Hydration is the weight of water in a dough divided by the weight of flour, expressed as a percentage. A dough with 1,000 g flour and 700 g water is 70% hydration. It is the single number that tells you most about how a dough will feel in your hands and what the crumb will look like, which is why bakers use it to describe breads. The chart below gives typical ranges for common breads. Treat them as starting points: your flour, your mixing method and your own taste will move the ideal number within, and sometimes beyond, each range.
For sourdough, hydration means total hydration, including the flour and water inside the starter. If you are not sure how to count it, see how to calculate sourdough hydration.
Hydration chart
| Bread | Typical hydration | What it is like |
|---|---|---|
| Bagels | 50–58% | Very stiff dough; dense, chewy crumb |
| Pretzels | 55–60% | Firm enough to roll into ropes and twist |
| Sandwich and pan bread | 60–65% | Smooth and easy to shape; soft, even crumb |
| Neapolitan pizza | 58–65% (AVPN classic about 55–62%) | Soft and extensible; puffy, blistered rim |
| New York pizza | 60–65% | Stretchy; thin, foldable crust |
| Baguette | 65–72% | Supple; open, creamy crumb and crisp crust |
| Country sourdough | 70–80% | Soft and slightly sticky; open, glossy crumb |
| Ciabatta | 75–85% | Very slack; large, irregular holes |
| Focaccia | 75–90% | Almost pourable at the high end; light, bubbly crumb |
| Brioche | about 50–60% effective | Rich and soft; the liquid comes from eggs and milk |
| Challah | about 50–60% effective | Firm enough to braid; tender, cottony crumb |
The Neapolitan figure deserves a note. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN), which certifies traditional Neapolitan pizzerias, specifies proportions that work out to roughly 55–62% hydration. Many home bakers go a little higher because a home oven is far cooler than a wood-fired one, and a slightly wetter dough stays softer through the longer bake.
What higher hydration does
- Opens the crumb. More water means more steam in the oven and a more extensible dough, so gas cells can expand into the large, irregular holes of ciabatta and country loaves.
- Makes dough stretchier and stickier. Wet doughs extend easily but hold their shape less well, so they are usually strengthened with folds rather than long kneading and take more practice to shape.
- Speeds fermentation slightly. Yeast and enzymes work more freely in a wetter dough.
- Changes the crust and keeping quality. High-hydration breads tend to have a thinner, crisper crust and a moist crumb that stales more slowly.
Lower hydration does the reverse: a tight, even crumb, a dough that holds its shape and is easy to handle, and a chewier bite. That is why bagels, pretzels and braided breads sit at the bottom of the chart.
Flour changes the numbers
Different flours absorb different amounts of water, so the same hydration can feel very different from one bag to the next.
- Protein content. Higher-protein bread flour absorbs more water than all-purpose flour. A recipe written for bread flour will feel wetter if you make it with all-purpose.
- Whole wheat. Bran and germ soak up extra water, and they do it slowly. For 100% whole wheat, add roughly 5–10 percentage points of water to a white-flour formula, so a 70% white dough becomes 75–80%. For a partial swap, scale it down: 30% whole wheat needs about 1.5–3 points more.
- Brand and origin. Two bread flours with similar protein can still differ by a few points of absorption. When you change brands, start a couple of points lower and add water if the dough needs it.
Because bran absorbs slowly, a whole wheat dough that feels right at the end of mixing can tighten up 20–30 minutes later. Resting the flour and water together before adding salt and leavening (an autolyse) gives the bran time to hydrate, so you can judge the dough more accurately.
Adjust gradually with bassinage
If you want to push hydration up, don't add all the water at the start. Bassinage is the technique of holding back some of the water, often around 10% of it, and adding it in small splashes once the gluten has started to develop. A dough that already has some strength absorbs extra water far more easily than a wet dough develops strength.
Example: you are aiming for 78% hydration with 1,000 g flour. Mix with 700 g water (70%). Once the dough is smooth and elastic, add the remaining 80 g in two or three additions, squeezing and folding each one in before the next. If the dough starts to tear or puddle, stop and note how much you actually added. Next time, start from that number. Between bakes, change hydration by 2–3 points at a time rather than jumping 10 at once.
Effective hydration: milk, eggs and butter
Enriched doughs get much of their liquid from ingredients that are only partly water. To compare them with lean doughs, count only the water each ingredient contains:
| Ingredient | Approximate water content |
|---|---|
| Water | 100% |
| Milk | 87% |
| Whole eggs (without shell) | 75% |
| Butter | 16% |
| Vegetable oil | 0% |
A brioche dough with 500 g flour, 250 g eggs, 60 g milk and 250 g butter contains 187.5 + 52.2 + 40 = 279.7 g of water, an effective hydration of 279.7 ÷ 500 = 56%. Counting the eggs and milk at face value would suggest 62%. A challah with 500 g flour, 150 g eggs, 160 g water and 50 g oil works out to 112.5 + 160 = 272.5 g of water, or 54.5%; the oil adds richness but no water.
Enriched doughs feel softer than their effective hydration suggests, because fat and sugar tenderize the gluten. Use the effective figure to compare recipes rather than to predict exactly how a dough will feel. The same numbers let you swap liquids: to replace 325 g of water with milk at the same effective hydration, use 325 ÷ 0.87 = 373.6 g, or about 374 g of milk.
Using the chart
Pick the range for the bread you are making and start in the middle of it, or at the low end if you are new to the style or using all-purpose flour. Bake, take notes and adjust by a couple of points next time. Once you have a number you like, write the formula in baker's percentages so you can scale it to any size.