Cups to grams chart

There is no cups-to-grams conversion factor, and any site that gives you one is quietly assuming an ingredient. A cup measures volume and a gram measures mass; what sits between them is density. A cup of panko breadcrumbs weighs 50 g and a cup of molasses weighs 340 g — the same cup, 6.8 times the weight.

Below is what a cup, a half cup and a tablespoon of each of 62 ingredients weighs. 510 pages work the rest out — every common measure of every ingredient, in both directions, each with the arithmetic shown.

Flour

Spooned into the cup and levelled. Scooping straight from the bag compacts the flour and can add a fifth — the single biggest source of error in home baking, and larger than any disagreement between charts.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Semolina flour	163 g	82 g	10.2 g	King Arthur Baking
Gluten-free all-purpose flour	156 g	78 g	9.8 g	King Arthur Baking
Cornmeal (whole)	138 g	69 g	8.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Coconut flour	128 g	64 g	8 g	King Arthur Baking
All-purpose flour	120 g	60 g	7.5 g	King Arthur Baking
Bread flour	120 g	60 g	7.5 g	King Arthur Baking
Cake flour	120 g	60 g	7.5 g	King Arthur Baking
Whole wheat flour	113 g	57 g	7.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Self-rising flour	113 g	57 g	7.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Pastry flour	106 g	53 g	6.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Rye flour (medium)	106 g	53 g	6.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Spelt flour	99 g	50 g	6.2 g	King Arthur Baking
Almond flour	96 g	48 g	6 g	King Arthur Baking

Sugar

Brown sugar is packed; confectioners' sugar is unsifted. Sifting drops it by about a quarter.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Demerara sugar	220 g	110 g	13.8 g	King Arthur Baking
Brown sugar, packed	213 g	107 g	13.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Granulated white sugar	198 g	99 g	12.4 g	King Arthur Baking
Turbinado (raw) sugar	180 g	90 g	11.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Maple sugar	156 g	78 g	9.8 g	King Arthur Baking
Coconut sugar	154 g	77 g	9.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Confectioners' sugar	113 g	57 g	7.1 g	King Arthur Baking

Fat

A US stick of butter is a quarter-pound, 113.4 g, so a cup is half a pound. Oils are lighter than water by volume.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Butter	227 g	113 g	14.2 g	King Arthur Baking
Coconut oil	226 g	113 g	14.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Lard	226 g	113 g	14.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Olive oil	200 g	100 g	12.5 g	King Arthur Baking
Vegetable oil	198 g	99 g	12.4 g	King Arthur Baking
Vegetable shortening	184 g	92 g	11.5 g	King Arthur Baking

Liquid

These come from USDA measured portion weights rather than the baking chart, which rounds a cup of water to 227 g — that is eight fluid ounces counted as weight ounces, and a cup of water weighs 236.6 g.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Buttermilk	245 g	123 g	15.3 g	USDA FoodData Central
Yogurt (plain)	245 g	123 g	15.3 g	USDA FoodData Central
Milk (whole)	244 g	122 g	15.3 g	USDA FoodData Central
Cream (heavy)	238 g	119 g	14.9 g	USDA FoodData Central
Water	237 g	118 g	14.8 g	USDA FoodData Central
Cream cheese	232 g	116 g	14.5 g	USDA FoodData Central
Sour cream	230 g	115 g	14.4 g	USDA FoodData Central

Syrup

The heaviest things in the kitchen. A cup of honey outweighs a cup of flour almost three to one, which is why volume and weight cannot share a conversion factor.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Molasses	340 g	170 g	21 g	King Arthur Baking
Honey	336 g	168 g	21 g	King Arthur Baking
Maple syrup	312 g	156 g	19.5 g	King Arthur Baking
Corn syrup	312 g	156 g	19.5 g	King Arthur Baking

Pantry

Nuts, oats, chips and purées. Chopped and whole differ; where the chart specifies, so does the name.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Peanut butter	270 g	135 g	16.9 g	King Arthur Baking
Applesauce	255 g	128 g	15.9 g	King Arthur Baking
Pumpkin purée	227 g	114 g	14.2 g	King Arthur Baking
Banana, mashed	227 g	114 g	14.2 g	King Arthur Baking
Rice, long grain, dry	198 g	99 g	12.4 g	King Arthur Baking
Chocolate chips	170 g	85 g	10.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Raisins (loose)	149 g	75 g	9.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Almonds, whole	142 g	71 g	8.9 g	King Arthur Baking
Steel-cut oats	140 g	70 g	8.8 g	King Arthur Baking
Walnuts (chopped)	113 g	57 g	7.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Cheese, grated (cheddar etc.)	113 g	57 g	7.1 g	King Arthur Baking
Cornstarch	112 g	56 g	7 g	King Arthur Baking
Breadcrumbs (dried)	112 g	56 g	7 g	King Arthur Baking
Pecans (whole)	105 g	53 g	6.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Parmesan, grated	100 g	50 g	6.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Rolled oats	89 g	45 g	5.6 g	King Arthur Baking
Coconut (sweetened, shredded)	85 g	43 g	5.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Cocoa powder (unsweetened)	84 g	42 g	5.3 g	King Arthur Baking
Panko breadcrumbs	50 g	25 g	3.1 g	King Arthur Baking

Small measures

Where a volume measure does real damage. A tablespoon of table salt is 18 g, of Morton's kosher 16 g, of Diamond Crystal kosher 8 g — half. A recipe developed with one and made with another is seasoned wrong.

Ingredient	1 cup	½ cup	1 tbsp	Source
Salt (table)	288 g	144 g	18 g	King Arthur Baking
Baking soda	288 g	144 g	18 g	King Arthur Baking
Salt (Morton's kosher)	256 g	128 g	16 g	King Arthur Baking
Baking powder	192 g	96 g	12 g	King Arthur Baking
Yeast (instant)	144 g	72 g	9 g	King Arthur Baking
Salt (Diamond Crystal kosher)	128 g	64 g	8 g	King Arthur Baking

Which cup?

Every figure on this page uses the US customary cup of 236.588 ml, which is what an American recipe means. The metric cup used in Australia and New Zealand is 250 ml — about 6% larger. An older British book that says “cup” may mean the imperial cup of 284 ml, larger again. Where a recipe gives grams as well as cups, use the grams.

A tablespoon here is a sixteenth of a cup (14.8 ml) and a teaspoon a forty-eighth (4.9 ml). The metric tablespoon is 15 ml and the Australian one is 20 ml, which is a third more — enough to matter for salt, baking powder and yeast, and not enough to matter for anything else.