If you’ve ever wanted to bake sourdough bread, the first step is to get a sourdough starter. This beginner guide will show you exactly how to make a starter from scratch using just flour and water, how to feed it so it becomes active and reliable, and how to maintain it so you can bake whenever you’re ready. I’m sharing the exact steps I took as a beginner to see sourdough starter success!

When I first started learning sourdough, the starter was the part that felt the most uncertain. It just sat there in a jar, and I kept wondering, Is this working? Did I do something wrong? There’s no instant feedback like there is with most recipes. But once I understood that I was simply feeding a living culture and giving it time to grow, everything became much clearer. Now it feels less like a mystery and more like a quiet, steady kitchen rhythm.

What You Need to Make a Starter

You don’t need anything complicated to begin. You probably have everything you need already, in fact.

• flour (all-purpose, whole wheat, rye, or a mix)
• bottled water (avoid tap water, which can have chlorine in it that slows down the process)
• a clean jar or container
• a spoon
• a kitchen scale (recommended) – it’s easier to weigh ingredients

When I started, I used what I already had in my kitchen. No special jars, no special tools. That made it feel much more approachable. Whole wheat or rye flour can help speed things up in the beginning, but even that isn’t required (and I did not use it in the beginning).

How to Make a Sourdough Starter (From Scratch)

This process usually takes about 5–7 days, though it can vary depending on temperature and flour.

What helped me most here was realizing that this isn’t really a strict schedule … it’s more of a gradual shift from flour and water into something active.

Day 1

Mix:
• 50 g flour
• 50 g bottled water

Stir until smooth and cover loosely with a towel or cloth.

Leave at room temperature for 24 hours.

At this stage, it won’t look like much. That’s normal.

Day 2–5

Each day:
1. Discard about half of the starter (more on that in a bit)
2. Feed with:
• 50 g flour
• 50 g bottled water
3. Stir well and cover loosely

This is usually the stage where people start to doubt the process … I know I did. Some days mine looked active, and other days it didn’t seem to be doing anything at all. That inconsistency is part of the process.

Day 6–7

Your starter is ready when it:

• doubles in size after feeding
• looks bubbly and airy
• has a pleasant tangy smell
• passes the float test (a small spoonful of starter will float in a cup of water)

This is the turning point. Once it starts rising reliably, it becomes something you can actually use.

How to Feed a Sourdough Starter

Feeding your starter simply means giving it fresh flour and water so the yeast stays active.

A common feeding ratio is:

1:1:1 by weight

Example:

• 50 g starter
• 50 g flour
• 50 g water (bottled for best results)

Stir well and let it sit at room temperature.

When I started, I worried a lot about exact measurements. Over time, I realized the starter is more flexible than it seems. Consistency matters more than perfection.

How Often Should You Feed It?

That depends on how you store it.

If kept at room temperature
Feed once per day

If stored in the refrigerator
Feed once per week

I prefer storing mine in the refrigerator most of the time. It turns sourdough into something that fits into my routine instead of something I have to keep up with every day.

How to Tell If Your Starter Is Healthy

A healthy starter should:

• double in size within a few hours of feeding
• have visible bubbles
• smell slightly tangy (not unpleasant)

This was one of the biggest mindset shifts for me: learning to look at the starter instead of just following a schedule. Once you recognize these signs, you stop second-guessing everything.

When to Use Your Starter

The best time to use your sourdough starter is when it is at its peak activity, which means after it has been fed, has fully risen, and has just levelled off at the top. This is when the yeast is most active and capable of giving your dough a strong rise. In my experience, this usually happens about 4–8 hours after feeding, but it can be as long as 12 hours or more depending on the temperature of your kitchen. You’ll know it’s ready when it has doubled in size, looks bubbly and airy, has a slightly domed surface. One simple way to check is the float test: drop a small spoonful of starter into a bowl of water … if it floats, it’s filled with enough air to help your dough rise. Just be aware that it may be okay even if it doesn’t float.

If you wait too long and it begins to fall, it can still be used, but it won’t be quite as strong. Learning to catch the starter at this stage made a noticeable difference in how well my bread rose.

Why Rye Flour Can Help

Rye flour contains more natural nutrients and microorganisms than many other flours. These help feed the yeast and bacteria in your starter, often making it more active and easier to establish.

When mine feels sluggish, or comes from the refrigerator, adding a little rye flour makes a noticeable difference. It’s not required, but it can give your starter a helpful boost.

Common Starter Problems

No bubbles after several days
Your kitchen may be too cool. Move the starter to a warmer spot, like near your stove. I noticed mine became much more active when I stopped leaving it near the window.

Starter smells unpleasant
This can happen early on. Continue feeding regularly, as it usually corrects itself.

Starter gets a hard crust on it
Totally normal. I just remove it before I use it again.

Starter isn’t rising well
It may need more time or more frequent feedings. Just letting it develop at its own pace was one of the hardest things for me.

What to Do With Discard

Each time you feed your starter, you remove a portion to keep the size manageable.

That “discard” can be used in:

• pancakes
• waffles
• crackers
• biscuits

I like keeping a small container of discard in the refrigerator so it doesn’t feel wasteful. It turns into an easy ingredient instead of something you’re throwing away.

Storage and Maintenance

Once your starter is established, you can choose a routine that fits your schedule.

Frequent baking
Keep it on the counter and feed daily

Occasional baking
Store in the refrigerator and feed weekly

For me, this is what made sourdough sustainable. It stopped being something I had to think about constantly and became something I could return to when I wanted to bake. My schedule now is to get it out of the refrigerator once a week, feed it twice, use it to make 2-3 batches of dough, then put it back into the refrigerator until the following week.

My Final Thoughts

Starting a sourdough starter is less about precision and more about consistency. You’re creating the conditions for something to grow, and that takes a little time.

For me, the biggest shift was realizing I didn’t need to control every part of the process. Once I let it develop naturally and paid attention to what it was doing, it became much easier — and much more enjoyable.

And once you have a healthy starter, it opens the door to something really satisfying: baking your own bread from the simplest possible ingredients, over and over again.

And when your starter is ready, use my beginner-friendly recipe to make some bread!