How to use the cooking measurement converter
- Enter an amount. Decimals and fractions both work: 2, 0.75, 3/4 or 1 1/2.
- Choose the unit to convert from and the unit to convert to. Volume units convert to volume units, and weight units to weight units.
- Open the advanced options to enter a recipe multiplier, for example 2 to double a recipe or 0.5 to halve it.
- Read the result, the nearest kitchen fraction for cups and spoons, and the table that shows the amount in every unit of that kind.
Formula
1 US gallon = 231 cubic inches = 3,785.411784 mL
1 quart = 1/4 gallon, 1 pint = 1/8, 1 cup = 1/16, 1 fluid ounce = 1/128, 1 tablespoon = 1/256, 1 teaspoon = 1/768 of a gallon
1 pound = 453.59237 g, 1 ounce = 1/16 pound = 28.349523125 g
Result = amount x (size of from-unit) / (size of to-unit)
All US volume units are exact fractions of the US gallon, and the pound is exactly 453.59237 grams. The tool uses these exact definitions and does not use rounded kitchen shortcuts.
Worked example
1 1/2 cups equals 24 tablespoons, 72 teaspoons, 12 fluid ounces, 0.75 pints and 354.8824 mL.
Exact definitions: 1 cup is 236.5882 mL, 1 US gallon is 3,785.4118 mL, 1 tablespoon is 14.7868 mL and 1 teaspoon is 4.9289 mL. A gallon holds exactly 16 cups.
By weight, 1 pound is 16 ounces or 453.5924 g, and 8 ounces is 226.7962 g. Five tablespoons is about 3/8 cup, and 3/4 cup is 12 tablespoons.
Why cups to grams is not here
A cup measures volume, and a gram measures mass, so converting between them needs the density of the ingredient. A cup of flour, a cup of sugar and a cup of honey all weigh different amounts, and even the same flour varies with how it is scooped. This tool does not guess. It converts volume to volume and weight to weight using exact definitions, and it explains the refusal when you ask for a volume to weight conversion. For packaging sizes and per-unit prices, see the unit price calculator.
US cups, spoons and labels
US customary measuring cups and spoons are used for both dry and liquid ingredients, so a cup is 8 fluid ounces either way. US nutrition labels use rounded values, a tablespoon of 15 mL and a teaspoon of 5 mL, which are slightly different from the exact legal volumes used here. In other countries, cups and spoons can be a different size, so check the recipe's origin when a result looks off.
Scaling recipes
The recipe multiplier scales the amount before converting, so you can enter the original quantity and a factor. A common pattern is to convert to the smallest unit that makes a clean number, such as tablespoons or teaspoons, then scale. For other unit families like length or temperature, use the unit converter, and for fractions in your own arithmetic, the fraction calculator.
Assumptions and limits
- Units are US customary: US cups, spoons, fluid ounces, pints, quarts and gallons, plus avoirdupois ounces and pounds.
- Fluid ounces measure volume and ounces measure weight. They are different units and are not interchangeable.
- Kitchen fractions are rounded to the nearest 1/8 for cups and teaspoons and the nearest 1/4 for tablespoons and fluid ounces, and are marked "about" when not exact.
- Amounts up to 1,000,000,000 are accepted, and results are shown to 4 decimal places.
- Ingredient density, temperature effects and metric cup sizes are not modeled. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Frequently asked questions
How many tablespoons are in a cup?
There are 16 tablespoons in a US cup. Half a cup is 8 tablespoons, a quarter cup is 4 tablespoons and three quarters of a cup is 12 tablespoons.
How many teaspoons are in a tablespoon?
There are 3 teaspoons in a US tablespoon. That means a cup holds 48 teaspoons, and 1 1/2 cups holds 72.
How many mL are in a cup?
A US cup is exactly 236.5882365 mL, about 237 mL. Some recipes round it, and US nutrition labels use 15 mL for a tablespoon and 5 mL for a teaspoon, so tiny differences are normal.
Why can't I convert cups to grams?
Grams measure weight and cups measure volume, so the conversion depends on the ingredient's density. The tool refuses instead of using a made-up density. Look up the specific ingredient or weigh it.
What is the difference between fluid ounces and ounces?
A fluid ounce measures volume, about 29.57 mL, and an ounce measures weight, about 28.35 g. Water is close to 1 g per mL, but most foods are not, so the two should not be swapped.