View source for Cup (unit)

{{Short description|Cooking measure of volume}}
{{other uses|Cup (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox unit
| bgcolor      =
| name         = cup
| image        = Simple Measuring Cup.jpg
| caption      = A simple plastic [[measuring cup]], capable of holding the volume one ''metric cup'' with a scale for US fluid ounces
| standard     = [[US customary units]]
| quantity     = Volume
| symbol       = cup
| symbol2      =
| namedafter   =
| extralabel   =
| extradata    =
| units_us1    = SI units
| inunits_us1  = 236.588 mL
}}

The '''[https://how-many-ounces-in-a-cup.com/ cup]''' is a [[cooking weights and measures|cooking measure]] of [[volume]], commonly associated with cooking and [[serving size]]s. In the US customary system, it is equal to {{convert|1/2|USpt|USoz impfloz ml|lk=on|spell=in|1}}. Because actual drinking [[cup]]s may differ greatly from the size of this unit, standard [[measuring cup]]s may be used, with a metric cup commonly being rounded up to 240 [[millilitre]]s (''legal cup''), but 250 ml is also used depending on the measuring scale.

==United States==

===Customary cup<span class="anchor" id="US customary cup"></span><span class="anchor" id="United States customary cup"></span>===
[[File:Gradiations on Coffee Carafe.jpg|thumb|upright|Coffee carafe showing gradations for measuring water (right) and brewed coffee (left) in multiples of non-standard US customary cups.]]
In the United States, the customary cup is half of a [[Pint#US liquid pint|US liquid pint]].
{|
|-
|1 US customary cup&nbsp;||=
|align=right|{{frac|16}}||US customary [[gallon]]
|-
|||=
|align=right|{{frac|4}}||US customary [[quart]]
|-
|||=
|align=right|{{frac|2}}||US customary pint
|-
|||=
|align=right|8||US customary [[fluid ounce]]s
|-
|||=
|align=right|16||US customary [[tablespoon]]s
|-
|||=
|align=right|48||US customary [[teaspoon]]s
|-
|||=
|align=right|236.5882365||milliliters exactly
|-
|||=
|align=right|0.946352946||metric cup
|-
|||=
|align=right|15.7725491||international metric tablespoons
|-
|||=
|align=right|11.829411825||Australian metric tablespoons
|-
|||≈
|align=right|8{{frac|1|3}} ||imperial fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|0.83||UK [[Tumbler (glass)#Culinary measurement unit|tumbler]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.04||UK [[Breakfast cup|breakfast cups]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.39||UK [[Cup (unit)#British cup|cups]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.67||UK [[Teacup (unit)|teacups]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|3.33||UK [[Coffee cup (unit)|coffee cups]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|4.16||UK [[Wine glass#Capacity measure|wine glasses]]
|}

{{anchor|US legal cup|United States legal cup}}

===Legal cup===
The cup currently used in the United States for nutrition labelling is defined in United States law as 240&nbsp;[[:millilitre|ml]].<ref>(21 [[Code of Federal Regulations|CFR]] 101.9 (b) (5) (viii)</ref><ref>[http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&rgn=div8&view=text&node=21:2.0.1.1.2.1.1.6&idno=21 US Government Printing Office—Electronic Code of Federal Regulations] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813113845/http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=77734a162c4f7ddd997233b4d623c029&rgn=div8&view=text&node=21%3A2.0.1.1.2.1.1.6&idno=21 |date=2009-08-13 }}</ref><ref>[https://www.fda.gov/food/guidanceregulation/guidancedocumentsregulatoryinformation/ucm063102.htm U.S. Food and Drug Administration—Guidelines for Determining Metric Equivalents of Household Measures]{{dead link|date=May 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
{|
|-
|1 US "legal" cup&nbsp;||=
|align=right|240||millilitres
|-
|||=
|align=right|0.96||metric cup
|-
|||=
|align=right|16||international metric tablespoons
|-
|||=
|align=right|12||Australian metric tablespoons
|-
|||=
|align=right|8||US nutritional fluid ounces (30 ml each)
|-
|||≈
|align=right|8.12||US customary fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.01||US customary cups
|-
|||≈
|align=right|8.45||imperial fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|0.84||UK tumbler
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.06||UK breakfast cups
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.41||UK cups
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.69||UK teacups
|-
|||≈
|align=right|3.38||UK coffee cups
|-
|||≈
|align=right|4.22||UK wine glasses
|}

