The short answer
A US cup holds 8 fluid ounces. That is 16 tablespoons, 48 teaspoons or about 236.6 mL. Fluid ounces measure space, not weight. A cup of flour weighs only about 4.4 ounces.
Open the free toolHow many liquid ounces are in a cup?
A US cup holds exactly 8 fluid ounces. This is not a kitchen habit or a rounded number. NIST Handbook 44, the US government handbook for weights and measures, defines the measuring cup as 8 fluid ounces, which is half a US pint.
In milliliters, one cup is 236.5882365 mL, or about 236.6 mL. One fluid ounce is about 29.57 mL. Both numbers follow from the definitions: a US gallon is 231 cubic inches, it holds 128 fluid ounces, and an inch is exactly 2.54 cm.
Cups to fluid ounces
Multiply the cups by 8. For 1 1/2 cups: 1.5 × 8 = 12 fl oz.
Fluid ounces to cups
Divide the fluid ounces by 8. For 20 fl oz: 20 ÷ 8 = 2 1/2 cups.
Cups to milliliters
Multiply the cups by 236.59. For 2 cups: 2 × 236.59 = 473.2 mL.
How many ounces in 1/2 cup? Chart from 1/4 to 4 cups
Half a cup is 4 fluid ounces, 8 tablespoons or about 118.3 mL. The chart gives every quarter cup from 1/4 to 4 cups, plus 1/3 and 2/3 cup.
Find the amount from your recipe in the left column and read across. The ounces in this chart are fluid ounces. Use them for water, milk, oil, juice and other liquids.
| Cups | US fluid ounces | Tablespoons | Milliliters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4 cup | 2 fl oz | 4 tbsp | 59.1 mL |
| 1/3 cup | 2 2/3 fl oz | 5 tbsp + 1 tsp | 78.9 mL |
| 1/2 cup | 4 fl oz | 8 tbsp | 118.3 mL |
| 2/3 cup | 5 1/3 fl oz | 10 tbsp + 2 tsp | 157.7 mL |
| 3/4 cup | 6 fl oz | 12 tbsp | 177.4 mL |
| 1 cup | 8 fl oz | 16 tbsp | 236.6 mL |
| 1 1/4 cups | 10 fl oz | 20 tbsp | 295.7 mL |
| 1 1/2 cups | 12 fl oz | 24 tbsp | 354.9 mL |
| 1 3/4 cups | 14 fl oz | 28 tbsp | 414.0 mL |
| 2 cups | 16 fl oz | 32 tbsp | 473.2 mL |
| 2 1/4 cups | 18 fl oz | 36 tbsp | 532.3 mL |
| 2 1/2 cups | 20 fl oz | 40 tbsp | 591.5 mL |
| 2 3/4 cups | 22 fl oz | 44 tbsp | 650.6 mL |
| 3 cups | 24 fl oz | 48 tbsp | 709.8 mL |
| 3 1/4 cups | 26 fl oz | 52 tbsp | 768.9 mL |
| 3 1/2 cups | 28 fl oz | 56 tbsp | 828.1 mL |
| 3 3/4 cups | 30 fl oz | 60 tbsp | 887.2 mL |
| 4 cups | 32 fl oz | 64 tbsp | 946.4 mL |
How many dry ounces in a cup?
There is no single number, because a dry ounce is a weight and a cup is a space. How much a cup weighs depends on what is in it.
USDA FoodData Central, the US government food database, lists one cup of all-purpose flour at 125 g, a cup of granulated sugar at 200 g and a cup of salted butter at 227 g. In ounces of weight that is about 4.41, 7.05 and 8.01 oz. The same cup, three different weights.
- For liquids, use a measuring jug. Put it on a flat surface and read the line at eye level.
- For flour and sugar, use dry measuring cups. Fill the cup, then scrape off the extra with a straight edge.
- Do not swap the two kinds of cup. NIST names this as a common way to bring errors into a recipe.
- If the recipe gives grams or ounces of weight, use a kitchen scale. NIST recommends weighing when you want accurate results.
| Food (USDA FoodData Central) | 1 cup in grams | 1 cup in ounces of weight |
|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour (white, enriched, bleached) | 125 g | 4.41 oz |
| Granulated sugar | 200 g | 7.05 oz |
| Butter, salted | 227 g | 8.01 oz |
How many tablespoons in a cup, and teaspoons in a tablespoon?
A cup holds 16 tablespoons, and a tablespoon holds 3 teaspoons. So a cup is also 48 teaspoons.
Both numbers come from NIST: a tablespoon is half a fluid ounce, and a teaspoon is a third of a tablespoon. A cup is 8 fluid ounces, so it holds 8 × 2 = 16 tablespoons, and 16 × 3 = 48 teaspoons.
