Free Pizza Dough Calculator
Get exact ingredient weights for Neapolitan, NY, and Sicilian pizza dough.
Ingredient Breakdown
Dough Ball Size
Predicted Dough Texture
What is a pizza dough calculator?
A pizza dough calculator is a free online tool that helps you scale pizza dough recipes to any number of pizzas using baker's percentages. It runs entirely in your browser — no signup, no app, and no data is ever sent to a server.
A pizza dough calculator gives you exact ingredient weights for Neapolitan, New York, or Sicilian pizza dough. Each style has a different dough factor (grams of dough per square inch), hydration level, and ingredient mix. Neapolitan uses the least dough per pizza (cooks fast at high heat), while Sicilian uses the most (thick, focaccia-like crust). The calculator accounts for these differences automatically — just pick your style, how many pizzas, and the size.
How it works
The calculator multiplies the pizza area by the style-specific dough factor to get the dough ball weight per pizza. It then multiplies by the number of pizzas for the total dough weight. Using the style's hydration, salt, yeast, and oil percentages, it calculates each ingredient's gram weight. The formula: flour = total dough ÷ (1 + sum of all percentages). Each ingredient = flour × its percentage.
When to use a pizza dough calculator
Home pizza makers who want consistent results batch to batch. Pizzeria owners scaling recipes for their dough batch. Anyone switching between Neapolitan and NY style and needing the right hydration. The calculator eliminates guesswork — the most common pizza dough mistakes come from wrong hydration or ball size.
Common mistakes with pizza dough
The most common mistake I see home pizza makers make is using the wrong dough ball weight for their pizza size. A 12-inch Neapolitan pizza needs about 250g of dough, but many recipes online suggest 300-350g for the same size — that extra weight gives you a thicker, breadier crust that won't cook properly at high temperatures. The calculator uses style-specific dough factors so you get the right amount for your chosen style every time.
Hydration confusion is another big problem. A 65% hydration dough means 65g of water per 100g of flour — period. I see recipes calling themselves "70% hydration" but they're measuring water as a percentage of total dough weight, not flour weight. That gives you a completely different dough. A true 70% hydration dough using 500g of flour needs 350g of water, but someone using the wrong calculation might only use 235g. The calculator uses proper baker's percentages so your hydration is always accurate.
Yeast quantity is also frequently wrong. Active dry yeast, instant yeast, and fresh yeast have different strengths — substituting one for another without adjusting the weight changes fermentation speed and flavor development. I generally use 0.5-1% instant yeast for same-day pizzas and 0.1-0.2% for cold-fermented dough. The calculator defaults to appropriate yeast percentages for each style and fermentation timeline.
How to use this calculator
- Choose your style — Select Neapolitan, New York, or Sicilian — each has different hydration and dough factors.
- Enter number and size — How many pizzas and what diameter (or pan size for Sicilian).
- Get your recipe — Exact gram weights for flour, water, salt, yeast, and oil appear instantly.
Frequently asked questions
How much dough do I need for a 12-inch pizza?
A 12-inch Neapolitan pizza needs about 220-250g of dough. A New York style 12-inch needs 280-320g (thicker crust). A Sicilian square needs more — about 350-400g for a comparable area. The calculator uses style-specific dough factors: 0.12 g/sq in for Neapolitan, 0.18 for NY, 0.22 for Sicilian.
What is the best hydration for Neapolitan pizza dough?
Authentic Neapolitan pizza dough is 55-62% hydration — relatively low. This produces a dough that's easy to stretch thin and bakes quickly at 900°F in a wood-fired oven. NY style is typically 60-65% (wetter, more extensible). Sicilian is 65-75% (very wet, almost like focaccia).
How many pizzas does 1 kg of dough make?
1 kg of dough makes about 4 Neapolitan pizzas (250g each), 3 New York pizzas (330g each), or 2-3 Sicilian pizzas depending on the pan size. The calculator lets you input the number of pizzas and calculates the total dough weight automatically.
What is the difference between Neapolitan and NY pizza dough?
Neapolitan dough uses 00 flour, 55-62% hydration, and a long 8-24 hour fermentation. NY style uses bread flour, 60-65% hydration, and a shorter 24-72 hour cold ferment. NY dough also typically includes a small amount of oil and sugar. The crust difference comes from the hydration, flour type, and bake temperature.
Can I use all-purpose flour instead of 00 or bread flour?
All-purpose flour has moderate protein content (10-12%) that works for NY style but not for Neapolitan. Neapolitan pizza needs 00 flour with 12-13% protein for the characteristic leopard-spotted crust. If you use all-purpose, reduce hydration by 3-5% since it absorbs less water. The calculator's ingredient percentages assume the correct flour type for each style.
How long should I cold ferment pizza dough?
Cold fermentation (38-40°F) for 24-72 hours develops better flavor and digestibility. At 24 hours the dough is usable but simple. At 48 hours you get noticeable sourdough-like notes. Beyond 72 hours the dough may over-ferment and become difficult to shape. The calculator adjusts yeast percentages for fermentation time — less yeast for longer ferments.