Convert Cups to Milliliters
Convert US-recipe cup measurements into milliliters for precise metric kitchen scales and European cookware.
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1 cup = 237 ml
One US customary cup equals 236.588 milliliters. To convert cups to milliliters, multiply the cup value by 236.588 — so 2 cups = 473.18 ml and ½ cup = 118.29 ml. This is the standard cup used in almost all US recipes. A US legal cup (used on Nutrition Facts labels) is 240 ml, a metric cup is 250 ml, and a UK or Australian cup is 250 ml, so a European recipe calling for 'a cup' is not the same as a US recipe.
Quick reference: cups (us) to milliliters
| Cups (US) | Milliliters |
|---|---|
| 0.25 | 59.15 ml (¼ cup) |
| 0.333 | 78.86 ml (⅓ cup) |
| 0.5 | 118.29 ml (½ cup) |
| 0.667 | 157.73 ml (⅔ cup) |
| 0.75 | 177.44 ml (¾ cup) |
| 1 | 236.59 ml (1 cup) |
| 1.25 | 295.74 ml |
| 1.5 | 354.88 ml |
| 1.75 | 414.03 ml |
| 2 | 473.18 ml |
| 3 | 709.76 ml |
| 4 | 946.35 ml (1 quart) |
| 6 | 1419.53 ml |
| 8 | 1892.71 ml (½ gallon) |
Formula and worked examples: cups (us) to milliliters
Formula: milliliters = US cups × 236.588 • 1 cup of flour in a US recipe → 236.59 ml of volume, which weighs roughly 120 g of all-purpose flour. • 2 cups of milk → 473.18 ml, close to a standard 500 ml carton in Europe. • ¾ cup of oil → 177.44 ml, a common quantity in dressings and marinades.
When and why people use cups (us) to milliliters
The most common use case is running a US recipe with a metric measuring jug. US recipes lean on volume ('1 cup flour, ½ cup milk') while most of the world measures by weight or in milliliters. Converting to ml lets you use a standard 500 ml Pyrex jug without buying a set of US cup measures. Coffee brewing sits in the middle of this: a 'cup' on a drip coffee maker is usually 5 US fl oz (148 ml), not a full 236 ml cup, which is why a '12-cup' pot brews only about 1.8 liters of coffee. Baking is the opposite — recipes that specify 'US cups' really do mean 236.588 ml, and getting this wrong throws off hydration in bread doughs. Standards note: the US customary cup is defined as exactly 1/16 of a US gallon, giving 236.5882365 ml. The US Food and Drug Administration uses a rounded 'legal cup' of 240 ml on Nutrition Facts labels for readability. Metric cups (250 ml) were standardised by the ISO and are the default in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and much of Europe.
Common mistakes to watch for when converting cups (us) to milliliters
The four cup sizes trip people up constantly. A US customary cup is 236.588 ml, a US legal cup is 240 ml, a metric cup is 250 ml, and a historic UK 'breakfast cup' was 284 ml. That's a spread of nearly 20 percent between smallest and largest. Also beware of 'cups' as a coffee-maker unit (usually 5 fl oz / 148 ml). And avoid weighing dry ingredients by volume when precision matters — 1 cup of flour can weigh anywhere from 120 g to 150 g depending on whether it was scooped, spooned or sifted, which is why most baking sites now list a gram figure alongside the cup.
Cups (US) to Milliliters FAQ
- How many ml is 1 cup?
- One US customary cup is 236.588 ml. If the recipe is Australian, British or European, a 'cup' usually means 250 ml instead — always check which system the recipe is written in.
- How many ml in half a cup?
- Half a US cup is 118.29 ml. Half a metric cup is 125 ml — the 6.71 ml gap is enough to matter in bread and pastry recipes.
- Is a US cup the same as a metric cup?
- No. A US cup is 236.588 ml; a metric cup (used in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and much of Europe) is 250 ml. That's about a 5.6 percent difference.
- How many ml is ¾ cup?
- ¾ of a US cup equals 177.44 ml. In a metric-cup recipe ¾ cup is 187.5 ml instead.
- What is a US legal cup?
- The US legal cup is 240 ml, used by the FDA for Nutrition Facts labels because it's easier to read. Recipes almost never use the legal cup — they use the 236.588 ml customary cup.
- How many ml is 2 cups?
- 2 US cups equal 473.18 ml, close to a standard 500 ml European carton but not identical.
- How do I convert a US recipe to metric?
- Multiply US cups by 237 for a clean ml figure, or by 240 if you want to match the FDA-style rounded cup. For dry ingredients, look up the gram weight instead — volume is unreliable for flour, sugar and cocoa.
- How many cups in a liter?
- One liter is 4.227 US cups, or 4 metric cups exactly. That's why metric recipes often specify liquid in liters or 250 ml multiples.
- Is a coffee 'cup' the same as a recipe cup?
- No. A coffee-maker 'cup' is usually 5 US fl oz (148 ml), so a 12-cup pot holds about 1.77 L — not the 2.84 L you'd expect from 12 recipe cups.
- How many ml in ⅓ cup?
- ⅓ of a US cup is 78.86 ml. A common metric substitution is 80 ml, which is close enough for most cooking but slightly heavy for baking.
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Sources: NIST Handbook 44 (US customary cup = 236.5882365 ml exactly), US FDA 21 CFR §101.9(b)(5) (legal cup = 240 ml), ISO 6486-2 / Australian Standard AS 1349 (metric cup = 250 ml).