Is higher hydration better?

Not necessarily. Higher hydration creates an airier crumb but requires more skill. The best hydration depends on your flour type, experience level, and desired result.

Why is my dough too sticky?

Sticky dough is usually caused by too high hydration, under-developed gluten, or adding water too quickly. Try reducing hydration by 5% and ensure proper gluten development through stretch-and-fold.

Does flour type affect hydration?

Yes significantly. Whole wheat and rye flours absorb considerably more water than white bread flour. When substituting, increase hydration by 2–5% per 10% whole grain flour added.

Sourdough Hydration Calculator

Smart Tool

Calculate Dough Hydration, Starter Ratios & Baker's Percentages

Enter your recipe details below. The calculator accounts for flour and water contributions from your sourdough starter automatically, using the true baker's percentage method.

Recipe Inputs

All weights in grams

Total Flour

Enter a valid flour weight

Water

Enter a valid water weight

Starter Amount

Total starter weight

Starter Hydration

Typically 100%

Salt

Bakers % of flour

Flour Type

Experience Level

Desired Crumb

Your Results

Results update with each calculation

Enter your recipe details
and press Calculate

The Basics

What is Sourdough Hydration?

Sourdough hydration is the ratio of water to flour in your dough, expressed as a percentage using the baker's percentage system. It is one of the most critical variables in bread making. It influences everything from dough handling and fermentation speed to crumb structure and crust development.

When bakers say "70% hydration," they mean that for every 100g of flour, there is 70g of water. This standardised approach makes it easy to scale recipes and compare formulas across different batch sizes.

Getting a handle on dough hydration is what separates consistent bakers from those who get different results every time. Whether you are baking a sandwich loaf or an open-crumb artisan sourdough, your hydration percentage is the starting point for every decision that follows: gluten development, proofing time, and shaping technique.

This tool works for beginner bakers getting started, intermediate home bakers refining their process, and advanced bakers chasing a specific result.

Sourdough hydration formula infographic showing the calculation: total water divided by total flour times 100 equals hydration percentage

How It Works

The Hydration Formula

The calculation is simpler than it looks. Most bakers include the sourdough starter contribution in the total, which gives you the true overall hydration:

Hydration (%) = Total Water ÷ Total Flour × 100

Where total water and total flour include contributions from your starter

Including Starter in Calculations

A 100g starter fed at 100% hydration contains 50g flour and 50g water. If you skip this, your calculated hydration ends up lower than the actual dough hydration. That is the most common mistake and it leads to unexpectedly wet dough.

Our calculator handles this automatically: simply enter your starter amount and its hydration percentage.

Worked Example

Recipe: 450g flour + 100g starter (100% hydration) + 310g water

Starter flour = 50g, Starter water = 50g
Total flour = 450 + 50 = 500g
Total water = 310 + 50 = 360g
Hydration = 360 ÷ 500 × 100 = 72%

Baker's Percentage

The baker's formula expresses every ingredient as a percentage of the total flour weight. This makes scaling recipes straightforward. Change the flour amount and every other ingredient adjusts proportionally.

Reference Guide

Hydration Levels & What They Mean

Your hydration percentage changes everything about how your dough behaves and what your finished loaf looks like. Here is how to read the numbers:

Hydration	Dough Type	Crumb Result	Handling Difficulty	Best For
55–62%	Low hydration	Dense, tight, chewy	Easy	Beginners, bagels, denser loaves
63–70%	Medium hydration	Balanced, moderate crumb	Manageable	Everyday sourdough, sandwich loaves
71–78%	High hydration	Open, airy, irregular holes	Intermediate	Artisan sourdough, baguettes
79–85%	Very high hydration	Very open crumb, glossy interior	Advanced	Ciabatta, high-hydration artisan
85%+	Ultra-high hydration	Extremely open, almost pourable	Expert	Focaccia, pan breads only

Flour Science

Hydration by Flour Type

Not all flours drink water at the same rate. Protein content, bran content, and milling method all affect how much water a flour can hold. Getting this wrong is one of the most common reasons doughs end up wetter or drier than you expected.

🌾 Bread Flour (11–13% protein)

Strong gluten network that holds water well. Most recipes are written for bread flour, so 65–75% is a solid starting point.

