Metric to US Cooking Measurements: Complete Conversion Guide
The most useful metric to US kitchen conversions are: 5 mL = 1 teaspoon, 15 mL = 1 tablespoon, 250 mL ≈ 1 cup, 28 g ≈ 1 ounce, 454 g = 1 pound, and 180 °C ≈ 350 °F. Grams only convert to cups ingredient by ingredient, because cups measure volume.
Assumptions
- US cup = 236.6 mL; US tablespoon = 14.79 mL (≈15 mL); US teaspoon = 4.93 mL (≈5 mL).
- 1 ounce (weight) = 28.35 g. 1 US fluid ounce = 29.57 mL.
- Dry ingredients spooned and levelled. Flour figures use 125 g per US cup throughout this site.
- Oven temperatures rounded the way recipes round them.
Volume: millilitres to US measures
| Metric | US equivalent |
|---|---|
| 1 mL | ¼ tsp (scant) |
| 2.5 mL | ½ tsp |
| 5 mL | 1 tsp |
| 15 mL | 1 tbsp |
| 30 mL | 2 tbsp (1 fl oz) |
| 60 mL | ¼ cup |
| 80 mL | ⅓ cup |
| 125 mL | ½ cup |
| 175 mL | ¾ cup |
| 250 mL | 1 cup (+ 1 tbsp) |
| 500 mL | 2 cups (1 US pint) |
| 750 mL | 3 cups |
| 1 L | 4 cups (1 US quart) + 3½ tbsp |
Weight: grams to ounces and pounds
| Metric | US |
|---|---|
| 15 g | ½ oz |
| 28 g | 1 oz |
| 57 g | 2 oz |
| 100 g | 3.5 oz |
| 113 g | 4 oz (¼ lb) |
| 227 g | 8 oz (½ lb) |
| 250 g | 8.8 oz |
| 454 g | 16 oz (1 lb) |
| 500 g | 1.1 lb |
| 1 kg | 2.2 lb |
Grams to cups for common ingredients
| Ingredient | 100 g ≈ | 1 US cup = |
|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | ¾ cup + 1 tbsp | 125 g |
| Granulated sugar | ½ cup | 200 g |
| Packed brown sugar | ½ cup − 1 tbsp (approx.) | 220 g |
| Icing (powdered) sugar | ¾ cup + 1 tbsp | 120 g |
| Butter | 7 tbsp | 227 g |
| Water | ⅓ cup + 1½ tbsp | 240 g |
| Rolled oats | 1 cup + 2 tbsp | 90 g |
| Cocoa powder | 1 cup + 3 tbsp | 85 g |
The full list is on the cups to grams page.
Temperature: Celsius to Fahrenheit
| °C | °F | Use |
|---|---|---|
| 4 °C | 40 °F | Fridge, maximum |
| 60 °C | 140 °F | Hot-holding minimum |
| 63 °C | 145 °F | Whole cuts of beef and lamb, minimum |
| 71 °C | 160 °F | Ground meat |
| 74 °C | 165 °F | Poultry, leftovers |
| 100 °C | 212 °F | Water boils (sea level) |
| 150 °C | 300 °F | Slow oven |
| 160 °C | 325 °F | Moderate oven |
| 180 °C | 350 °F | Standard baking |
| 200 °C | 400 °F | Roasting |
| 220 °C | 425 °F | Hot oven |
| 230 °C | 450 °F | Very hot |
Formula: °F = °C × 9/5 + 32. See oven temperature conversion for the full chart, plus fan and gas mark settings, and meat internal temperatures for food-safety details.
Length: centimetres to inches
| Metric | US |
|---|---|
| 3 mm | ⅛ in |
| 6 mm | ¼ in |
| 1 cm | ⅜ in (just under ½) |
| 2.5 cm | 1 in |
| 5 cm | 2 in |
| 20 cm | 8 in |
| 23 cm | 9 in |
| 25 cm | 10 in |
| 23 × 33 cm | 9 × 13 in |
Useful for dicing instructions and pan sizes. See the baking pan size conversion guide for swapping pans.
Why metric is easier in the kitchen
Metric units are built on tens and link to each other neatly: 1 mL of water weighs 1 g, and 1 L weighs 1 kg. Scaling a recipe means multiplying simple numbers rather than juggling thirds of cups and fractions of a pound.
More importantly, metric recipes measure dry ingredients by weight. A cup of flour can vary by 20% or more depending on how it's scooped, but 250 g of flour is always 250 g. That's why professional bakers, and nearly every recipe outside North America, use grams.
Where the confusion comes from
- Different cups: US 236.6 mL, metric 250 mL, imperial 284 mL. See cups to millilitres.
- Different tablespoons: Australia uses 20 mL; most other places use 15 mL. See tablespoons to teaspoons.
- Ounces vs fluid ounces: one measures weight, the other volume. See ounces to grams.
- Pints: a UK pint is 568 mL; a US pint is 473 mL.
- Butter: US sticks are 113 g, Canadian blocks 454 g, UK blocks 250 g. See the butter conversion chart.
Questions
What is the easiest way to cook from a metric recipe?
Use a digital kitchen scale for grams and a measuring jug marked in millilitres. Metric recipes are written by weight, so a scale lets you follow them exactly without any conversion.
Is 250 mL the same as 1 cup?
Nearly. 250 mL is a metric cup, about 1 US cup plus 1 tablespoon. For liquids in cooking you can treat them as the same.
How do I convert grams to cups?
It depends on the ingredient. 100 g is about 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup of granulated sugar or about 7 tablespoons of butter.
Does Canada use metric or US measurements in recipes?
Both. Canadian packaging and many newer recipes are metric, but cups and spoons are still common at home, and Canadian measuring cups are usually labelled in both mL and cups.