour is 550.0 g.
| Ingredient | Amount | Baker’s % |
|---|---|---|
| Flour (added) | 500.0 g | 90.9% |
| Water (added) | 350.0 ml | 63.6% |
| Starter | 100.0 g | 18.2% |
| Salt | 10.0 g | 1.8% |
| Dough | 960.0 g | 174.5% |
Rules of thumb
Typical baker’s percentages for sourdough
Common ranges for sourdough bread, as percentages of total flour.
| Ingredient | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Water (hydration) | 65 – 80% | Higher for open crumb, lower for easier shaping. |
| Starter | 10 – 25% | More starter ferments faster. |
| Salt | 1.8 – 2.2% | 2% is a common starting point. |
FAQ
Baker’s percentage questions
What is baker’s percentage?
Baker’s percentage, also called baker’s math, expresses every ingredient as a percentage of the total flour weight. Flour is always 100%. If a dough has 500 g of flour and 10 g of salt, the salt is 2%. Because the ratios never change, a recipe is easy to scale and to compare with other recipes.
Why is flour always 100%?
Flour is the base that every other ingredient is measured against. That keeps the formula consistent: whatever size the batch is, 75% water means 75 ml of water for every 100 g of flour. It is also why the percentages in a bread formula add up to more than 100%.
How do I convert a recipe to baker’s percentages?
Weigh each ingredient, work out the total flour, then divide each ingredient by the total flour and multiply by 100. Enter your flour, water, starter and salt above and the calculator does these divisions for you, counting the flour and water inside the starter.
Is the flour in the starter included in total flour?
Yes. This calculator splits the starter into its flour and water using the starter hydration you enter, and counts that flour in the total. With 100 g of starter at 100% hydration, 50 g counts as flour and 50 g as water. Some formulas list the starter separately instead, so check how a recipe was written before comparing numbers.
Why does the dough total more than 100%?
Flour is 100% and the other ingredients are added on top of it. A dough with 100% flour, 73% water, 18% starter and 2% salt totals about 193%. That is normal. The total shows how much dough you make for every 100 g of flour.
What percentage of salt should I use?
Most sourdough bread uses about 1.8–2.2% salt of the total flour. Less tastes flat and can make the dough ferment faster, and more slows fermentation and can taste too salty. 2% is a common starting point.
How do I scale a recipe with baker’s percentages?
Decide how much flour you want, then multiply it by each percentage. For 800 g of total flour and 75% water, use 600 ml of water. If you would rather start from the dough weight you want, use the main sourdough calculator, which works out the flour for you.
What is the difference between baker’s percentage and true percentage?
A true percentage is each ingredient’s share of the whole dough and adds up to 100%. Baker’s percentage is each ingredient’s share of the flour only, so it adds up to more than 100%. Bakers use the second because it makes formulas simple to compare and scale.