The Red Star yeast chart
Fresh cake yeast and dry yeast are the same organism at different moisture. Red Star, which makes both, publishes the conversion as a chart against the flour in the recipe, not against the weight of the yeast alone. Red Star writes that when a recipe does not give the weight of the cake yeast, “it is best to determine the amount of dry yeast you’ll need based on the amount of flour in your recipe.”
| Flour, cups | Dry packages (1/4 oz) | Dry, grams | Dry, teaspoons | Fresh cake yeast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4 | 1 | 7 | 2 1/4 | 2/3 oz (1/3 of a 2 oz cake) |
| 4–8 | 2 | 14 | 4 1/2 | 1 1/3 oz (2/3 of a 2 oz cake) |
| 8–12 | 3 | 21 | 6 3/4 | 2 oz (one 2 oz cake) |
| 12–16 | 4 | 28 | 9 | 2 2/3 oz (1 1/3 of a 2 oz cake)* |
| 16–20 | 5 | 35 | 11 1/4 | 3 1/3 oz (1 2/3 of a 2 oz cake) |
* The Red Star chart prints 2 1/3 oz in the 12–16 row. The same row says 1 1/3 of a 2 oz cake, which is 2 2/3 oz, and 4 packages × 2/3 oz = 2 2/3 oz. This page uses 2 2/3 oz.
The chart is from the Red Star yeast conversion chart. One pound of flour is approximately four cups, and each package raises up to four cups of flour. The fresh cake column uses the one size that Red Star sells today, a two-ounce cake.
Older recipes may name a different cake size, because cake yeast has been sold in many sizes over the years. When the recipe does not say the weight of the cake, Red Star advises converting by the flour, which is what this page does.
The three equivalents of one package
The single most useful number in the chart is the equivalence of one package. Red Star states it directly: if you divide a two-ounce cake into three equal sections, each section is equivalent to one package of dry yeast.
| One section, 1/3 of a 2 oz cake | Equals |
|---|---|
| Fresh cake yeast | 2/3 oz (Red Star writes 0.6 oz; 2 oz ÷ 3 = 2/3 oz, which this page uses) |
| Dry yeast, by weight | one 1/4 oz package, 7 g |
| Dry yeast, by volume | 2 1/4 teaspoons |
The gram weight of the teaspoon measure agrees with an independent source. King Arthur Baking lists instant yeast at 2 1/4 teaspoons = 7 g (1/4 oz) in its ingredient weight chart, the same value.
USDA FoodData Central (FDC ID 175043, active dry yeast) gives other portion weights: 1 teaspoon = 4.0 g, 1 tablespoon = 12.0 g and 1 packet = 7.2 g. At 4.0 g per teaspoon, 2 1/4 teaspoons is 9.0 g, not 7 g. King Arthur gives 1 tablespoon of instant yeast as 9 g; 3 teaspoons at 7 g per 2 1/4 teaspoons is 9.3 g. This page does not average the sources. It uses the Red Star package, 7 g = 2 1/4 teaspoons, because the chart and both converters are built on that package.
Each section raises up to four cups of flour, which is the row unit of the chart.
The sugar adjustment
A lot of sugar slows the fermentation down. Red Star puts a threshold on the chart:
High-sugar rule
If the ratio of sugar to flour is more than 1/2 cup of sugar for every 4 cups of flour, add one more package of dry yeast for the recipe.
Red Star writes this extra package as “2 teaspoons”. Its chart gives 2 1/4 teaspoons for one package. The converter adds one full package, 2 1/4 teaspoons or 7 g.
The flour converter applies this rule automatically. Red Star gives the reason: “An excessive amount of sugar slows down yeast fermentation.”
How the flour converter calculates
| Step | Formula | 6 cups of flour |
|---|---|---|
| Packages needed | flour cups / 4, rounded up | 6 / 4 = 1.5, up to 2 |
| Sugar adjustment | sugar > 1/2 per 4 cups flour adds 1 package | 0 sugar, +0 |
| Teaspoons | packages × 2 1/4 | 2 × 2.25 = 4 1/2 tsp |
| Grams | packages × 7 | 2 × 7 = 14 g |
| Fresh cake, oz | packages × 2/3 oz | 2 × 2/3 = 1 1/3 oz |
The packages figure is always rounded up to a whole package, because Red Star writes that each section, one package, “will raise up to 4 cups of flour.” The teaspoon, gram and fresh cake figures follow from the package count with the equivalents above.
Active dry yeast and instant yeast use the same quantities in this chart. Red Star states that either type may be substituted when changing a bread recipe from cake yeast to dry yeast. Red Star also states that dry yeast requires different water or liquid temperatures than cake yeast.
