Plain Flour Substitutes

Out of plain flour? These are the swaps that actually work, with conversion ratios for any recipe size and notes on how each one changes the result.

Need to convert plain flour between cups, grams, or ounces first? Open the plain flour converter.

What to use instead of plain flour

  • Bread Flour

    Ingredient swap

    1 cup plain flour = 1 cup bread flour (1:1 by volume)

    A straight swap with more protein (130 g vs 125 g per cup), so gluten develops further and the crumb turns chewier. Good in pizza, bagels, and rustic loaves; in delicate cakes it can read tough, so reserve it for bakes that want structure.

  • Cake Flour

    Ingredient swap

    1 cup plain flour = 1 cup cake flour (1:1 by volume)

    The tender-crumb swap: cake flour is softer and lower in protein (120 g vs 125 g per cup), giving a finer, lighter result in sponges and cupcakes. Avoid it for bread and pizza, where the weaker gluten leaves the dough slack.

    See cake flour substitutes →

  • Self-raising flour (use the calculator)

    Calculator

    To turn plain flour into self-raising, add baking powder and a little salt: 100 g plain flour + 2 g baking powder + 0.5 g salt. The calculator scales the mix to any recipe amount so your bakes rise without separate leavener.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can I substitute for plain flour?
There are 3 workable substitutes for plain flour, depending on what you have on hand and which property of plain flour matters most for your recipe. The closest swap is usually 1 cup plain flour = 1 cup bread flour (1:1 by volume). Each option below lists the conversion ratio for any recipe size, plus notes on how the swap changes the texture, flavour, rise, or browning.
Will substituting plain flour change how my recipe turns out?
Yes, every swap trades one property for another: fat content, moisture, acidity, or protein. The notes on each substitute describe what changes in texture, flavour, rise, or browning, so you can choose the swap that matters least for your recipe. Open the plain flour converter
How do I measure plain flour accurately?
Weighing in grams is more reliable than scooping cups, especially when a substitute has a different density from what the recipe expects. The plain flour converter on this site converts between cups, grams, ounces, tablespoons, and teaspoons, so you can scale a recipe up or down without losing the ratio. Open the plain flour converter

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