Converting cups to grams, ingredient by ingredient
There's no single cups-to-grams number, because a cup measures volume and different ingredients pack differently into that volume. Per King Arthur Baking's ingredient weight chart, 1 cup of all-purpose flour is 120g, 1 cup of granulated sugar is 198g (7 oz), 1 cup of packed brown sugar is 213g (7½ oz), 1 cup of water is 227g (8 oz), and 1 cup of butter is 226g (two 113g half-cups). Always convert by the specific ingredient in front of you, not a generic "1 cup = X grams" rule, since flour and sugar alone differ by nearly 80g per cup.
Convert per ingredient, not by a single cups-to-grams number — flour and sugar differ by almost 80g per cup.
Why "1 cup = X grams" doesn't work as a single rule
A cup is a measure of volume; a gram is a measure of weight. How much a given ingredient weighs inside that same volume depends on its density — how tightly it packs, how much air sits between particles, whether it's a liquid or a solid. That's the whole reason flour (120g/cup) and sugar (198g/cup) land nearly 80g apart despite filling an identical cup. Converting cups to grams only works when you convert per ingredient.
Common baking conversions
| Ingredient | 1 cup in grams | Source |
|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | 120g | King Arthur Baking |
| Granulated sugar | 198g (7 oz) | King Arthur Baking |
| Brown sugar, packed | 213g (7½ oz) | King Arthur Baking |
| Water | 227g (8 oz) | King Arthur Baking |
| Butter | 226g (two 113g half-cups) | King Arthur Baking |
Edge cases
- A recipe just says "flour" with no type. Use the all-purpose figure (120g/cup) unless the recipe specifies bread, cake or whole-wheat flour — those weigh differently per cup because the grain particles are a different size and density.
- You're converting a whole recipe, not one ingredient. Convert each ingredient separately rather than applying one multiplier across the recipe — a cup of butter and a cup of flour don't scale the same way once you're in grams.
- The recipe is from outside North America and already uses grams. No conversion needed — just double-check whether "cup" appears anywhere else in the recipe (for a garnish or side note), since mixed-unit recipes do happen.
- You're scaling a recipe up or down as well as converting units. Do the serving-count scaling first, then convert to grams — converting first and then trying to scale a gram figure by a fraction introduces more rounding error than scaling the original cup measure.
How GetLadle handles this
GetLadle stores each recipe's ingredient quantities and can display them in metric or imperial units without changing what's actually saved — so a recipe written in cups can be read in grams and back again. Conversions round to values a cook would actually reach for (like a level teaspoon or a quarter cup) rather than lab-precise decimals, which keeps a converted recipe usable at the counter, not just accurate on screen. Recipe scaling by serving count is available; exact behaviour may vary by recipe.
Sources
Weights on this page come from King Arthur Baking's Ingredient Weight Chart, fetched and checked in September 2026 (see the source above).
Frequently asked questions
Why does King Arthur's flour weight differ from what's on my flour bag?
Bag labels and recipe sources vary because how you fill the cup (scoop-and-sweep vs. spoon-and-level) changes the packed weight by 10-20g. King Arthur's 120g figure assumes their own fluff-spoon-level method — if a recipe states a different gram weight for a cup of flour, use the recipe's own number for consistency.
Is it more accurate to weigh ingredients than to use cups?
Yes, for anything where ratios matter — baking especially. A cup of flour can vary by scooping method alone; a gram scale removes that variable entirely. It matters less for things like a cup of chopped vegetables in a soup.
Do liquid and dry cups convert the same way?
The cup measure itself is the same volume, but the King Arthur chart shows why the resulting gram weight differs by ingredient regardless: a cup of water is 227g by definition (1g per mL), while a cup of flour is lighter because flour has air pockets between the particles.
Related
- How to Halve a Recipe That Only Uses One Egg
- Meal Planning for Families: The Simple System That Actually Works
- GetLadle Answer Hub
- Compare GetLadle
Sources
Last reviewed 2026-09-15 · GetLadle