Free Rice to Water Ratio calculator
Get the exact water for any rice — white, basmati, jasmine, brown or sushi — by type and method, with the cooked yield and servings updated live, as you type.
On this page13 sections
| Rice type | Water : rice | Per cup rice |
|---|---|---|
| White long-grain | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups |
| Basmati | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups |
| Jasmine | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups |
| Brown | 1 : 2.25 | 2¼ cups |
| Sushi (short) | 1 : 1.25 | 1¼ cups |
Stovetop absorption ratios. A rice cooker needs about 10% less water. Aged or bulk-bin rice is drier and may take a splash more.
Ratios vary by grain age and brand. How accurate is this?
Results are estimates. Consult a professional.
How the rice to water ratio calculator works
Rice cooks by absorption, so the water you add is a fixed multiple of the dry rice — not a guess. This rice to water ratio calculator takes the amount of uncooked rice, the rice type and the cooking method, then returns the exact water, the cooked yield and how many servings you will get. Change any input and every number updates live, as you type.
Two outputs do the real work. The water figure is what you pour into the pot. The yield — cooked cups and half-cup servings — tells you whether you are making enough, because dry rice roughly triples in volume once it drinks the water.
Rice to water ratio by type
The grain decides the ratio. Long-grain white, basmati and jasmine all sit near 1:1.5 on the stovetop. Brown rice keeps its bran layer, so it drinks far more water and cooks longer. Sushi and other short grains use a tight ratio to stay tender instead of mushy. These are bare stovetop figures — a rice cooker needs about 10% less.
| Rice type | Water : rice | Water per cup rice | Rice cooker |
|---|---|---|---|
| White long-grain | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups | ~1⅓ cups |
| Basmati | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups | ~1⅓ cups |
| Jasmine | 1 : 1.5 | 1½ cups | ~1⅓ cups |
| Brown | 1 : 2.25 | 2¼ cups | ~2 cups |
| Sushi (short-grain) | 1 : 1.25 | 1¼ cups | ~1⅛ cups |
Stovetop absorption ratios per cup of dry rice. Rice cooker figures apply the ~10% evaporation discount. Aged or bulk-bin rice is drier and may take a splash more.
A worked example: 2 cups of white rice
Maya is making dinner for the family and starts with 2 cups of white long-grain rice in a covered pot on the stove. She wants the water amount and how many servings it will make.
Step 1 — Pick the ratio
White long-grain rice on the stovetop uses a 1 : 1.5 ratio — one and a half cups of water for every cup of dry rice.
Step 2 — Multiply rice by the ratio
2 cups × 1.5 = 3 cups of water. In metric that is 3 × 236.6 = 710 mL.
Step 3 — Work out the yield
Dry rice roughly triples, so 2 cups becomes about 6 cups cooked. At a half-cup serving, that is 12 servings — plenty for a family dinner with leftovers.
Stovetop vs. rice cooker: why the water changes
Same rice, different water — because the two methods lose steam at different rates. An open pot on the stove vents water as it simmers, so the ratio has evaporation built in. A rice cooker seals tight and recirculates that steam, so it needs less water for the same tender result.
The 10% rule
As a working figure, a rice cooker uses about 10% less water than the stovetop ratio. So white rice at 1:1.5 on the stove becomes roughly 1:1.35 in the cooker. The calculator applies this automatically when you switch the method, so you never have to do the arithmetic.
When to trust your cooker's own lines
Many rice cookers print fill lines on the inner bowl that already account for evaporation. If your cooker has them, follow them — they are tuned to that machine. Use this calculator for the stovetop, for a cooker without lines, or to scale a batch up or down. For converting between cups and grams of rice, the cooking converter handles any ingredient.
Why brown, basmati and sushi rice need different water
Each grain absorbs water differently because of its bran layer and starch profile. Getting the ratio right per type is the difference between fluffy and gummy.
Brown rice: the bran layer drinks more
Brown rice keeps the bran and germ that white rice has milled away. That intact outer layer resists water and takes longer to soften, so brown rice needs about 2¼ cups of water per cup and 40 to 45 minutes of cooking — far more than white rice's 1½ cups and 15 to 18 minutes.
Basmati and jasmine: aromatic long grains
Basmati is high in amylose starch, which is what gives a properly cooked grain its dry, separate, elongated texture. Both basmati and jasmine sit near 1:1.5 on the stovetop. Rinsing them until the water runs clear removes surface starch and keeps the grains from clumping.
Sushi and short-grain: tight ratio, sticky finish
Short-grain sushi rice is meant to cling, so it uses a tighter 1:1.25 ratio. Too much water turns it to paste; too little leaves a chalky core. The lower ratio leaves the grains tender and just sticky enough to shape.
Pro tips for fluffy, non-sticky rice
The ratio gets you most of the way; technique does the rest. These steps are where home cooks usually lose a batch, and most recipes skip them.
- Rinse until the water runs clear — this washes off surface starch that otherwise glues the grains together. Skip it for sushi rice if you want extra stickiness.
- Don't lift the lid — every peek lets out steam and throws off the water balance the ratio assumes. Trust the timer.
- Rest off the heat for 10 minutes — leave the lid on and let the rice finish steaming. This redistributes moisture and firms up the grains.
- Fluff with a fork, not a spoon — a fork lifts and separates; a spoon presses and compacts, which makes rice gummy.
- Adjust for older rice — aged or bulk-bin rice is drier and absorbs more, so add a splash extra. A sealed supermarket bag is usually fresher and truer to the ratio.
Rice to water ratio definitions
How accurate is this rice to water calculator?
The arithmetic is exact. Water equals rice times the ratio, and the cup-to-millilitre conversion uses the precise 236.6 mL per cup, so for the type and method you pick the numbers are right to the decimal.
The ratios themselves are well-established culinary figures, but rice is a natural product and a few things shift it. Aged or bulk-bin rice is drier and absorbs more; a fast, hard boil loses more steam than a gentle simmer; and a loose-fitting lid vents more than a tight one. Treat the result as a reliable starting point, taste a grain near the end, and adjust by a tablespoon or two per cup next time. For other kitchen conversions, the cups to grams calculator pairs well with this one.
Frequently asked questions about the free Rice to Water Ratio calculator
About this Rice to Water Ratio calculator
This rice to water ratio calculator runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere — the water amount, cooked yield and servings are computed instantly on your device from absorption-method ratios, and reset when you close the page.
It is part of our cooking calculators collection. Browse the full set of free calculators for more kitchen, conversion and everyday tools.