Baker's percentages express ingredients as a percentage of flour weight, making recipes scale easily and consistently. Unlike traditional recipes (which use volume or fixed weights), baker's math allows you to understand the ratio of water to flour (hydration), salt, and other ingredients regardless of batch size. This approach is standard in professional bakeries and essential for serious home bakers.
The Formula
All percentages are based on flour weight (flour = 100%):
Percentage = (Ingredient Weight / Flour Weight) × 100%
Ingredient Weight = (Percentage / 100%) × Flour Weight
Worked Example
A basic bread recipe:
- Flour: 500 g (100%)
- Water: 350 g (70% hydration)
- Salt: 10 g (2%)
- Yeast: 5 g (1%)
Hydration is 350 / 500 = 70%, meaning 70% of the flour's weight in water.
Scaling to 1 kg flour:
- Flour: 1000 g
- Water: 1000 × 0.70 = 700 g
- Salt: 1000 × 0.02 = 20 g
- Yeast: 1000 × 0.01 = 10 g
Same ratios, double the batch.
Hydration Levels
| Hydration | Bread Type | Crumb Structure |
|---|---|---|
| 55–60% | Lean bread, Italian | Dense, tight |
| 65–70% | Standard loaf | Open, chewy |
| 75–85% | Ciabatta, focaccia | Very open, artisan |
| 90%+ | Bagels, brioche | Very sticky, high rise |
Higher hydration creates more open crumb (large air holes). Too high and dough becomes difficult to handle.
Common Ingredients
| Ingredient | Typical % |
|---|---|
| Water (hydration) | 60–85% |
| Salt | 1.5–2% |
| Instant yeast | 0.5–1% |
| Sugar | 2–5% (enriched dough) |
| Butter | 5–15% (enriched dough) |
| Eggs | 5–20% (enriched dough) |
Bulk Fermentation Time
The total flour weight and ambient temperature determine bulk fermentation time. A higher percentage of yeast (or warmer temps) means shorter fermentation. Most bread ferments 4–8 hours at room temperature.
Tips
Baker's percentages make it easy to adjust recipes. Want to add more salt for flavor? Try 2.2% instead of 2%. Want more texture variation? Increase hydration from 70% to 75%. It's also the professional way to document and scale recipes without confusion.
Use our Bread Dough Calculator to scale bread recipes instantly using baker's percentages.