Sourdough Apps Compared: Spreadsheets vs Schedulers vs Doughflow

The Scheduling Problem Every Baker Faces

Sourdough baking is fundamentally a scheduling challenge. Unlike instant yeast breads where you mix, rise, and bake in a few hours, sourdough demands coordination across 24 to 72 hours. Feed your starter the night before. Mix the dough in the morning. Stretch and fold every 45 minutes for the next four hours. Shape in the evening. Cold retard overnight. Bake before breakfast.

Miss one window, and the whole schedule shifts. Forget to start your autolyse, and dinner gets pushed back two hours. Let your bulk fermentation run too long, and you have over-proofed dough.

Every sourdough baker eventually develops a system for managing these timelines. Some systems work better than others. This guide compares the most common approaches: manual spreadsheets, phone alarms, general timer apps, sourdough-specific applications, and dedicated scheduling tools like Doughflow. We will look honestly at what each approach does well and where it falls short.

Manual Spreadsheets: The Original Solution

Before apps existed, bakers planned their bakes on paper or in spreadsheet programs. Many still do. The approach is simple: create a table with times in one column and steps in another. Fill it in before each bake based on when you want the bread done.

How Spreadsheets Work

You open Excel, Google Sheets, or a paper notebook. You write down your recipe steps with estimated durations. Then you calculate backward from your target completion time, filling in when each step needs to happen.

A simple spreadsheet might look like:

Advantages of Spreadsheets

Complete control. You decide exactly how the schedule looks. No app limitations, no feature constraints. If you want to track ambient temperature notes alongside timing, you can add that column.

No cost. Google Sheets is free. Paper is nearly free. You are not paying a subscription for a scheduling tool.

Works offline. A printed schedule works when your phone dies or your kitchen has poor wifi.

Forces understanding. Building a schedule manually teaches you how the pieces fit together. You learn the recipe deeply because you have to think through every step.

Disadvantages of Spreadsheets

Manual recalculation. Change your target bake time by two hours, and you need to recalculate every single row. Add a step you forgot, and everything below shifts. This gets tedious quickly.

No reminders. A spreadsheet does not buzz your phone when it is time for a stretch and fold. You have to watch the clock yourself or set separate alarms.

Error-prone. Mental math at 6am is not reliable. It is easy to miscalculate a time, especially when working backward from a target.

Single recipe only. Coordinating two or three recipes in one spreadsheet becomes a confusing mess of columns and conditional formatting.

Time investment. Building a good template takes hours. Customizing it for each bake takes more time. That is time you could spend baking.

Who Spreadsheets Work For

Spreadsheets work well for methodical bakers who enjoy the planning process, bake the same recipe repeatedly with minimal variation, and do not mind the manual effort. They are also useful as a learning tool when you are first understanding sourdough timing.

Phone Alarms: The Minimal Approach

Many bakers skip planning tools entirely and just set phone alarms. Start the autolyse, set an alarm for one hour. Start bulk fermentation, set alarms at 45-minute intervals. Simple.

How Phone Alarms Work

You bake intuitively, setting reminders as you go. When you finish one step, you calculate when the next step needs to happen and create an alarm for that time. Most phones let you label alarms, so you can see "Stretch and fold 2" when it goes off.

Advantages of Phone Alarms

Zero setup. No templates, no accounts, no learning curve. Everyone knows how to set an alarm.

Always with you. Your phone is probably within reach. The alarm will find you wherever you are in the house.

Flexible. If your dough is not ready when expected, you adjust on the fly. No schedule to update.

Disadvantages of Phone Alarms

No big picture. You never see the full timeline. You are reacting step-by-step without knowing if the final bake will conflict with dinner plans or bedtime.

Easy to forget setup. Miss one alarm creation, and you miss that step entirely. There is no system catching your oversight.

Messy alarm lists. After a few bakes, your alarm app is cluttered with old sourdough reminders mixed with your actual morning alarms.

No learning from history. You cannot look back at what worked. Every bake starts from scratch.

