Yogurt · Calculator

Yogurt Greek Yield Calculator

Enter your milk volume, milk fat, and straining time to see how much Greek yogurt you get, how much whey drains off, and how long to strain for your target thickness.

Start calculating Read the guide
Strained Greek yogurt weighed beside its collected pale yellow whey

How to use this calculator

Estimate Greek yogurt and whey from your batch and straining target.

  1. 1

    Set your starting amount. Enter the yogurt volume and choose litres, quarts or cups. Milk volume is a close starting estimate before straining.

  2. 2

    Choose fat and straining time. Select milk fat and weight units, then use a strain-target preset or the hours slider.

  3. 3

    Read your yield. Check Greek yogurt weight, leftover whey, yield retained and estimated thickness, then follow the straining steps.

Set the yogurt fully and chill it before straining. Longer straining gives a thicker result and a smaller yield.

Live calculator · updates as you type

Straining yield

Yogurt to strain
L
Milk volume works too — a litre of milk sets into about a litre of yogurt before straining.
Milk fat
Show weight in
Strain target
4h

Straining leaves you with

Greek yogurt yield 618 g
Leftover whey ~0.40L
Yield kept60%
Thickness~1.7×
Greek yogurt Whey

Classic Greek yogurt. 1.00 L of whole yogurt strained for 4 h makes about 618 g of Greek yogurt.

See your 4 steps

What to do next

Strain it in 4 steps

For 1.00 L of yogurt.

  1. 1

    Line a strainer

    2 min

    Set a sieve lined with cheesecloth or a coffee filter over a bowl.

  2. 2

    Strain in the fridge

    4 h

    Pour in 1.00 L of whole yogurt, cover, and leave it in the fridge for 4 hours.

  3. 3

    Collect it

    Then

    You should have about 618 g of Greek yogurt and 0.40 L of whey.

  4. 4

    Use the whey

    Within a week

    Keep the whey in the fridge for smoothies, bread dough or as a starter for fermented lemonade.

Free printable

Keep this batch on one page

A batch card made from your numbers, to save as a PDF or receive by email:

  • Your yield in big type
  • These steps with tick-boxes
  • Strain times
  • A log to find your perfect thickness

Optional. You can get your PDF without subscribing. Privacy notice.

For your batch
Greek yogurt 618 g (~0.60 L)
Whey drained ~0.40 L
Concentration ~1.7× thicker
Milk-fat note

Whole-milk yogurt strains to the richest, creamiest Greek yogurt and holds the most yield.

Straining changes texture and yield, not the starter. Set the yogurt fully and chill it before you strain.

The rule most people learn the hard way: Greek yogurt costs you volume. Straining to a classic Greek thickness roughly halves what you started with.

  • 1 L whole yogurt, 2 hours → about 770 g of thick, spoonable yogurt
  • 1 L whole yogurt, 4 hours → about 620 g of classic Greek yogurt
  • 1 L whole yogurt, overnight → about 390 g, heading toward labneh

Yield by strain time (whole-milk yogurt)

Strain timeTexturePer 1 LPer 1 qt
2 hThick, spoonable773 g731 g
4 hClassic Greek618 g585 g
8 hExtra-thick Greek494 g468 g
24 hLabneh391 g370 g

Figures assume whole-milk yogurt. Low-fat and nonfat yogurt yield a little less. Save the strained whey — it is protein-rich and works in bread, smoothies, and soups.

Greek yogurt yield guide

How much Greek yogurt from your milk

Milk sets into about the same volume of plain yogurt, and straining removes whey to concentrate it into Greek yogurt. The final yield depends on how long you strain and how much fat the milk carries — this table shows the classic 4-hour Greek result by starting volume.

Longer straining = thicker yogurt, smaller yield . Set your own numbers below.

How we calculate: Yogurt methods

Use the results in your next batch

Milk volumePlain yogurtGreek yogurt (~4 h)Whey off
1 quart (0.95 L)~950 g~580 g~370 g
1 litre~1000 g~620 g~380 g
½ gallon (1.9 L)~1900 g~1180 g~720 g
1 gallon (3.8 L)~3800 g~2350 g~1450 g

Figures assume whole milk strained to classic Greek thickness. Strain 2 hours for a higher yield and softer set, or 8–24 hours for extra-thick yogurt and labneh.

FAQ

Greek yogurt yield questions

How much Greek yogurt you get from your milk, how long to strain, and what to do with the whey.

How much Greek yogurt does 1 litre of milk make?
A litre of milk sets into roughly a litre of plain yogurt, and straining that to a classic Greek thickness (about 4 hours) leaves around 600–650 g of Greek yogurt. Strain for only 2 hours and you keep closer to 750 g; strain longer for extra-thick yogurt or labneh and you keep less.
How much Greek yogurt from 1 quart or 1 gallon of milk?
The yield scales with volume. A US quart (0.95 L) of milk strains to roughly 550–620 g of classic Greek yogurt, and a gallon (3.8 L) to about 2.3–2.6 kg. Whole milk yields the most; nonfat the least. Set your exact volume in the calculator for the figure.
How long do you strain yogurt to make Greek yogurt?
About 2 hours gives thick, spoonable yogurt; around 4 hours is classic Greek; 6–8 hours makes extra-thick yogurt; and 24 hours takes it into labneh, a spreadable yogurt cheese. Chill the yogurt first and strain it in the fridge.
Does straining longer make more or less Greek yogurt?
Less. Straining removes whey, so the longer you strain, the thicker the yogurt and the smaller the final yield. That is the trade-off — Greek yogurt is richer precisely because it is concentrated and the whey is poured off.
Does whole or nonfat milk yield more Greek yogurt?
Whole-milk yogurt yields the most and strains to the creamiest result because it carries more fat and solids. Low-fat yields slightly less, and nonfat the least, since more of the batch drains away as whey. The calculator adjusts the yield for each.

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