Dough & Hydration Calculator
Enter your flour and target hydration — get exact water, salt and starter amounts. Starter flour and water are included in the math, so your true hydration is spot on.
Percentages are baker's percentages — relative to the flour you add. Starter counts toward total flour and water, so the water shown already compensates for it. Set starter to 0% if you're using commercial yeast. Milk, eggs and honey are mostly water — their liquid counts toward hydration, so the water amount adjusts automatically. (1 large egg ≈ 50 g.)
Quick check: what's my hydration?
What is dough hydration?
Hydration is the weight of water in your dough as a percentage of the weight of flour. A dough with 500 g flour and 350 g water is at 70% hydration. It's the single number that most shapes how your dough feels and how your crumb turns out.
| Hydration | Feels like | Typical breads |
|---|---|---|
| 55–60% | Stiff, easy to shape | Bagels, sandwich loaves |
| 65–70% | Soft, slightly tacky | Most sourdough, baguettes |
| 75–80% | Slack, sticky | Ciabatta, open-crumb sourdough |
| 85%+ | Almost pourable | Focaccia, high-hydration ciabatta |
Why the starter matters
A sourdough starter is itself flour and water — a 100% hydration starter is half of each. If you ignore it, a "70% hydration" recipe with 20% starter is really closer to 73%. This calculator folds the starter's flour and water into the totals, so the hydration you choose is the hydration you actually get.