- 1Enter the Original Servings the recipe was written for, and the Desired Servings you want to make.
- 2Enter the Ingredient Quantity for one ingredient at its original recipe amount, and its Unit as free text (for example 'cups').
- 3Read the Scaled Ingredient Quantity below, along with the scale multiplier applied.
- 4Repeat with the same Original and Desired Servings for each remaining ingredient in the recipe.
The Recipe Scaler resizes a single ingredient quantity from the number of servings a recipe was written for to the number of servings you actually want. It works out a Scale Factor from the two serving counts, then multiplies your ingredient quantity by that factor. It is a pure multiplication tool — it does not know about ingredients, units, or cooking chemistry, so it scales exactly one quantity per calculation.
How many times bigger or smaller the new batch is compared to the original.
Scale Factor = Desired Servings ÷ Original ServingsApplied to one ingredient quantity at a time.
New Quantity = Original Quantity × Scale FactorThe Unit field is a plain text label — it is carried through unchanged.
Displayed Unit = whatever you typed (no conversion or validation)Scale Factor = 8 ÷ 4 = 2. Scaled Quantity = 2.5 × 2 = 5Scale Factor = 3 ÷ 6 = 0.5. Scaled Quantity = 1.5 × 0.5 = 0.75Scale Factor = 20 ÷ 12 ≈ 1.6667. Scaled Quantity = 3 × 1.6667 ≈ 5- Original Servings, Desired Servings, and Ingredient Quantity must all be greater than zero, or the calculator shows no result.
- The calculator scales one ingredient quantity at a time. For a full recipe, repeat the calculation for each ingredient — the Scale Factor stays the same every time.
- The Unit field is a plain text label — it is not converted or validated. The result is shown in whatever unit you typed.
- Scaling is purely mathematical: doubling a recipe does not always double real-world results for leavening, spices, or cooking time.
- A Scale Factor below 1 shrinks the recipe (Desired Servings < Original Servings); above 1 grows it.
How does recipe scaling work?
The calculator divides Desired Servings by Original Servings to get a Scale Factor, then multiplies your Ingredient Quantity by that factor.
Can I scale fractional or decimal quantities?
Yes — enter the quantity as a decimal (for example 0.5 for half a cup); the result is shown as a decimal, not as a fraction.
Can I scale a whole recipe with multiple ingredients at once?
Not in one step — enter one ingredient quantity at a time. The Scale Factor shown stays the same for every ingredient in the recipe.
Does the calculator convert units, like cups to grams?
No. The Unit field is just a label; it is displayed next to the result exactly as you typed it.
Will doubling a recipe always double the cooking result?
Not always. The math is exact, but real cooking factors like leavening, spice intensity, and cooking or baking time don't always scale linearly.