Here’s an in-depth look at common cake pan sizes & conversions, as well as how to adjust recipes or make substitutions based on the pan sizes you have.
Unless you have fully stocked kitchen with dozens of baking pans, chances are that you’ll run into a recipe where you don’t have the specific pan required. In fact, a cake pan substitution is the subject of most recipe questions I receive. I figured it would be easier to store all of this information in one convenient place for us all to reference.
Welcome to my Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions lesson!
This Post Includes
- Common Baking Pan Measurements
- Cake Pans That are Similar
- Substituting Cake Pans
- Adapting Cake Recipes to Fit Certain Pans
- Amount of Batter Some of my Cake Recipes Yield
Common Baking Pan Measurements
In this list, you’ll find common baking pan measurements and the volume of batter they hold. Most measurements were taken at my home kitchen. Cross referenced with the always trusted Joy of Baking, as well.
Measurement Conversions
- 1 inch = 2.54cm
- 1 cup = 240ml
Round Pans:
6×2 inches (15 x 5cm) = 4 cups (960ml)
8×2 inches (20 x 5cm) = 6 cups (1.4 liters)
9×2 inches (23 x 5cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
Square Pans:
8×2 inch square (20 x 5 cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
9×2 inch square (23 x 5 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
10×2 inch square = (25 x 5 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Rectangular Pans – 2 inch (5 cm) tall
11×7 inches (28 x 18 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
13×9 inches (33 x 23 cm) = 14 cups (3.3 liters)
Springform Pans:
9x 2.5 inches (23 x 6 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
10x 2.5 inches (25 x 6 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Bundt Pan – volume varies because of various designs
10×3 inch (25 x 8 cm) = 10-12 cups (2.8 liters)
Tube Pan:
9×3 inches (23 x 8 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Jelly Roll Pans – 1 inch (2.5 cm) tall
10×15 inches (27 x 39 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
12×17 inches (32 x 44 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Loaf Pans – about 3 inches (8 cm) tall
8×4 inch (20 x 10 cm) = 4 cups (960 ml)
9×5 inch (23 x 13 cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
How to Determine the Volume Yourself
If you want to calculate a pan’s volume yourself, it’s so easy! Simply fill your pan with 1 cup of water at a time and count until it’s full. That’s what I do!
How Much Batter Does This Pan Hold?
Here’s a helpful list of the most common baking pans and the volume of batter they hold, as well as which pans hold the same amount of batter. Keep in mind that the volumes listed mean you are filling the pan all the way to the top with batter, which isn’t ideal for baked goods. Unless otherwise noted, filling pans around 2/3 full is the best practice. This leaves room for rising.
For example, my vanilla cake recipe yields around 8 cups of batter which I divide between 3 9×2 inch round cake pans. (Each hold 8 cups of batter!) Each cake layer has a little less than 3 cups batter each.
Use the following section to determine which baking pans can be substituted for others based on their full volume.
Round Pans
- 6×2 inch round pan holds 4 cups of batter, the same as an 8×4 inch loaf pan. Fun discovery! Cupcake recipes yielding 12-16 cupcakes fit wonderfully in 3 6-inch cake pans. See my 6 inch cakes for more information.
- 8×2 inch round pan holds 6 cups of batter.
- 9×2 inch round pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as an 8×2 inch square pan and a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- 10×2 inch round pan holds 10-11 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch square pan, 11×7 inch pan, 10×15 inch jelly roll pan, 10×3 inch bundt pan, and a 9×2.5 inch springform pan.
Square Pans
- 8×2 inch square pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch round pan and a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- 9×2 inch square pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 11×7 inch pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10×3 inch bundt pan, and a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 10×2 inch square pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, 10×3 inch bundt pan, 10×2.5 inch springform pan, and a 9-inch tube pan.
Rectangle Pans
- 11×7 inch pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9×2-inch square pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10×3 inch bundt pan, and a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 9×13 inch pan holds 14-16 cups of batter, essentially the same as 2 9×2-inch round pans.
Jelly Roll Pans
- 10×15 inch jelly roll pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9-inch square pan, 11×7 pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10-inch bundt pan.
- 12×17 inch jelly roll pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch square pan, 10-inch bundt pan, 10×2.5 inch springform pan, and a 9-inch tube pan.
