Rice water ratio: how much water?
Pick your rice type and type how much dry rice you have. The rice water ratio calculator gives the water to cook it in, in cups and milliliters, how much cooked rice you get, and the simmering time.
- Water (cups)
- 2
Cook it in 2 cups of water (473 mL), for about 15 to 18 minutes.
- Water (mL)
- 473
- Cooked rice (cups)
- 3
- Water to rice
- 2 : 1
- Cooking time
- 15 to 18 minutes
Water (cups): 2. Cook it in 2 cups of water (473 mL), for about 15 to 18 minutes.
How to calculate
Works out how much water to cook an amount of rice in, by rice type, from the USA Rice Federation’s liquid ratios, with the cooked yield and the cooking time.
Example with the default inputs (Rice type Long-grain white, Dry rice 1 cup): Cook it in 2 cups of water (473 mL), for about 15 to 18 minutes.
Method: Water = dry rice × the USA Rice Federation’s parts of liquid per part of rice for the type, by volume. Cooked rice = 3 × dry rice.
- The ratios are for the stovetop absorption method, as USA Rice lists them, and are approximate. A rice cooker has its own water lines.
- Cooked yield is USA Rice’s 1 cup dry = 3 cups cooked for every type.
- Volumes use US cups: 1 cup = 8 US fl oz = 236.5882365 mL.
Worked examples
Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.
- Rice type Long-grain white, Dry rice 1 cup gives Water (cups) 2, Water (mL) 473.176473, Cooked rice (cups) 3, Water to rice 2 : 1, Cooking time 15 to 18 minutes.Source: 1 cup dry rice = 3 cups cooked. https://www.usarice.com/thinkrice/how-to/how-to-cook-rice (retrieved 2026-10-18); NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C (1 cup = 8 fl oz; 1 gal = 128 fl oz = 231 in³ = 3.785411784 L), https://www.nist.gov/document/2026-nist-handbook-44-appendix-c
- Rice type Brown (medium or long grain), Dry rice 1.5 cups gives Water (cups) 3.375, Cooked rice (cups) 4.5, Water to rice 2.25 : 1.Source: 1 cup dry rice = 3 cups cooked. https://www.usarice.com/thinkrice/how-to/how-to-cook-rice (retrieved 2026-10-18)
- Rice type Short-grain white, Dry rice 2.113 cups gives Water (mL) 625, Water (cups) 2.641721.Source: 1 cup dry rice = 3 cups cooked. https://www.usarice.com/thinkrice/how-to/how-to-cook-rice (retrieved 2026-10-18); NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C (1 cup = 8 fl oz; 1 gal = 128 fl oz = 231 in³ = 3.785411784 L), https://www.nist.gov/document/2026-nist-handbook-44-appendix-c
How it works
With R the dry rice and k the parts of liquid per part of rice for the type, both by volume:
- Water = R × k.
- Cooked rice = 3 × R.
| Rice type | k (water per 1 part rice) | Cooking time |
|---|---|---|
| Long-grain white | 2 | 15 to 18 minutes |
| Medium-grain white | 1½ | 15 to 18 minutes |
| Short-grain white | 1¼ | 15 to 18 minutes |
| Brown (medium or long grain) | 2¼ | 40 to 45 minutes |
| Parboiled | 2¼ | 20 minutes |
| Parboiled brown | 2¼ | 25 minutes |
| U.S. jasmine (white) | 2 | 15 to 18 minutes |
| U.S. basmati (white) | 2 | 15 to 18 minutes |
| U.S. arborio | 4 | 20 to 30 minutes |
| Wild rice | 3 | 40 to 50 minutes |
Units: 1 US cup = 8 US fl oz; 1 fl oz = 3,785.411784 mL ÷ 128 = 29.5735295625 mL, so 1 cup = 236.5882365 mL exactly. The rice can be typed in cups, mL, L or fl oz, more than 0 and up to 10 L.
Exact arithmetic. The typed amount is read as the exact decimal you typed, in its unit, so the water is an exact fraction until it is shown. Water and cooked rice in cups show 2 decimal places, water in mL shows 0, rounded half up. The ratio row shows k as a decimal (2.25 : 1).
Assumptions
- The ratios and times are USA Rice’s approximate values for the stovetop. Rinsing, the pot, and altitude change the water a little.
- The cooked yield of 3 cups per cup of dry rice is USA Rice’s general figure, used for every type.
Worked examples by hand
1 cup of long-grain white rice (the default). Water = 1 × 2 = 2 cups = 2 × 236.5882365 = 473.176473 mL. Cooked = 3 × 1 = 3 cups. Time: 15 to 18 minutes.
1½ cups of brown rice. Water = 1.5 × 2.25 = 3.375 cups. Cooked = 3 × 1.5 = 4.5 cups.
500 mL of short-grain white rice. Water = 500 × 1.25 = 625 mL = 625 ÷ 236.5882365 = 2.64172 cups.
Other questions people ask
What is the water to rice ratio for white rice?
USA Rice gives 2 parts water to 1 part rice for long-grain white, jasmine and basmati, 1½ to 1 for medium-grain white, and 1¼ to 1 for short-grain white, by volume.
How much water for 2 cups of rice?
For long-grain white rice, 2 × 2 = 4 cups of water. For medium-grain white it is 2 × 1.5 = 3 cups; for brown rice, 2 × 2.25 = 4.5 cups.
How much water does brown rice need?
2¼ parts water to 1 part rice, by USA Rice’s table, and 40 to 45 minutes of simmering. 1 cup of brown rice takes 2¼ cups of water.
How much cooked rice does 1 cup of dry rice make?
About 3 cups. USA Rice gives 1 cup dry = 3 cups cooked, and 1 pound dry = a little over 2 pounds cooked.
Does a rice cooker use the same ratio?
Not always. These ratios are for cooking on the stovetop. A rice cooker has water lines for each rice type, and its maker’s directions come first.
What ratio does wild rice need?
3 parts water to 1 part wild rice, simmered 40 to 50 minutes. Wild rice is the seed of a grass, and it takes the most water after arborio (4 to 1).