Best Cheese for Pizza: Mozzarella, Fior di Latte & More

What is the best cheese for pizza? The answer depends on the pizza and the oven.

Quick answer: for Neapolitan-style pizza, Fior di Latte is one of the best choices because it gives you the fresh milky flavour and soft melt associated with classic Italian pizza. For a slower domestic-oven bake, low-moisture mozzarella is often easier to manage because it releases less water.

The best pizza cheese is therefore not one universal block from the fridge. It is the cheese that matches your dough, toppings and bake.

What cheese goes on pizza?

Mozzarella is the standard starting point, but it is far from the only cheese that works. Great pizza can use Fior di Latte, Mozzarella di Bufala, low-moisture mozzarella, Provolone, Scamorza, Parmesan, Pecorino, Gorgonzola, Burrata and plenty of others.

The trick is understanding which cheeses provide the main melt and which are better used as flavour accents or post-bake finishers.

1. Fior di Latte: our first choice for Neapolitan-style pizza

Fior di Latte is fresh mozzarella made from cow's milk. It is widely used on Neapolitan-style pizza because it melts softly without overwhelming the tomato and dough.

It should not be treated like grated supermarket mozzarella. Tear or cut it into pieces, drain excess liquid and place it across the pizza with visible gaps between the cheese.

Our complete What Is Fior di Latte? guide explains the cheese in more detail.

2. Low-moisture mozzarella: best for many home ovens

If you are baking for several minutes in a conventional kitchen oven, low-moisture mozzarella is extremely useful. It melts reliably and releases less liquid than fresh mozzarella.

That makes it a strong choice for New York-style pizza, tray pizza and any home-oven pizza where you want even coverage and good browning.

You do not need to cover every centimetre. Even lower-moisture cheese becomes heavy when you use too much.

3. Mozzarella di Bufala: richer and wetter

Mozzarella di Bufala is made from buffalo milk and has a richer, tangier flavour than cow's-milk Fior di Latte.

It can be superb on a simple pizza where the cheese is meant to be noticed, but it usually contains plenty of moisture. Drain it well and use it sparingly, especially in a domestic oven.

4. Provolone: a brilliant mozzarella partner

Provolone brings more savoury character than mozzarella while still melting well. It is particularly useful as part of a blend rather than as a thick standalone layer.

Try a modest amount with low-moisture mozzarella for a deeper-tasting home-oven pizza, or use thin pieces alongside mushrooms, sausage or spicy cured meats.

5. Scamorza: when you want more character

Scamorza is another stretched-curd Italian cheese, but it is firmer and more concentrated than fresh mozzarella. Smoked Scamorza adds a particularly useful savoury note.

It works with mushrooms, sausage, peppers and white pizzas. You can use it alongside Fior di Latte so the pizza keeps a soft mozzarella melt while gaining extra flavour.

6. Parmesan and Parmigiano-Reggiano

Hard aged cheese is powerful. You generally do not need a heavy layer.

A fine grating of Parmigiano-Reggiano can season tomato, mozzarella and dough without becoming the main cheese. It can go on before the bake in a restrained amount or be added after baking for a fresher aroma.

7. Pecorino Romano

Pecorino Romano is made from sheep's milk and tends to taste sharper and saltier than Parmigiano-Reggiano. It is excellent with punchier pizzas — sausage, chilli, 'Nduja, cured meats and strong tomato.

Because it is salty, use a light hand and consider the salt already coming from the other toppings.

8. Gorgonzola and blue cheese on pizza

Blue cheese can be fantastic on pizza when it is used as an accent. Gorgonzola gives creamy richness plus the distinctive flavour of blue cheese.

Good partners include pear, walnuts, mushrooms, sausage, caramelised onion and milder melting cheeses. The aim is contrast, not a whole pizza buried under blue cheese.

9. Burrata: usually better after the bake

Burrata has a mozzarella shell around a soft, creamy centre. Baking it from the start can lose the texture that makes it special and can introduce a lot of moisture.

For most pizzas, cook the base and toppings first, then add Burrata after the pizza leaves the oven. The residual heat warms it without destroying the creamy centre.

What is the best mozzarella for pizza?

For a hot Neapolitan-style bake, we would choose well-drained Fior di Latte for its clean flavour and classic texture. Mozzarella di Bufala is excellent when you want a richer fresh-cheese result.

For a normal home oven, low-moisture mozzarella is often the easiest option because the longer bake gives water more time to escape into the pizza.

So when someone asks for the best mozzarella for pizza, the useful answer is:

• Dedicated high-heat pizza oven: Fior di Latte.
• Richer fresh mozzarella: Mozzarella di Bufala.
• Conventional home oven: low-moisture mozzarella is usually the most forgiving.

How do you stop mozzarella making pizza soggy?

Moisture management matters more than most people realise. Drain fresh mozzarella, tear or cut it before baking, pat away obvious surface moisture and use less than you think you need.

Then keep the tomato sauce and other wet toppings under control.

We have a full step-by-step guide here: How to Stop Mozzarella Making Pizza Soggy.

How much cheese should you put on a 12-inch pizza?

There is no mandatory weight, but restraint is your friend. For a Neapolitan-style 12-inch pizza, start with roughly 70–100g of drained fresh mozzarella and adjust to your preference.

For a home-oven pizza using grated low-moisture mozzarella, you may use more, but the cheese should still support the pizza rather than bury it.

If the centre is taking much longer to cook than the rim, reduce the cheese and other wet toppings before blaming the dough.

Can you mix cheeses on pizza?

Absolutely. In fact, mixing a mild melting cheese with a more intense cheese is often better than using a large quantity of either.

Useful combinations include:

• Fior di Latte + Scamorza
• Low-moisture mozzarella + Provolone
• Mozzarella + a light grating of Parmigiano-Reggiano
• Fior di Latte + Gorgonzola
• Mozzarella + Pecorino on a spicy sausage pizza

What cheese is best for homemade pizza in the UK?

If you have a dedicated pizza oven, choose Fior di Latte when you can get it and drain it properly. If you are using a conventional oven, good low-moisture mozzarella is an excellent practical option.

Then build flavour with Italian cheeses rather than simply adding more mozzarella.

And remember that the cheese is only one part of the pizza. A good sauce, restrained toppings and properly fermented dough matter just as much. Our Neapolitan pizza toppings guide gives you combinations to try.

Our pick for Neapolitan pizza

For Dough Dorks-style pizza, we keep coming back to Fior di Latte: fresh, milky and beautifully suited to a fast high-temperature bake.

Pair it with a simple tomato sauce and a 48-hour fermented pizza dough ball, then let the ingredients do their jobs instead of overloading the base.

Best cheese is not about using the most cheese. It is about using the right cheese for the pizza.