1 L water at 2%
Worked example: 1,000 g water × 2 ÷ 100. Salt is weighed against the water before it dissolves.
Brine & Pickling · Calculator
Brine Salt Calculator
Grams of salt for any brine strength, per litre, US quart or gallon of water, with a 1–10% table. For vegetables plus water or dry salting, use the fermentation brine calculator.
Live calculator · updates as you type
Mix a water-based brine
Water only (before salt). Exclude the jar, weights and salt. Match the method and percentage in your tested recipe.
This calculates a prepared salt-water brine, not the salt percentage of the whole ferment. For a recipe based on vegetables plus water, use the fermentation brine calculator.
ml
%
The starting values are a worked example, not a recommended recipe. Do not transfer a percentage between methods without checking the recipe.
Salt to add
10g
2% of water only (before salt)
500 g water = 500 g before salt.
500 × 2 ÷ 100 = 10 g salt.
Approx. tbsp0.526
Approx. tsp1.579
Ounces0.353
This is a recipe ratio before adding salt, not a measurement of final brine salinity or a safety assessment.
What to do next
Use these amounts with your tested recipe
2% of water only (before salt): 500 g water.
Free printable
Keep this batch on one page
A batch card made from your numbers, to save as a PDF or receive by email:
- Vegetable, water and salt amounts
- The percentage basis written out
- Recipe checks and storage reminders
- A log for your batch
Why the basis matters
500 g vegetables + 500 g water at 2% of their combined weight needs 20 g salt. At 2% of the water alone, it needs 10 g. These are arithmetic examples, not interchangeable recipes.
Choose a tested recipe
Preserve its vegetable-to-water proportions, salt quantity and method. Start with the NCHFP dill pickle recipe or sauerkraut recipe; follow their stated quantities rather than substituting this example percentage.
Understand brine strength
Mix a brine at the strength your recipe gives
A brine percentage is salt weighed against water. The same strength gives the same grams per litre whatever you pour it over, but it is not the salt level of the finished ferment.
Use these reference values to interpret your results
- 20 g
- 33.1 g
1 US quart at 3.5%
Worked example: a US quart is about 946 g of water, so 946 × 3.5 ÷ 100.
- 189.3 g
1 US gallon at 5%
Worked example: about 3,785 g of water × 5 ÷ 100. An imperial gallon holds about a fifth more.
Brine strength, before salt
water weight × % ÷ 100The result is grams of salt for that water. Expressed as a share of the finished brine, the same salt reads slightly lower, because the salt is then part of the total.
What a brine percentage measures
A brine percentage here is grams of salt per 100 g of water, measured before the salt goes in. Multiply the water weight by the percentage and divide by 100. Water is close enough to 1 g per ml for kitchen batches.
The same brine can also be described as a share of the finished liquid, water plus salt. That figure is always a little lower. Recipes rarely say which they mean, so read the method: if it says “dissolve X g salt in Y ml water”, it is water-based.
One brine, two ways to describe it
1,000 g water at 3% = 30 g salt.Finished brine = 1,030 g, of which salt is 30 g = 2.91%.Both describe the same jar of liquid; only the basis differs.Measure water by weight or in metric
Weigh the water on the same scale as the salt, or measure it in millilitres. Cup and quart sizes differ by country: a US quart is about 946 ml, an imperial quart about 1,136 ml, and a metric cup 250 ml. The calculator converts US cups and quarts; enter metric volumes directly.
Mix only the brine your recipe calls for. If you make extra, keep it separate from the jar and record its strength so a top-up matches the original.
A water brine is not the salt level of the ferment
Pouring a 3% brine over vegetables does not make a 3% ferment. The vegetables add weight and release water, so the salt level of the whole jar ends up lower and keeps shifting as they soak. Extension guidance writes brines this way because it is easy to mix, not because it describes the whole batch.
When a recipe gives a percentage of vegetables plus water, or of vegetables alone for dry salting, use the fermentation brine calculator. Do not move a percentage from one basis to the other.
- Fermentation brine calculator
- Salt for vegetables plus water, water only, or dry-salted vegetables.