===Conversion table to US legal cup===
The following information is describing that how to measure US legal cup in different ways.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thenewsengine.com/how-many-ounces-of-water-in-a-gallon-convert-gallon-to-oz |title=US Legal Cup Measures |date=16 November 2020 |access-date=17 November 2020 |archive-date=19 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119092848/https://thenewsengine.com/how-many-ounces-of-water-in-a-gallon-convert-gallon-to-oz |url-status=dead }}</ref>
{|
|-
|1 cubic meter&nbsp;||=
|align=right|4,166.6667||US legal cups
|-
|1 litre&nbsp;||=
|align=right|4.16667||US legal cups
|-
|1 US legal tablespoon&nbsp;||=
|align=right|0.0625||US legal cup
|-
|1 US legal teaspoon&nbsp;||=
|align=right|0.020833333||US legal cup
|-
|1 metric cup&nbsp;||=
|align=right|1.04||US legal cups
|-
|1 international metric tablespoon&nbsp;||=
|align=right|0.062501||US legal cup
|-
|1 Australian metric tablespoon&nbsp;||=
|align=right|0.083333||US legal cup
|-
|1 metric teaspoon&nbsp;||=
|align=right|0.020833||US legal cup
|-
|1 US gallon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|15.772549||US legal cups
|-
|1 US pint&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|1.9715686||US legal cups
|-
|1 US customary cup&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.98578432||US legal cup
|-
|1 US fluid ounce&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.12322304||US legal cup
|-
|1 US customary tablespoon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.06161152||US legal cup
|-
|1 US customary teaspoon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.020537173||US legal cup
|-
|1 cubic foot&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|117.987||US legal cups
|-
|1 cubic inch&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.0682794||US legal cup
|-
|1 imperial gallon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|18.942||US legal cups
|-
|1 imperial pint&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|2.36776||US legal cups
|-
|1 imperial fluid ounce&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.118388||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK tablespoon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.059194||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK teaspoon&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.014798||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK tumbler&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|1.18||US legal cups
|-
|1 UK breakfast cup&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.95||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK cup&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.71||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK teacup&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.59||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK coffee cup&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.30||US legal cup
|-
|1 UK wine glass&nbsp;||≈
|align=right|0.24||US legal cup
|}

===Coffee cup===

A "cup" of coffee in the US is usually 4 fluid ounces (118 ml), brewed using 5 fluid ounces (148 ml) of water. Coffee carafes used with drip coffee makers, e.g. Black and Decker models, have markings for both water and brewed coffee as the carafe is also used for measuring water prior to brewing.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.blackanddeckerappliances.com/products/coffee-and-tea/coffee-and-tea-accessories/replacement-carafe-gc3000b.aspx |title=Black and Decker Replacement Carafe |access-date=2016-12-30 |archive-date=2016-12-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231074520/http://www.blackanddeckerappliances.com/products/coffee-and-tea/coffee-and-tea-accessories/replacement-carafe-gc3000b.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>  A 12-cup carafe, for example, has markings for 4, 6, 8, 10, and {{not a typo|12 cups}} of water or coffee, which correspond to 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 US fluid ounces (0.59, 0.89, 1.18, 1.48, and 1.77 litres) of water or 16, 24, 32, 40, and 48 US fluid ounces (0.47, 0.71, 0.95, 1.18, and 1.42 litres) of brewed coffee respectively, the difference being the volume absorbed by the coffee grounds and lost to evaporation during brewing.

==Commonwealth of Nations==

===Metric cup===
Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and some other members of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]], being former [[British Empire|British colonies]] that have since [[metricate]]d, employ a "metric cup" of 250{{nbsp}}millilitres.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://allrecipes.com.au/how-to/17/standard-australian-cooking-measurements.aspx |title=Standard Australian Cooking Measurements |access-date=2014-09-24}}</ref> Although derived from the [[metric system]], it is not an [[SI unit]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bipm.org/en/si/si_brochure/chapter1/1-4.html |title=coherent units |publisher=BIPM |access-date=2014-05-26}}</ref>

{|
|-
|1 metric cup&nbsp;||=
|align=right|250||millilitres
|-
|||=
|align=right|16{{sfrac|2|3}}||[[Tablespoon#International metric|international metric tablespoons]] (15mL each)
|-
|||=
|align=right|12{{sfrac|1|2}}||[[Tablespoon#International_metric|Australian metric tablespoons]] (20mL each)
|-
|||=
|align=right|25||[[Dessert spoon#Culinary measure|metric dessert spoons]] (10mL each)
|-
|||=
|align=right|50||[[Teaspoon#Metric_teaspoon|metric teaspoons]] (5mL each)
|-
|||≈
|align=right|8.80||imperial fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|8.45||US customary fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|1.06||[[Cup (unit)#Customary cup|US customary cups]]
|}

A "coffee cup" is 1.5 dL (i.e. 150 millilitres or 5.07 US customary fluid ounces), and is occasionally used in recipes; in older recipes, cup may mean "coffee cup". It is also used in the US to specify coffeemaker sizes (what can be referred to as a ''[[Tasse à café]]''). A "12-cup" US coffeemaker makes 57.6 US customary fluid ounces of coffee, which is equal to 6.8 metric cups of coffee.

