Free planner
Sourdough bake planner: tell us when you want bread
Pick the day and time you want bread and your kitchen temperature. The planner works backward to when to feed your starter, mix, shape, proof, preheat and bake.
🔒 Runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
Plan your bake
Planning estimate. This schedule is a planning estimate from the cited table. Your dough, not the clock, decides when each step is done. Numbers come from published sources, listed on the planner page.
How the planner works
- You choose when the bread should be cooled and ready to slice, your temperature, and overnight cold proof or same-day.
- It counts backward from that moment: cooling, baking, preheating, the proof, shaping, bulk fermentation, and the starter feed.
- Bulk time comes from a published temperature and time table, with straight-line interpolation between its rows. Every other duration is the midpoint of a published range from the sources below, rounded to 5 minutes.
- Add to calendar saves one event per step as a file, and Print gives a one-page sheet with a blank Actual column. Both are built on your device.
Where every number comes from
Bulk fermentation is the step that depends most on temperature, so it comes straight from the chart cited in our bulk fermentation guide [1], checked 2026-10-17. The table is for dough temperature and assumes 20% starter (as a percentage of flour).
| Dough temperature | Published bulk time |
|---|---|
| 65°F (18°C) | 8–12 h |
| 70°F (21°C) | 6–9 h |
| 75°F (24°C) | 4–6 h |
| 80°F (27°C) | 3–4 h |
| 85°F (29°C) | 2–3 h |
Between two rows the planner interpolates linearly: at 68°F (20°C) the range is 6.8 to 10.2 hours, midpoint 8.5 hours. Below 65°F or above 85°F it uses the nearest row and shows a warning, because the chart does not go further.
The planned time for each step is the midpoint of the published range, rounded to the nearest 5 minutes. The range is shown next to each step.
| Step | Planned | Published range or basis | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter feed, overnight (1:5:5) | 11 h before mixing | About 10 h at 70–72°F (Country Roads); our weekend schedule feeds at 10 pm for a 10 am mix, 12 h. Range used: 10–12 h | [6] and the weekend schedule |
| Starter feed, same-day (1:1:1) | 7 h before mixing | A starter at room temperature is ready 6–8 h after a feed | [2] |
| Bulk fermentation | Midpoint at your temperature | Table above, interpolated | [1] |
| Shape, then into the fridge (overnight) | 60 min | Our weekend schedule: end bulk about 3 pm, loaf in the fridge about 4 pm | Weekend schedule |
| Shape (same-day) | 30 min | Our same-day Timeline C: bulk ends 12:00, proof starts 12:30 | Overnight vs same-day |
| Cold proof in the fridge | 12 h | 8–12 h (King Arthur); 8–16 h standard (How To Make Sourdough); about 16 h (The Perfect Loaf). Range used: 8–16 h | [2] [3] [7] |
| Room-temperature proof (same-day) | 2 h | 1–3 h (Country Roads); about 2 h (King Arthur) | [6] [2] |
| Preheat oven and Dutch oven to 450°F | 45 min | At least 30 min (our weekend schedule) to about 1 h (The Perfect Loaf). Range used: 30–60 min | [5] and the weekend schedule |
| Bake | 45 min | 20 min lid on, then 15–30 min lid off, until at least 205°F inside. Range used: 35–50 min | [3] [4] |
| Cool on a rack | 90 min | 1–2 h | Weekend schedule |
Two numbers are display choices, not baking figures: calendar events for the feed and mix steps are 15 minutes long, and hands-on steps get a 10-minute calendar alert. The oven preheat happens inside the proof window, so the loaf stays in the fridge (or keeps proofing) while the oven heats.
What the planner can't know
- Your dough decides. This schedule is a planning estimate from the cited table. Your dough, not the clock, decides when each step is done. Bulk is done when the dough has grown, domed and jiggles, not when the plan says so; see how to tell when bulk is done.
- Starter timing is not scaled by temperature. The guides cite no temperature table for starter peaks, only fixed ranges after a feed, so the planner uses those ranges and does not adjust them for a warm or cold kitchen. A warm kitchen peaks a starter sooner.
- The table assumes 20% starter. Recipes with more starter ferment faster, and recipes with less ferment slower. Same-day recipes often use more.
- Same-day in a cool kitchen is a stretch. When the published bulk time is already 6 hours or more, the planner says so, citing [8].
- Night-time steps. If a hands-on step lands between 11 pm and 6 am, the planner warns you so you can pick a different ready-by time or schedule.
- Time zones. Times use your device's clock. The calendar file uses exact UTC times, so it lands correctly in any calendar, including across daylight saving changes.
More on choosing a schedule: overnight vs same-day sourdough, the weekend baking schedule (with a free printable), bulk fermentation by temperature (also read at 68, 70, 72, 75 and 78°F), a schedule for a 9-to-5 workday and the water temperature calculator for hitting your dough temperature. Scaling the recipe itself? Try the recipe builder, the hydration calculator and baker's percentages.
Sources (checked 2026-10-17)
- Sourdough Archive, "Sourdough Bulk Fermentation Chart: Complete Temperature + Time Guide" (the same chart cited as [5] in our bulk fermentation guide): https://sourdougharchive.com/sourdough-bulk-fermentation-chart/
- King Arthur Baking, "Sourdough schedule: How to plan your bread baking timeline" (2026-05-20): https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2026/05/20/sourdough-starter-feeding-schedule
- The Perfect Loaf, "Beginner's Sourdough Bread" (updated 2026-01-15): https://www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/
- King Arthur Baking, "Crusty Dutch Oven Sourdough Bread" (updated 2026-09-28): https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/crusty-dutch-oven-sourdough-bread-recipe
- The Perfect Loaf, "Simple Weekday Sourdough Bread": https://www.theperfectloaf.com/simple-weekday-sourdough-bread/
- Country Roads Sourdough, "Same Day Sourdough Bread": https://countryroadssourdough.com/same-day-sourdough-bread/
- How To Make Sourdough, "Cold Retard in Sourdough: What It Is and Why It Matters": https://howtomakesourdough.ca/cold-retard-in-sourdough-what-it-is-and-why-it-matters/
- The Pantry Mama, "Same Day Sourdough Bread": https://pantrymama.com/same-day-sourdough-bread/
Other free calculators
BuilderSourdough recipe builderScale a formula by loaf count or pan size in grams or ounces, add discard and inclusions, and print a recipe card.
CalculatorSourdough Hydration Calculator (Baker's Percentage)Free baker's percentage calculator: enter dough weight or flour weight, hydration, salt and starter, and get grams with the starter's flour and water counted.
CalculatorSourdough Discard Swap Calculator (Any Hydration)Work out how much flour and liquid to take out of a recipe when you add sourdough discard, for a starter at any hydration.
CalculatorMixing Water Temperature Calculator for SourdoughFind the water temperature that gets your sourdough to its target dough temperature, using the desired dough temperature formula. Works in °F or °C.