Baking
Best Cornstarch Substitutes
Out of Cornstarch? Here are 3 real substitutes, ranked and ratio-backed.
1. All-purpose flour
Ratio: 2 tbsp flour per 1 tbsp cornstarch
Thickens more slowly and gives a slightly opaque, matte finish instead of cornstarch's glossy sheen — needs a longer simmer to fully cook out the raw-flour taste.
Best for: sauces, gravies
2. Arrowroot starch
Ratio: 1:1
Very close substitute — thickens at a lower temperature and stays glossy, but breaks down (thins back out) if boiled too long or reheated repeatedly.
Best for: sauces, glazes
3. Potato starch
Ratio: 1:1
Similar thickening power and gloss to cornstarch, but loses thickening power if boiled for too long.
Best for: sauces, baking
Cornstarch substitutes are almost all about matching thickening power in a sauce, gravy, or pie filling — none of the three options below are meant for baking, since cornstarch's role in most recipes is specifically as a liquid thickener, not a structural flour replacement.
Flour is the most common substitute simply because it's already in most kitchens, but it needs roughly double the quantity and a longer simmer to fully thicken and lose its raw taste — a meaningfully different cooking process than cornstarch's fast, nearly instant thickening once it hits a simmering liquid.
Arrowroot and potato starch are both closer matches to cornstarch's actual thickening behavior (fast, glossy, low-temperature activation) than flour is, which is why they're the preferred substitutes in recipes where cornstarch's glossy finish specifically matters, like a fruit pie filling or a stir-fry sauce.
A cornstarch slurry technique — stirring the starch into a small amount of COLD liquid first, then whisking that slurry into the hot dish — matters just as much for a substitute as it does for cornstarch itself, since dumping any of these three starches directly into a simmering liquid produces clumps no amount of stirring fully breaks up afterward; the substitutes inherit this same practical requirement even though the substitution note doesn't always spell it out.
A glossy fruit glaze for a tart or a cheesecake topping is a specific case where the choice among these substitutes matters more than usual — arrowroot holds its clarity and shine at room temperature noticeably better than potato starch does over several hours, which is why a bakery-style glossy finish more often leans on arrowroot specifically, not just any cornstarch-adjacent starch that happens to be in the pantry.
Need to convert Cornstarch first? See its conversion page.
Frequently asked questions
Why does flour need double the amount of cornstarch to thicken the same way?
Cornstarch is a purer, more concentrated starch than flour, which also contains protein and other components that dilute its thickening power — roughly twice as much flour is needed to match cornstarch's thickening effect in the same liquid.
Is arrowroot a better substitute than potato starch?
They're both closer matches to cornstarch than flour is, but arrowroot has one specific advantage: it stays glossy and clear even after prolonged cooking, while potato starch (like cornstarch itself) can lose thickening power if boiled too long.
Can I use these substitutes in a recipe that needs to be reheated later, like a sauce made ahead of time?
Arrowroot is the least reliable of the three for a reheated dish, since it thins out if reheated repeatedly — cornstarch or potato starch generally hold up somewhat better through a single reheat, though none of them are as stable as flour-thickened sauces for repeated reheating.
Is tapioca starch a good cornstarch substitute too, even though it's not listed here?
It can work similarly to arrowroot in texture and clarity, though this site's substitute list is bounded to the most commonly recommended, well-tested options rather than every starch that could theoretically work.
Does the flour substitute for cornstarch work in a cold application, like a pudding that isn't cooked further?
Not well — flour needs sustained heat to lose its raw taste and fully thicken, which a cold or barely-warmed application won't provide, making cornstarch or one of its closer substitutes the better choice there.