Tablespoons to Cups Converter
Convert tablespoons to cups — US, metric (15 mL), Australian (20 mL) or old UK spoons into US, metric, imperial or Japanese cups — with a measuring breakdown, teaspoons, fluid ounces, mL and the weight for common ingredients.
How it works
US cups = tablespoons ÷ 16 · other cups = tablespoons × 14.787 mL ÷ cup size in mL · teaspoons = tablespoons × 3 · fluid ounces = tablespoons ÷ 2 · weight = US cups × grams per cup
A US cup is defined as 16 US tablespoons, so converting is a division by 16: 8 tablespoons is half a cup and 4 is a quarter cup. Spoons and cups are not the same size everywhere, though. The US tablespoon is 14.79 mL, the metric tablespoon used in most of the world is 15 mL, the Australian tablespoon is 20 mL, and old British recipes used a 17.76 mL spoon. Cups vary too: 236.6 mL in US recipes, 240 mL on US nutrition labels, 250 mL for the metric cup, 284 mL for the old UK imperial cup and 200 mL in Japan. Pick the spoon in the unit menu and the cup in the cup menu, and the calculator converts through millilitres. You also get a measuring-cup breakdown such as “¼ cup + 2 tbsp”, teaspoons, fluid ounces and millilitres, and, under More options, the weight of the amount for common ingredients from flour and sugar to butter, oil, honey and salt.
Worked example
You measured out 12 US tablespoons of oil. Dividing by 16 gives 12 ÷ 16 = 0.75 cups, three-quarters of a cup, which is also 12 × 3 = 36 teaspoons, 12 ÷ 2 = 6 fluid ounces and about 177 mL. An Australian recipe that asks for 3 tablespoons means 3 × 20 = 60 mL, which is 60 ÷ 250 = 0.24 metric cups, or about 4 US tablespoons.
Sources: NIST — US customary volume units (1 cup = 16 tbsp = 236.6 mL) · FDA — 21 CFR 101.9: household measures on nutrition labels (1 cup = 240 mL, 1 tbsp = 15 mL)
Frequently asked questions
How many tablespoons are in a cup?
A US cup holds exactly 16 tablespoons. Half a cup is 8 tablespoons, a quarter cup is 4, and a third of a cup is 5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon. A 250 mL metric cup holds about 16.7 metric tablespoons.
Is the US tablespoon the same as a metric tablespoon?
Nearly. A US tablespoon is about 14.79 mL, a metric tablespoon is 15 mL, and an Australian tablespoon is 20 mL. The US and metric spoons can be swapped in everyday cooking, but the Australian spoon is a third larger, so convert it when a recipe comes from there.
Does this work for dry ingredients like flour?
Yes. Tablespoons and cups are both volume units, so the conversion is the same for wet and dry ingredients. Only the weight differs: 16 tablespoons of flour and 16 tablespoons of water are both one cup, but the flour weighs about 120 g and the water 237 g. Pick an ingredient under More options to see the weight.
How many tablespoons is a third of a cup?
A third of a US cup is 5⅓ tablespoons, which you measure as 5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon. Two-thirds of a cup is 10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons.
How many tablespoons is a stick of butter?
A US stick of butter is 8 tablespoons, or half a cup, and weighs about 113 g. Pick butter as the ingredient to see the stick count alongside the cups.
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This calculator is for educational purposes. Double-check important results before acting on them.