How many tablespoons are in a cup? Quick cooking conversions

Cups-to-tablespoons conversion chart

For a recipe that uses US customary measurements, one cup always contains 16 tablespoons. This is a volume conversion, so it works for liquids and dry ingredients when both amounts are measured by volume.

The chart below covers the fractions that appear most often in cooking and baking. USDA's official conversion table gives the same equivalents.

• 1/16 cup = 1 tablespoon
• 1/8 cup = 2 tablespoons
• 1/6 cup = 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
• 1/4 cup = 4 tablespoons
• 1/3 cup = 5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
• 3/8 cup = 6 tablespoons
• 1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons
• 2/3 cup = 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
• 3/4 cup = 12 tablespoons
• 1 cup = 16 tablespoons

How to convert cups to tablespoons

Multiply the number of US cups by 16. For example, 1.5 cups multiplied by 16 equals 24 tablespoons. The same formula works for fractions: 0.25 cup multiplied by 16 equals 4 tablespoons.

If the answer includes part of a tablespoon, remember that 1 tablespoon equals 3 teaspoons in the US system. One-third cup, for example, is 5⅓ tablespoons, which is easier to measure as 5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon.

How to convert tablespoons to cups

Divide the number of tablespoons by 16. Eight tablespoons divided by 16 equals 1/2 cup, while 20 tablespoons divided by 16 equals 1.25 cups, or 1 1/4 cups.

For quick mental math, every 4 tablespoons equals 1/4 cup. Grouping tablespoons in sets of four makes many conversions easy without a calculator.

US cups, metric cups and Australian tablespoons

The simple 16-tablespoon answer applies to US customary recipes. FDA nutrition-label guidance treats a cup as 240 milliliters and a tablespoon as 15 milliliters, which also produces 16 tablespoons per cup for label calculations.

Many international recipes use a 250-milliliter metric cup and a 15-milliliter tablespoon. That cup contains 16 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons. Australia traditionally uses a 20-milliliter tablespoon, so a 250-milliliter cup equals 12.5 Australian tablespoons. When following a recipe from another country, use its stated milliliters or matching measuring set.

• US customary cup: 16 US tablespoons
• FDA labeling measures: 240 mL cup ÷ 15 mL tablespoon = 16
• 250 mL metric cup: 16 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons when the tablespoon is 15 mL
• 250 mL Australian cup: 12.5 Australian tablespoons when each is 20 mL

Does the ingredient change the conversion?

The cup-to-tablespoon count does not change with the ingredient because both units measure volume. One cup of flour and one cup of water each occupy 16 US tablespoons of space.

Their weights are different, however. A tablespoon of honey, flour and butter will not contain the same number of grams. If a recipe gives a mass in grams or ounces, use a scale or an ingredient-specific conversion rather than assuming every tablespoon has the same weight.

How to measure accurately without a full cup

Use level measuring tablespoons rather than ordinary dining spoons, which vary in size. For dry ingredients, fill the spoon and level the top with a straight edge. For liquids, fill to the rim while keeping the spoon level.

If you need one cup but only have a tablespoon, measure 16 level tablespoons. For a half cup, use 8; for a quarter cup, use 4. In baking, a scale is often more repeatable when the recipe supplies gram weights.

Sources

Primary and official references used for this guide:

• USDA — official measurement conversion table
• FDA — metric equivalents for household food measures
• USDA Forest Service — liquid conversion factors