Multiply the number of cups by ~142 for all-purpose flour
There is no universal cup-to-gram factor because density varies by ingredient. ConvertBuddy uses 240 g per cup as the water-equivalent baseline (1 US cup ≈ 236.6 ml of water ≈ 236.6 g, rounded to 240). Real ingredient conversions: flour 120 g/cup, granulated sugar 200 g/cup, brown sugar packed 220 g/cup, butter 227 g/cup, rolled oats 90 g/cup, rice (uncooked) 200 g/cup, milk 244 g/cup. Always weigh by ingredient for baking precision.
Cups measure volume; grams measure mass. The two are not equivalent — converting between them depends entirely on what ingredient sits in the cup.
Flour, sugar, butter, oats, and rice all weigh different amounts per cup. American recipes overwhelmingly use cups; European, Australian, and most professional baking recipes use grams. Conversion matters most in baking, where a 10% error in flour mass changes the final crumb noticeably. Cooking is more forgiving — a 'cup of chopped onion' tolerates wide variation.
For accurate conversion, always check the specific ingredient: 1 cup of all-purpose flour is 120 g, but 1 cup of brown sugar (packed) is 220 g. Generic cups-to-grams gives only a ballpark.
Continental and UK recipes list ingredients in grams. American kitchens typically lack a kitchen scale. Convert to know which measuring cup gets close (or, ideally, buy a scale for €15 and skip cup conversions entirely).
Posting a family recipe online for global readers means giving both cup and gram amounts. Mark which ingredient each conversion applies to (flour ≠ sugar).
Calorie databases list per-gram nutritional values. Cooking instructions specify cups. Convert to log accurate intake — especially for calorie-dense ingredients like nuts, oils, and grains.
Commercial kitchens work in grams for consistency across batches and staff. A home recipe with 'two cups flour' becomes 240 g; scaling to a 10× batch needs the gram baseline.
Bread formulas express each ingredient as a percentage of flour weight (baker's math). Converting cup-based recipes to grams first lets you apply the percentage system to traditional family recipes.
Multiply cups by the ingredient's density in grams per cup. The water baseline is 240 g per cup. For dry ingredients use ingredient-specific factors: flour 120 g, granulated sugar 200 g, brown sugar (packed) 220 g, butter 227 g, oats 90 g, rice 200 g.
No — 240 g is the water and water-like liquid baseline. Dry ingredients weigh much less per cup (flour 120 g, oats 90 g) or much more (packed brown sugar 220 g). Always check the specific ingredient.
1 cup of all-purpose flour weighs approximately 120 g when spooned and leveled, or up to 150 g when scooped directly (compacting the flour). Most American recipes assume spoon-and-level technique.
1 cup of granulated white sugar weighs 200 g. 1 cup of packed brown sugar weighs 220 g. 1 cup of powdered (icing) sugar weighs 120 g. Sugar type matters more than expected.
Mass measurement is repeatable; volume measurement depends on how packed or sifted the ingredient is. A scale gives the same flour mass regardless of technique. Professional bakers and most modern baking blogs use grams for this reason.
A US cup is 236.6 ml. A metric cup (Australia, NZ, Canada) is 250 ml. A UK 'breakfast cup' from older cookbooks is roughly 285 ml. Conversion factors shift slightly between systems — modern UK recipes use grams or millilitres, not cups.
Bread and laminated doughs tolerate ±5%; cakes and cookies tolerate ±10%; quickbreads and pancakes ±15%. Cup measurements typically introduce ±15-20% variation depending on technique, which is fine for casual baking but problematic for precise recipes.
Use the standard ingredient factors above. Spoon dry ingredients into the cup lightly and level with a knife — do not pack or shake. For liquids, use a clear measuring cup at eye level. Accept the precision is limited compared to weighing.