Oven temperature conversion (°C, °F, gas mark)
British recipes use gas marks (1–9), American ones Fahrenheit, and everyone else Celsius. °F = °C × 9/5 + 32; gas mark N ≈ 140 + (N−1) × 14 °C. The table covers all three plus descriptive terms.
| Description | °C | °F | Gas mark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very slow / drying | 110 | 225 | ¼ |
| Very slow | 120 | 250 | ½ |
| Slow | 140 | 275 | 1 |
| Slow | 150 | 300 | 2 |
| Moderately slow | 160 | 325 | 3 |
| Moderate | 170 | 340 | 3–4 |
| Moderate | 180 | 350 | 4 |
| Moderately hot | 190 | 375 | 5 |
| Fairly hot | 200 | 400 | 6 |
| Hot | 210 | 410–425 | 6–7 |
| Very hot | 220 | 450 | 7 |
| Very hot | 230 | 450–475 | 8 |
| Extremely hot (pizza) | 250 | 480–500 | 9 |
Notes
- 180 °C / 350 °F / gas 4 is the universal “moderate oven” default.
- Fan (convection) ovens run hotter at the same setting — reduce by 20 °C / 25 °F.
- For German ovens, Stufe 1–8 ≈ gas marks; modern EU dials are simply °C.
Three scales, one oven setting
A recipe can express the same oven heat in three ways: Celsius, used almost everywhere; Fahrenheit, used in the United States; and the British gas mark, a scale from ¼ to 9 that predates thermostats. The three line up along the same physical range, from a very slow drying oven at 110 °C / 225 °F / gas ¼ to a very hot oven around 240 °C / 475 °F / gas 9. Descriptive names sit across the top: slow, moderate, hot. If a recipe only names a temperature, you rarely need more than the anchor everyone knows — 180 °C, 350 °F, gas 4, the universal "moderate oven."
The formulas you can do in your head
The Celsius–Fahrenheit conversion is exact and worth memorising: °F = °C × 9/5 + 32, and the inverse is °C = (°F − 32) × 5/9. A quick mental shortcut for oven temperatures is to double the Celsius figure and add about 30 — 180 °C → 360 + 30 ≈ 390, which is close enough that you will usually just round to the familiar 350 °F. The gas mark formula is an approximation rather than an exact standard: gas mark N ≈ 140 + (N − 1) × 14 °C, so gas 4 lands near 182 °C and gas 6 near 210 °C. Rounding to the nearest common setting is normal kitchen practice.
Fan and convection ovens run hotter
A fan-assisted or convection oven circulates air, so heat reaches the food faster and more evenly than in a conventional oven at the same dial setting. The usual advice is to reduce the temperature by about 20 °C / 25 °F — or to use roughly 90% of a conventional recipe's temperature — and, if the recipe is time-sensitive, to start checking earlier. Many modern European ovens label the fan mode with its own symbol or a "Stufe" number, and some automatic programmes already compensate internally. If your results consistently brown faster than the recipe predicts, that is a sign you are comparing a fan oven to a conventional recipe.
Gas marks, German Stufe and regional dials
The gas mark survived because it is simple to print and dial, and British recipes still use it. German ovens often use Stufe for the same kind of numbered scale, running from 1 to 8, with Stufe 1–8 corresponding loosely to gas marks 1–8. Older French and other continental ovens used numbered thermostat dials (thermostat 1–9) that also map onto a similar temperature progression. Modern electric ovens in the EU almost always show Celsius directly, and many show fan and conventional readings simultaneously. When translating any numbered dial, treat the mapping as approximate and rely on an oven thermometer for anything that matters.
Practical anchors and the thermometer rule
A few reference points cover most baking. 150 °C / 300 °F / gas 2 is gentle, good for meringues and slow-cooked dishes. 180 °C / 350 °F / gas 4 is the default for cakes, cookies and casseroles. 200 °C / 400 °F / gas 6 roasts vegetables and bread. 220–240 °C / 425–475 °F / gas 7–9 is for pizza, searing and crisp pastry. Oven thermostats are notoriously imprecise and drift with age, so a cheap oven thermometer left on the middle shelf is the single best investment for consistent baking. Once you know your oven runs 15 °C hot, every recipe in every scale becomes easier to follow.
Frequently asked questions
- What is 350 °F in Celsius?
- 350 °F ≈ 175–180 °C — the classic “moderate oven” (gas mark 4) used as the default baking temperature.
- What is gas mark 6 in Celsius?
- Gas mark 6 ≈ 200 °C (400 °F) — a fairly hot oven for roasting vegetables and bread.
- Should I lower the temperature for a fan oven?
- Yes, typically reduce by 20 °C / 25 °F (or use 90% of the temperature) because convection transfers heat faster.