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Dough Temperature Calculator

The water temperature that lands a batch of bread dough on a chosen finished temperature.

The dough temperature you want when mixing ends, in °C.

Three temperatures are averaged for a straight dough: water, flour and room. Choose four when a starter, levain or poolish is also at a known temperature.

Temperature of the flour as it goes into the bowl, in °C. Flour settles towards the room overnight.

Air temperature where the dough is mixed, in °C.

Temperature of the starter, levain or poolish, in °C.

How much the mix warms the dough, in °C. Published figures run from about 3 °C by hand to 13 °C on a planetary stand mixer, so measure it once for your machine and mixing time.

Water temperature is the target multiplied by the number of temperatures being averaged, minus the flour, room, optional preferment and friction rise, because the mixed dough is the average of those factors. Water is the only one a baker can change quickly, and every degree moved on the water moves the dough by one degree divided by the factor count. A result below 0 °C means liquid water cannot do the job: chill the flour or use part ice. Friction rise is specific to the mixer, the dough mass and the mixing time, so it has to be measured rather than assumed. Values are refused outside 1 to 45 °C for the target, −20 to 50 °C for the ingredient and room temperatures, and 0 to 30 °C for friction, and decimal commas are accepted. This is arithmetic for planning only: it says nothing about fermentation being complete, and it runs entirely in your browser with no storage, uploads or network access.