How to scale your recipes like a pro (with free Google Sheet template)
One of the biggest learning curves for home cooks and bakers who start selling their food is figuring out how to scale their recipes.
You might go from feeding a dinner party of ten to prepping for a market of fifty or 500.
You’ll run into questions like:
If my cookie dough recipe makes 24, how do I scale up for 60?
What’s the easiest way to scale down when I just need to do a taste test?
Do I need to worry about ratios changing when I double, triple, or shrink recipes?
Good news: once you understand the basic math (and a few caveats), you can scale any recipe confidently. To make it easier, we’ve built a free Google Sheet recipe scaling template you can copy and use for your own business. ⬇️
Let’s take a look at how recipe scaling works, when it’s straightforward, and when you’ll want to adjust instead of just multiplying.
Why Recipe Scaling Matters for Food Businesses
When you move from cooking for friends to running a business - even if it’s just a small side hustle - accuracy matters.
Scaling helps you:
Control costs. Every gram of flour and ounce of butter adds up. You need consistency to understand your true food costs.
Stay consistent. Customers want the same product every time. A soggy empanada or too-dense cake on week two can turn off repeat buyers.
Save time. Once you have a reliable system, you can prep without doing napkin math for every batch.
The Math Behind Scaling a Recipe
At its core, recipe scaling is about proportions. You’re starting with:
Base recipe yield. What the recipe normally makes. For example, 24 empanadas, 1 loaf of bread, 24 cookies.
Desired yield. How much you actually need.
The formula is:
Scaling Factor = Desired Yield / Base Yield
Then, multiply each ingredient by your scaling factor.
Example 1: Scaling Up Empanadas
Your base dough recipe makes 24 empanadas. You need 60.
Scaling Factor = 60 / 24 = 2.5
If your base recipe calls for:
1 kg flour
500 g butter
20 g salt
Your scaled recipe becomes:
2.5 kg flour
1.25 kg butter
50 g salt
Example 2: Scaling Down Bread Dough
Your sourdough recipe makes 4 loaves. You want to test 1 loaf.
Scaling Factor = 1 / 4 = 0.25
If your base recipe calls for:
1000 g flour
700 g water
20 g salt
200 g starter
Your scaled recipe becomes:
250 g flour
175 g water
5 g salt
50 g starter
When Scaling Isn’t Perfect
Some ingredients don’t play nicely when you scale linearly:
Leavening agents (yeast, baking soda, baking powder): Doubling or tripling may cause issues. Often you’ll use slightly less than the exact multiple when going big.
Spices and extracts: Intensity compounds. A scaled-up amount of cinnamon or vanilla can overwhelm. Start with slightly less than the full scaled amount, then adjust after a test batch.
Cooking times: Bigger batches don’t bake or cook in the exact same time. You’ll often need longer, and heat distribution may change, especially with vessels of different materials and sizes.
Pro tip: Always test a smaller scaled version first before committing to a large production run.
Step-by-Step: How to Scale a Recipe
Here’s the process we recommend:
Record your base recipe. Write down every ingredient with weights (grams/ounces), not cups or teaspoons. This is key for accuracy.
Note the base yield. How many cookies, loaves, or empanadas does this recipe produce?
Decide your desired yield. How many units do you actually need?
Calculate your scaling factor. Desired yield ÷ base yield.
Multiply each ingredient by the factor. Adjust for tricky ingredients (spices, yeast).
Document everything. Write down your scaled recipe so you can repeat it later.
Using Our Free Recipe Scaling Template
To save you from doing math every time, we built a Google Sheet recipe scaling template ⬇️
Here’s how it works:
1. Enter Your Base Recipe
Column A: Ingredient
Column B: Amount (with units, e.g. grams, cups, tablespoons)
Example:
Ingredient Amount
Flour 1000 g
Butter 500 g
Salt 20 g
2. Enter Your Base Yield
At the top, type how many units the recipe normally makes (e.g. 24 empanadas).
3. Enter Your Desired Yield
Type how many units you want to make (e.g. 60).
4. Let the Sheet Do the Work
The sheet automatically calculates the scaling factor and multiplies each ingredient for you.
Example output (for 60 empanadas):
Ingredient Base Amount Scaled Amount Flour 1000 g 2500 g Butter 500 g 1250 g Salt 20 g 50 g
5. Print or Save
You can copy the scaled recipe to a prep sheet for your kitchen.
Why a Template Is Better Than Mental Math
Accuracy. One wrong calculation can ruin a batch.
Speed. You can focus on cooking, not your calculator.
Consistency. The same scaling is applied every time, no second-guessing.
Flexibility. Easily scale down for testing or scale up for big events.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Using volume measurements (cups, spoons). Always switch to weight for precision, especially when baking.
Forgetting to adjust spices/leaveners. Don’t always scale them exactly—err on the lighter side and adjust after testing.
Not documenting changes. You’ll forget what you did by next week if you don’t write it down.
Assuming cooking times scale the same way. Always check doneness instead of relying solely on the timer.
How Scaling Fits Into Pricing & Profitability
Recipe scaling isn’t just about getting the food right. It’s also the foundation for understanding your food costs.
Once you’ve nailed scaling, you can:
Calculate cost per unit (how much one loaf, cookie, or empanada costs you to make).
Set menu prices that cover costs and leave room for profit.
Adjust batch sizes for demand (don’t waste ingredients making more than you can sell).
We’ll cover costing and pricing in detail in another post. But scaling is the first step.
Putting It All Together
Scaling recipes is one of the most important skills when you go from hobby cook to food entrepreneur. The process is simple:
Record your base recipe and yield.
Decide how much you need.
Apply the scaling factor.
Adjust for tricky ingredients.
Test, document, and repeat.
To save you time and headaches, use our free Google Sheet recipe scaling template. ⬇️
Whether you’re prepping empanadas for a pop-up, sourdough loaves for the farmers’ market, or cupcakes for a catering gig, having a reliable system for scaling will make your life easier and your business more profitable.