Bundt Pans
10-inch bundt pans are the standard size. I actually have several that are 9.5 inches and most bundt cake recipes still fit.
- 10-inch bundt pan holds 10-12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan (10 cups), 9×2 inch square pan (10 cups), 10×2 inch square pan (12 cups), 11×7 inch pan (10 cups), 10×15 inch jelly roll pan (10 cups), 12×17 inch jelly roll pan (12 cups), 9×2.5 inch springform pan (10 cups), 10×2.5 inch springform pan (12 cups) and a 9-inch tube pan (12 cups).
Tube Pans
9×3 inch tube pans are the standard size. I have a few that are 8 inch and 10 inch and most recipes using tube pans fit nicely in all.
- 9×3 inch tube pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as 10×2 inch square pan, 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, and a 10×2.5 inch springform pan.
Springform Pans
- 9×2.5 inch springform pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9×2 inch square pan, 11×7 inch pan, a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 10×2.5 inch springform pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch square pan, 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, and a 9×3 inch tube pan.
Loaf Pans
- 8×4 inch loaf pan holds 4 cups of batter, the same as a 6×2 inch round pan.
- 9×5 inch loaf pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch round pan and an 8×2 inch square pan.
Interested in a more in-depth cake baking & serving guide based on sizes? I love directing readers to this Wilton Cake Baking & Serving Guide page. It’s so helpful!
Substituting Cake Pans
I’m piggy-backing this one to the section above because there’s often a need to substitute different cake pans. If substituting a baking pan that holds the same amount of batter, be wary of the baking time because the dimensions of the baked good will change. Always keep your eye on the oven and begin checking for doneness earlier than the recipe states.
Remember, only fill pans about 2/3 full unless otherwise noted in the recipe.
Adapting Recipes to Fit Certain Cake Pans
Adapting recipes to fit the cake pans you have (or need) can often be complicated. While it’s always best to stick to the written recipe, sometimes you need to make adjustments and that’s where a little math can help.
1) Determine the volume your pan can hold. You can also determine the actual surface area of the pan in square inches. I actually used Food 52’s article by Alice Medrich on this subject to brush up on my math!
- For square and rectangle pans, multiply the length of the sides. For example, a 9×13 inch baking pan is 117 square inches. 9×13 = 117.
- For circle pans, determine the area by multiplying the radius squared by π. (π = 3.14, the radius is half of the diameter, and squaring means multiplying a number by itself.) For example, the area of a 9-inch round pan is 63. The radius is 4.5. 4.5×4.5 = 20.25. Multiply that by 3.14 = 63.5.
2) After you determine the volume your pan can hold or its square inches, you can confidently make baking pan substitutions.
- For example, if a 9×13 inch pan is 117 square inches and a 9-inch round pan is 63.5 square inches, you can be confident that the volume from one 9×13 inch pan can fit into TWO 9-inch round pans (approximately 120 square inches total).
What if volumes and square inches don’t match up perfectly? You’ll have to adjust the recipe and this requires more math.
For example, if you want to adapt a 9-inch round cake to a 10-inch round cake, you’ll need to make adjustments. A 9-inch round cake pan is 63.5 square inches/holds 8 cups of batter. A 10-inch round cake pan is 78.5 square inches/holds 10-11 cups of batter. Without any adaptions, your 10-inch cake layers will be very thin. You’ll need to increase the batter by 25%.
The get this percentage, work with the cups or square inches. Subtract the number you have (8 cups) from the number you want (10 cups). Divide that (2 cups) by what you have (8 cups), then multiply by 100. (The universal way to find a percentage.) This equals 25%.
How to Avoid the Math
What works for me most of the time (because I don’t trust myself with too much math!) is to 1.5x the recipe or even making 2 batches of batter. (For best success, taste, and texture, I always recommend making separate full batches instead of doubling. Doubling risks over-mixing or under-mixing and could overwhelm your mixer.) Then, I use leftover batter to make a few cupcakes on the side to freeze for another time.
It’s better to have extra batter rather than not enough.
What About Eggs?
If you need part of an egg for when you are adjusting a recipe, crack the egg, beat it, and whatever percentage of that mixture you need. If you need 1/3 of an egg and you have 3 Tablespoons of beaten egg, use 1 Tablespoon. For a more precise amount and if you don’t trust your measurements, you can also weigh the beaten egg on a kitchen scale to determine exactly how much you need.
