One teaspoon of packed brown sugar is 4.5833333 grams, so converting teaspoons of packed brown sugar to grams means multiplying by 4.5833333. That factor is specific to this ingredient — it comes from its density, not from any relationship between the two units.
The density behind that figure is 0.92989 g per mL, against 1.00 for water. A cup of water weighs 236.6 g and a cup of packed brown sugar weighs 220 g, so this ingredient is 92.99% as heavy as the same volume of water — the single fact the whole page rests on.
A level teaspoon of packed brown sugar weighs 4.583 g. A kitchen scale that reads to the nearest gram is therefore working at roughly 21.8% resolution on a single spoonful, which is why measuring spoons beat scales below about 5 g and lose to them above it. Three teaspoons make a tablespoon, so the same spoonful is 13.75 g if the recipe scales up.
Grams are the unit this conversion is really for. A domestic scale resolves to a gram, which is 0.455% of a cup of packed brown sugar, so weighing gets an accuracy no measuring cup can reach. A 500 g pack of it is 2.273 cups, and a 1 kg pack 4.545.
What the number depends on: Firmly packed, which is the US recipe convention. Spooned in loosely it is closer to 145 g per cup.
The formula
teaspoons- The amount of packed brown sugar you are converting, in teaspoons
4.58333333333- Grams per teaspoon for packed brown sugar, from its density of 0.92989 g/mL
grams- The equivalent quantity in grams
How it works, step by step
- Enter the quantity in teaspoons.
- It is multiplied by 4.58333333333, the grams-per-teaspoon figure for packed brown sugar.
- The result appears in grams, with a second reading in oz beneath it.
- Use the measure table if you want a standard recipe quantity rather than a number you type in.
Worked examples
3/4 tsp of packed brown sugar in grams
A recipe calling for 3/4 tsp of packed brown sugar needs 3.4375 grams on the scale. The arithmetic is 0.75 × 4.5833333 = 3.4375, and halving the recipe halves the weight to 1.71875 grams.
1 1/2 tsp of packed brown sugar in grams
1 1/2 tsp of packed brown sugar weighs out at 6.875 grams. Divide 6.875 by 4.5833333 and you get back to 1 1/2 tsp, which is the quickest check that the factor is the right way up.
4 tsp of packed brown sugar in grams
Take 4 tsp of packed brown sugar: 4 × 4.5833333 gives 18.3333 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 36.6667 grams, because the relationship is a straight proportion once the density is known.
How to read your score
Frequently asked questions
How many grams are in 1 tsp of packed brown sugar?
One teaspoon of packed brown sugar is 4.5833333 grams. Half that quantity is 2.29167 grams and double it is 9.16667 grams, so the figure scales straight up and down — there is no offset in this conversion, only the factor.
Why is a cup of packed brown sugar not 236 g like water?
Because weight per cup depends on what is in the cup. Packed brown sugar has a density of 0.92989 g per mL where water has 1.00, so a cup of it weighs 220 g rather than 236.6 g. That is a difference of 16.6 g per cup, and it is the reason a single volume-to-weight factor cannot be applied to every ingredient.
Does how I measure it change the weight?
Yes, and by more than most people expect. Handling changes the weight of a cup of packed brown sugar by roughly 20% — about 22 g either side of 220 g — because firmly packed, which is the US recipe convention. Weighing removes the question entirely.
Is a fluid ounce of packed brown sugar the same as an ounce?
No. A fluid ounce is a volume — one eighth of a US cup, 29.57 mL — and an ounce is a weight. One fluid ounce of packed brown sugar weighs 0.97 oz, so the two readings differ by 3%. They coincide only for something with the density of water, and then only roughly.
Is this a US cup or a metric cup?
US customary: 236.59 mL, which is the cup every US recipe means. A metric cup is 250 mL, so the same cup of packed brown sugar would weigh 232.47 g instead of 220 g — 12.5 g more, or 5.67%. Australian and some European recipes use the metric cup, and the difference is large enough to matter in baking.
Do I need a scale for this, or will measuring cups do?
At this size the spoon wins. One teaspoon of packed brown sugar is 4.583 g, and a scale reading to the nearest gram is working at 21.8% resolution on that — a measuring spoon is the more accurate instrument below about 5 g, which is why spice quantities are still written in spoons.
How many teaspoons of packed brown sugar is 500 g?
500 g of packed brown sugar is 109.09 teaspoons — 0.218182 teaspoons to one gram, so 500 × 0.218182 = 109.09. Going that way is a division by 4.58333, or a multiplication by 0.218182 if you prefer.
Packed brown sugar in teaspoons and grams
| Teaspoons | Grams | Unrounded |
|---|---|---|
| 1/4 tsp | 1.14583 g | 1.145833333 |
| 1/2 tsp | 2.29167 g | 2.291666667 |
| 3/4 tsp | 3.4375 g | 3.4375 |
| 1 tsp | 4.58333 g | 4.583333333 |
| 1 1/2 tsp | 6.875 g | 6.875 |
| 2 tsp | 9.16667 g | 9.166666667 |
| 3 tsp | 13.75 g | 13.75 |
| 4 tsp | 18.3333 g | 18.33333333 |
| 6 tsp | 27.5 g | 27.5 |
Based on 220 g per cup of packed brown sugar. One teaspoon of packed brown sugar is 4.5833333 grams.
| Measure | Grams | Ounces | Millilitres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 220 g | 7.76 oz | 236.6 mL |
| 1 tbsp | 13.75 g | 0.485 oz | 14.79 mL |
| 2 tsp | 9.167 g | 0.323 oz | 9.858 mL |
| 1 tsp | 4.583 g | 0.162 oz | 4.929 mL |
| 3/4 tsp | 3.438 g | 0.121 oz | 3.697 mL |
| 1/2 tsp | 2.292 g | 0.0808 oz | 2.464 mL |
| 1/4 tsp | 1.146 g | 0.0404 oz | 1.232 mL |
| 1/8 tsp | 0.5729 g | 0.0202 oz | 0.6161 mL |
US customary measures: 1 cup = 236.59 mL, 1 tbsp = 14.79 mL, 1 tsp = 4.93 mL.
| Ingredient | Grams per cup | Ounces per cup | Density (g/mL) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uncooked white rice | 185 g | 6.526 oz | 0.7819 |
| Uncooked brown rice | 190 g | 6.702 oz | 0.8031 |
| Dried lentils | 192 g | 6.773 oz | 0.8115 |
| Granulated sugar | 200 g | 7.055 oz | 0.8454 |
| Arborio rice | 200 g | 7.055 oz | 0.8454 |
| Dried chickpeas | 200 g | 7.055 oz | 0.8454 |
| Packed brown sugar (this page) | 220 g | 7.76 oz | 0.9299 |
Ordered by weight. The spread across this group is why a single generic cups-to-grams factor cannot work.