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Dilution Ratio Calculator

Created by Joanna Michałowska, PhD candidate
Reviewed by Dominik Czernia, PhD and Jack Bowater
Last updated: Jan 18, 2024


The dilution ratio calculator tells you how much solute and solvent you need to get the desired dilution ratio. Our tool has a built-in volume conversion, so you will be able to perform your calculations using any units you want! Check the article below to answer the question "How do you calculate dilution ratio?" and check out our dilution ratio chart with examples.

Be sure to try our other tools that you may find useful:

What is the dilution ratio?

The dilution ratio is the ratio of the solute (the substance to be diluted) to the solvent (e.g., water). The diluted liquid needs to be thoroughly mixed to achieve true dilution.

If you have a 1:3 dilution, i.e., a 1:3 dilution ratio, this means that you add 1 unit volume of solute (e.g., concentrate) to 3 unit volumes of the solvent (e.g., water), which will give a total of 4 units of volume.

Why is this useful? You may already be using the dilution ratio in your everyday life without knowing it! It can help you to prepare the perfect brine for your homemade preserves or tells you the amount of concentrated cleaning product you need if you want to reuse a bottle (and so use less plastic).

How do you calculate the dilution ratio?

Let's discover the maths and science behind calculating the dilution ratio.

  • We can present dilution ratio in the following way:

    solvent ratio: solute ratio

    For example:

    5:1

  • The calculation for the solute looks as follows:

    solute volume = final volume / (solvent ratio + solute ratio)

    For example:

    solute volume = final volume / (5 + 1)

  • We can express the calculation for the solvent as follows:

    solvent volume = solute volume × solvent ratio

    For example:

    solvent volume = solute volume × 5.

As you probably noticed, there are 5 different variables in these calculations:

  • Solute ratio – which is always equal to 1 in our dilution ratio calculator;
  • Solvent ratio – which can be any number larger than 0;
  • Final volume – this is the desired amount of diluted liquid you want to get;
  • Solute volume – the amount of solute used; and
  • Solvent volume – the amount of solvent used.

The solute ratio is constant, so we have four unknown quantities. You only need to know two of them to perform calculations using our dilution ratio calculator.

Dilution ratio calculator – a practical example

You now know all the calculations, so let's use a practical example to show how the dilution ratio calculator works.

  1. Let's assume you have a container with a volume of 1 liter. You want to mix the cleaner concentrate with water. According to the label, the ratio of water to concentrate should be equal to 3:1 (so 3 parts water, 1 part concentrate).

  2. Calculate the concentrate volume (solute volume).

    solute volume = final volume / (solvent ratio + solute ratio)

    solute volume = 1 liter / (3 + 1)

    solute volume = 1 liter / 4

    solute volume = 0.25 liter

  3. Now, we can calculate water volume (solvent volume).

    solvent volume = solute volume × solvent ratio

    solvent volume = 0.25 × 3

    solvent volume = 0.75 liter

  4. That's all! Now you know that if the desired dilution ratio is 1:3 and your container has 1 liter, you need to use 0.25 liters of concentrate and 0.75 liters of water.

Check our dilution ratio chart below to see some other examples!

Dilution chart

You will find example values of how much solute you need if you know the dilution ratio and the final volume in the dilution chart below. Let's say you need the final volume of 1 liter or 1 US gallon. How much concentration do you need to dilute?

Dilution ratio

Concentrate volume

1 liter (1000 ml)

1 US gallon (128 oz)

1:1

500 ml

64 oz

1:2

333 ml

43 oz

1:3

250 ml

32 oz

1:5

167 ml

21 oz

1:10

91 ml

12 oz

Do you find this dilution ratio chart useful? Our calculator allows you to do even more!

FAQ

What's the solute volume formula?

The volume of solute formula is:

solute volume = final volume / (solvent ratio + solute ratio),

where:

  • final volume – Total volume of solution you'd like to prepare;
  • solvent ratio – Units of the volume of solvent in proportion to the total volume of solution; and
  • solute ratio – Units of volume solute in proportion to the total volume of solution.

How do I make a liter of a 1:5 dilution?

To make a liter of dilution with a solution ratio of 1:5, you'll need to mix 167 ml of stock solution in 833 ml of water. To get these amounts:

  1. Use the volume of solute formula and substitute the known quantities:

    solute_volume = final_volume / (solvent_ratio + solute_ratio)

    solute_volume = 1 l / (5 + 1)

    solute_volume = 0.167 l = 167 ml

  2. Calculate the volume of solvent by subtracting the volume of solute from the total volume of the solution:

    solvent_volume = final_volume - solute_volume

    solvent_volume = 1000 ml - 167 ml

    solvent_volume = 833 ml

Is the dilution ratio the same as the dilution factor?

The dilution ratio tells us the amount of solute compared to the amount of solvent (S:D). For example, a 1:4 dilution ratio indicates 1 unit of solute and 4 units of solvent.

Meanwhile, the dilution factor gives us the concentration of solute in the total volume of the solution (S:T). For instance, a 1:4 dilution factor indicates 1 unit of solute in 3 units of solvent; this totals 4 units of solution.

Joanna Michałowska, PhD candidate
💡 Enter any two values to get your result.
Final volume
US fl oz
Dilution ratio
: 1
Concentrate volume
US fl oz
Water volume
US fl oz
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