Free brewing calculator · accurate pre-fermentation
Brixly speaks both scales.
Homebrewers, meadmakers, winemakers, and cider makers have been juggling two measurement systems for decades. Enter your reading, get the other. Nothing more.
Specific Gravity
Degrees Brix
Live conversion · no signup · free forever
Whether your hydrometer talks in SG or your refractometer reads Brix, one input gets you the other. Instant. Accurate. No lookup tables.
Cubic polynomial
ASBC standard method, not a linear guess
Pre-fermentation focus
Optimized for must and wort gravity readings
Both directions
SG → Brix and Brix → SG in one tool
Range: 0.980 – 1.200
Accurate pre-fermentation only. Uses cubic polynomial (ASBC method). For post-fermentation readings, apply a refractometer correction.
Specific gravity came from brewing. Brix came from viticulture. For a century they evolved separately — same measurement, different scales — and now anyone making mead, cyser, or country wine lives in both worlds at once.
Your local homebrew shop sells refractometers calibrated in Brix. Your recipe calls for an OG of 1.090. The yeast nutrient chart is in SG. The winemaker forum speaks Brix. You're translating constantly — or you were, until now.
1.000
SG of pure water
0 °Bx
Brix of pure water
~4×
SG points per Brix degree
±0.02
Max error vs. Plato
Honey gravity varies by batch and supplier. Knowing your OG in Brix helps dial sugar additions to hit target ABV.
Grape must is measured in Brix at harvest. Converting to SG lets you use any fermentation calculator written for brewers.
Apple press Brix fluctuates by variety and season. Cross-checking with SG catches press yield errors before pitching.
A cheap refractometer reads Brix. Most brewing software wants SG. Brixly is the one-second bridge between them.
— Brixly philosophy
"Precision in brewing isn't obsession — it's respect for the ingredients. Every gravity reading is a fact about what you're making. Converting it shouldn't require a spreadsheet, a lookup table, or a second opinion."
Brixly is free. Brixly is one tool. Brixly doesn't have opinions about your recipe.
"I've been making mead for eight years and this is the tool I open every single brew day. Simple, fast, no clutter."
Marguerite O.
Meadmaker · Vermont
"My refractometer gives Brix, my kit wants SG. Brixly is the only bridge that doesn't make me do math in my head."
Tariq H.
Homebrewer · Bristol
"During harvest we're measuring Brix on 200 gallons of must. Having an instant SG reference has saved us more than once."
Constance L.
Winemaker · Willamette Valley
Specific gravity measures a liquid's density relative to water. Pure water is 1.000. A must at 1.085 is 8.5% denser than water — that extra mass is dissolved sugars. Brewers use it to estimate sugar content and track fermentation progress.
Brix (°Bx) measures the percentage of sucrose dissolved in water by weight. 20 °Brix means roughly 20g of sugar per 100g of solution. Winemakers and fruit growers traditionally use Brix; brewers often prefer SG. Both describe sugar content — in different dialects.
Once fermentation starts, alcohol is present. Alcohol is lighter than water and throws off the density reading. SG-to-Brix formulas assume the only dissolved substance is sugar. Post-fermentation readings from a refractometer require a separate alcohol-correction formula.
The ASBC (American Society of Brewing Chemists) cubic polynomial: Brix = 182.4601·SG³ − 775.6821·SG² + 1262.7794·SG − 669.5622. This is the industry standard for pre-fermentation gravity-to-sugar conversion.
Almost. Degrees Plato (°P) and Brix differ in the reference sucrose solutions used for calibration, but for practical brewing purposes they're interchangeable — the difference is less than 0.1 at common gravity ranges. Use either.
Most modern refractometers display Brix (°Bx). Take your reading, enter it in Brixly's Brix → SG mode, and you have your gravity number. Dead simple.
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The Meadery
Specific gravity and Brix are two ways to measure sugar content in your must, but knowing when to use each — and how to convert between them — can make or break your batch. This guide breaks down the math, the tools, and the practical workflow for mead makers at every level. Whether you're using a hydrometer, refractometer, or an online calculator, we've got you covered.
Both refractometers and hydrometers can measure sugar levels in your mead must, but they behave very differently once fermentation begins. Alcohol throws off refractometer readings in ways that can mislead even experienced brewers. We compare accuracy, cost, ease of use, and when to reach for each tool during your mead-making process.
Taking an accurate original gravity reading before pitching your yeast is the single most important measurement in mead making — it tells you how much sugar is available and what ABV your finished mead can reach. This step-by-step walkthrough covers must preparation, temperature correction, and how to use your OG reading alongside SG-to-Brix conversion to plan your recipe. Stop guessing and start brewing with data.
From stalled fermentations to unexpectedly dry or cloyingly sweet meads, many of the most frustrating batch failures trace back to a single skipped or botched gravity measurement. We've compiled 10 of the most common errors — including not converting SG to Brix correctly, ignoring temperature corrections, and misreading a refractometer post-fermentation. Learn from these mistakes before your next brew day.
Not all honeys are created equal — wildflower, buckwheat, orange blossom, and manuka each bring different Brix levels, sugar compositions, and flavor compounds that directly affect your mead's gravity, fermentability, and final taste. This deep-dive compares the most popular varietal honeys used by meaderies and homebrewers to help you pick the right base for your target OG. Pair this with an SG-to-Brix calculator and you'll recipe-build like a pro.