My kitchen measuring conversion chart and basic cooking measurements can help you halve your recipes, double your recipes, or adjust ingredient measurements to your liking. This is the perfect cooking cheat sheet.
My kitchen measuring conversion chart and basic cooking measurements should help you follow recipes accurately and quickly, and even make scaling or halving them easier.
It's not easy to understand common kitchen measurement systems. There are so many, including gallons, cups, tablespoons, ounces, and then don't forget there are two different measuring systems, one for the U.S. and one for the rest of the world.
I created this post with a free conversion chart and provided a few useful lists of kitchen conversions to help make it simple for you. I'm hoping you can just run your finger down a list for the answer to help you halve or double a recipe or even switch between standard and metric.
My free downloadable PDF conversion chart is clickable further down this post. I also provide common cooking conversions that you can screenshot and have on hand for quick and easy cooking. Whether you are good at math or not, you shouldn't have to be to make my favorite no bake chocolate brownies or my chocolate frosted donuts.
Jump to:
- Why Measuring Accurately in Cooking is Important
- Best Kitchen Cooking Measuring Equipment
- Cake & Baking Pan Conversions
- Cooking Measurement Abbreviations
- Common Cooking Conversions
- U.S. Customary System vs Metric System
- Common Dry Measurements
- Common Liquid Measurements
- US Standard to Metric Cooking Conversions
- Key Volume Conversions
- Popular Common Food Conversions
- 📌Download Free Kitchen Measuring Conversion Chart
- FAQS
- More Cooking Conversion Resources
Why Measuring Accurately in Cooking is Important
While some recipes are just fine with ingredients being estimated and added based on taste, many need very accurate measurements to come out right. For instance, my smoothie recipe ingredients can be estimated and adjusted by taste and still turn out a delicious drink. However, my healthy chocolate cake needs accurate measuring, especially the pumpkin puree and flour, to create the best soft texture.
Best Kitchen Cooking Measuring Equipment
One way to ensure accurate measuring is to use the proper equipment. You only need these measuring cups and spoons typically used for dry ingredients, although the spoons are definitely used for liquid as well. And you'll need something like these heat-safe glass measuring cups typically used for wet ingredients.
Some people recommend a kitchen scale to measure by weight but if you use the scoop and level method, you don't need a scale. The way it works is you fluff the flour in the bag, then spoon it into a measuring cup (like these), and then take a knife and level it off. See the image below.
Cake & Baking Pan Conversions
When you are baking, you'll be using specific pans and I thought it might be helpful to share with you some common cake pan conversions.
6-inch round cake pan = 4 cups
8-inch round cake pan = 6 cups
9-inch round cake pan = 12 cups
8 x 4 inch loaf pan = 4 cups
9 x 5 inch loaf pan = 8 cups
12-cupcake pan = 12 cups
6 cupcake pan = 6 cups
Cooking Measurement Abbreviations
First I will share with you the abbreviations you will see in any recipe, whether it is written with the metric system or the U.S. standard or customary.
| tablespoon | tablespoon |
| teaspoon | teaspoon |
| oz | ounce |
| fl oz | fluid ounce |
| c | cup |
| qt | quart |
| pt | pint |
| gal | gallon |
| lb | pound |
| mL | milliliter |
| g | grams |
| kg | kilogram |
| l | liter |
Now that you know the abbreviations, the list of conversions below might be more clear if you encounter them with their abbreviations.
Common Cooking Conversions
Here is a list of the common kitchen conversions you might encounter during your time spent cooking.
How to Convert Gallons
How many ounces in a gallon? 128 fluid ounces
How many liters in a gallon? 3.785 liters
How many quarts in a gallon? 4 quarts
How many pints in a gallon? 8 pints
How many cups in a gallon? 16 cups
How to Convert Quarts
How many pints in a quart? 2 pints
How many cups in a quart? 4 cups
How many ounces in a quart? 32 ounces
How many milliliters in a quart? 950 ml
How to Convert Pints
How many cups in a pint? 2 cups
How many ounces in a pint? 16 ounces
How many milliliters in a pint? 480 ml
How to Convert Cups
How many tablespoons in a cup? 16 tbsp
How many ounces in a cup? 8 ounces
How many milliliters in a cup? 240 ml
How to Convert Tablespoons
How many teaspoons in a tablespoon? 3 tsp
How many ounces in a tablespoon? ½ ounce
How many milliliters in a tablespoon? 15 ml
Common Tablespoon & Cup Conversions
How many tablespoons are in 1/16 cup? 1 tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ⅛ cup? 2 tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ¼ cup? 4 tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ⅓ cup? 5 ⅓ tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ½ cup? 8 tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ⅔ cup? 10 ⅔ tbsp
How many tablespoons are in ¾ cup? 12 tbsp
How many tablespoons are in 1 cup? 16 tbsp
Common Teaspoon & Tablespoon Conversions
How many teaspoons are in 1 tablespoon? 3 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 2 tablespoons? 6 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 4 tablespoons? 12 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 5 ⅓ tablespoons? 16 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 8 tablespoons? 24 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 10 ⅔ tablespoons? 32 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 12 tablespoons? 36 tsp
How many teaspoons are in 16 tablespoons? 48 tsp
Common Milliliter & Teaspoon Conversions
How many milliliters are in 1 teaspoon? 5 ml
How many milliliters are in 3 teaspoons? 15 ml
How many milliliters are in 6 teaspoons? 30 ml
How many milliliters are in 12 teaspoons? 60 ml
How many milliliters are in 16 teaspoons? 80 ml
How many milliliters are in 24 teaspoons? 120 ml
How many milliliters are in 32 teaspoons? 160 ml
How many milliliters are in 36 teaspoons? 180 ml
How many milliliters are in 48 teaspoons? 240 ml
U.S. Customary System vs Metric System
The cooking measurement system followed in the United States by home cooks and professionals alike is the United States customary units system, also called the U.S. Imperial System or the U.S. standard system. The U.S. basically adopted Britian's Imperial system but changed it regarding volume and renamed it U.S. standard or customary. As with the Celsius and Fahrenheit for cooking temperature systems, the United States stands alone. The rest of the world's cooks use the metric system.
