Recipe scaler
Paste your ingredient list, say how many servings the recipe makes and how many you want, and every quantity at the start of a line is scaled. Fractions such as 1 1/2 or ½ and ranges such as 2-3 are understood.
Runs in your browser: nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
How to use it
- Paste your ingredients, one per line, into the first box.
- Choose Servings and type how many the recipe makes and how many you want, or choose Multiplier and type a number such as 2 or 0.5.
- Copy the scaled list from the second box.
How it works
The multiplier is the servings you want divided by the servings in the recipe (6 ÷ 4 = 1.5). Each line that starts with a quantity has that number multiplied by it; if the line has a range such as 2-3, both ends are multiplied. The unit and everything else on the line is left as you wrote it.
Worked example
Scaling a recipe from 4 to 6 servings means ×1.5:
| Before |
After |
| 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour |
2¼ cups all-purpose flour |
| ½ tsp salt |
¾ tsp salt |
| 2-3 cloves garlic |
3-4½ cloves garlic |
| 3 eggs |
4½ eggs |
Tips
- Whole items such as eggs may scale to a half. Round them by hand, or convert the egg into grams with the ingredient converter and use a part of a beaten egg.
- Use decimals mode if you want to paste the result into a spreadsheet.
- When changing the size of a cake, a baking pan size converter tells you the right multiplier for the new pan.
Frequently asked questions
Which numbers in a line does it change?
Only the quantity at the start of a line, including a range such as 2-3 or 1 to 2. Anything after it stays exactly as typed: a size in brackets like (14 oz) or a note like "plus extra for the pan" is not scaled. Lines without a leading number are copied unchanged.
Which fraction formats does it read?
Mixed numbers written as 1 1/2, a plain fraction like 3/4, a number glued to a symbol like 1½, a symbol alone like ½, and decimals like 1.5. The symbols ¼ ½ ¾ ⅓ ⅔ ⅕ ⅖ ⅗ ⅘ ⅙ ⅚ ⅛ ⅜ ⅝ ⅞ are supported.
How are results rounded?
In fractions mode a result within 0.02 of a halves, thirds, quarters or eighths fraction is shown as that fraction, for example 2.25 becomes 2¼. Anything else is shown as a decimal with up to two places. Switch to decimals to see every value in that form.
Does a bigger batch need other changes than multiplying?
Yes, often. Baking time, pan size and spices do not always scale in step. Doubling a cake may need a larger pan and a longer bake, and strong spices and salt are usually increased by less than the full factor. This tool only multiplies the numbers; for pans see the baking pan size converter.
Why was a line with a number not scaled?
A number is only scaled when it is the first thing on the line, after an optional bullet. A numbered step such as "1. Mix" is skipped, and so is a line like "Salt, 2 tsp", where the quantity comes after the name.