Convert Cup to Milliliter (cup → ml)

Converting cups to milliliters is straightforward: multiply by the conversion factor. Follow these three steps to do it by hand or in your head.

1. 1
   Take your value in cups

   Start with the number of cups (cup) you want to convert.
2. 2
   Multiply by 240

   The conversion factor from cup to ml is 240. Multiply your value by this number.
3. 3
   Read the result in milliliters

   The result is your value in milliliters (ml).

Multiply the value in cups by 240. For the reverse direction, multiply by 0.004167.

• ✓US cup = 240 ml common; 236.6 ml legal; UK cup = 284 ml; metric cup (AU/NZ) = 250 ml.
• ✓Weights (grams) are more reliable than cups — a cup of flour can vary 30% depending on how packed.
• ✓For baking, always use the recipe author's country convention.

• ✗Using a UK 284 ml cup for a US recipe calling for 240 ml — 18% overshoot.
• ✗Treating all dry ingredients as 1 cup = 240 g — only true for water.
• ✗Using a coffee mug as a "cup" — mugs vary 200–400 ml.

What is the Cup?

The US cup equals exactly 240 milliliters (a definition standardized for nutrition labeling; the legal volume for cooking is 236.588 mL, derived from 8 US fluid ounces). The cup is the cornerstone of American baking and home cooking, with virtually every US recipe using volume measurements rather than the weight measurements common in European cooking. Standard measuring-cup sets include 1, ½, ⅓, and ¼ cup sizes. The metric cup (used in Australia, New Zealand, and increasingly in international recipes) is exactly 250 mL — slightly larger than the US cup. The cup relates to the gallon (16 cups = 1 gal), the pint (2 cups = 1 pt), the fluid ounce (8 fl oz = 1 cup), the tablespoon (16 tbsp = 1 cup), and the milliliter (1 cup ≈ 237–240 mL). American baking-by-volume is sometimes criticized internationally for its variability compared to gram-based measurements.

• US cooking and baking recipes
• Cereal and beverage serving sizes in US nutrition labels
• Volume estimation when no scale is available

What is the Milliliter?

The milliliter equals one thousandth of a liter (0.001 L) and is the standard small-volume unit for cooking, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and laboratory work. One milliliter is exactly 1 cubic centimeter (1 cm³), a convenient relationship: 1 mL of pure water weighs 1 gram. The milliliter is the universal unit on medicine bottles (a typical cough syrup dose is 5 mL), cosmetics (a perfume bottle is 50–100 mL), and recipe measurements outside North America (a tablespoon is 15 mL, a teaspoon is 5 mL). Medical syringes are calibrated in mL, and IV drip rates are computed in mL per hour. The milliliter relates to the liter (1,000 mL = 1 L), the cubic centimeter (1 mL = 1 cm³ = 1 cc), the teaspoon (1 tsp = 5 mL), and the US fluid ounce (1 fl oz ≈ 29.57 mL).

• Liquid medication dosing in syringes
• Precise cooking and baking measurements
• Laboratory reagent measurement