- Cover, refrigerate, and add any leftovers to your scrambled eggs the next morning!
Amount of Batter Some of my Cake Recipes Yield
The following list will help if you need to adjust my recipes for different pan sizes. These are the recipes I know and all measurements are approximate.
- Checkerboard Cake: about 8 cups
- Vanilla Naked Cake: about 8 cups
- Vanilla Cake: about 8 cups
- Chocolate Cake: about 6 cups
- White Cake: about 7 cups
- Strawberry Cake: about 7 cups
- Snickerdoodle Cake: about 8 cups
- Coconut Cake: about 7-8 cups
- Red Velvet Cake: about 6-7 cups
- Lemon Cake: about 7 cups
My Favorite Baking Pans
I have a list for you! Stock Your Kitchen with These 8 Baking Pans
The next time you have a question about cake pan sizes & conversions, I hope you find your answer in this post so you can confidently make the adjustments needed.
I am starting to sell some cakes from home. Some of my recipes are 8″, some are 9″, some have 2, 3, even 4 layers. Do I need to offer a standardized size? Is that the best way to market? Or can each cake be different, assuming I specify size ahead?
Hi Chris, That is a very personal decision only you can make for your business – there is no right or wrong way. Best of luck in your new venture!
Chris, it depends on what your customers want and how hard/easy it is for you to vary sizes. Frankly, as a start-up, I’d do standard sizes because it makes it easier for the customer to see what they are getting: all layer cakes are 9″, say, and here are the variations in flavor/decor/toppings you can have. Maybe also give some indication of how many servings on average each cake provides. That’s helpful if you are trying to feed a crowd or feed a few. Good luck!
So you’re saying that one 8×2 inch pan holds 8 cups of batter? This is unclear
She means 8 inch square by 2 inches tall.
And this is why each recipe should include how many cups of batter they yield!
HI Sally, I don’t think I have ever left a review before, I love your website, I tell everyone about it! I am going to make your lemon blueberry layer cake for my daughter’s baby shower, her fav flavors!. I want to do either 2 layer base and a 6″ topper or 3 different tiers, 1/2 naked frosting style, decorated with fresh flowers. But I am not sure how, read your tips but still confused!
Hi Valerie, I’m so happy that you love the site! I suggest that you read my post on Simple Homemade Wedding Cakes to see exactly how I make a two tier cake. You can follow the same assembly instructions and use my Lemon Blueberry Cake as the bottom 9 inch tier and my Lemon Blueberry Cupcake recipe to make a 6 inch tier for the top.
I need help as I don’t bake … I’m visiting a friend and we’ve decided to make a cake … he only has a 13 x 9 inch pan and the recipe we want to make calls for three 9-inch pans … can we still make it using the 13 x 9 pan? DoEs the temperature & baking time change? Thanking you in advance
Hi Pat, If it’s one of my recipes I usually give directions in the recipe notes for baking in a 9×13 pan so check there first. 9×13 inch pan holds 14-16 cups of batter, essentially the same as 2 9×2-inch round pans. When in doubt fill the pan 2/3 full and keep your oven at the same temperature but the baking time will change so keep an eye on your oven and use a toothpick to test for doneness.
Hi Sally,
I’m using your brownie bites recipe to make 10inch square pan brownies. do I just add 25% of each ingredient?
Love to hear from you! 😀
Hi Sally!
Big fan of your recipes!
I want to make your upgraded German chocolate cake recipe using 6 inch round pans instead of the 9 inch pans. Can I just halve the recipe and bake for less time? I did the math and it looks like I would technically need to increase the ingredients by ~12% if I halved it, but that seems almost negligible to me and a lot easier to just cut it in half instead of halving and then adding 12% (now I’m confusing myself lol). Having said all that, can I just halve the recipe and bake them for 10-12 min?
Thanks a ton for any help you can provide!
Jon
Hi Jon, My Super Moist Chocolate Cupcakes fit perfectly into three 6-inch pans, and you can add a tsp of espresso powder if you wish to give it the same flavor as the cake. You can see the baking directions for this in my post on 6 inch cakes. Then yes, you can cut the ingredients for the filling and frosting in half and that should work!