🌿 Whole Wheat Flour

The bran absorbs a lot more water than white flour. Add 2–5% extra hydration for every 10% whole wheat in your blend. A fully whole wheat loaf often needs 80–85% hydration.

🌑 Rye Flour

Rye has the highest water absorption of common baking flours. Rye contains pentosans, which are complex carbohydrates that soak up enormous amounts of water. Even 10–20% rye noticeably increases absorption. Pure rye doughs can need 90–100% hydration.

Flour Type	Recommended Hydration	Absorption Rate	Notes
White Bread Flour	65–75%	Standard	Strong gluten; forgiving to work with
Whole Wheat	72–82%	High (+5–10%)	Bran absorbs water; add gradually
Rye (partial)	75–85%	Very High	Even 20% rye changes texture significantly
Spelt	60–70%	Low–Medium	Weaker gluten; reduce hydration slightly
Einkorn	55–65%	Low	Ancient grain; dense and delicate

By Bread Type

Recommended Hydration by Bread Type

🥖

Baguette

72–76% hydration. The higher hydration is what gives a baguette its open crumb and crispy crust. You will need solid shaping technique to pull it off.

🍞

Ciabatta

75–85% hydration. One of the wettest doughs you will work with. Too slack to shape by hand, so it gets poured straight into an oiled tin.

🥪

Sandwich Loaf

65–70% hydration. The tighter crumb makes for cleaner slices. Lower hydration keeps the structure uniform all the way through.

⭕

Artisan Sourdough

70–80% hydration. The classic range for an open, well-developed crumb. Starter health and fermentation timing matter a lot here.

🫓

Focaccia

75–90% hydration. Very wet dough that you pour into a well-oiled tin. The high hydration is what gives focaccia that light, airy texture.

🥯

Bagel

55–60% hydration. The low hydration is what gives bagels their dense, chewy character. Stiff dough that is easy to work with.

Baking Science

Hydration vs Dough Behaviour

Hydration does not just determine how wet your dough feels. It shapes every stage of the bread-making process.

1

Gluten Development Higher hydration doughs develop strong, extensible gluten more easily through stretch-and-fold techniques, though they need more careful handling. Lower hydration doughs need more active kneading to build full gluten development.
2

Fermentation Speed More water in the dough means a more active fermentation environment. High-hydration doughs generally ferment faster, so watch your bulk ferment times carefully, especially in warm kitchens.
3

Dough Handling Low-hydration doughs are stiffer, easier to shape, and more forgiving for beginners. High-hydration doughs are slack and sticky. They need techniques like coil folds, wet hands, and a bench scraper rather than conventional kneading.
4

Oven Spring Well-hydrated doughs tend to produce better oven spring, which is the burst of rise that happens in the first few minutes of baking. The steam from the water in the dough keeps the crust flexible longer, giving more room for expansion.
5

Crumb Structure Higher hydration generally gives you larger, more irregular holes (an "open crumb"), while lower hydration gives a tighter, more uniform crumb. That said, shaping, proofing, and scoring all play a big part too.

Practical Advice

How to Choose the Right Hydration

Picking the right hydration is not about following a universal rule. It depends on your experience, your flour, and what you want from the bake.

🌱 Beginners

Start at 65–68% hydration. This gives you a dough firm enough to handle, shape, and score without it spreading everywhere. As you get more confident with reading dough texture and fermentation timing, push the hydration up in 2–3% steps.

Learn the formula and use a digital scale for every measurement. Guessing will cost you consistency.

🔥 Intermediate Bakers

The 70–75% range is your home. You are developing the feel for wetter doughs, learning to use a bench scraper, mastering coil folds, and getting better at reading when bulk fermentation is done. Try different flour blends to see firsthand how absorption changes.

🏆 Advanced Bakers

Working confidently at 75–85%+, using flour type, room temperature, and starter activity to fine-tune fermentation. At this level, hydration becomes a deliberate creative choice. You are dialling in a specific crumb structure for a specific result.

Avoid These

Common Hydration Mistakes

Most sourdough failures trace back to hydration in some way. Knowing these common errors will help you figure out what went wrong when a bake does not go to plan.

Mistake #1

Not Accounting for Starter Water

Forgetting to include the water and flour from your starter in the total calculation leaves your actual dough wetter than you planned. Always account for starter contributions.

