What does 82% hydration mean in sourdough?

82% hydration means the dough contains 82 grams of water for every 100 grams of flour, by weight. It is a baker's-percentage convention: flour is always 100%, and other ingredients are expressed as a percentage of the total flour weight.

Which sourdough styles use 82% hydration?

Ciabatta. See each style's page for the full recipe formula.

How do I convert 82% hydration into grams of water?

Multiply total flour weight by 0.82. For example, 500g flour × 0.82 = 410g water. Use the calculator below to handle salt, levain, and starter-discount math automatically.

Hydration reference · advanced

Sourdough at82% hydration

Classic ciabatta crumb — very irregular large holes, glossy interior, thin crackling crust. Maximum open-crumb for hearth shapes.

Typical styles: Ciabatta

What does 82% hydration look like?

Classic ciabatta crumb — very irregular large holes, glossy interior, thin crackling crust. Maximum open-crumb for hearth shapes.

Technique for 82% dough

Dough is nearly batter-like. Hand-stretch on heavily floured surface; cut into rectangles with bench scraper. No shaping, no slashing. Bake on stone with initial steam.

Try the calculator at 82% hydration

Adjust the target hydration, salt, and levain below. All outputs update as you type, with starter discount applied.

Total flour(g)

Target hydration(%)

Salt(%)

Levain of flour(%)

Levain hydration(%)

Flour to add: 450 g
Water to add: 360 g
Salt: 10 g
Levain @ 100%: 100 g
Total dough: 920 g
Effective hydration: 82%

How the math works

Total water = flour × hydration %. Your levain contributes 50 g flour + 50 g water — both count toward the totals. You add only the remainder as fresh flour and water.

Salt % is computed on total flour weight, not final-dough flour.

Open 80% hydration guide →

Popular recipes at 82% hydration

Ciabatta82%
Italy · baking stone · 475°F

How to convert 82% to grams of water

Multiply total flour weight by 0.82. For a 500g flour dough at 82% hydration, that is 410 g of water.

Remember that the levain contributes some of the flour and water. The calculator above subtracts the levain's contribution automatically so the numbers you weigh on the counter are the real ones.