Free calculator
What hydration is this dough?
Count the flour inside your starter — the step most recipes quietly skip.
Try the calculator
Baking
How hydration is counted
Bakers calculate hydration as total water divided by total flour, and the starter contains both. This calculator separates the flour and water inside the starter before applying your target hydration.
Why starter hydration changes the dough
Adding 100 g of 100% starter adds 50 g flour and 50 g water. Ignoring that split makes the true hydration of the dough higher or lower than the label you aimed for, which is why two bakers following the same recipe can get different doughs.
Who it is for
Home bakers scaling a recipe or converting a stiff starter to a liquid one without changing the final dough.
Frequently asked questions
Is hydration based on total flour or added flour?
Total flour, including the flour inside the starter. This calculator uses that convention, which is the common one in sourdough recipes.
How much salt is normal?
Around 2% of total flour weight is typical. The calculator applies your chosen percentage to the same total flour figure.
Does it handle a stiff starter?
Yes. Set the starter hydration to 50–65% for a stiff levain and the flour and water split updates automatically.