Cups to Grams
Convert cups to grams for common baking ingredients: all-purpose flour, white sugar, butter, and uncooked rice.
How to use this tool
- Enter cups and ingredient in the fields above.
- Results update instantly as you type — or click Calculate.
- Read your grams and the full breakdown beneath it.
Formula
Grams = Cups × Ingredient Density (g/cup)
Key densities used: flour = 125 g/cup, sugar = 200 g/cup, brown sugar = 220 g/cup, butter = 227 g/cup, rice = 185 g/cup, oats = 90 g/cup, honey = 340 g/cup, milk = 240 g/cup.
Ounces = Grams ÷ 28.349523
How it works
A cup is a fixed volume measure, but different ingredients pack into that volume with different masses depending on their density and particle size. This converter multiplies the cup count by a standard gram-per-cup density for each ingredient to give the equivalent weight. Weighing ingredients on a kitchen scale is generally more accurate than volume measurement for baking.
A common mistake is scooping flour directly from the bag with a measuring cup, which compacts it — a scooped cup of all-purpose flour can weigh 150–160 g instead of the standard 125 g used here. The correct technique is to spoon flour lightly into the cup and level it off.
Worked example
Convert 1 cup of all-purpose flour to grams
- Select ingredient: all-purpose flour (density = 125 g per cup).
- Multiply: 1 cup × 125 g/cup = 125 g.
- Convert to ounces: 125 ÷ 28.349523 ≈ 4.41 oz.
1 cup of all-purpose flour = 125 g (4.41 oz).
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using a single density value for all flour types -- bread flour runs ~120 g/cup and cake flour ~100 g/cup, versus all-purpose at ~125 g/cup; mixing them up shifts a recipe noticeably.
- Scooping the measuring cup directly into the flour bag -- this packs in 20-30% more flour than the spooned-and-leveled technique the density values assume.
- Applying the same cups-to-grams factor to a different ingredient -- entering cups of oats but leaving the ingredient selector on "sugar" returns a value nearly 2x too high.
Key terms
- Cup (US volume)
- A standardised US cooking measure equal to 8 fluid ounces or approximately 236.6 mL, used for both liquids and dry ingredients.
- Ingredient density (g/cup)
- The mass in grams that fills one standard cup for a given ingredient. It varies widely — honey is nearly three times denser than rolled oats per cup.
- Tare weight
- The weight of an empty bowl or container subtracted when weighing ingredients; setting a kitchen scale to zero with the empty bowl before adding an ingredient.
- Avoirdupois ounce
- The standard ounce used in US cooking weight, equal to 28.349523 grams, distinct from the fluid ounce used for liquids.
Frequently asked questions
- How many grams in a cup of flour?
- A cup of all-purpose flour weighs approximately 125 grams (4.4 oz). Scooping compacts the flour; spooning into the cup gives a lighter measurement.
- How many grams in a cup of sugar?
- A cup of white granulated sugar weighs approximately 200 grams (7.1 oz).