Impossible for complex bakes. Coordinating multiple recipes or long multi-day ferments with just alarms is asking for trouble.

Who Phone Alarms Work For

Phone alarms work for casual bakers doing simple, single-loaf bakes without tight time constraints. If you are flexible about when the bread finishes and can adjust your day around the dough, alarms might be enough.

General Timer Apps: A Step Up

Timer apps like MultiTimer, Timer+, or even the timer features in notes apps offer more structure than raw phone alarms. They let you create sequences of timed events and save them for reuse.

How General Timer Apps Work

You create a multi-step timer sequence: 60 minutes for autolyse, then 45 minutes for first stretch and fold, then 45 minutes for second stretch and fold, and so on. Start the sequence at mix time, and the app walks you through each step.

Advantages of General Timer Apps

Reusable sequences. Build your timer chain once, use it for every bake of that recipe. Saves the recalculation work.

Built-in reminders. The app alerts you at each transition. No manually setting alarms.

Progress tracking. You can see where you are in the sequence and how long until the next step.

Low cost. Many timer apps are free or a few dollars.

Disadvantages of General Timer Apps

Forward-only timing. Timer apps count forward from when you start. They cannot tell you what time you will finish or work backward from a target time. "I want bread at 6pm" requires you to do the math yourself, then start the timer at the right moment.

Rigid sequences. If your bulk fermentation takes six hours instead of five, you have to manually skip ahead or let the timer get out of sync with reality. The app does not adapt to your dough.

No recipe awareness. A timer app does not know the difference between bulk fermentation and proofing. It just counts minutes. You cannot get advice about whether your timing makes sense.

Poor multi-recipe support. Running multiple timer sequences simultaneously gets confusing. Which alarm belongs to which dough?

No temperature adjustments. Your kitchen is 68F instead of 75F. The app has no idea this matters or how to adjust timing accordingly.

Who General Timer Apps Work For

Timer apps work for bakers who follow a consistent recipe with predictable timing, do not need to target a specific finish time, and bake one recipe at a time. They are a meaningful upgrade from raw phone alarms.

Sourdough-Specific Apps: Purpose-Built Tools

Several apps exist specifically for sourdough bakers: starter feeding trackers, hydration calculators, recipe libraries with built-in timers. These understand sourdough vocabulary and common workflows.

How Sourdough Apps Work

Typically, you select a recipe from a library or input your own. The app displays the steps with estimated timings. Some apps let you set a start time and see when you will finish. Some include reminders. Most focus on a single bake at a time.

Advantages of Sourdough Apps

Domain knowledge. The app understands what autolyse means, what bulk fermentation is, why you shape before proofing. Instructions are relevant, not generic.

Recipe libraries. Many include curated recipes from bread experts. You can try new bakes without hunting for formulas.

Starter tracking. Some apps track your starter feeding schedule, peak time, and health. Useful data if you feed regularly.

Community features. Some apps include forums or photo sharing. Connection with other bakers.

Disadvantages of Sourdough Apps

Still forward-scheduled. Most sourdough apps work forward from start time, not backward from finish time. You still have to figure out when to begin if you need bread by a specific hour.

Manual recipe input. If you have your own recipes, entering them step-by-step is tedious. The app cannot read your handwritten notes or favorite blog post.

Single-recipe focus. Most are designed for one bake at a time. Multi-loaf weekends require switching between views or running the app multiple times.

Subscription costs. Many sourdough apps charge monthly or annual fees for full features. Adds up over time.

Platform limitations. Some are iOS only or Android only. Some require accounts and internet connectivity.

Who Sourdough Apps Work For

Sourdough apps work well for bakers who want a guided experience, enjoy trying recipes from a curated library, and bake single loaves on flexible timelines. They are especially good for beginners learning the process.

Doughflow: Backward Scheduling for Real Life

Doughflow takes a different approach than most scheduling tools. Instead of asking when you want to start, it asks when you want to finish. Then it works backward to show you when each step needs to happen.

