Tipo 00 – what the number means and what it doesn’t
00 is about how finely the flour is milled, not how strong it is. The difference from tipo 0, and when 00 actually matters for your Neapolitan pizza dough.
Quick answer: ”00” describes the milling grade – how finely the flour is sifted and how much of the grain’s bran and outer layers remain – not how strong the flour is. A tipo 00 flour can be weak or strong depending on the wheat it is milled from.
The scale behind the number
The Italian classification runs from tipo 2 (coarsest, most bran left) through tipo 1 and tipo 0 to tipo 00 (most finely sifted, least bran). Fineness affects how the flour feels and how quickly it takes up water, but says nothing about the amount or quality of the protein – it is the W value that measures strength.
The misunderstanding that refuses to die
Plenty of people assume ”00” on its own means ”pizza flour” or ”strong flour”. It doesn’t: a tipo 00 intended for cakes and sauces can have a low W value and cope poorly with a long Neapolitan fermentation. Look instead for flour explicitly labelled ”per pizza” or one that states a W value – such as Caputo’s ranges (see the Caputo guide) – rather than trusting ”00” to be enough of a buying signal.
See how the flour behaves in different ovens in which flour for which oven, and how it is used in practice in Neapolitan pizza dough.
