Can I just double the baking time when I double a cake?

No. Heat penetrates from the outside, so a batch that is twice as large is not twice as thick if you use a larger pan. Doubling into one bigger tin usually adds 20 to 30 percent to the time. Splitting into two tins of the original size keeps the time almost unchanged.

How do I halve a recipe that uses 3 eggs?

Crack all three into a bowl, beat lightly, weigh the total, and use half of that weight. A large egg is about 50 g without the shell, so 1.5 eggs is roughly 75 g of beaten egg.

Why did my doubled bread dough overproof?

A larger dough mass retains heat, so fermentation accelerates. Use slightly less yeast than the straight multiple, keep the dough cooler, and judge by the poke test rather than the clock.

Should I scale salt in the same proportion?

In baking yes, because salt controls gluten and yeast activity. In soups, sauces, and stews, scale to about three quarters and adjust at the end. Perceived saltiness does not increase in a straight line with concentration.

Recipe Scaler

Scale recipe ingredients up or down

Original Servings

Desired Servings

Ingredients (one per line: amount unit)

Scaled (1.50×)

3 cups flour
1.5 cup sugar
4.5 eggs
0.75 tsp salt
2.25 cups milk

Quick Facts

•Divide desired servings by original to get the multiplier
•Baking times may need adjustment when scaling up
•Spices don't always scale linearly — taste and adjust

How to Scale Recipes

Scaling recipes is straightforward math — multiply all ingredients by the ratio of desired servings to original servings. However, cooking times, pan sizes, and seasoning don't always scale linearly. For baking, scaling beyond 2-3x may require adjustments to leavening agents.

Understanding the recipe scaler

Scaling a recipe is not always a straight multiplication. Ingredient quantities scale linearly, but pan size, baking time, seasoning, and leavening do not. This page covers the arithmetic and the adjustments that stop a doubled cake from sinking in the middle.

Worked examples

Doubling a recipe that serves 4

1Scale factor = target servings ÷ original servings = 8 ÷ 4 = 2.
2Multiply every ingredient weight and volume by 2.
3Keep the oven temperature the same.
4Increase baking time by about 25 percent, not 100 percent, and test with a skewer.

All ingredients doubled, same temperature, roughly 1.25 times the original bake time.

Cutting a recipe from 6 servings to 4

1Scale factor = 4 ÷ 6 = 0.667.
2300 g flour × 0.667 = 200 g.
33 eggs × 0.667 = 2 eggs, which is close enough to round.
41.5 tsp baking powder × 0.667 = 1 tsp.

Two thirds of every ingredient, with eggs rounded to the nearest whole.

What changes when you scale

Element	Scales linearly?	What to do
Flour, sugar, liquid, fat	Yes	Multiply directly by the scale factor
Eggs	Yes, but round	Weigh eggs (about 50 g each) for fractional amounts
Baking powder and soda	Mostly	Scale up by slightly less than the factor above 2x
Salt and strong spices	No	Start at 75 percent and taste before adding more
Yeast	No	Use about 1.5x when doubling, dough rises faster in bulk
Baking time	No	Add roughly 25 percent when doubling, test early
Oven temperature	No	Keep unchanged
Pan area	Yes	Match total area, not diameter

Round pan area for scaling

Match the batter volume to the pan area so the depth stays similar.

Pan diameter	Area	Relative capacity
6 in / 15 cm	28 sq in	0.5x
8 in / 20 cm	50 sq in	1x (baseline)
9 in / 23 cm	64 sq in	1.3x
10 in / 25 cm	79 sq in	1.6x
12 in / 30 cm	113 sq in	2.3x

Frequently asked questions

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This calculator is for educational and reference purposes only. Always verify critical calculations independently.