Baking Pan Sizes: How to Convert a Recipe to the Pan You Own
Owning a different pan should not mean abandoning a recipe. Comparing pan areas gives a sensible scaling factor in seconds.
What is the Baking Pan Converter?
Different pans hold different amounts of batter, and this converter compares pan areas so you can scale a recipe up or down. It uses pan area as a guide, so very deep or very shallow pans still need a watchful eye on baking time. Fill the new pan no more than two-thirds full.
How to use it
- Pick the pan the recipe was written for.
- Pick the pan you actually own.
- Enter the batter amount and click Convert My Pan.
Worked example
Converting 4 cups of batter from a 20 cm round pan to a 23 cm round pan gives about 5.29 cups, since the area factor is about 1.32.
How much batter does a 23 cm round pan need compared with a 20 cm one?
A 23 cm round pan has about 1.32 times the area of a 20 cm round pan, so 4 cups of batter becomes about 5.29 cups.
Frequently asked questions
Does baking time change too?
Often, yes. A larger, shallower layer bakes faster and a deeper layer slower, so check doneness early rather than trusting the old time exactly.
What if the new pan is much bigger?
Scale the batter by the area factor, but do not overfill. If the scaled amount would fill more than two-thirds of the pan, split it across two pans.