Mistake #2

Adding All Water at Once

Even if your target hydration is right, dumping in all the water at once can make the dough feel over-hydrated before the flour has had time to absorb it. Hold back 5–10% and add gradually.

Mistake #3

Wrong Flour Assumptions

Using a recipe designed for white bread flour with whole wheat or rye without adjusting hydration. Whole grain flours absorb more water. Using the same percentage as a white flour recipe will give you an unexpectedly tight, dry dough.

Mistake #4

Overhydrating for Skill Level

Jumping straight to 80% hydration because it looks impressive on social media. Without proper shaping skills and fermentation awareness, high-hydration dough will be a nightmare to handle and will likely spread flat in the oven.

Baker working with sticky, high-hydration sourdough dough on a floured wooden surface

Step by Step

Practical Calculation Examples

Here are two worked examples so you can see the baker's percentage method in practice before jumping into the calculator.

Example 1: 500g Flour at 70% Hydration

Set your base flour: 500g

Target hydration: 70% → Water = 500 × 0.70 = 350g total water

Using 100g starter at 100% hydration → Starter flour = 50g, Starter water = 50g

Main dough flour = 500 − 50 = 450g

Main dough water = 350 − 50 = 300g

Salt at 2%: 500 × 0.02 = 10g salt

Total dough weight = 450 + 300 + 100 + 10 = 860g

Example 2: 1000g Flour at 75% Hydration

Set your base flour: 1000g

Target hydration: 75% → Water = 1000 × 0.75 = 750g total water

Using 200g starter at 100% hydration → Starter flour = 100g, Starter water = 100g

Main dough flour = 1000 − 100 = 900g

Main dough water = 750 − 100 = 650g

Salt at 2%: 1000 × 0.02 = 20g salt

Total dough weight = 900 + 650 + 200 + 20 = 1770g

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best hydration for sourdough?

For most home bakers, 70–75% is a great starting point. It gives you a balanced crumb and dough that is manageable to work with. Beginners should stick to 65–68% until they are comfortable reading dough texture and timing fermentation. Advanced bakers can push to 78–85% for a more open crumb, but you need good technique and a strong, high-protein flour to pull it off.

How do I calculate hydration with starter?

Split your starter weight in half to get the flour and water contributions (assuming a 100% hydration starter). Add those to your main flour and water, then run the formula: Total Water ÷ Total Flour × 100. Our calculator handles this for you. Just enter your starter amount and its hydration percentage.

Is higher hydration always better?

No. Higher hydration can give you an airier, more open crumb, but only when you pair it with proper gluten development, good fermentation timing, and solid shaping technique. Without these, high-hydration dough will spread flat and produce a dense, gummy loaf. The best hydration is simply the highest percentage you can consistently handle and shape.

Why is my sourdough dough too sticky?

Sticky dough can come from a few things: too much hydration, under-developed gluten, not enough salt, over-fermentation, or weak flour. Try dropping hydration by 5%, make sure you are doing enough stretch-and-fold sets during bulk fermentation, and check that your starter is at peak activity before mixing.

What hydration is best for beginners?

65–68% is the best starting range for beginners. At this hydration the dough holds its shape, handles well, and responds to basic shaping techniques. Bake three or four loaves at this level until you feel confident reading the dough, then step up to 70% and keep building from there.

Does flour type affect how much water I should add?

Yes, significantly. Whole wheat and rye flours contain bran and germ that absorb far more water than white flour. As a rough rule, add 2–5% extra hydration for every 10% whole wheat flour in your blend. Rye absorbs even more. Even 20% rye in a blend will noticeably change your dough consistency. Always adjust your hydration when you switch flour types.

Can I use this calculator for non-sourdough bread?

Yes. The hydration calculation works the same regardless of how you leaven the bread. For yeasted recipes with no starter, just enter 0 in the starter fields and the calculator will handle the rest.

What is the baker's percentage?

The baker's percentage is a notation system where every ingredient in a recipe is expressed as a percentage of the total flour weight. Flour always equals 100%, and everything else (water, salt, starter, fats) is expressed as a percentage of that flour weight. It makes scaling and comparing recipes straightforward, and it is the standard method used by professional bakers.