Hydrating dry yeast for an old recipe
Some family recipes crumble the cake straight into the flour. If your recipe has no milk or water to hydrate dry yeast, Red Star describes this bridge:
- Mix the dry yeast with about one tablespoon or less of warm water and work it into a paste with your fingers.
- Let the paste sit for about five minutes.
- Crumble it into the other ingredients the way you would the cake.
This recreates the moisture of the cake yeast and keeps the old method intact.
One flour amount in all three dry measures
Each row is the chart applied to one amount of flour, with no sugar adjustment. The flour converter above accepts 0.5 to 200 cups.
| Flour, cups | Packages | Teaspoons | Grams | Fresh cake, oz |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | 2 1/4 | 7 | 2/3 |
| 4 | 1 | 2 1/4 | 7 | 2/3 |
| 6 | 2 | 4 1/2 | 14 | 1 1/3 |
| 8 | 2 | 4 1/2 | 14 | 1 1/3 |
| 10 | 3 | 6 3/4 | 21 | 2 |
| 12 | 3 | 6 3/4 | 21 | 2 |
| 16 | 4 | 9 | 28 | 2 2/3 |
| 20 | 5 | 11 1/4 | 35 | 3 1/3 |
The chart rounds at the four-cup row boundaries, so 4 cups takes one package while 6 cups takes two.
Limits of this page
- The chart is the Red Star one. Other makers may publish slightly different conversions.
- The fresh cake column uses the one size Red Star sells today, a two-ounce cake. Old recipes with a named cake weight should convert by weight.
- The flour converter accepts 0.5 to 200 cups of flour, with at most 2 decimal places, and sugar up to the flour amount. The amount converter accepts amounts above 0 and up to 10,000, with at most 3 decimal places.
- The flour converter rounds the package count up to whole packages, so its teaspoons and grams are for whole packages. The amount converter does not round to whole packages.
- Red Star states that dry yeast requires different liquid temperatures than cake yeast. This page gives quantities only.
Questions about yeast conversions
- How much dry yeast equals one cake of fresh yeast?
- A two-ounce cake equals three packages of dry yeast, because each one-third section of the cake equals one 1/4 oz package. That is 6 3/4 teaspoons or 21 g of dry yeast, and it raises up to 12 cups of flour.
- How much instant yeast equals 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry?
- Red Star states: “In traditional dough making methods (kneading by hand or in a stand mixer), you may use instant yeast and active dry yeast interchangeably, one for one”: the same 2 1/4 teaspoons, 7 g. It adds that with instant yeast the dough may rise faster. For a bread machine, Red Star gives other amounts: “When using a regular active dry yeast, use 3/4 teaspoons of yeast for each cup of flour”, and for ‘fast rising’ instant yeast, “use 1/2 teaspoon for each cup of flour.” This page does not calculate bread machine amounts.
- How much yeast for 6 cups of flour?
- Two packages, 4 1/2 teaspoons or 14 g, because each package raises up to four cups and the count rounds up. If the recipe has more than 3/4 cup of sugar at this flour level, add one more package.
- Can I use dry yeast in a recipe written for cake yeast?
- Yes. Red Star states that dry yeast will yield the same results when the proper conversion is used and the yeast gets a little extra time to activate. Either active dry or instant may be substituted.
- Why convert by flour instead of yeast weight?
- Cake yeast was sold in many different sizes over the years, so an old recipe's “one cake” is ambiguous. Red Star advises that you determine the dry yeast by the amount of flour when the recipe does not give the weight of the cake.
Where these numbers come from
Each number on this page is from one of the documents below, or from a calculation that the page shows. The documents were read on October 19, 2026.
- Red Star Yeast. Yeast Conversion Chart: Convert Fresh Cake Yeast to Dry Yeast, modified August 31, 2026. Flour-based chart, the package equivalence of one 1/3 section of a 2 oz cake, and the high-sugar rule.
- Red Star Yeast. Frequently Asked Questions, modified January 28, 2026. Instant yeast and active dry yeast one for one in traditional dough making (by hand or in a stand mixer); bread machine amounts per cup of flour.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, SR Legacy, published April 1, 2019. FDC ID 175043, yeast, baker’s, active dry: 1 tsp 4.0 g, 1 tbsp 12.0 g, 1 packet 7.2 g.
- King Arthur Baking Company. Ingredient Weight Chart. Instant yeast: 2 teaspoons = 6 g, 2 1/4 teaspoons = 7 g (1/4 oz), 1 tablespoon = 9 g. The chart shows no date; fetched October 19, 2026.
- National Institute of Standards and Technology. Special Publication 811, NIST Guide to the SI, Appendix B.8. Ounce (avoirdupois) = 2.834 952 E+01 g, used for the ounce-to-gram conversions. Updated August 18, 2025.