SpicesKitchen conversions
Cups to grams for flour, sugar, butter and over 30 more
1 US cup of flour weighs 120 g and 1 cup of sugar weighs 198 g, because a cup measures volume, not weight. The charts give the weight of each ingredient from a whole cup down to a teaspoon.
At a glance
- 1 cup flour
- 120 g
- 1 cup sugar
- 198 g
- 1 cup butter
- 227 g
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 213 g
Baking staples
In baking, a few grams of flour or sugar can change the result.
| Ingredient | 1 cup | ¾ cup | ⅔ cup | ½ cup | ⅓ cup | ¼ cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All-purpose (plain) flour | 120 g | 90 g | 80 g | 60 g | 40 g | 30 g |
| Bread (strong) flour | 120 g | 90 g | 80 g | 60 g | 40 g | 30 g |
| Cake flour | 120 g | 90 g | 80 g | 60 g | 40 g | 30 g |
| Whole wheat (wholemeal) flour | 113 g | 85 g | 75 g | 56 g | 38 g | 28 g |
| Almond flour | 96 g | 72 g | 64 g | 48 g | 32 g | 24 g |
| Cornstarch (cornflour) | 112 g | 84 g | 75 g | 56 g | 37 g | 28 g |
| Granulated sugar | 198 g | 148 g | 132 g | 99 g | 66 g | 50 g |
| Brown sugar, packed | 213 g | 160 g | 142 g | 106 g | 71 g | 53 g |
| Powdered (icing) sugar | 113 g | 85 g | 75 g | 56 g | 38 g | 28 g |
| Butter | 227 g | 170 g | 151 g | 113 g | 76 g | 57 g |
| Cocoa powder | 84 g | 63 g | 56 g | 42 g | 28 g | 21 g |
| Rolled oats | 89 g | 67 g | 59 g | 44 g | 30 g | 22 g |
Nuts, grains, dairy and sweeteners
| Ingredient | 1 cup | ½ cup | ¼ cup | 1 tbsp |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate chips | 170 g | 85 g | 42 g | 11 g |
| Chopped walnuts or pecans | 113 g | 56 g | 28 g | 7.1 g |
| Whole almonds | 142 g | 71 g | 36 g | 8.9 g |
| Shredded coconut | 85 g | 42 g | 21 g | 5.3 g |
| Raisins | 149 g | 74 g | 37 g | 9.3 g |
| Peanut butter | 270 g | 135 g | 68 g | 17 g |
| Honey | 336 g | 168 g | 84 g | 21 g |
| Maple syrup | 312 g | 156 g | 78 g | 20 g |
| Rice, uncooked | 191 g | 96 g | 48 g | 12 g |
| Quinoa, uncooked | 170 g | 85 g | 42 g | 11 g |
| Lentils, dried | 150 g | 75 g | 38 g | 9.4 g |
| Grated parmesan | 100 g | 50 g | 25 g | 6.3 g |
| Sour cream | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g | 14 g |
| Greek yogurt | 227 g | 113 g | 57 g | 14 g |
| Breadcrumbs, dry | 112 g | 56 g | 28 g | 7 g |
| Panko | 50 g | 25 g | 12 g | 3.1 g |
Salt, leaveners and spices by the spoon
Kosher salt is flakier than table salt, so a spoonful weighs less.
| Ingredient | 1 tbsp | 1 tsp | ½ tsp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Table salt | 18 g | 6 g | 3 g |
| Kosher salt | 15 g | 5 g | 2.5 g |
| Baking soda | 14 g | 4.6 g | 2.3 g |
| Baking powder | 12 g | 4 g | 2 g |
| Ground cinnamon | 8 g | 2.7 g | 1.3 g |
| Instant yeast | 9.4 g | 3.1 g | 1.6 g |
Weights per US cup follow King Arthur Baking’s ingredient weight chart. Amounts under 10 g are rounded to 0.1 g; at that size a level spoon is as accurate as most kitchen scales.
Water, milk and oil: use millilitres
For thin liquids, convert by volume instead of weight. 1 US cup is 237 ml, ½ cup is 118 ml and ¼ cup is 59 ml. Water weighs 1 g per ml, and milk very nearly the same. Oil is lighter: 1 cup of olive oil is about 215 g.
Thick liquids such as honey, maple syrup and molasses are heavier than water. A cup of honey weighs about 336 g, so measuring it by weight saves you scraping out a sticky cup.
See US, UK and Australian cups and spoons for millilitres by country.
How to measure a cup the way these charts assume
- Flour, cocoa and powdered sugar: stir, spoon into the cup, then level with a knife. Don’t tap or pack the cup.
- Brown sugar: press it firmly into the cup. It should hold its shape when tipped out.
- Butter: use the markings on the wrapper, or the butter chart.
- Sticky ingredients: weigh them, or oil the cup first so they slide out.
In Spices, US recipes show grams
When you save a recipe from a US blog, Spices shows each amount in grams or millilitres using these weights, rounded to the nearest 5 g above 50 g and to the gram below that. Weights worked out from a cup are marked as estimates, and you can switch back to the recipe as written at any time.
More kitchen conversions
- Butter: sticks, cups and tablespoons to grams1 stick is 113 g. Every common butter amount, both ways.
- Oven temperatures: °F, °C, fan and gas mark350 °F is 175 °C, or 155 °C in a fan oven, with gas marks too.
- US, UK and Australian cups and spoonsAn Australian tablespoon is 20 ml and a UK pint is 568 ml. Cups, spoons and pints by country.
- US and UK ingredient namesHeavy cream is double cream and cilantro is coriander. 34 names, with Dutch too.
Questions
How many grams is 1 cup of flour?
1 US cup of all-purpose flour weighs about 120 g when you spoon the flour into the cup and level it. A cup scooped straight from the bag is packed tighter and weighs more, which is why weighing is more reliable.
How many grams is 1 cup of sugar?
1 US cup of granulated sugar weighs about 198 g, often rounded to 200 g. Packed brown sugar is heavier at about 213 g, and powdered sugar is much lighter at about 113 g.
Why does a cup of flour weigh less than a cup of sugar?
A cup measures volume, not weight. Flour is light and full of air while sugar crystals pack tightly, so the same cup holds a different weight of each.
Is a cup in a UK or Australian recipe the same as a US cup?
No. A US cup is 236.6 ml. Recipes from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada that use cups usually mean a 250 ml metric cup, about 6% more.
Let your recipes convert themselves
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