🔄 Brix to Specific Gravity Converter
Enter a Brix reading from your refractometer to convert it to an equivalent specific gravity reading.
The conversion this page uses
Brix is the percentage of sucrose by weight; specific gravity is density against water. The page converts between them with the standard homebrewing polynomial fit, and reports the result to four decimal places:
SG = 1 + Bx / (258.6 - ((Bx / 258.2) × 227.1))Put in the default 12 °Bx and the divisor is 258.6 − 10.5546 = 248.0454, so 12 / 248.0454 = 0.04838 and the gravity is 1.0484. The relationship is not linear: each extra degree Brix adds slightly more gravity than the last, which is why a straight ×4 rule of thumb drifts high above about 20 °Bx.
Reading the scale
| °Bx | Specific gravity | Typical wort |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 1.0197 | Small beer, mash runoff tail |
| 10 | 1.0400 | Session bitter |
| 12 | 1.0484 | Pale ale |
| 15 | 1.0611 | IPA |
| 20 | 1.0830 | Imperial stout |
| 25 | 1.1057 | Barley wine |
The box takes 0 to 40 °Bx and rejects negatives. Cool a hot sample to the refractometer's calibration temperature, usually 20 °C, before you read it, and wipe the prism dry between samples — a film of the last wort reads several points high.
Frequently asked questions
What specific gravity is 12 Brix?
1.0484. The formula divides 12 by 248.0454, which gives 0.0484 above water. Rounded for a brew day log, call it 1.048.
Can I use a refractometer to check final gravity?
Not with this conversion. The alcohol in finished beer refracts light and pushes the Brix reading up, so a dry beer can still read 7 °Bx. Use a hydrometer, or a correction formula that takes both the original and the current Brix.
What is the wort correction factor?
Refractometers are calibrated on pure sucrose, and wort contains maltose and dextrins that refract slightly differently. Many brewers divide the reading by about 1.04 first, then convert. Calibrate against your own hydrometer once and keep that number.