Thank you so much for the reply, Sally! I ended up just halving the recipe and doing it in two 6 inch pans and it worked out pretty well. Did one layer of filling in between, one on top and frosted the sides and did piping around the top circumference. Ended up pretty beautiful, but now I have to try the cupcake recipe in 6 inch pans! As if I needed another reason to bake more cakes though Thanks again! The cake was delicious!
I have a recipe that calls for 3 eight inch round pans but I am using 2 nine inch round pans. I realize that the 8″ layers would have 6 cups each layer and the cake with 9″ layers would have 8 cups each layer. I don’t bake, so my question – Is that too much batter for a 9 inch layer cake? Hope I did the math correctly.
Hi sally
Thanks for this website. I have a question. I am using 7 inch size cake pan 3 inch in height, recently i used the same pan to make a cake 4 inch in height using papers rolled as a wall. ( as one of my friends told), but my convection didnt do the cake good. Its center part did not get cooked. The top and bottom went well. Am i doing anything bad.
Regards
Aby Mathews
Hi Aby! A 4 inch tall cake, like the one you baked, would require quite a long time in the oven to bake properly. I’m unsure of the exact time your cake needs for the 3 inch tall pan because it depends on the recipe, but it may be helpful to lower the oven rack to help it bake more evenly and tent it with foil to protect the top and sides from over-browning before the center is cooked.
Hi Sally!! I love all your recipes! With all the extra time I’ve had all I’ve been doing is baking! So I was going to make you’re banana cake with brown butter cream cheese frosting, and I wanted to cut the recipe in half and use three 6 inch pans instead of the 9 inch ones. I think after reading this post it makes sense but am still a bit confused if it will work out right, thanks!
I’m converting a Rum Cake recipe from 10 Cup Bundt, 50 to 60 minutes oven bake to 6 cups Bundt in Instant Pot. The conversion time should be 18 to 20 minutes in Instant Pot. i will make two 6 cups Bundt pans. Is using 1/2 Instant pot time 9 to 10 minutes OK (because i’m using 1/2 the original volume)?
Hi sally,
I’m a bit confused with the round pans and springform pans. How are they different exactly? I usually use either pans for the same recipe
Hi Becky, the rim is positioned on the outside of the 9-inch (or whatever size) base, so springform pans are slightly larger than regular cake pans. They’re usually taller, too.
Thank you so much for this explanation of pans. This was extremely helpful and exceptional. I was just going to use a boxed cake mix my husband brought home and was ordering round cake pans for that and not sure what was the standard size for boxed mix. Love your site!!
Hi Sally, noob question here. I bought myself a 23 cm x 6 cm silicone round cake pan to use, now I’m worried I won’t get to as most are 23 cm x 5 cm! Can I treat it the same as a 23 cm x 5 cm?
Also I know we shouldn’t -overfill- a a pan, but is it possible to -under- fill one? If I wanted to make a cake with only sheet cake thickness in a deepish pan? Thank you for any advice you can offer! You’re teaching me how to bake <3
Hi Amy! As long as you fill the cake pan, whatever size you’re using, only halfway, it should be plenty of batter (for most cake recipes, that is!). Any less than that wouldn’t be ideal unless you’re making a specialty cake. (My Smith Island Cake comes to mind!)
Hi! I need help. My recipe calls for a 10 inch springform pan. I only have available (2) 5 inch pans… Would I be able to just divide the batter and bake the cake in the (2) 5 inch pans? If you have any suggestions on how to adjust baking times it would be greatly appreciated! It’s an Olive Oil Cake 🙂
Hello Sally,
Thanks so much for your ever helpful baking solutions. I plan to bake your red velvet cake but I need clarification on the pan sizes. I only have 2 pan types for now, as I’m just getting into baking. 2 loaf pans measuring 8.5 x 4 x 2″ and 1 square pan – 8.5 x 7.5 x 3″. Should I split the batter into the 2 loaf pans or use the 1 square pan? Will this result in any change to the recommended temperature and timing? Thanks, so much.
I’m in the process of investing in new cake pans. Do you recommend 9×3 or 9×2? What’s the advantage for a novice baker. Also, I’m getting recommendations for Fat Daddio’s pans but they’re non-stick and can MUST be washed by hand.
What are your thoughts on non-stick v. non-non-stick?
Thank you!