In your journey through cooking measurements, you'll also encounter a bit of confusion. For instance, the U.S.'s Imperial system isn't exactly the same as the Imperial system used in Europe. The U.S. system also has other names, such as the standard system, customary or USCS. Learn more about the differences here in my imperial (U.S. standard) and metric system explained post.
To add to the measurement melting pot, there are other points of confusions, such as ounces and fluid ounces are different, dry ingredients are measured by weight and liquid by volume, and oh, yes, the U.S. spells liter like this whereas Europeans spell it litre. I thought it might help if I share with you a few conversions between dry measurements and wet measurements so you can just pick and convert, rather than assess.
Common Dry Measurements
| Teaspoons | Tablespoons | Cups |
|---|---|---|
| 3 tsp | 1 tbsp | 1/16 c |
| 6 tsp | 2 tbsp | ⅛ c |
| 12 tsp | 4 tbsp | ¼ c |
| 24 tsp | 8 tbsp | ½ c |
| 36 tsp | 12 tbsp | ¾ c |
| 48 tsp | 16 tbsp | 1 c |
Common Liquid Measurements
| Cups | Fluid Ounces | Quarts | Gallons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 c | 8 fl. oz | ¼ qt | 1/16 gal |
| 2 c | 16 fl. oz | ½ qt | ⅛ gal |
| 4 c | 32 fl. oz | 1 qt | ¼ gal |
| 8 c | 64 fl. oz | 2 qt | ½ gal |
| 16 c | 128 fl. oz | 4 qt | 1 gal |
US Standard to Metric Cooking Conversions
The difference between the two systems is extensive but I thought it might be helpful to give you a short list of the most common conversion you'll encounter involving milliliters.
| ⅕ tsp | 1 ml |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml |
| 1 tbsp | 15 ml |
| 1 fl. oz | 30 ml |
| 1 c | 237 ml |
Key Volume Conversions
1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons = 15 ml
4 tablespoons = ¼ cup = 60 ml
1 ounce = 2 tablespoons = 30 ml
1 cup = 8 oz. = 250 ml
1 pint = 2 cups = 500 ml
1 quart = 4 cups = 950 ml
1 quart = 2 pints = 950 ml
1 gallon = 4 quarts = 3800 ml = 3.8 liters
Popular Common Food Conversions
Again, with the idea that you might want to just be told what conversion to use, here is a list of all the foods that are commonly used in most recipes, both sweet and savory.
butter : 1 cup = 1 stick = 8 oz = 230 g
cocoa powder : 1 cup = 4.4 oz = 125 g
white flour : 1 cup = 4.5 oz = 120 g
chopped apples : 1 cup = 4.6 oz =130 g
almond flour : 1 cup = 3.9 oz = 112 g
sour cream : 1 cup = 8.6 oz = 240 g
white sugar : 1 cup = 7.1 oz = 200 g
rice : 1 cup = 6.5 oz = 185 g
brown sugar : 1 cup = 7.8 oz = 220 g
chocolate chips : 1 cup = 6 oz = 170 g
powdered sugar : 1 cup = 4.1 oz = 115 g
water : 1 cup = 8 fl oz = 240 g = 236 mL
date paste : 1 cup = 12 dates + ⅓ cup water
chopped nuts : 1 cup = 5.3 oz = 170g
oatmeal (rolled) : 1 cup = 3 oz = 85 g
olive oil : 1 cup = 7.7 oz = 225 g = 236ml
yogurt : 1 cup = 8 oz = 227 g = 236mL
maple syrup : 1 cup = 320 g = 240 mL
milk : 1 cup = 8 fl oz = 240g = 236 mL
chia seeds : 1 cup = 8.6 oz = 150 g
juice : 1 cup = 8 fl oz = 237 g = 236 mL
chickpeas : 1 cup = 8 oz = 164 g
📌Download Free Kitchen Measuring Conversion Chart
Finally, here is your FREE kitchen measuring conversion chart for you to download and print, or simply screenshot and keep it handy on your phone. If you print, you might consider keeping it in a ziplock bag and keeping it handy when you cook. Or use magnets to keep it on your refrigerator.
FAQS
3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon.
4 tablespoons = ¼ cup.
5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon = ⅓ cup.
8 tablespoons = ½ cup.
10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons = ⅔ cup.
12 tablespoons = ¾ cup.
16 tablespoons = 1 cup.
In the USA, using the U.S. Standard System, basic household measurements are measured with teaspoons, tablespoons, cups, pints, quarts and gallons.
There are 4 tablespoons and 2 ounces in ¼ cup.
More Cooking Conversion Resources
If you found this basic kitchen measurement post helpful, you might also like some of my other measurement posts including how many ounces in a quart, how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon and even my Celsius and Fahrenheit conversion chart and explainer.
Also, if you visit any other articles or recipes on my website, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 review on a recipe or a 📝 comment here if you have thoughts or questions.
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