KitchenCups to grams, by ingredient
A cup of sugar and a cup of flour do not weigh the same. Choose the ingredient and this page turns cups, tablespoons and teaspoons into grams, and grams back into cups.
Cups to grams
Grams to cups
Weight of one cup, half a cup and one tablespoon
One cup is 240 ml, filled level. Figures are rounded and are close guides, not laboratory values.
| Ingredient | 1 cup | 1/2 cup | 1 tablespoon | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | 240 g | 120 g | 15 g | |
| Milk | 245 g | 122 g | 15 g | |
| Curd (dahi), plain | 245 g | 122 g | 15 g | |
| Oil | 218 g | 109 g | 14 g | Any cooking oil |
| Ghee | 205 g | 102 g | 13 g | Melted or soft |
| Butter | 227 g | 114 g | 14 g | One cup is two 113 g sticks |
| Honey | 340 g | 170 g | 21 g | |
| Sugar, granulated | 200 g | 100 g | 12 g | |
| Sugar, powdered (icing) | 120 g | 60 g | 7.5 g | Unsifted |
| Brown sugar, packed | 220 g | 110 g | 14 g | Pressed into the cup |
| Maida (plain flour) | 125 g | 62 g | 7.8 g | Spooned into the cup and levelled |
| Atta (whole wheat flour) | 120 g | 60 g | 7.5 g | Spooned and levelled; chakki atta can weigh a little more |
| Besan (gram flour) | 92 g | 46 g | 5.8 g | |
| Sooji (semolina, rava) | 167 g | 84 g | 10 g | |
| Cornflour (corn starch) | 128 g | 64 g | 8.0 g | |
| Rice, raw white | 185 g | 92 g | 12 g | Long grain, uncooked |
| Toor, moong or masoor dal, raw | 192 g | 96 g | 12 g | Split lentils, uncooked |
| Chickpeas (kabuli chana), raw | 200 g | 100 g | 12 g | Dried, uncooked |
| Oats, rolled | 81 g | 40 g | 5.1 g | |
| Cocoa powder | 86 g | 43 g | 5.4 g | Unsweetened |
| Salt, table | 292 g | 146 g | 18 g | A teaspoon is about 6 g |
| Peanuts, raw | 146 g | 73 g | 9.1 g | |
| Almonds, whole | 143 g | 72 g | 8.9 g | |
| Raisins | 145 g | 72 g | 9.1 g | Not packed |
How to fill a cup so the weight is right
- Flour, besan, cocoa: stir the flour, spoon it into the cup until heaped, then level with the back of a knife. Do not tap or press.
- Sugar, rice, dal, sooji: scoop and level. These do not pack much.
- Brown sugar: press it into the cup. Recipes mean a packed cup.
- Ghee, butter: soften first, or measure by weight. A cold lump leaves air gaps.
- Liquids: use a clear cup on a flat surface and read at eye level.
Questions people ask
How many grams is 1 cup of atta?
About 120 g when the atta is spooned into a 240 ml cup and levelled. If you scoop the cup straight into the bag, the atta packs down and the cup can hold 140 g or more.
How many grams is 1 cup of sugar?
About 200 g of ordinary granulated sugar. Powdered sugar is much lighter, about 120 g a cup.
Is an Indian cup 200 ml, 240 ml or 250 ml?
There is no single Indian cup. Measuring cup sets sold in India are usually 240 ml or 250 ml. Tea cups and katoris are smaller. This page uses 240 ml. For a 250 ml cup, add about 4 percent.
Why do my grams not match the table?
Powders settle. Flour that is sifted, spooned or scooped can differ by 20 percent in the same cup. For baking, a kitchen scale is the only exact way.
More kitchen help
- MeasuresTeaspoon, tablespoon, cup, ml, katori, pav, tola and seer.
- Oven temperaturesCelsius, Fahrenheit and gas mark, with fan oven settings.
- SubstitutesWhat to use when an ingredient is missing.
- Cooking timesPressure cooker minutes for dals, beans and rice.
- How much to cookRice, dal, atta and vegetables for any number of people.
- Food storageHow long food keeps in the fridge and the freezer.
- Spice namesJeera, ajwain, kalonji: English and Hindi names with uses.
- Dal and grain namesDals, flours and millets in English and Hindi.
- Vegetable namesTori, tinda, parwal: English and Hindi names with season.