Recipe Converter

About this calculator

One US cup of all-purpose flour weighs 120 g, a cup of granulated sugar 198 g, and a cup of butter 226 g — there is no single cups-to-grams number, because the conversion depends entirely on the ingredient. This converter carries a separately sourced density for each of 57 ingredients, so it converts cups, tablespoons, teaspoons and millilitres to grams, ounces and pounds in either direction. It also scales a recipe by serving count, or by baking-pan size using the pan-area ratio.

How to read your results

The headline figure is the converted amount in your chosen target unit. Below the result card, a reference table shows how 1 cup, 1 tbsp, and 1 tsp translate to grams for the selected ingredient, so you can quickly double-check related measurements without re-entering values.

How it's calculated

Same-class conversions use exact NIST ratio factors (NIST Handbook 44 / SP 811): 1 cup = 236.5882365 ml, 1 tbsp = 14.78676478 ml, 1 tsp = 4.92892159 ml, 1 fl oz = 29.5735295625 ml for volume; 1 oz = 28.349523125 g and 1 lb = 453.59237 g for mass. Cross-class conversions bridge volume and mass through ingredient density (g/ml). Volume to mass: convert the input to ml, multiply by density to get grams, then convert grams to the target mass unit. Mass to volume: convert to grams, divide by density to get ml, then convert to the target volume unit. Density values are sourced per ingredient and converted as grams per cup divided by 236.5882365 ml/cup: USDA FoodData Central measured portion weights are the primary authority, cross-checked against the FAO/INFOODS Density Database v2.0 and the King Arthur Baking Ingredient Weight Chart. Pure liquids use direct g/ml values (water = 1.0, whole milk = 1.03). Every powder, flour, pulse and grain figure is a loose, spooned-and-levelled bulk density — it already embeds the air between particles, and is neither true particle density nor tapped density. Because packing sensitivity is strongly ingredient-specific (measured tapped-to-loose ratios across this table run from 1.06 for semolina to about 1.85 for besan), no single global packed/unpacked multiplier is offered: one correction factor would be wrong for nearly every ingredient. When original and desired servings are both provided, the raw amount is multiplied by the scale ratio (desired ÷ original) before the unit conversion is applied. Pan-size scaling uses the same pipeline with a different ratio: the scale factor is the target pan area divided by the original pan area, where round-pan area is π × (diameter ÷ 2)² and square/rectangular area is width × length (the shared depth cancels out, so same-depth pans scale purely by area, per Sally’s Baking Addiction and King Arthur pan-substitution guidance).

Worked example

A cookie recipe calls for 2 cups of all-purpose flour and makes 4 servings. Scale it to 6 servings and convert to grams.

Scale ratio is 6 ÷ 4 = 1.5, so 2 × 1.5 = 3 cups are needed. At 120 g per cup (King Arthur standard), 3 cups of all-purpose flour equals 360 g.

Frequently asked questions

Why do different ingredients convert to different gram weights for the same cup volume?

A cup is a fixed volume, but grams measure mass. Dense ingredients like honey (about 336 g per cup) weigh far more than light, airy ones like all-purpose flour (about 120 g per cup). The calculator holds a measured density for every ingredient in the list, so each one converts on its own figure rather than a single average.

Where do the gram weights come from, and are they exact?

Each weight traces to a named measurement: USDA FoodData Central portion weights, the FAO/INFOODS Density Database, or the King Arthur Baking Ingredient Weight Chart. Where those disagree by more than a few per cent, the USDA measurement is used — that is how the oil, cornstarch and baking soda figures were corrected in July 2026. Powders, flours, pulses and grains assume a loose, spooned-and-levelled cup, which is what a home cook actually fills. Scooping the cup straight through the bag packs it and can add 15–25% on ordinary flours, and far more on fine cohesive ones like besan, so weighing on a scale is always more precise than any volume measure.

How does servings scaling work?

Enter the original number of servings the recipe makes and the number you want. The calculator multiplies every amount by desired ÷ original before converting units, so you only need to enter one ingredient at a time.

How does pan-size scaling work?

Switch to pan mode and enter the dimensions of your original pan and your target pan. For same-depth pans, batter scales by the area ratio: a round pan’s area is π × (diameter ÷ 2)², a square or rectangular pan’s area is width × length. The calculator multiplies every amount by (target area ÷ original area). For example, a 9-inch round pan (about 63.6 in²) is nearly identical to an 8-inch square pan (64 in²), so swapping between them barely changes the recipe.

Can I convert between any two units directly?

Yes — within the same class (volume to volume, or mass to mass) the conversion uses exact NIST factors. Across classes (volume to mass or vice versa) the calculator needs an ingredient to look up the density; selecting the correct ingredient from the list gives the most accurate result.

What NIST measurement standards does the calculator use?

Volume conversions use the exact factors from NIST Handbook 44 and SP 811: 1 cup = 236.5882365 ml, 1 tbsp = 14.78676478 ml, 1 tsp = 4.92892159 ml, 1 fl oz = 29.5735295625 ml. Mass conversions use 1 oz = 28.349523125 g and 1 lb = 453.59237 g.

Sources

• USDA FoodData Central — USDA Agricultural Research Service
• www.ars.usda.gov/northeast-area/beltsville-md-bhnrc/beltsville-human-nutrition-research-center/food-surveys-research-group/docs/fndds-download-databases — USDA Agricultural Research Service
• www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/food_composition/documents/density_DB_v2_0_01.pdf — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12252369 — National Center for Biotechnology Information
• Ingredient Weight Chart — King Arthur Baking Company
• NIST Handbook 44 - Current Edition — National Institute of Standards and Technology (2021)

Reviewed by the YouCalc Team · Last reviewed June 12, 2026