Pizza dough by baker's percentage
Every serious pizza recipe is written the same way: flour is 100%, and everything else is a percentage of that flour. It is not a formula for a fixed amount of dough — it is a formula for a ratio, which is exactly what you need, because the amount of dough depends on how many pizzas you are making and how thick you want them. Set the count and size, choose a thickness, and the flour follows.
From pizza size to dough weight
Dough weight is area times thickness: weight = π × r² × thickness factor. The factor is measured in grams per square centimetre, and the presets here mirror real dough balls: about 0.34 for Neapolitan (250 g at 12 inches), 0.38 for a New York thin crust (280 g at 12 inches), 0.42 for a standard takeaway base, and 0.48 for a thick pan pizza. Doubling the diameter quadruples the dough, which is why a 16-inch pizza needs roughly twice as much dough as a 12-inch one, not a third more.
Hydration, salt and the rest
| Ingredient | Typical range | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 55–80% | Hydration. Higher means an airier, more open crumb and a stickier dough. |
| Salt | 2–3% | Tightens gluten, controls fermentation, and is the difference between flat and flavoursome. |
| Instant yeast | 0.2–1% | Set by time and temperature, not by taste: less yeast, longer ferment. |
| Oil | 0–5% | Tenderises the crust and helps browning in home ovens. Traditional Neapolitan uses none. |
| Sugar | 0–3% | Feeds browning at lower oven temperatures; unnecessary in a very hot oven. |
Yeast is a function of time
The single most useful idea in dough-making: yeast quantity and fermentation time trade off against each other. A same-day dough at room temperature wants about 1% instant yeast; an overnight cold ferment needs about 0.4%; two or three days in the fridge needs only 0.2%. Adding more yeast to a long ferment does not make it faster in a useful way — it makes the dough taste of yeast and collapse sooner. Temperature works the same way: a dough at 24 °C ferments roughly twice as fast as one at 16 °C.
Water temperature
Professional kitchens hit a target dough temperature by adjusting the water: water = 3 × desired dough temperature − (flour + room + friction). With a flour at 21 °C, a room at 22 °C and a friction factor of 3 °C, a 24 °C dough needs water at about 26 °C. The friction factor is simply how much the mixer warms the dough — around 3 °C for a stand mixer on low, higher for a heavy spiral mixer.
Baking at home
A home oven tops out around 260–290 °C, which is enough for a crisp New York-style base in five to seven minutes on a steel or stone preheated for at least 45 minutes. A thick pan pizza wants 230 °C for 12–15 minutes. Whatever the style: preheat properly, keep the toppings light, and let the finished pizza rest for a minute before slicing so the cheese sets.
Frequently asked questions
How much dough do I need for one pizza?
About 250 g for a 12-inch Neapolitan, 280 g for a 12-inch New York thin crust, and 350 g for a thick pan pizza of the same size. Dough weight scales with area, so a 16-inch pizza takes roughly twice the dough of a 12-inch one.
What hydration should pizza dough be?
65% is the usual starting point: 65 g of water per 100 g of flour. Neapolitan doughs often run 60–65%, New York style 62–65%, and modern high-hydration doughs 70–80%, which are airier but much harder to handle by hand.
How much yeast goes in pizza dough?
About 1% instant yeast for a same-day dough, 0.4% for an overnight cold ferment, and 0.2% for 48–72 hours in the fridge. Yeast is a time control, not a flavour ingredient: less yeast and more time always tastes better.
How long should the dough ferment?
Minimum two hours at room temperature, and ideally 24 hours in the fridge followed by 1–2 hours at room temperature before shaping. Cold fermentation develops flavour and makes the dough far easier to stretch without tearing.
What is the thickness factor in pizza dough maths?
It is the dough weight per square centimetre of pizza. Multiplying it by the pizza area gives the dough ball weight: 0.34 g/cm² is Neapolitan, 0.38 New York thin, 0.42 standard, and 0.48 for a thick pan pizza. Raise it for a thicker base.
Should I use 00 flour or bread flour?
00 flour is milled finer and suits very hot ovens and 60–65% hydration; bread flour has more protein and holds up better in a home oven and in higher-hydration doughs. All-purpose flour works in a pinch but gives a softer, less chewy crust.
What temperature should the water be?
Water = 3 × target dough temperature − (flour + room + friction). For a 24 °C dough with flour at 21 °C, a room at 22 °C and a friction factor of 3 °C, use water at about 26 °C. Colder water slows fermentation, warmer speeds it up.
How do I stop the dough sticking when shaping?
Keep your hands and the bench lightly floured, work from the centre outwards, and never roll a Neapolitan base with a pin. If the dough springs back, it needs another 15–30 minutes of rest: the gluten is still tight.
For how temperature, hydration and yeast quantity interact across a 24–72 hour fridge ferment, see How a cold ferment really works.