Cooking Measurement Converter

US vs UK Cups — Watch Out!

This is the single most common source of baking disasters: US and UK cups are not the same size. A US cup measures 236.588 ml, while a UK (imperial) cup measures 284 ml — nearly 20% larger. If you follow a British recipe using US measuring cups (or vice versa), your ingredient ratios will be off, and baked goods especially will suffer.

The tablespoon and teaspoon also differ: a US tablespoon is 14.787 ml vs the UK's 17.758 ml. Always check the recipe's country of origin. American cookbooks, blogs, and most food TV use US measurements. British, Australian (Australian cup = 250 ml, a third standard!), and many European recipes use different conventions. When in doubt, weigh your ingredients in grams instead.

How to Convert

• Cups → ml: multiply by 236.588 (US) or 284 (UK).
• Tablespoons → ml: multiply by 14.787 (US) or 17.758 (UK).
• Teaspoons → ml: multiply by 4.929 (US) or 5.919 (UK).
• Fluid ounces → ml: multiply by 29.574 (US) or 28.413 (UK).
• Cups → tablespoons: 1 cup = 16 tablespoons (same in both US and UK).
• Tablespoons → teaspoons: 1 tbsp = 3 tsp (same in both systems).

Common Recipe Conversions

These practical conversions come up in almost every recipe:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour ≈ 120 g ≈ 237 ml by volume (though flour weight varies by how you pack it).
• 1/2 cup butter = 1 stick (US) = 8 tbsp = 113 g = 118 ml.
• 1 cup granulated sugar ≈ 200 g ≈ 237 ml.
• 1 tsp salt ≈ 6 g table salt (kosher salt is lighter per teaspoon).
• 1 cup milk/water = 237 ml = 8 fl oz (liquid measure is straightforward).
• 1 cup olive oil ≈ 216 g (oil is less dense than water).

Why Accurate Measurement Matters in Baking

Baking is chemistry. Unlike savory cooking where you can taste and adjust, baking relies on precise ratios of flour, fat, sugar, leavening agent, and liquid to produce the right texture, rise, and crumb. A cup of flour that's packed too tightly can contain 20–30% more flour by weight than a loosely spooned cup — enough to turn a tender cake into a dense brick.

Volume measurements (cups, tablespoons) are convenient but imprecise. This is why professional bakers and serious home cooks use a kitchen scale and gram measurements. If you're scaling a recipe, converting between countries, or troubleshooting a baked good that never comes out right, switching to weight is the single biggest upgrade you can make. Use this converter for volume-to-volume conversions, and consider a scale for flour, sugar, and butter when precision matters.

How to Use

• Choose the measurement system your recipe uses — US (American) or UK (British imperial).
• Type a value into any field — cups, tablespoons, teaspoons, fluid ounces, milliliters, or liters.
• All other fields update instantly with the converted values.
• Refer to the quick reference panel for common recipe conversions at a glance.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between US and UK cups? A US cup is 236.588 ml, while a UK (imperial) cup is 284 ml — about 20% larger. Always check which system your recipe uses; confusing them can throw off baked goods significantly.

How do I convert dry vs liquid measurements? Volume-to-volume conversions (cups to ml, tbsp to tsp) are the same for dry and liquid ingredients. However, converting to weight (grams) depends on the ingredient's density — 1 cup of flour weighs much less than 1 cup of sugar.

Why does my recipe use grams instead of cups? Professional bakers and European recipes prefer grams because weight is more accurate than volume. A cup of flour can vary 20% depending on how it's packed, while 120 g is always 120 g.

Is my data stored? No. All calculations run entirely in your browser. No recipe or measurement data is collected or transmitted.

Reference Formulas

US: 1 cup = 236.588 ml, 1 tbsp = 14.787 ml, 1 tsp = 4.929 ml, 1 fl oz = 29.574 ml.

UK: 1 cup = 284 ml, 1 tbsp = 17.758 ml, 1 tsp = 5.919 ml, 1 fl oz = 28.413 ml.

Universal: 1 cup = 16 tbsp = 48 tsp. 1 tbsp = 3 tsp. 1 liter = 1000 ml.