Cooking Conversions: Cups to Grams, Spoons to mL and Oven Temperatures
Why a cup of flour and a cup of sugar weigh different amounts, how to convert a recipe ingredient by ingredient, and a full oven temperature chart.
Last reviewed on October 2, 2026
1 US cup = 236.6 mL (240 mL on nutrition labels) = 16 tablespoons = 48 teaspoons.
Cups measure volume, so grams depend on the ingredient: 1 cup of flour ≈ 125 g, sugar ≈ 200 g, butter ≈ 227 g, water ≈ 240 g. 350 °F ≈ 175–180 °C (160 °C fan).
Cooking is where unit conversion stops being pure arithmetic. A US recipe written in cups, sticks of butter and Fahrenheit will not convert cleanly into grams and Celsius unless you know one important fact: a cup measures volume, but good recipes depend on weight. The same cup holds a different number of grams of flour, sugar, butter or honey, because each ingredient has a different density.
Volume vs. Weight: The Core Issue
A US cup is a fixed amount of space — about 237 mL (240 mL in nutrition labelling). What changes is how much ingredient fits in it. Water is 1 g per mL, so a cup weighs about 240 g. Flour is full of air and weighs about half that; honey is much denser and weighs about 1.4 times as much. A cup of honey weighs four times as much as a cup of cocoa powder.
That is why “1 cup = 240 g” only works for water-like liquids, and why no single multiplier turns cups into grams. Convert each ingredient using its own density, or better, use a kitchen scale. Weighing flour avoids the scoop-versus-spoon error, which can shift a bake’s texture more than most people expect.
Cups to Grams Chart for Common Ingredients
| Ingredient | 1 cup | ½ cup | 1 tablespoon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | 240 g | 120 g | 15 g |
| Whole milk | 245 g | 122 g | 15 g |
| All-purpose flour (spooned and levelled) | 125 g | 63 g | 8 g |
| All-purpose flour (scooped) | 140–150 g | 70–75 g | 9 g |
| Granulated sugar | 200 g | 100 g | 12.5 g |
| Brown sugar (packed) | 220 g | 110 g | 14 g |
| Icing / powdered sugar | 120 g | 60 g | 7.5 g |
| Butter | 227 g (2 US sticks) | 113 g (1 stick) | 14 g |
| Honey | 340 g | 170 g | 21 g |
| Maple syrup | 320 g | 160 g | 20 g |
| Olive or vegetable oil | 215 g | 108 g | 13.5 g |
| Cocoa powder | 85 g | 43 g | 5 g |
| Rolled oats | 90 g | 45 g | 6 g |
| Long-grain rice (raw) | 200 g | 100 g | 12.5 g |
| Fine table salt | 290 g | 145 g | 18 g |
| Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal) | 140 g | 70 g | 9 g |
US Volume Measures in Millilitres
For liquids, a volume-to-volume conversion is all you need. Most recipes and measuring spoons use the rounded values.
| US measure | Exact mL | Rounded (recipe labels) | Also equals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 teaspoon (tsp) | 4.93 mL | 5 mL | ⅓ tbsp |
| 1 tablespoon (tbsp) | 14.79 mL | 15 mL | 3 tsp |
| 1 fluid ounce (fl oz) | 29.57 mL | 30 mL | 2 tbsp |
| ¼ cup | 59.15 mL | 60 mL | 4 tbsp |
| ⅓ cup | 78.86 mL | 80 mL | 5 tbsp + 1 tsp |
| ½ cup | 118.29 mL | 120 mL | 8 tbsp |
| 1 cup | 236.59 mL | 240 mL | 16 tbsp, 8 fl oz |
| 1 pint | 473.18 mL | 475 mL | 2 cups |
| 1 quart | 946.35 mL | 950 mL | 4 cups |
| 1 gallon | 3,785.41 mL | 3.8 L | 16 cups |
For other amounts, use the cups to mL, mL to cups and mL to fluid ounces converters.
Not All Cups Are the Same
The “cup” in a recipe depends on where the recipe was written. The differences are small for a single cup but add up in a large batch.
| Cup | Volume | Where used |
|---|---|---|
| US customary cup | 236.6 mL | US recipes and measuring cups |
| US legal cup | 240 mL | US nutrition labels |
| Metric cup | 250 mL | Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa |
| Imperial cup | 284 mL | Older British recipes (½ imperial pint) |
| Japanese cup | 200 mL | Japanese recipes; a rice cup (gō) is 180 mL |
Tablespoons vary too: US and UK tablespoons are about 15 mL, but an Australian tablespoon is 20 mL (4 teaspoons). For leavening agents and salt, that difference matters.