Hi Karen! I usually bake 9-inch cakes in 9×2 inch pans. It’s rare a cake will rise taller than 2 inches unless the recipe specifically instructs a deeper cake pan. Nonstick or not, it’s always best to grease your cake pan and/or use parchment paper rounds.
I have a recipe that calls for baking in two loaf pans. Since I only have one I was gonna use a tube pan. After reviewing information I’m thinking it’s okay as long as I just add 12 cups??
And would making time be about the same as the loaf pan? Thank you
Sorry “baking” time! Not making time
I’m unclear about what you mean by 4 cups of batter fitting into a 6×2 round. I just made two 6×2 rounds using my 12 cupcake batter recipe and it took less than 2 cups of batter into each of the 2 pans. And I used up all the batter.
Do you mean the max capacity is 4 cups of batter? I usually only fill my rounds just over half full so there’s no spilling over etc.
Thanks for any clarification 🙂
And thank you for your website!
Hi Christina! See “How Much Batter Does This Pan Hold?” section where I chat about the total volume/how much batter goes into each.
Just bought a set of (4), 8″ x 1/2″ round cake pans. Thought these thin pans would be an easy way to make a multi-layer cake. I was wrong, haven’t found a single recipe that states the amount of batter to use in each pan.
Hi Sally!
I have a coffee cake recipe I love that uses a bundt pan. The batter usually fills the pan about 2/3 of the way full. However, my family has requested that I make the cake in a 9×13 so I can add crumble and a glaze drizzle. Are those pans interchangeable?
It’s hard to answer without knowing the size bunt pan you have or the recipe you are using. A standard bundt pan holds 10-12 cups of batter and a 9X13 pan holds about 14 cups. You might be interested in my New York Style Crumb Cake or my Old Fashioned Sour Cream Crumb Cake (doubled for a 9×13 pan).
Most most most useful post about choosing the right pan for the volume.thanks a lot for the most helpful post
I plan to make a Strawberry Double Decker Cake for a dear friend. I want to use two 6-inch pans. I know that it will not take all of the batter for that one cake, so I’d like to know if I would have enough to make 2 additional cakes, or 1 cake in an 8×8 pan? Thanks in advance.
Using my strawberry cake batter, you’ll definitely have enough for 2 additional 6 inch cakes or an 8-inch cake.
How does more volume of batter affects the baking temperature and time??
For example, I want to bake in just one 8-inch pan a cake that should be baked in 3 8-inch cake pans.
Hi Emma, Only using one pan when a recipe calls for three will be way too much batter for your cake. The cake will not rise or bake properly. The general rule of thumb is to not fill a cake pan more than 2/3 full. For more tips I recommend checking out my 10 Baking Tips for Perfect Cakes.
Hi Sally,
All your recipes and tips about baking are really helpful. I’m planning to invest in new baking pans for my kitchen, that could be used for most recipes. I’m planning to buy 3, 8×3 inch pans which holds about 9 cups each. So, that in this way I can use this for both the recipes that call out for 8×2 inch pan and 9×2 inch pan (by adjusting the temperature). I would like to get your advice on this before purchase. Eagerly waiting for your reply.
Hi Aysha, Most of my cake recipes that call for a 9 inch pan can also be baked in 8 inch pans. Your layers will be a bit thicker and may take an extra minutes or two of bake time.
Hi Sally!
How would I get from the batter of
16cm*6cm*7cm rectangular mold to a 20cm*20cm*5cm square mold?
Thanks a lot for your great guidance here
Hi Jeyne, see the Adapting Recipes to Fit Certain Cake Pans section. Or see my How to Avoid the Math section if you want to avoid the math.
Hi Sally,
Thanks for this guide! I want to bake a recipe developed for a 6inch cake pan in my 8x4x3 inch loaf tin. How do I adjust the baking time, given that my loaf tin is deeper than the cake pans? Can I use the same amount of the ingredients?
Thank you so much, this is all so confusing!
Hi Ann, I expect your recipe to take only a little longer in the oven if using that loaf pan. A toothpick to test for doneness is most helpful.
Hi! I want to use a recipe for 2 layer 9” round cake. Can I bake it in two 6” pans for a taller cake?
No, too much batter in a pan prohibits it from baking and rising properly. Remember when in doubt, don’t fill your pans more then 2/3 full!