Cups to Grams: Kitchen Conversions by Ingredient (Why One Number Doesn't Work)
Volume vs Weight
A cup measures volume. A gram measures mass. Converting between them requires knowing the ingredient's density, how much a given volume of it weighs. One cup of water weighs about 237 g, but one cup of flour weighs about half that, and one cup of honey about 40% more. That is why "1 cup = 240 g" only works for water-like liquids, and why a converter that only knows units cannot give you a cups-to-grams answer for flour.
Density is not even fixed for one ingredient. Flour scooped straight from the bag can weigh noticeably more than flour spooned into the cup and leveled, because scooping packs it down. This is the main reason bakers recommend a scale.
Reference Table: 25 Common Ingredients
Weights per US cup, from the King Arthur Baking ingredient weight chart, which assumes flour is spooned and leveled. Where King Arthur lists a smaller measure, the full-cup figure is multiplied out and marked with an asterisk. For nutrition data by weight, see USDA FoodData Central.
| Ingredient | 1 cup | 1/2 cup | 1/4 cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | 120 g | 60 g | 30 g |
| Bread flour | 120 g | 60 g | 30 g |
| Whole wheat flour | 113 g | 57 g | 28 g |
| Almond flour | 96 g | 48 g | 24 g |
| Cocoa powder, unsweetened | 84 g* | 42 g | 21 g |
| Cornstarch | 112 g* | 56 g* | 28 g |
| Granulated sugar | 198 g | 99 g | 50 g |
| Brown sugar, packed | 213 g | 107 g | 53 g |
| Confectioners' sugar, unsifted | 113 g | 57 g | 28 g |
| Honey | 336 g* | 168 g* | 84 g* |
| Maple syrup | 312 g* | 156 g | 78 g |
| Corn syrup | 312 g | 156 g | 78 g |
| Butter | 227 g* | 113 g | 57 g |
| Vegetable oil | 198 g | 99 g | 50 g |
| Olive oil | 200 g* | 100 g* | 50 g |
| Milk | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g |
| Heavy cream | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g |
| Yogurt | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g |
| Water | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g |
| Rolled oats (old-fashioned or quick) | 89 g | 45 g | 22 g |
| Long-grain white rice, dry | 198 g* | 99 g | 50 g |
| Peanut butter | 270 g* | 135 g | 68 g |
| Chocolate chips | 170 g | 85 g | 43 g |
| Raisins, loose | 149 g | 75 g | 37 g |
| Walnuts, chopped | 113 g | 57 g | 28 g |
One detail worth noticing: King Arthur lists a cup of water, milk or cream as 227 g, which is 8 ounces. A full US cup of water (236.6 mL) actually weighs about 237 g. The chart uses the rounded 8-ounce convention common in American recipes. The 4% difference rarely matters in baking, but it explains why sources disagree.
Salt shows the problem best
One tablespoon of table salt weighs about 18 g. One tablespoon of Morton kosher salt weighs about 16 g, and Diamond Crystal kosher salt about 8 g, according to the same chart. A recipe that says "1 tablespoon kosher salt" can be twice as salty depending on the brand. When a recipe gives salt in grams, use the grams.
Not All Cups Are the Same Size
| Cup | Volume | Where you will see it |
|---|---|---|
| US customary cup | 236.6 mL | Most American recipes; used by QuickToolApp's "Cups" unit |
| US "legal" cup | 240 mL | Serving sizes on US nutrition labels, under FDA rules (21 CFR 101.9) |
| Metric cup | 250 mL | Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa |
| Imperial cup | about 284 mL | Older British recipes; modern UK recipes mostly use grams and mL |
| Japanese cup | 200 mL | Japanese recipes (a rice-cooker cup is a different 180 mL measure) |
Using a 250 mL metric cup for an American recipe adds about 6% to every cup measurement. For a single cup that is negligible; across 4 cups of flour it is about 27 g, enough to change a dough.
Spoons and Ounces
- US tablespoon = 14.8 mL; metric tablespoon = 15 mL; Australian tablespoon = 20 mL.
- Teaspoon = 4.9 mL (US) or 5 mL (metric). Three teaspoons make a tablespoon; 16 tablespoons make a cup.
- Fluid ounce (volume): 29.6 mL (US) or 28.4 mL (UK imperial). A US cup holds 8 fl oz.
- Ounce (weight, avoirdupois): 28.35 g. Sixteen make a pound.
"8 oz of flour" by weight is 227 g, nearly 2 cups. "8 fl oz of flour" would be 1 cup, about 120 g. If a recipe says "oz" for a dry ingredient, it almost always means weight. The unit conversion guide covers this "oz" ambiguity in other contexts too.
Scaling a Recipe With Batch Conversion
Say you want to make 1.5 times a recipe that calls for 1 1/2 cups milk, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup water, and you would rather measure in a metric jug. First multiply: 2.25, 0.75 and 1.5 cups.
- Open the volume converter set to cups → milliliters.
- In Batch Convert, enter one value per line:
2.25,0.75,1.5. - Press Run. You get 532.32 mL, 177.44 mL and 354.88 mL. Round to the nearest 5 mL for a jug.
For dry ingredients, convert with the table above instead: 1.5 × 120 g = 180 g of flour per original cup. QuickToolApp's volume category covers mL, liters, cups, pints, quarts and gallons; it does not include spoons, and like any unit converter it cannot convert volume to weight without a density. Use the Weight category to switch between grams, ounces and pounds once you have a weight.
Oven Temperatures
| °F | Exact °C | °C as usually printed | Gas mark | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 275 | 135 | 140 | 1 | Slow roasting, meringues |
| 300 | 149 | 150 | 2 | Slow baking |
| 325 | 163 | 160 to 170 | 3 | Rich cakes, custards |
| 350 | 177 | 180 | 4 | Most cakes and cookies |
| 375 | 191 | 190 | 5 | Muffins, pastries |
| 400 | 204 | 200 | 6 | Roasting vegetables, bread |
| 425 | 218 | 220 | 7 | Pizza, hot roasting |
| 450 | 232 | 230 | 8 | Crusty bread |
| 475 | 246 | 240 | 9 | Very hot finishes |
If a recipe was written for a fan (convection) oven, it usually lists a temperature about 20 °C lower. For the formulas behind the °F and °C columns, see the temperature conversion guide.
Printable Quick Chart
For the fridge door, the conversions people look up most:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour = 120 g · 1 cup sugar = 198 g · 1 cup packed brown sugar = 213 g
- 1 cup butter = 227 g = 2 sticks · 1 tablespoon butter = about 14 g
- 1 cup milk or water ≈ 227 to 237 g · 1 tablespoon honey = 21 g
- 1 US cup = 236.6 mL · 1 tablespoon = 14.8 mL · 1 teaspoon = 4.9 mL
- 350 °F = 180 °C = gas mark 4
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