===Canadian cup===
Canada now usually employs the metric cup of 250{{nbsp}}ml, but its conventional cup was somewhat smaller than both American and imperial units.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.firsthealthmag.com/how-many-tablespoons-in-a-cup-easy-conversions|title=How Many Tablespoons in a Cup – Easy Conversions|date=2016-04-28|website=First Health Mag|language=en-US|access-date=2016-05-08 |author1=Rebecca }}{{dead link|date=May 2025}}</ref>

{|
|1 Canadian cup || = || style="text-align: right" | 8 || imperial fluid ounces
|-
| || = || style="text-align: right" | {{sfrac|20}} || imperial gallon
|-
| || = || style="text-align: right" | {{convert|1/20|impgal|ml|4|disp=output number only}} || millilitres
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.96 || US customary cup
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.91 || metric cup
|-
| 1 Canadian tablespoon || = || style="text-align: right" | {{frac|1|2}} ||imperial fluid ounces
|-
| || = || style="text-align: right" | {{convert|1/2|impoz|ml|4|disp=output number only}} || millilitres
|-
| || = || style="text-align: right" | 1 || UK tablespoon
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.96 || US customary tablespoon
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.95 || international metric tablespoon
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.71 || Australian metric tablespoon
|-
| 1 Canadian teaspoon || = || style="text-align: right" | {{convert|1/6|impoz|ml|4|disp=output number only}} || millilitres
|-
| || = || style="text-align: right" | 1{{frac|1|3}} || UK teaspoons
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.96 || US customary teaspoon
|-
| || ≈ || style="text-align: right" | 0.95 || metric teaspoon
|}

===British cup===
British cookery books and recipes, especially those from the days before [[Metrication in the United Kingdom|the UK's partial metrication]], commonly called for quantities measured by ordinary drinking vessels, such as a 'tumblerful' of one ingredient and a 'wineglassful' of another one.  Unlike the standard US customary cup, these are not precise units; there is no [[Imperial units|imperial unit]]⁠–⁠based culinary measuring cup.  Today, recipes normally use imperial [[fluid ounce]]s or [[millilitres]], and recipes referring to 'cups' are generally assumed either to refer to US customary cups or to be an inexact measure.{{cn|reason=Secondary source needed for these claims|date=May 2025}}

The 1894 book ''Enquire Within Upon Everything'' states that 1 cup "usually contains about" 6 [[fluid ounce|imperial fluid ounces]] (fl&nbsp;oz).<ref name="fn9">[https://www.victorianschool.co.uk/ebooks/enquire%20within/10766-h/10766-h.htm#p665 Paragraph 665], page 119, ''Enquire Within Upon Everything'' (1894)</ref>

{|
|-
|1 UK cup&nbsp;
||=
|align=right|6||imperial fluid ounces
|-
|||=
|align=right|{{sfrac|3|5}}||UK tumbler
|-
|||=
|align=right|{{sfrac|3|4}}||UK breakfast cup
|-
|||=
|align=right|1{{sfrac|1|5}}||UK teacups
|-
|||=
|align=right|2{{sfrac|2|5}}||UK coffee cups
|-
|||=
|align=right|3||UK wine glasses
|-
|||=
|align=right|{{sfrac|3|10}}||[[Pint#Imperial pint|imperial pint]]
|-
|||≈
|align=right|5.76||US customary fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|0.72||US customary cup
|-
|||≈
|align=right|170.48||millilitres
|-
|||≈
|align=right|0.68||metric cup
|}

