This easy pizza dough recipe is perfect for beginners and makes 2 soft, chewy homemade pizza crusts. Forget takeout—you only need 6 simple ingredients to get started!

Every amazing pizza starts with a great crust. Some like it thin and crispy, others prefer it thick and soft. This homemade pizza crust gives you the best of both worlds—soft and chewy with a crisp edge and incredible flavor. It’s my go-to dough recipe, and judging by the hundreds of glowing reviews in the comments, it’s a favorite for lots of others too!

Easy Dough for Bread Beginners

This is a no-stress dough recipe, even if you’re new to baking. You’ll need just 6 basic ingredients, plus a little cornmeal for dusting the pan (though you can skip that if needed). Most of the time is hands-off while the dough rises. You might think—why bother when you can just grab frozen dough? Sure, frozen is convenient, but nothing beats the flavor and texture of fresh dough. Plus, you can use it for cheese breadsticks too!

If you’ve ever made homemade bagels or sandwich bread, pizza dough will be a breeze—it’s quicker, easier, and has fewer steps.

What You’ll Need: Homemade Pizza Dough Ingredients

All pizza dough starts with the same basics—flour, yeast, water, salt, and olive oil. Here’s what I use in my recipe (full printable version below):

• Yeast: I use Red Star Platinum Yeast. It gives the best results—strengthens the dough and makes working with yeast foolproof. Just 1 packet (2¼ teaspoons) does the trick.
• Water: After testing different amounts, 1⅓ cups is perfect. Use warm water (100-110°F) to speed up rising. Anything over 130°F kills the yeast.
• Flour: Unbleached all-purpose white flour works best here. Bleached flour loses some protein, which affects water absorption. For a chewier crust, swap in bread flour. Love whole grain? Try this whole wheat pizza dough instead.
• Oil: A couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil adds great flavor. Don’t skip brushing the dough with oil before toppings—it keeps the crust from getting soggy.
• Salt: Essential for flavor.
• Sugar: 1 tablespoon boosts the yeast’s activity and tenderizes the dough, especially with olive oil.
• Cornmeal: Not in the dough, but perfect for dusting the pan. It adds a little crunch and flavor—just like delivery pizzas!

Optional: Add 1 teaspoon each of garlic powder and Italian seasoning with the flour.

This Is a Lean Bread Dough

Like bagels, artisan bread, and focaccia, pizza crust uses a lean dough—no eggs or butter. Without extra fat, you get a crispier crust. (Though olive oil keeps the inside soft.) Recipes like dinner rolls, breadsticks, and cinnamon rolls use fat for a rich dough, which makes them softer and sweeter.

How to Make Easy Pizza Dough

1. Make the dough: Mix ingredients by hand or with a mixer (stand or handheld). Follow the step-by-step instructions below.
2. Knead: By hand or mixer. I prefer doing it by hand. New to kneading? Check out my How to Knead Dough post and video.
3. Rise: Place dough in a greased bowl, cover tightly, and let rise for ~90 minutes (or overnight in the fridge).
4. Punch & shape: Punch down dough to remove air bubbles. Divide in two, roll into 12-inch circles, then let rest while prepping toppings.
5. Top it: Add your favorite toppings.
6. Bake: At a high temp for about 15 minutes.

Kids can help! Let them press the dough, shape it, add cheese, or make pepperoni faces. Who doesn’t love a smiley pizza? 😊

Best Pizza Pans

If you’re shopping for a new pan, here are my top picks (affiliate links): this one and this one. For pizza stones, I’ve used this one—it’s great.

No pizza pan? Use a regular sheet pan. Grease with olive oil, sprinkle with cornmeal, and press the dough into whatever shape fits (keep it ~½-inch thick). For a thinner crust, stretch it more.

Ways to Use Homemade Pizza Dough

• Stuffed Crust Pizza
• Pesto Pizza
• Ham & Cheese Pockets
• Pepperoni Pizza Rolls
• Stromboli
• Spinach Artichoke White Pizza
• BBQ Chicken Pizza
• Garlic Knots

Margherita Style (for 2 pizzas):
At step 6, blend 1 can (28 oz) San Marzano tomatoes, 1 tbsp olive oil, a pinch of salt, and 2 minced garlic cloves for the sauce. Spread on dough, top each with 2-3 oz fresh mozzarella slices. Bake, then sprinkle with 2 tbsp grated parmesan and fresh basil.

Apple Gorgonzola Pizza (for 1 pizza):
At step 6, top with 1½ cups (6 oz) shredded mozzarella, 8 oz crumbled gorgonzola, apple slices, and a sprinkle of rosemary before baking.

Or any toppings you love: Pepperoni, sausage, olives, onions, mushrooms, jalapeños, etc.