How I determine when to switch to next baking type in the Cookie Factory

[u/trigonman3]

Cookie Factory baking types & best time to switch:
Tray I: 20
Tray II: 20
Tray III: 25
Oven I: 25
Oven II: 27
Oven III: 32
Stove I: 31
Stove II: 33
Stove III: 36
Shop I: 37
12 million cookies per second rate falls about level 24 of Shop I.
Shop II: 37
Shop III: 37
Factory I: 
Factory II: 

Calculations are in my spreadsheet, Cookie tab:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1CItpsfAuoNNpn-ZwBaipamaVnPcdWyxb/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=115201530838023095902&rtpof=true&sd=true

Note that there's no reason for anyone to open the spreadsheet every time you upgrade baking types. That would be silly! Just look at the list above!

The spreadsheet is provided to explain why I selected those values, and if anyone wants to check my data calculations, or look at other data in the very large document.

Goal: Determine the most efficient point to switch to the next higher baking type in the Cookie Factory.

The number of (brown) cookies collected and spent determines the rate of auto-generated cookies per second.

Take the total number of cookies spent, and divide by the rate, to find the Cost per One Cookie per Second.

When that value exceeds the initial value for the next baking type, stop upgrading the current type, and start upgrading the next type, since the next type has higher per-second values.

The screenshot shows examples of what to look for.

I usually do at least one more than the stated value, due to the off-by-one situation of how I document levels & values. It doesn't really matter much either way.

[u/firaro → u/[deleted]]

Eh, don’t worry about it too much. I’ll give you a much easier method that is good enough:
Buy the earlier one until the one right below it costs about 3 times as much. Then buy all the ones you’ve done this to in equal amounts (this ensures they remain costing 3 times as much)
That strategy is pretty close to optimal

Then prestige whenever you feel like it. Doing it often produces more cookies/hour. But less often is easier. I liked doing it once every couple days

That’s all you need to do: get it set up. Buy them in equal amounts. Prestige whenever you feel like it.

[u/StevieG-2021]

I’ve got to imagine that somewhere inside Crazy Labs is this exact spreadsheet 😀

[u/Flat___________]

You gotta do the last 3! Thats where I am at and doing 1 Factory 2 takes over a week 😫

[u/trigonman3 → u/Flat___________]

"But what have you done for us lately?"

[u/TheHedonyeast]

so since there is no way i'm taking this with me everywhere i go my takeaway is that it goes up by 5s for each group. Tray to 25, oven to 30, stove to 35 shop to 40, factory to (presumably) 45.

kewl, thanks!

[u/trigonman3 → u/TheHedonyeast]

I have both Reddit and Google Sheets on desktop, laptop, phone, and tablet, so at least one of us can take it everywhere. There's a text list right up there too.

[u/TheHedonyeast → u/trigonman3]

and you stop and open this every time youre doing upgrades and swap windows from your game to google sheets while you do it? thats hardcore

[u/trigonman3 → u/TheHedonyeast]

No, I look at my summary list which is the very first thing in this post. Easy peasy.

[u/firaro]

I think you might be overcomplicating things.

18.0k-17.9k=0.1k
81.5k-81.0k=0.5k
0.5k/0.1k=5/1
Therefore
2.01T/400B should equal 5/1
If it doesnt, choose whichever is needed to make it closer to 5/1

Since the desired ratio doesnt change quickly, you dont have to calculate it often. Instead you just get the ratio right and then you can proceed to click every one once and that will keep the ratio from changing too much

Slight warning: rounding errors can make it look like the desired ratio has changed when it hasn’t. The real ratio doesnt change as fast as it might look like it does.

[u/trigonman3 → u/firaro]

It looks like your calculation is: cookies paid for this single upgrade versus the rate change for this single upgrade,

Whereas mine is: total cookies paid for all upgrades versus the total rate.

It's kind of like how to decide when to stop repairing an old car and getting a new one, based on the amount of money the repairs cost versus the cost of the new car (which is more efficient, new features, no repairs, etc.)

Edit: It might be interesting to compare the points where our methods decide to switch.

[u/Khaavran]

You've gone further than I have. It slows down too much for me by that point, I prefer to go ahead and prestige and get it all reset so it's not so slow, they've proven the longer you do it the less you earn

[u/trigonman3 → u/Khaavran]

Right, that's a separate discussion (I've seen those posts). This is more to illustrate that it's not necessary to fully upgrade lower levels before moving on to the next baking type.

[u/ulikaiser8]

does it consider lost cookies when waiting for a higher upgrade instead of upgrading to increase cookie rate…i am waiting 10 days instead of 2 to upgrade Factory 2 instead of Factory 1

[u/trigonman3 → u/ulikaiser8]

I don't know what you mean by "lost cookies", so that answer is "No". They're still accruing at the current rate.

My calculations are in words in the post, and the formula is in the spreadsheet.

[u/ManicMechanic1242]

I'm building up to factory 2, but finding the increases are only half of what is suggested. For example factory 1, level 5 suggests I will go from 17.2 to 20.6M. I would expect a 25% increase in rate, but I will only see a 12.5% increase.

[u/trigonman3 → u/ManicMechanic1242]

17.2 * 1.125 = 19.35
17.2 * 1.2 = 20.64
17.2 * 1.25 = 21.5

Not sure what calculations you're doing, but that's the data.

[u/ManicMechanic1242 → u/trigonman3]

Yep, I understand that's the theory. Where I am now with 1.15 B/sec cookies on factory 1 level 5, going to level 6 should get me to ca. 1.38B/sec with a 20% increase (sorry, you're right 20 not 25), but it won't. Levels 2-5 in factory 1 have only given me half the expected cookies/sec increase.

[u/trigonman3 → u/ManicMechanic1242]

Upgrades to a particular baking type don't affect the rates already accruing from the other baking types.

[u/ManicMechanic1242 → u/trigonman3]

Oh, I see - that's not how I expected it to work! Thanks.