5 min readPart of: Baking Pan Sizes & How to Swap Them

Cake Pan Sizes & Substitutions

Don’t have the exact pan a recipe wants? Many pans are close enough to swap with little or no change. This chart shows common pan sizes, their areas, and the easiest substitutions.

By The Baking Scale Pro Editorial Team · Reviewed against published baking standards · Updated 2026-06-15

Common pan sizes & areas

Pans are best compared by surface area (how much batter they spread). These are the most common:

Common pan areas
Pan	Area	Roughly holds
6-inch round	28 in²	Small cake
8-inch round	50 in²	Standard layer
9-inch round	64 in²	Standard layer
8-inch square	64 in²	Brownies, snack cake
9-inch square	81 in²	Larger snack cake
9×13 rectangle	117 in²	Sheet cake, bars
8½×4½ loaf	38 in²	Standard loaf
9×5 loaf	45 in²	Larger loaf

Easy substitutions

Pan substitution chart
Recipe calls for	You can use	Note
9-inch round	8-inch square	Nearly identical (both 64 in²) — free swap
8-inch square	9-inch round	Free swap
8-inch round	9-inch round	Batter bakes thinner; check early
9×13	Two 8- or 9-inch rounds	Split the batter
9×13	Two 8-inch squares	Split the batter
10-cup bundt	9×13, or two 9-inch rounds	Match by capacity
8½×4½ loaf	9×5 loaf	A bit bigger; bakes slightly faster

The single most useful equivalence to remember: a 9-inch round and an 8-inch square hold the same amount, so you can swap them with no other changes.

When you swap to a bigger or smaller footprint, scale the recipe by area and check doneness early — see the conversion method below.

Convert & scale

How to convert a recipe to a different panThe area-ratio method Recipe Pan ScalerRescale automatically 9×13 to two 9-inch roundsSheet to layers

Tools for this

Recipe Pan Scaler Pan size converter Baking Pan Sizes guide

Frequently asked questions

What can I use instead of a 9×13 pan?

A 9×13 (about 117 in²) is roughly equal to two 8-inch or two 9-inch round pans, or two 8-inch square pans, combined. Split the batter between them. Don’t force it all into one smaller pan — it will overflow and bake unevenly.

Is a 9-inch round the same as an 8-inch square?

Almost exactly — both are about 64 square inches, so you can swap them with no other changes. It’s the handiest pan equivalence to remember.

Can I use a 9-inch pan instead of an 8-inch pan?

Yes, but a 9-inch round has about 28% more area, so the batter bakes thinner and faster. Start checking 5–10 minutes early. To keep the same thickness, scale the recipe up by about 1.27×.