- 1 cup = 16 tbsp = 48 tsp
- 3/4 cup = 12 tbsp
- 2/3 cup = 10 tbsp + 2 tsp
- 1/2 cup = 8 tbsp
- 1/3 cup = 5 tbsp + 1 tsp
- 1/4 cup = 4 tbsp
- 1 fl oz = 2 tbsp = 6 tsp
- 1 tbsp = 3 tsp = about 14.8 mL, and 1 tsp = about 4.9 mL
How many tablespoons of butter in a cup?
A cup of butter is 16 tablespoons, the same as any other cup. Butter is also measured in sticks, and one stick is about half a cup.
USDA FoodData Central lists salted butter at 227 g per cup, 113 g per stick and 14.2 g per tablespoon. 113 ÷ 14.2 is about 8.0, so one stick is close to 8 tablespoons. Two sticks make about one cup.
For butter, “a cup is 8 ounces” happens to be close for weight too: 227 g is 8.01 oz. That is a coincidence, not a rule. A cup of flour weighs about 4.41 oz.
US cup, metric cup or UK pint: which recipe are you reading?
Check where the recipe comes from, because cups and fluid ounces are not the same size everywhere.
A metric cup is 250 mL. Canada’s food labeling rules, for example, count one cup as 250 mL when a package states servings in cups. A metric cup holds 13.4 mL more than a US cup. That is almost one tablespoon (0.91 tbsp) per cup.
British recipes usually give grams and milliliters. Older ones use Imperial units. An Imperial pint holds 20 Imperial fluid ounces, or 568.26 mL. A US pint holds 16 US fluid ounces, or 473.18 mL. The Imperial fluid ounce is also a little smaller: 28.41 mL against 29.57 mL.
| Measure | Milliliters | In US cups |
|---|---|---|
| US cup (8 US fl oz) | 236.59 mL | 1.00 |
| US nutrition label cup | 240.00 mL | 1.01 |
| Metric cup | 250.00 mL | 1.06 |
| US pint (2 cups) | 473.18 mL | 2.00 |
| Imperial pint (UK) | 568.26 mL | 2.40 |
| US fluid ounce | 29.57 mL | 0.125 |
| Imperial fluid ounce (UK) | 28.41 mL | 0.120 |
Convert cups to ounces, tablespoons or mL
The Unit Converter turns any number of cups into fluid ounces, tablespoons, teaspoons or milliliters with the exact factors from this page.
Choose “Volume”
Open the Unit Converter. Under “Measurement”, pick “Volume”.
Pick the two units
Set “From” to “US customary cups (8 fl oz)”. Set “To” to “US fluid ounces”, “US tablespoons (tbsp)”, “US teaspoons (tsp)” or “Milliliters (mL)”.
Enter the amount
Type the cups in “Value” as a decimal, for example 1.75 for 1 3/4 cups, and press “Convert”. The answer for 1.75 cups is 14 fl oz. The swap button between the units turns the question around, from ounces to cups.
Questions you might still have
How many ounces are in half a cup?
Half a cup is 4 US fluid ounces. That is 8 tablespoons or about 118.3 mL.
Is a cup 8 oz or 16 oz?
A US cup is 8 fluid ounces. 16 fluid ounces is a US pint, which is 2 cups. A cup also holds 16 tablespoons, so keep the two numbers apart.
How many ounces is a cup of flour?
By weight, about 4.41 oz. USDA FoodData Central lists 125 g for one cup of all-purpose flour. By volume, the cup is still 8 fluid ounces of space.
How many cups is 12 oz?
12 fluid ounces is 1 1/2 cups, because 12 ÷ 8 = 1.5. If the 12 oz on a bag is a weight, the number of cups depends on the food inside.
How many mL is 1 cup?
A US cup is exactly 236.5882365 mL, about 236.6 mL. US nutrition labels round it to 240 mL. A metric cup is 250 mL.
How many teaspoons are in a cup?
48. A cup holds 16 tablespoons, and each tablespoon holds 3 teaspoons: 16 × 3 = 48.
Sources & useful details
- NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C: cup = 8 fl oz, tablespoon = 1/2 fl oz, teaspoon = 1/3 tablespoon, gallon = 231 in³; consulted 2026-10-27
- NIST Metric Kitchen: culinary measurement tips (dry and fluid cups, weighing)
- NIST Metric Kitchen: cooking measurement equivalencies (1 cup about 240 mL)
- 21 CFR 101.9(b)(5)(viii): on nutrition labels a cup means 240 mL, a tablespoon 15 mL, a teaspoon 5 mL
- Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, s. 241(3)(a): one cup is 250 mL for servings stated in cups
- UK Weights and Measures Act 1985, Schedule 1: pint = 0.56826125 dm³, fluid ounce = 1/20 pint
- USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), per cup: flour FDC 168894 125 g, sugar FDC 169655 200 g, salted butter FDC 173410 227 g (stick 113 g, tbsp 14.2 g); consulted 2026-10-27
- LoschaZ Unit Converter: cups, fluid ounces, tablespoons and mL
These guides are written from the current LoschaZ tools and the sources listed above. Examples are illustrations, not tests on every device or promises of an identical result.
