Knitting Gauge Converter
What your swatch gauge does to a pattern: the size its cast-on and rows come out at, the counts that keep its size, and stitches and rows for a size you want.
The stitch and row factors between your swatch and the pattern, the width and length the pattern’s counts give at your gauge, adjusted cast-on and row counts, and counts for a target width and length.
Example: Pattern 20 st / 28 rows per 4 in, swatch 22 / 30: a 100 st cast-on comes out 18.18 in instead of 20, so cast on 110; 140 rows give 18.67 in, so work 150; a 20 × 24 in piece is 110 st × 180 rows.
Divide by
the gauge.
What gauge is, how the swatch-to-pattern ratio scales every count, how a target size becomes stitches and rows, and where a re-swatch beats arithmetic.
Gauge and the factor
Gauge is stitches and rows over a base length — 4 inches or 10 centimetres. Stitches per unit of width is the gauge ÷ the base, and a count of stitches makes gauge-base ÷ gauge of width. The factor is your swatch gauge ÷ the pattern’s: at 22 stitches where the pattern has 20, your stitches are smaller and the pattern’s cast-on comes out 20 ÷ 22 of the intended width. Multiplying the pattern’s counts by the factor keeps its size. Rows work the same way with the row gauges, and are shown only when both are given.
A size you want
Stitches for a target width are the width × your stitches per unit, rounded to a whole stitch; rows for a target length likewise. Stitch repeats, selvedge stitches and shaping are not adjusted — a count that must be a multiple of a repeat is yours to round.
When to re-swatch
A factor far from 1 means every count in the pattern, including its shaping, is off by that much. Beyond about 5 % the page says so: a second swatch that matches the pattern is more reliable than adjusting every instruction, and the page does not suggest a needle size to get there.
What the number does not settle
Gauge changes with blocking, fibre and the size of the piece; measure a blocked swatch over the full base length. Stitch patterns with different row and stitch gauges from stocking stitch need their own swatch. Inputs stay in your browser; the same anonymous usage counts as the rest of the site apply.