One millilitre of dry couscous is 0.71854798 grams, so converting millilitres of dry couscous to grams means multiplying by 0.71854798. That factor is specific to this ingredient — it comes from its density, not from any relationship between the two units.
Water is the yardstick: 1 mL of it weighs 1 g. Dry couscous comes in at 0.71855 g per mL, or 71.85% of water, which is why a cup of it is 170 g rather than 236.6 g. Volume and weight only line up for water, and only in metric.
Dry couscous has a density of 0.71855 g per mL, so 100 mL of it weighs 71.85 g and 250 mL weighs 179.6 g. That single figure is what every other number on this page is built from — water is 1.00 g per mL, so this ingredient is 71.85% as heavy as the same volume of water.
Grams are the unit this conversion is really for. A domestic scale resolves to a gram, which is 0.588% of a cup of dry couscous, so weighing gets an accuracy no measuring cup can reach. A 500 g pack of it is 2.941 cups, and a 1 kg pack 5.882.
How the figure is arrived at: Before steaming. It roughly triples in volume once hydrated, which is why the dry weight is the useful one.
The formula
millilitres- The amount of dry couscous you are converting, in millilitres
0.718547982414- Grams per millilitre for dry couscous, from its density of 0.71855 g/mL
grams- The equivalent quantity in grams
How it works, step by step
- Enter the quantity in millilitres.
- It is multiplied by 0.718547982414, the grams-per-millilitre figure for dry couscous.
- 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
15 mL of dry couscous in grams
Take 15 mL of dry couscous: 15 × 0.71854798 gives 10.7782 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 21.5564 grams, because the relationship is a straight proportion once the density is known.
100 mL of dry couscous in grams
Take 100 mL of dry couscous: 100 × 0.71854798 gives 71.8548 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 143.71 grams, because the relationship is a straight proportion once the density is known.
250 mL of dry couscous in grams
Take 250 mL of dry couscous: 250 × 0.71854798 gives 179.637 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 359.274 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 mL of dry couscous?
One millilitre of dry couscous is 0.71854798 grams. