How the calculation works
Pizza recipes are written in baker's percentages: flour is 100% and every other ingredient is a percentage of the flour weight. Add the percentages up and the total dough weight equals flour times that sum:
flour = total dough ÷ (1 + hydration + salt + yeast + oil)
Each other ingredient is then flour × its percentage. With 4 balls of 250 g (1000 g total), 62% hydration, 2.8% salt and 0.2% yeast, the sum is 1.65, so flour = 1000 ÷ 1.65 = 606.1 g, water = 375.8 g, salt = 17.0 g and instant yeast = 1.21 g.
Choosing the percentages
- Hydration: drier doughs (about 55–62%) are easier to handle and common for very hot ovens; wetter doughs (65–70%+) give a more open crumb but are stickier. Flour strength matters, so adjust to your flour.
- Salt: 2–3% of flour weight is the usual range; some recipes use less.
- Yeast: far less is needed for a long cold ferment than for a same-day dough. These are rules of thumb, not fixed values.
Use the yeast conversion calculator for active dry or fresh yeast.
Tips
- Weigh the yeast on a 0.01 g scale, or make a larger batch and divide it.
- Make about 2–3% extra to cover dough left on the bowl and scraper.
Frequently asked questions
How much flour do I need for 4 pizza balls of 250 g?
With 62% hydration, 2.8% salt and 0.2% yeast you need about 606 g of flour, 376 g of water, 17 g of salt and 1.2 g of instant yeast.
What hydration should pizza dough have?
Many recipes use about 55–70%, with roughly 60–65% a common starting point. Higher hydration is stickier but can bake more open and airy.
How much does a pizza dough ball weigh?
Commonly 200–280 g for a 10–12 inch pizza, depending on how thick you like the crust.
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