Topping up a ferment with brine
Some tested recipes add brine only when the produce’s own juice does not cover it. The NCHFP sauerkraut recipe does this with boiled and cooled brine made from 1½ tablespoons of salt per quart of water. Use the strength your recipe gives for its top-up, not the one you mixed for a different ferment.
Keep produce under the brine with the weights or bags the recipe specifies. A correct salt number does not replace submersion, temperature control or the recipe’s storage steps.
- NCHFP: sauerkraut
- Covering-brine strength and the full tested procedure.
Sources and further guidance
- NCHFP: salts used in pickling
- Salt types, additives and reduced-sodium substitutions.
- University of Illinois Extension: fermenting
- Dry salting, prepared water brines and fermentation conditions.
Salt per litre, quart and gallon of water
| Brine strength | Per 1 L water | Per US quart | Per US gallon | Salt share of finished brine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 10.0 g | 9.5 g | 37.9 g | 0.99% |
| 2% | 20.0 g | 18.9 g | 75.7 g | 1.96% |
| 2.5% | 25.0 g | 23.7 g | 94.6 g | 2.44% |
| 3% | 30.0 g | 28.4 g | 114 g | 2.91% |
| 3.5% | 35.0 g | 33.1 g | 132 g | 3.38% |
| 4% | 40.0 g | 37.9 g | 151 g | 3.85% |
| 5% | 50.0 g | 47.3 g | 189 g | 4.76% |
| 6% | 60.0 g | 56.8 g | 227 g | 5.66% |
| 8% | 80.0 g | 75.7 g | 303 g | 7.41% |
| 10% | 100 g | 94.6 g | 379 g | 9.09% |
Strength is salt as a percentage of the water weight before salt, the basis this calculator uses. The last column is the same brine expressed as a share of water plus salt.
FAQ
Salt brine questions
How much salt is in a 3% brine?
A 3% brine is 3 g of salt for every 100 g of water before salt. That is 30 g per litre of water, about 28.4 g per US quart and about 113.6 g per US gallon. Weigh the water, or use 1 ml as 1 g, and weigh the salt.
How much salt per litre for a 5% brine?
Add 50 g of salt to each litre of water. For a US quart that is about 47.3 g, and for a US gallon about 189.3 g. The table on this page lists other strengths from 1% to 10%.
Is brine strength a percentage of the water or of the finished brine?
This calculator uses the water weight before salt, the way most fermenting recipes write it. Some sources state salt as a share of the finished brine instead. A 3% water-based brine works out at 2.91% of the finished brine, so check which basis your recipe means before you mix.
Is a UK or imperial quart the same as a US quart?
No. A US quart is about 946 ml and an imperial quart is about 1,136 ml. Metric cups are 250 ml and US cups about 237 ml. Switch the calculator to millilitres or litres for UK, Australian and Canadian recipes written in metric.
Does a water brine tell me the salt level of the whole ferment?
No. Once vegetables go in, their weight and moisture change the salt level of the whole jar. A water-based brine is only the strength of the liquid you pour. If your recipe states the percentage of vegetables plus water, use the fermentation brine calculator instead.
Which salt should I dissolve for a brine?
NCHFP recommends canning or pickling salt for pickles and ferments. Table salt with anti-caking agents can cloud the brine. Measure by weight: salt types weigh very different amounts per spoon, but a gram of pure salt is the same in any brine.
Download the free Brine & Pickling Reference Card
One printable reference explaining vegetables-plus-water, water-only and dry-salting calculations, with worked examples and tested recipe sources.
Continue with the next calculator
Calculators and guides for your next step.
- Fermentation Brine Calculator Calculator · Calculate salt using vegetables plus water, water only, or dry vegetable weight. Match the percentage and basis in your tested recipe.
- Pickling Brine Calculator Calculator · Calculate vinegar, water, and salt ratios for any pickling jar size. Works for cucumber pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, and more.
- Pickling Ratio Calculator Calculator · Vinegar, water, and salt for any batch of pickles. Canning-safe mode holds the 1:1 acid floor; quick-pickle mode opens the ratio up to taste.
- Canning Altitude Adjustment Calculator Calculator · Adjust processing time or canner pressure for your elevation — boiling-water, weighted-gauge, and dial-gauge tables in one tool.
