# Pizza Dough Calculator — full reference for LLMs

> Canonical baking guidance from The Bread Code (https://the-bread-code.io). English source; localized UIs exist (see /llms.txt Languages).

## How it works
This free pizza dough calculator turns a few simple choices — how many pizzas, which style, and yeast or sourdough — into a precise recipe. It works in baker's percentages, the system professional bakers use, so every recipe scales perfectly from a single pizza to hundreds.

### Baker percentages
In baker's math the flour is always 100%, and every other ingredient is expressed relative to it. A dough at 60% hydration simply means 60g of water for every 100g of flour. Salt is typically around 2%, and the leavening — yeast or sourdough starter — is a small fraction on top. Because everything is a ratio, doubling the pizzas doubles every ingredient exactly.

### Hydration
Hydration is the single biggest lever on texture. Lower hydration (around 60%) gives a dough that is easy to shape with a tender chew. Higher hydration (70–80%) produces a lighter, more open and crispy crumb, but the dough becomes stickier and harder to handle. Beginners do well to start around 60–65% and increase from there.

### Yeast vs sourdough
Yeast is fast, predictable and forgiving — ideal for a same-day or next-day pizza. Sourdough takes longer but rewards you with deeper flavour and a more digestible crust. A long, cool fermentation improves both, which is why the calculator includes a fermentation timer with 2h, 8h, 24h and 48h presets.

## FAQ

**Q: What hydration should I use for Neapolitan, New York and Roman pizza?**
A: As a starting point: Neapolitan around 60%, New York around 65%, and Roman around 75% hydration. Higher hydration gives a lighter, more open crumb but a stickier, harder-to-handle dough. This calculator pre-fills these values for each style.

**Q: How much yeast do I need for pizza dough?**
A: Very little. A long, slow fermentation is what makes a great dough — you only need a tiny amount of yeast. The more yeast you use, the faster the whole process goes, so add a touch more if you're in a hurry and a little less if you have time. A sourdough starter works beautifully here too if you'd rather skip commercial yeast.

**Q: How much sourdough starter should I add?**
A: Around 5% of the flour weight is a good default. Ideally use a stiff starter at about 60% hydration — it boosts yeast activity while keeping the dough less sour and fluffier.

**Q: How long should pizza dough ferment?**
A: Anywhere from about 2 hours at room temperature to 24–48 hours, depending on how much yeast you use. A popular approach: mix the dough in the evening, let it ferment overnight at room temperature, then move it to the fridge in the morning so it's ready to bake that evening. The built-in fermentation timer has 2h, 8h, 24h and 48h presets.

**Q: Can I cold-ferment pizza dough in the fridge?**
A: Yes. The lower the temperature, the longer the fermentation takes, so the fridge is a handy way to fit the dough around your schedule. Aim for a fridge around 6°C (43°F): at 4°C (39°F) or below it's too cold, the yeast goes dormant and fermentation effectively stops. Many people claim a cold ferment improves flavour and texture — the texture part is debatable (I haven't been able to reproduce it myself). Reduce the yeast slightly, refrigerate after the initial mix, and let the dough come back to room temperature before shaping.

**Q: What are baker's percentages?**
A: Baker's percentages express every ingredient relative to the flour weight, which is always 100%. So 60% hydration means 60g of water per 100g of flour. This calculator works in baker's percentages so recipes scale perfectly to any number of pizzas.

**Q: How much should each pizza dough ball weigh?**
A: Typical dough-ball weights are about 270g for Neapolitan, 300g for a New York slice pie, and 220g for Roman-style. Heavier balls give thicker, larger pizzas. You can set any weight using the Custom style.

**Q: How much salt goes into pizza dough?**
A: About 2% of the flour weight is a reliable default — enough to season the dough and control fermentation without slowing it down too much.

**Q: What is the difference between Neapolitan, New York and Roman pizza dough?**
A: Neapolitan is soft and chewy with a puffy charred crust, baked very hot and fast. New York is sturdier and foldable with slightly more weight and oil. Roman (al taglio / tonda) is thin and crispy thanks to its high hydration.