The same book also mentions two British culinary measurement units of volume based on drinking vessels: the [[Tumbler (glass)#Culinary measurement unit|tumbler]] ("usually contains about" 10 fl&nbsp;oz, which is {{frac|2}} imp&nbsp;pint)<ref name="fn9"/><ref>Page 14, ''[https://public-content.library.mcgill.ca/digitization/978-1-926671-88-8.pdf Good Things in England]'' (1932)</ref> and the [[Wine glass#Capacity measure|wine glass]] ("usually contains about" 2 fl&nbsp;oz).<ref name="fn9"/><ref>Page 11, ''[https://deriv.nls.uk/dcn23/1262/7738/126277384.23.pdf The Feill Cookery Book]'' (1907)</ref>  The 'wine glass' here refers to a small glass for serving liquor, not a typical wine glass.  Since the UK is not a major producer of wine, typical wine‑glass sizes are those used by the biggest suppliers of wine, especially EU producers, who exclusively use metric measurements.  Common wine‑glass sizes are 125&nbsp;ml (about 4.4 UK fluid ounces or 4.23 US fluid ounces) and 250&nbsp;ml (about 8.8 UK fluid ounces or 8.45 US fluid ounces), corresponding to {{frac|6}} and {{frac|3}}, respectively, of a standard wine bottle (750&nbsp;ml; about 26.4 UK fluid ounces or 25.36 US fluid ounces), but these are not generally used as units.

The cookery writer [[Elizabeth David]], writing in ''[[The Spectator]]'', referred to the other three British culinary measurement units of volume based on drinking vessels and gave their typical capacities, in contrast to the exact US measure: the [[breakfast cup]] (8 fl&nbsp;oz),<ref name="fn10">{{cite magazine |url=http://spprd.insec.netcopy.thompsonjames.co.uk/article/15th-march-1963/29/consuming-interest |title=Measure for Measure |first=Elizabeth |last=David |author-link=Elizabeth David |magazine=[[The Spectator]] |date=15 March 1963}}</ref><ref>"Tea Making, My Experiments [1859]". In Pearson, Karl (1930). [https://galton.org/pearson/vol3/new/pearson-vol3b-ch17-1.pdf Chapter XVII], page 456, volume IIIB, ''The Life, Letters and Labours of Francis Galton''. Cambridge University Press.</ref> the [[Teacup (unit)|teacup]] (5 fl&nbsp;oz),<ref name="fn10"/> and the [[Coffee cup (unit)|coffee cup]] (2{{sfrac|1|2}} fl&nbsp;oz).<ref name="fn10"/>

Of these, the breakfast cup is the most similar in size to the standard US customary cup and metric cup.  It is slightly smaller than the US customary cup since the US fluid ounce is slightly larger than the UK fluid ounce.  There is division of labour between these six units of volume, like the tablespoon and the teaspoon.

==International==
Similar units in other languages and cultures are sometimes translated "cup", usually with various values around {{frac|5}} to {{frac|4}} of a litre. 

===Latin American cup===
In Latin America, the amount of a "cup" ({{langx|es|link=no|taza}}) varies from country to country, using a cup of 200{{nbsp}}ml (about 7.04 British imperial fluid ounces or 6.76 US customary fluid ounces), 250{{nbsp}}ml (about 8.80 British imperial fluid ounces or 8.45 US customary fluid ounces), and the US legal or customary amount.

===Japanese cup===
{{hatnote|See also: [[Gō (unit of measurement)|Gō]]}}
The traditional [[Japanese unit]] equated with a "cup" size is the ''[[Gō (unit of measurement)|gō]]'', legally equated with {{sfrac|2,401|13,310}}{{nbsp}}litre (≈ 180.4&nbsp;ml/6.35 British imperial fluid ounces/6.1 US customary fluid ounces) in 1891, and is still used for reckoning amounts of rice and ''[[sake]]''.  The legacy of this is that the rough metric equivalent of the ''gō'', 180&nbsp;ml, is used for the cups that are sold with [[rice cooker]]s throughout East Asia, Europe and the United States.

The Japanese later defined a "cup" as 200&nbsp;ml.

{|
|-
|1 Japanese cup&nbsp;||=
|align=right|200||millilitres
|-
|||≈
|align=right|7.04||British imperial fluid ounces
|-
|||≈
|align=right|6.76||US customary fluid ounces
|}

===Russian cup===
[[Obsolete Russian units of measurement|The traditional Russian measurement system]] included two cup sizes: the "charka" (cup proper) and the "stakan" ("glass").  The charka was usually used for alcoholic drinks and is 123mL (about 4.33 British imperial fluid ounces or 4.16 US customary fluid ounces), while the stakan, used for other liquids, was twice as big and is 246mL (about 8.66 British imperial fluid ounces or 8.32 US customary fluid ounces). 

Since metrication, the charka was informally redefined as 100&nbsp;ml (about 3.52 British imperial fluid ounces or 3.38 US customary fluid ounces), acquiring a new name of "stopka" (related to the traditional Russian measurement unit "stopa"{{Citation needed|date=February 2023}}), while there are currently two widely used glass sizes of 250mL (about 8.80 British imperial fluid ounces or 8.45 US customary fluid ounces) and 200&nbsp;ml (about 7.04 British imperial fluid ounces or 6.76 US customary fluid ounces).