How Doughflow Works

You enter your target completion time: "I want bread ready at 6pm Sunday." You provide your recipe, either by selecting from a library or by pasting a recipe URL or text. Doughflow parses the recipe, extracts the steps and durations, and generates a complete schedule working backward from your target time.

The schedule shows every step with exact times. You can adjust for your kitchen temperature, your starter strength, and your life constraints. Planning to be out of the house Saturday from 2pm to 6pm? Doughflow adjusts the schedule to work around your absence or flags the conflict.

Features That Differentiate Doughflow

Backward scheduling. Start with when you want bread, not when you want to start working. The app handles the math, including all the overlapping steps and waiting periods.

AI recipe parsing. Paste a recipe from any website, blog, or cookbook, and Doughflow extracts the steps automatically. No manual entry of every stretch and fold.

Multi-recipe coordination. Planning three loaves for a holiday gathering? Doughflow shows all timelines together, highlights conflicts, and helps you stagger start times so your oven is never double-booked. The conflict calculator visualizes where different bakes overlap.

Temperature adjustments. Tell Doughflow your kitchen temperature, and it adjusts fermentation estimates accordingly. A 68F kitchen gets longer bulk times than a 78F kitchen.

Calendar view. See your baking schedule as a timeline, not a table. Understand at a glance what your Saturday looks like with two breads in progress.

Step reminders. Optional notifications remind you when each step needs attention. No separate alarms to manage.

Advantages of Doughflow

Finish-time focus. Plan around your life instead of around your dough. Want bread for Sunday dinner? Start there and work backward.

Time savings. No manual calculations. No spreadsheet templates. Paste a recipe, set a target, get a schedule.

Multi-recipe support. Baking multiple items is a first-class feature, not an afterthought. Coordinate complex weekends without confusion.

Flexible input. Use recipes from anywhere. The AI parser handles most formats without manual step entry.

Conflict detection. The app tells you when your schedule has problems before you start mixing. Catching issues early beats discovering them at 2am.

Disadvantages of Doughflow

Requires account. You need to sign up to use Doughflow. Some bakers prefer tools without accounts.

Internet connection. Doughflow is web-based. It works on any device with a browser, but you need connectivity.

Learning curve. The backward scheduling concept is different from what most bakers expect. Takes a few uses to internalize.

Recipe parsing limitations. AI parsing handles most recipes well, but unusual formats or handwritten notes may need manual adjustment.

Who Doughflow Works For

Doughflow works for bakers who schedule around life events, bake multiple recipes in coordination, want to use recipes from various sources without manual entry, and value time savings over manual control. It is especially strong for working bakers with constrained schedules.

Head-to-Head Comparison

Choosing the Right Approach

There is no universally correct answer. The right tool depends on your baking style, frequency, and priorities.

Choose spreadsheets if you enjoy the planning process, want complete control, bake the same recipes repeatedly, and do not mind the time investment.

Choose phone alarms if you bake casually, one simple loaf at a time, with flexibility about when it finishes.

Choose timer apps if you want reusable sequences with reminders but do not need finish-time targeting or multi-recipe coordination.

Choose sourdough apps if you want a guided experience with curated recipes, especially as a beginner learning the process.

Choose Doughflow if you schedule around life commitments, bake multiple recipes, want to use recipes from anywhere, and value automatic schedule generation over manual control.

The Bigger Picture

Every baker eventually develops systems that work for their life. Some people thrive with spreadsheets they have refined over years. Others prefer the simplicity of a few phone alarms. Neither approach is wrong if it produces good bread and fits your workflow.

The question is not which tool is objectively best. The question is which tool matches how you think about baking. Do you plan forward from when you have time, or backward from when you need bread? Do you bake one loaf at a time, or coordinate multiple recipes? Do you want manual control, or time savings?

Answer those questions honestly, and the right approach becomes clear.

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Want to see how backward scheduling works for your next bake?

Try Doughflow free - paste any recipe, set when you want bread, and get a complete schedule in seconds. Multi-recipe weekends, temperature adjustments, and conflict detection included.

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