Short answer
Pizza focaccia is focaccia dough, thick, soft and oily, baked in a pan and topped like a pizza. Pizza proper uses a thinner, less oily base baked at much higher heat, so the two share ancestry but differ in texture, thickness and how they are eaten.
Pizza focaccia is focaccia dough, thick, soft and rich in olive oil, baked in a pan and topped the way a pizza would be, usually with tomato sauce and sometimes cheese. It differs from pizza proper in thickness, in how much oil is in the dough and in how hot the oven runs. This guide compares the two flatbreads side by side, explains where they overlap and describes the pizza focaccia listed for Liguria Bakery in San Francisco.
What is the main difference between focaccia and pizza?
Focaccia is a thicker, oilier bread baked in a pan, while pizza is a thinner base baked hot, with sauce and cheese as defining toppings. In short, focaccia is bread first and pizza is a topped dish first.
A Neapolitan pizza has a thin center and a puffed edge, and it is baked in a few minutes in a very hot oven. A focaccia is pushed into an oiled tray, allowed to rise, dimpled and baked at a lower temperature for longer. The first has a charred, blistered crust. The second has a soft crumb and a golden, slightly fried base.
The two flatbreads come from the same family of ancient baked doughs, and the line between them is a matter of style rather than law.
How do the doughs compare?
Both use flour, water, yeast and salt, but focaccia dough usually has more water and a lot more olive oil. That produces a sticky dough with a more open crumb, where pizza dough is often firmer and easier to stretch thin.
| Dough feature | Focaccia | Pizza |
|---|---|---|
| Hydration | Usually higher, so the dough is wetter and stickier | Moderate, often firmer to stretch |
| Oil | Plenty, in the dough, pan and top | Little to none in classic Neapolitan, more in some pan styles |
| Final shape | Pressed or stretched in a pan | Stretched by hand or rolled thin |
| Thickness | Roughly a finger or more | Thin center, edge rises |
| Rest and rise | Often long, to develop an airy crumb | Varies, often a day or less to a few days |
These are general tendencies, and individual bakers vary. A thick American pan pizza, for example, is closer to focaccia than to a Neapolitan pie.
Are focaccia and pizza historically related?
Yes, they are generally treated as relatives, since both descend from flatbreads baked with oil and toppings around the Mediterranean. Exactly which came first, and where pizza as we know it began, is disputed.
Naples is the usual birthplace given for the tomato-topped pizza, and Liguria is the usual home given for the oily, dimpled focaccia. Food writers disagree about how much they influenced each other, and many older stories about their invention cannot be traced to firm documents. For that reason this guide describes them as related breads with different habits, not as one being derived from the other.
How do baking temperature and method differ?
Pizza is generally baked at far higher heat than focaccia, which is why a good pizza oven reaches temperatures a home oven cannot. Focaccia is baked at a moderate oven setting, in a pan, for longer.
Heat shapes the result. At very high heat the crust of a thin pizza blisters and chars in minutes, with a dry, chewy bite. A thicker, oil-rich dough would burn on the outside before it cooked through, so focaccia is baked more gently. The oil in the pan does part of the cooking, crisping the base in the way frying does. This general explanation is not a recipe, and exact temperatures and times depend on the oven and the dough.
What toppings go on focaccia compared with pizza?
Pizza is defined by tomato sauce, cheese and a handful of classic toppings, while focaccia is often left plain or lightly dressed with salt, herbs, onions, olives or vegetables. Focaccia toppings are meant to sit in the dimples without hiding the bread.
A pizza without sauce is usually called something else, such as a white pizza. A focaccia without sauce is simply focaccia. The overlap is a topped focaccia, where tomato, cheese or vegetables go on a thick, pan-baked base, and that is what is usually meant by pizza focaccia.
The toppings guide on this site covers rosemary, onion, olives, tomato, cheese, potato and sweet versions in detail.
How can you tell them apart at a bakery counter?
Look at the thickness, the shine and the edge. A tray bread that is a finger thick, glossy with oil and cut into squares is focaccia. A flat, round or long slice with a puffed rim and a sauce layer is pizza.
A few quick checks help:
- The cut edge. Focaccia shows an open, airy crumb with oil-darkened holes, while thin pizza shows a thin layer of bread under the topping.
- The base. A golden, slightly fried underside points to focaccia baked in oil. A dry, charred or floury base points to pizza baked on a hot surface.
- The topping. Heavy sauce and melted cheese over most of the surface suggests pizza or pizza focaccia. Sparse herbs, salt or vegetables suggest focaccia.
- The sign. If the label says pizza focaccia, expect the in-between style described above.
How are focaccia and pizza served and eaten?
Pizza is typically served hot and sliced into wedges, while focaccia is eaten warm or at room temperature, in squares, as bread or a sandwich base. Pizza is a meal on its own, and focaccia is more often a snack, a side or part of a meal.
