Recipe Scaler
Halve, double, or triple any recipe — enter your ingredients and a scale factor to get perfectly adjusted amounts.
This free recipe scaler takes your ingredient list and a scale factor (0.5x, 2x, 3x, or anything custom) and returns every amount adjusted. Add or remove ingredient rows freely — blank rows are ignored, and you get a clean scaled recipe you can cook from.
0.5 = halve, 2 = double, any custom value works.
How to use this calculator
- Step 1: Enter each ingredient with its name, amount, and unit (add rows with the + button, remove with x).
- Step 2: Pick a preset scale factor — 1/2x, 2x, 3x — or type any custom value like 1.5.
- Step 3: Click Calculate to get your full scaled ingredient list.
- Step 4: For baking, double-check your pan size still suits the new batter volume.
The formula
Scaled amount = original amount x scale factor.
Worked example
A recipe with 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of sugar, doubled (2x), becomes 4 cups of flour and 2 cups of sugar. Halved (0.5x), it becomes 1 cup of flour and 0.5 cups of sugar.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I scale any recipe up or down?
Almost. Ingredient amounts scale linearly for the vast majority of cooking and baking — doubling the flour when you double everything else just works. The exceptions are potent seasonings (scale salt, hot spices, and extracts to about 75% then taste), and leavening in very large batches, where you should scale in separate normal-size batches instead.
Does cooking time change when I scale a recipe?
Sometimes. If the scaled recipe goes into the same size pan, time barely changes. If you doubled the batter in a bigger pan, the depth stays similar and time stays close. But a deeper or much thicker result — a doubled casserole in the same dish — needs more time at the same temperature. Watch doneness cues, not the clock.
How do I halve an egg for a scaled-down recipe?
Crack the egg into a small bowl, beat it well, and measure out half by volume — one large egg is about 3 tablespoons, so use 1.5 tablespoons. This works for any odd egg count your scaling produces, like 1.5 eggs when tripling a 2-egg recipe down by half.
Why do my scaled baking recipes sometimes fail?
Pan size matters more than ingredient math. If you double the batter but keep the same pan, the depth doubles and the center will not bake through before the top burns. Keep the batter depth close to the original by choosing a pan with proportionally larger area — our baking conversion calculator checks this by pan-area ratio.
Should I scale spices and salt exactly?
Scale them to about three-quarters first, then taste and adjust. Salt, heat, and strong spices do not always feel linear — doubling the cayenne doubles the pain more than it doubles the flavor. It is easy to add more; you cannot take it out.