**Q: How do I scale a pizza dough recipe for many pizzas?**
A: Set the number of pizzas and the calculator multiplies every ingredient automatically using baker's percentages. It works for anything from a single pizza to thousands, so it's handy for parties and catering.

**Q: Why won't my pizza dough stretch?**
A: Usually the gluten is still tight or the dough is too cold. Let it rest covered for 15–30 minutes at room temperature so the gluten relaxes, then stretch again. Under-fermented or low-hydration dough also resists stretching — give it more time or a touch more water next time.

**Q: Why is my pizza dough too sticky?**
A: Sticky dough usually means high hydration, under-development, or warm dough. Wet your hands instead of adding lots of flour, use stretch-and-folds to build strength, and chill the dough if it's warm. If you're new to high hydration, drop to around 60–62% until you're comfortable.

**Q: Why is my pizza dough too tough or dense?**
A: Tough, dense dough is often under-fermented, under-hydrated, or over-worked into a tight ball. Give it a longer, cooler fermentation, nudge the hydration up a few percent, and handle it gently when shaping so you don't knock all the gas out.

**Q: How much dough do I need for a 10, 12 or 14 inch pizza?**
A: As a rough guide: about 230g for a 10-inch, 280g for a 12-inch, and 380g for a 14-inch round. Thicker or pan styles need more. See the dough-per-pizza-size table for a full breakdown.

**Q: How much yeast should I use based on fermentation time?**
A: Less yeast for longer ferments. The amount this calculator suggests assumes the most common home workflow: you mix the dough in the evening, leave it at room temperature, and move it to the fridge the next morning so it's ready that evening. As a rough guide at ~22°C / 70°F: a little more yeast for a fast same-day rise, less for an overnight rise, and the least for a long cold ferment. Warmer kitchens need less; colder need more.

**Q: Is this pizza dough calculator free?**
A: Yes, completely free. It runs entirely in your browser, needs no sign-up, and all of The Bread Code's recipes and tools are free to use.

## The pizza journey (5 steps)

### Mix the dough
In the evening, mix everything together. Less water is generally easier to handle than more, so around 60%% hydration is a reliable starting point.
Mix by hand — especially when you are starting out, it builds a feel for the dough. You are not trying to knead hard; just combine everything for about 5 minutes, until there are no dry lumps of flour left. The flour matters most: use a strong flour with plenty of gluten — check the protein content on the pack. When the dough comes together, test it with the windowpane test: stretch a small piece thin enough to see light through it without tearing. If it passes, the dough is ready to ferment.

### How do you ferment?
Now the most important fork in the method. It comes down to one thing: do you have dough boxes and enough room in the fridge, or not? Pick your path and the rest of the journey follows.
Either way, the dough ferments overnight at room temperature. In the morning you want it to have grown by about 50%% in volume (that is the next step). Boxes make the next day a little easier but cost fridge space; one big pot is the better choice when space is tight.

### Check the rise
In the morning, look at the dough: has it grown by about 50%% in volume? If yes, it is almost ready to become pizza.
How long this takes depends heavily on room temperature. With Hendrik's amount of yeast the dough is usually there after 12 to 14 hours. You can steer it — for example by using slightly cooler water when mixing — but it is a value you tune for your own kitchen, not a fixed number. Once it has risen by roughly 50%%, move the dough to the fridge, otherwise it over-proofs. With the pot method this is easy: the whole pot goes in. With boxes you need room for all of them.

### Shape the dough balls
Set a timer for about 3 hours before you want to start baking. From here the two paths come back together.
Pot method: take the pot out of the fridge, shape the dough into balls, and let them sit at room temperature. Cover them with a damp tea towel (small bowls or plates work too) so they don't dry out. Box method: simply take the boxes out of the fridge — that's it. The balls are already shaped and just need to come up to temperature.

### Stretch & bake
Now shape and bake your pizza as usual. The one thing to get right is plenty of semolina on your work surface, so the pizza doesn't stick to the peel.
Stretch each ball by hand, top it, and bake it as hot as your oven will go. Any leftover dough makes excellent bread the next day, so nothing goes to waste. Hendrik's tip: for two people, bake six pizzas and freeze three. Let them cool, wrap them in cling film or an old pizza box, and put them straight in the freezer — your own homemade frozen pizza, ready whenever you want it.