US Cups to mL Converter | US Cups to Milliliters [Free Calculator]

Baking a recipe from the USA, but your measuring jug is in mL? You’re not alone. Convert US cups to ml (milliliters) instantly. 1 US Cup = 236.59 mL.

Do you need to convert US cups to milliliters for a recipe? For baking, cooking, and recipe conversions, use the calculator below.

US Cups to mL Calculator

Get the precise milliliters in just one second by entering your US cups below. This converter can be used to calculate mL to US cups or US cups to mL.

US Cup vs Metric Cup vs UK Cup: What’s the Difference?

A “cup” is not one unique, internationally recognized unit of measurement. Different countries and recipe systems define a cup differently; this is where most people get confused while baking, so using the wrong one can make a noticeable difference in baking outcomes.

Quick Comparison Table:

Cup Type	Volume (mL)
US customary Cup	236.6 mL
US Legal Cup	240 mL
Metric Cup	250 mL
UK (Imperial) Cup	284.1 mL
Japan/Korea Cup	200 mL

The three most common standards are US cups, Metric cups, and UK cups (historically). The NIST metric measurements play a crucial role in defining measurement standards in the U.S.

US Cups:

1. The US Customary Cup is the standard cup used for cooking, baking, and recipes. 99% of American recipes and cookbooks use US Customary cups. If a recipe just says “1 cup” and it’s from a US site like AllRecipes or NYT Cooking, use 236.59 mL.
2. The US legal cup is an exact measurement used for FDA nutrition labels and food serving sizes. The US legal cup (240 mL) is primarily an administrative standard for nutrition labeling rather than a culinary one.

Note: Nowadays many sources simply say ‘1 US cup’ because the 1.4% difference between 237 ml and 240 ml is usually negligible in cooking.

How to Convert Cups to mL Manually

Converting US cups to mL manually is easy once you know which cup standard the recipe uses. The formula is super simple:

Examples:

• ¼ cup = 0.25 × 236.59 = 60 mL
• ⅓ cup = 0.33 × 236.59 = 79 mL
• ½ cup = 0.5 × 236.59 = 118.3 mL (118 mL)
• ⅔ cup = 0.66 × 236.59 = 158 mL
• 3/4 cup = 0.75 x 236.59 = 177.44 mL (177 mL)
• 1 cup = 1 × 236.59 = 236.6 mL (237 mL)
• 2 cups = 2 × 236.59 = 473.2 mL (473 mL)
• 3½ cups = 3.5 × 236.59 = 828.1 mL (828 mL)

Note: Use multiplication (×) when going from US cups to mL and use division (÷) when going from mL to cups.

• Cups → mL: (Multiply) 0.5 × 236.588 = 118.3 mL
• mL → Cups: (Divide) 118.3 ÷ 236.588 = 0.5 cups

US Cups to mL Conversion Chart

How many mL in a cup? Use this chart for quick reference while cooking. These values are based on the US customary cup, where 1 cup = 236.59 mL.

US Cups	US mL
1/8 cup	29.57 mL (30 mL)
1/4 cup	59.15 mL (59 mL)
1/3 cup	78.86 mL (79 mL)
1/2 cup	118.29 mL (118 mL)
2/3 cup	157.73 mL (158 mL)
3/4 cup	177.44 mL (177 mL)
1 cup	236.59 mL (237 mL)
1¼ cups	295.74 mL (296 mL)
1 1/3 cups	315.45 mL (315 mL)
1½ cups	354.88 mL (355 mL)
1⅔ cups	394.31 mL (394 mL)
1¾ cups	414.03 mL (414 mL)
2 cups	473.18 mL (473 mL)
2½ cups	591.47 ml (591 mL)
3 cups	709.76 mL (710 mL)
3½ cups	828.06 mL (828 mL)
4 cups	946.35 mL (946 mL)
5 cups	1,183 mL (1.18 L)
6 cups	1,420 mL (1.42 L)
8 cups	1,893 mL (1.89 L)
10 cups	2,366 mL (2.37 L)
16 cups	3,785 mL (3.79 L)

Note: If you’re following recipes, rounding to the nearest full milliliter is usually accurate enough, as the slight change will not impact the finished dish.

Common Cooking Conversions Using Cups to mL

Although there isn’t just one “most searched” kitchen conversion, the following are the most popular ones:

• ¼ cup butter, oil, and milk = 59 mL
• ⅓ cup sugar, flour, and liquids = 79 mL
• 1/2 cup water to mL = 118 mL
• ⅔ cup liquids, rice, and oats = 158 mL
• ¾ cup milk, cream, and flour = 177 mL
• 1 cup flour to mL = 237 mL (1 cup flour by weight = 120 g)
• 1¼ cups Batters, sauces = 296 mL
• 1½ cups of soups and liquids = 355 mL
• 1⅔ cups baking recipes = 394 mL
• 1¾ cups dough, batters = 414 mL
• 2½ cups Casseroles, soups = 591 mL
• 3 cups cake batter = 710 mL
• 8 oz cup to mL = 236.59 mL. In the US, 1 cup = 8 fluid ounces

Why Are US and Metric Cups Different?

The ‘cup’ was never a universal scientific unit. It was a handy domestic measure, which various countries standardized in various ways.

The US cup is derived from the US customary system, while the metric cup was created to fit the clean, base-10 metric system.

Use US measuring cups for recipes from the United States. The US cup was standardized to 8 US fluid ounces = 236.59 mL in 1824. A US cup was eventually defined as 1/16 of a US gallon, which works out to 236.59 mL.

The FDA standardized 1 US cup to 236.588 mL, which they rounded to 236.59 mL for regulatory and nutrition labeling purposes.

Most other countries use the metric system, so they rounded to a clean 250 mL for a “metric cup” in the 1970s. Use 250 mL metric cups for recipes from Australia or New Zealand or recipes that explicitly state metric measurements.

Although the 13.4 mL difference between a US cup and a metric cup may seem insignificant, using the incorrect cup can lead to cake failures.

Conclusion

Converting US cups to milliliters is simple once you know 1 US cup = 236.59 mL. Our free calculator above will automatically convert any recipe amount from cups to mL and back. Whether you are using an American recipe or converting a European recipe into US measuring cups, it saves you time and avoids mistakes. Bookmark this page for easy conversions next time you are cooking!

Frequently Asked Questions