You can reheat both, but they behave differently. A cold slice of pizza loses its crispness, while a piece of focaccia reheated in a hot oven regains its crust. Focaccia also travels well wrapped in paper, which is partly why it is sold at bakery counters rather than in restaurants.
Where do pizza al taglio and sfincione fit in between?
Pizza al taglio and sfincione are in-between styles that look like both. Each is a thick, rectangular tray bread with toppings, cut into squares or slices.
- Pizza al taglio: a Roman-style tray pizza sold by the slice, often priced by weight. The dough is wet, airy and baked in a rectangular tray, much like focaccia, with pizza-style toppings.
- Sfincione: a Sicilian bread, thick and spongy, topped with a cooked sauce of onion and tomato, cheese and sometimes breadcrumbs.
- Focaccia barese: a Puglian focaccia with tomatoes and olives on top.
| Style | Region | Thickness | Typical toppings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neapolitan pizza | Naples | Thin center, raised edge | Tomato, mozzarella, basil |
| Pizza al taglio | Rome | Medium, airy | Tomato, cheese, vegetables, cured meats |
| Sfincione | Sicily | Thick, spongy | Onion, tomato, cheese, breadcrumbs |
| Focaccia barese | Puglia | Medium | Tomato, olives |
| Focaccia genovese | Liguria | Thin to medium | Oil, brine, salt |
If you struggle to classify a tray bread with tomato on it, you are in good company, because bakers and historians classify these breads differently.
What is pizza focaccia at Liguria Bakery?
On its menu as recorded in November 2026, Liguria Bakery lists Pizza focaccia, described as tomato sauce with green onion (scallions). It is the one flavor that a 2009 profile called the most popular, and Tasting Table (March 2026) also names it.
That puts it squarely in the in-between category, a focaccia base carrying a pizza-style topping. Sources do not describe how thick the piece is or give its dough ingredients, so nothing more should be inferred about it. The bakery also sells other flavors, including Rosemary garlic focaccia, Black olive focaccia, Mushroom focaccia, Jalapeno cheese focaccia and Raisin focaccia, and Tasting Table says it sells Neapolitan pizza dough for baking at home.
The bakery publishes no price list. Tasting Table gives about $8 to $10 per piece of focaccia, with no price per flavor. It reports cash only and says the bakery often sells out before 10 AM. See the menu page for sources.
Can you make pizza from focaccia dough, or the reverse?
You can bake one from the other’s dough with some changes, but the result will be a hybrid. Focaccia dough stretched thin and baked hot makes a soft, oily pizza, and pizza dough baked thick in an oiled pan makes a firm focaccia.
If you want to try it at home, these adjustments help:
- For focaccia from pizza dough, use a pan, add olive oil generously and let the dough rise in the pan before baking.
- For pizza from focaccia dough, stretch it thinner, use less oil and bake hotter, accepting that it will be softer than a Neapolitan pie.
- Pre-bake thick bases briefly before adding wet toppings, so the center does not stay doughy.
- Salt the top, because the sauce on pizza focaccia can mute the flavor.
Pizza dough bought from a bakery is a shortcut. Liguria Bakery is reported to sell Neapolitan pizza dough, though no price or availability was found, so call (415) 421-3786 to ask.
Which should you choose?
Choose pizza when you want a hot, saucy, cheese-forward meal. Choose focaccia when you want a bread that is good plain, portable and easy to share. Pizza focaccia is the compromise, with a bread-like base and a pizza flavor.
For a visit, remember that the bakery is open Tuesday to Saturday, 7 AM to 12 PM per its Google Maps listing, and can close earlier when it sells out. The hours and location page has the details.
Common questions
Is pizza focaccia the same as pizza?
No. Pizza focaccia uses a thicker, oilier pan-baked dough, while most pizza uses a thinner base baked hotter. They overlap in the middle with styles like pizza al taglio.
Which came first, focaccia or pizza?
Flatbreads baked with oil and toppings are very old, and food historians disagree on the exact sequence. Focaccia is generally treated as the older relative, but the origin of pizza is disputed.
Can you use pizza dough to make focaccia?
Yes, with changes. A wetter dough, more oil, a pan and a longer rise give a more focaccia-like result. Liguria Bakery is reported to sell Neapolitan pizza dough, per Tasting Table (March 2026).
Is focaccia healthier than pizza?
This guide makes no health comparison. Both vary widely with toppings, portion size and oil, so check ingredients and ask the baker.
What is pizza al taglio?
It is Roman-style rectangular pizza baked in a tray and sold by the slice, often by weight. It sits between focaccia and round pizza.
This article is general information from an independent guide, not from Liguria Bakery itself. For the store’s current details see hours and location.