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Find the formula from m/z

Enumerate and rank every candidate formula for a measured mass or m/z

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Find the formula from m/z

Give an accurate mass (or m/z plus ionization) with a tolerance, and every formula inside the element limits is enumerated, ranked by nitrogen rule, RDBeq and isotope-pattern similarity.

Give an accurate mass (or m/z plus ionization) with a tolerance, and every formula inside the element limits is enumerated, ranked by nitrogen rule, RDBeq and isotope-pattern similarity.

Every calculation runs locally in your browser. Nothing you type is ever uploaded.

Open this calculator

If you have an accurate mass or a single mass spectral peak and want to know what formula it could be, enter the target mass (or an m/z plus the ion notation), a ppm tolerance and per-element minimum and maximum counts. The tool enumerates every candidate formula inside those constraints and reports the mass error of each one.

The result is more than a list: RDBeq flags implausible candidates (negative or absurdly large values) and the nitrogen rule gives a parity check. Paste your measured isotope peak table (relative intensities of M, M+1, M+2) and candidates are re-ranked by cosine similarity, which is where the distinctive Cl and Br patterns usually settle the answer at a glance.

How to use it

  1. Enter the target mass, or switch to m/z plus ion notation and let the tool recover the neutral mass.
  2. Set the ppm tolerance and element ranges, for example C:4-20,H:4-40,N:0-6,O:0-12,S:0-3.
  3. Run it and read the candidate table: mass error, RDBeq and nitrogen-rule verdict per row.
  4. Paste a measured peak table to re-rank by similarity - the top hit is usually the answer.

Frequently asked questions

What if there are too many candidates?
Tighten the ppm tolerance, narrow the element ranges, or score with a measured isotope peak table. With high-resolution data, 5 ppm typically brings the list down to single digits.
What is the difference between m/z and a neutral mass?
The m/z is where the ion appears in the spectrum; the neutral mass is m/z times |z| minus the mass of the ionising group, with the electron correction applied. Both input modes are supported here, so just pick the right ion notation.
Is anything I type uploaded?
No. There is no back end: the algorithms, the NIST isotope data and every dictionary ship with the page, and all calculations run in your browser.
How accurate is the data?
Isotope masses and abundances come from a NIST snapshot (94 elements, 298 isotopes). Isotope distributions are exact polynomial convolutions and agree with mainstream simulators to several decimal places.
Is it free? Do I need an account?
It is completely free, with no usage limit and no sign-up or login.
Can I send a calculation to someone else?
Yes. Click Copy link and the input state is encoded into the URL hash, so opening that link restores exactly what you had.

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