Oven Temperature Chart
Oven dials are calibrated in different scales in different countries, so convert the temperature along with the ingredients. In a fan-assisted (convection) oven, reduce the conventional Celsius setting by about 20 °C.
| Fahrenheit | Celsius | Fan / convection | Gas mark | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 250 °F | 120 °C | 100 °C | ½ | Very low — meringues, slow drying |
| 275 °F | 140 °C | 120 °C | 1 | Very low |
| 300 °F | 150 °C | 130 °C | 2 | Low — slow roasts, custards |
| 325 °F | 165 °C | 145 °C | 3 | Moderately low — rich cakes |
| 350 °F | 175–180 °C | 160 °C | 4 | Moderate — most cakes and cookies |
| 375 °F | 190 °C | 170 °C | 5 | Moderately hot — quick breads, scones |
| 400 °F | 200 °C | 180 °C | 6 | Hot — pastry, roasting |
| 425 °F | 220 °C | 200 °C | 7 | Hot — roast vegetables, pizza |
| 450 °F | 230 °C | 210 °C | 8 | Very hot — bread |
| 475 °F | 245 °C | 225 °C | 9 | Very hot — bread with steam |
For exact values, use the Fahrenheit to Celsius converter or the temperature scales guide.
Worked Example: Adapting a US Cookie Recipe
The recipe: 2¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup butter, ¾ cup brown sugar, ¾ cup granulated sugar, 2 large eggs, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt; bake at 375 °F for 9 minutes.
| Ingredient | US measure | Metric | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flour | 2¼ cups | 280 g | 2.25 × 125 g |
| Butter | 1 cup | 225 g | 2 sticks × 113 g |
| Brown sugar | ¾ cup | 165 g | 0.75 × 220 g |
| Granulated sugar | ¾ cup | 150 g | 0.75 × 200 g |
| Eggs | 2 large | ≈ 100 g shelled | ≈ 50 g each |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp | 5 mL | volume |
| Baking soda | 1 tsp | ≈ 5 g | weigh if possible |
| Salt | 1 tsp | 5–6 g table salt | halve if swapping kosher for table salt by volume |
| Oven | 375 °F | 190 °C (170 °C fan) | (375 − 32) × 5⁄9 |
Baking time stays the same — check at 8 minutes, since ovens vary more than conversions do.
Common Mistakes
- Treating a cup as a fixed weight. Only true for water. For everything else, density matters.
- Mixing US and imperial pints. A US pint is 473 mL; an imperial pint is 568 mL.
- Swapping salts by volume. A cup of fine table salt weighs about twice as much as a cup of Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
- Ignoring the fan. Convection ovens cook hotter; drop the setting by about 20 °C.
- Rounding too aggressively. Baking is chemistry; small errors in flour, sugar or leavener show up in the texture.
Related Converters and Guides
- Cups to mLUS cups to millilitres.
- Grams to ouncesFor kitchen scales.
- Fahrenheit to CelsiusOven temperatures.
- Metric vs. imperialWhy US and UK measures differ.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many grams are in a cup of flour?
About 125 g for all-purpose flour spooned into the cup and levelled, and 140–150 g if the cup is scooped straight from the bag. Because the range is so wide, weighing flour is the most reliable approach.
How many millilitres are in a cup?
A US customary cup is 236.6 mL; the US legal cup used on nutrition labels is exactly 240 mL. A metric cup (Australia, New Zealand, Canada) is 250 mL, and an old imperial cup is about 284 mL.
How many tablespoons are in a cup?
There are 16 tablespoons in a US cup, and 3 teaspoons in a tablespoon, so 48 teaspoons in a cup.
What is 350 °F in Celsius?
350 °F is 176.7 °C, which recipes round to 175 °C or 180 °C. In a fan oven, use about 160 °C.
Is a fluid ounce the same as an ounce?
No. A fluid ounce measures volume (about 29.6 mL in the US) while an ounce measures weight (28.35 g). They only line up for water-like liquids, where one US fluid ounce weighs about 29.6 g, or 1.04 ounces.
How much should I reduce the temperature for a fan oven?
Reduce the conventional temperature by about 20 °C (around 25 °F). A recipe written for 180 °C becomes about 160 °C with the fan on. Check a little early the first time.
Can I swap kosher salt for table salt?
Not one-for-one by volume. Fine table salt packs much more densely, so a teaspoon of table salt is roughly twice as salty as a teaspoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Weigh it, or halve the volume when swapping kosher for table salt.