=== Dutch cup ===
In The Netherlands, traditionally a "cup" (Dutch: ''kopje'') amounts to 150 ml (about 5.28 British imperial fluid ounces or 5.07 US customary fluid ounces). However, in modern recipes, the US legal cup of 240 ml (about 8.45 British imperial fluid ounces or 8.12 US customary fluid ounces) is more commonly used.

==Dry measure==
In Europe, recipes normally weigh non-liquid ingredients in [[Gram|grams]] rather than measuring volume. For example, where an American recipe might specify "{{not a typo|1 cup}} of sugar and {{not a typo|2 cups}} of milk", a European recipe might specify "200&nbsp;g sugar and 500&nbsp;ml of milk". A precise conversion between the two measures takes into account the density of the ingredients, and some recipes specify both weight and volume to facilitate this conversion. Many European measuring cups have markings that indicate the weight of common ingredients for a given volume. 

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Volume to mass conversions for some common cooking ingredients
|-
!rowspan="2"| Ingredient
!rowspan="2"| Density<br>g/ml{{efn|One gram per millilitre is very close to one avoirdupois ounce per fluid ounce: 1&nbsp;g/ml ≈ 1.002&nbsp;av&nbsp;oz/imp&nbsp;fl&nbsp;oz.
This is not a numerical coincidence, but comes from the original definition of the kilogram as the mass of one litre of water, and the fluid ounce being the volume of an ounce of water. The slight difference is due to water at {{convert|4|°C}} being used for the kilogram, and at {{convert|62|°F}} for the ounce. The US fluid ounce is slightly larger.
:1&nbsp;g/ml ≈ 1.043&nbsp;av&nbsp;oz/US&nbsp;fl&nbsp;oz.}}
!colspan="2"| Metric cup
!colspan="2"| UK breakfast cup{{efn|name=efn2|Among all six British units that are the equivalents of the US customary cup and the metric cup, the breakfast cup, the cup, and the teacup are chosen to be included in this table because they are the most commonly used to give measurements of the ingredients in this table.}}
! colspan="2" |UK cup{{efn|name=efn2}}
! colspan="2" |UK teacup{{efn|name=efn2}}
! colspan="2" | US customary cup
|-
! g
! oz
! g
! oz
!g
!oz
!g
!oz
! g
! oz
|-
|style="text-align:left"| water<ref>1&nbsp;g/ml is a good rough guide for water-based liquids such as milk (the [http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2002/AliciaNoelleJones.shtml density of milk] is about {{nowrap|1.03–1.04 g/ml}}).</ref>
| 1{{efn|The density of water ranges from about 0.96 to 1.00&nbsp;g/ml dependent on temperature and pressure. The table above assumes a temperature range {{convert|0|–|30|C|F}}. The variation is too small to make any difference in cooking.<ref>[http://antoine.frostburg.edu/chem/senese/javascript/water-density.html Water density calculator]</ref><ref>{{cite web
| url=https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2007/AllenMa.shtml
| title=Density of water
| first=Allen
| last=Ma
| year=2007
| website=The Physics Factbook
| editor-last=Elert
| editor-first=Glenn
| access-date=2018-07-06
}}</ref>}}
| 249–250
| 8.8
| 227.3
| 8.02
|170.48
|6.01
|142.07
|5.01
| 236.5882
| 8.3
|-
|style="text-align:left"| granulated sugar
| 0.8<ref name=FMD>L. Fulton, E. Matthews, C. Davis: Average weight of a measured cup of various foods. Home Economics Research Report No. 41, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC, 1977.</ref>
| 200
| 7.0
| 181.84
| 6.41
|136.38
|4.81
|113.66
|4.01
| 190
| 6.7
|-
|style="text-align:left"| wheat flour
| 0.5–0.6<ref name="FMD"/>
| 120–150
| 4.4–5.3
| 113.65–136.38
| 4.01–4.81
|85.24–102.29
|3.01–3.61
|71.03–85.24
|2.50–3.01
| 120–140
| 4.2–5.0
|-
|style="text-align:left"| table salt
| 1.2<ref name="FMD"/>
| 300
| 10.6
| 272.76
| 9.62
|204.58
|7.22
|170.48
|6.01
| 280
| 10.0
|}

==See also==
* [[Cooking weights and measures]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Imperial units}}
{{United States Customary Units}}

[[Category:Measurement]]
[[Category:Units of volume]]
[[Category:Customary units of measurement in the United States]]
[[Category:Imperial units]]
[[Category:Metricated units]]
[[Category:Alcohol measurement]]
[[Category:Cooking weights and measures]]