How to Choose the Best Pizza Dough Recipe?

Not all pizza doughs are the same! In this post, I break down the different types to help you find the best pizza dough recipe for any taste or occasion.

Don't feel like reading the whole post? Complete this super-easy quiz to find the dough of your pizza dreams:

If you like a pillowy, tender crust with bubbles (Neapolitan style) . . .

. . . the best pizza dough recipe is one that contains less liquid content and has a nice long ferment time, which helps create the gluten network that creates those bubbles and delicate texture.

If you like your pizza crust on the thinner, crispier side (New York style) . . .

. . . go for a dough with higher liquid content and a touch of oil, and stretch or roll it out nice and thin before topping and baking, making sure it's thicker around the edges for that signature crust.

New York Style Pizza Dough (for best results, make a 14-inch pizza out of one half-recipe ball)
1-Hour Pizza Dough (for a thinner crust, divide the dough into three balls and roll or stretch each one to a 12-inch round before topping and baking)
Easy Overnight Dough (for a thinner crust, divide the dough into three balls and roll or stretch each one to a 12-inch round before topping and baking)
Beer Pizza Dough (for a thinner crust, divide the dough into three balls and roll or stretch each one to a 12-inch round before topping and baking)

If you're short on time . . .

. . . the best pizza dough for you is one that doesn't require much fermentation time. The following dough recipes are ready to top in 2 hours or less:

1-Hour Pizza Dough (1 hour)
100% Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (1 hour, 20 minutes)
Beer Pizza Dough (25 minutes)
Sheet Pan Pizza Dough (2 hours)
Gluten-Free Cauliflower Pizza Crust (1 hour)

1-Hour Pizza Dough, balls on counter ready for stretching

Beer Pizza Dough, 15 minute resting time

If square-slice pizza is your jam (Sicilian style) . . .

. . . the best pizza dough recipe for you is definitely my Sheet Pan Pizza dough, which you can use to make Detroit style pizza, Grandma style pizza, Sicilian pizza, tomato pie, and focaccia.

If only deep dish will do . . .

. . . then the best pizza dough for you is either Chicago style or Detroit style: bready, full of flavor, and sturdy enough for any amount of toppings.

Deep Dish Pizza with Sausage, Pepper, and Onion

Deep Dish Pizza with Sausage, Peppers, and Onion

If you're making garlic knots, rolls, stromboli, or calzones . . .

. . . any classic pizza dough recipe will work. Sadly, the gluten-free doughs aren't elastic enough to work in these recipes; sheet pan dough and deep dish dough are too bready.

How to Make Garlic Knots with Pizza Dough

If you don't have yeast on hand . . .

. . . don't fret! Some of my favorite pizza dough recipes use handy yeast alternatives and are just as delicious as their yeasted counterparts.

Beer Pizza Dough (uses, you guessed it, beer instead of yeast)
Sourdough Pizza Dough (uses sourdough starter instead of dry yeast)
Summer Squash Pizza Crust (uses egg and gluten-free flour instead of yeast)

If you have dietary restrictions . . .

. . . the best pizza dough recipe is one of my gluten-free options (if you have a gluten allergy) or my 100% Whole Wheat dough (if you have a heart condition or are on a high fiber diet).