How this cooking converter works
Recipes mix two completely different kinds of measurement. Cups, tablespoons, teaspoons, fluid ounces, millilitres and litres are all measures of volume — how much space something takes up. Grams and ounces are measures of weight — how much mass it has. Converting within one family is just arithmetic, but moving between them depends on the ingredient.
For volume-to-volume conversions the tool routes everything through millilitres: 1 US cup is 236.588 ml, a tablespoon is 14.7868 ml, a teaspoon is 4.92892 ml, a fluid ounce is 29.5735 ml, and a litre is 1000 ml. Weight conversions route through grams, where one ounce is 28.3495 g. To cross between volume and weight, the tool uses the chosen ingredient's density — its grams per cup — which is why flour, sugar and honey all give different weights for the same cup.
Reference note: figures use US customary cups and spoons. Ingredient densities are typical averages — sifted versus packed flour, or different brands of sugar, can vary by 5–10%. For baking, weighing in grams is always more reliable than measuring by cup.
Cups to grams (common ingredients)
| Ingredient | 1 cup (g) | ½ cup (g) | 1 tbsp (g) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | 236 | 118 | 15 |
| All-purpose flour | 120 | 60 | 8 |
| Granulated sugar | 200 | 100 | 13 |
| Brown sugar | 220 | 110 | 14 |
| Powdered sugar | 120 | 60 | 8 |
| Butter | 227 | 114 | 14 |
| Milk | 245 | 123 | 15 |
| Honey | 340 | 170 | 21 |
| Rice | 185 | 93 | 12 |
Frequently asked questions
- How many tablespoons in a cup?
- One US cup is 16 tablespoons. Since each tablespoon is 3 teaspoons, a cup is also 48 teaspoons, and by volume about 237 ml.
- How many grams in a cup of flour or sugar?
- A cup of all-purpose flour weighs about 120 g, while a cup of granulated sugar weighs about 200 g. The gap comes from density — sugar is heavier than light, airy flour for the same volume.
- How do I convert cups to ml?
- Multiply US cups by 236.588, so 2 cups is about 473 ml. In the tool, pick cups as the From unit and ml as the To unit.
- How do I convert a recipe from cups to grams?
- Choose the ingredient, set From to cups and To to grams, and enter the amount. The tool multiplies the cup volume by that ingredient's density — so 2 cups of flour is about 240 g, and 2 cups of sugar about 400 g.
- How many teaspoons in a tablespoon?
- There are 3 teaspoons in 1 tablespoon. A teaspoon is about 4.93 ml and a tablespoon about 14.79 ml.
- Why does a cup of flour weigh less than a cup of sugar?
- A cup measures volume, not weight. Flour is light and full of air, so a cup holds roughly 120 g, while denser granulated sugar packs about 200 g into the same cup.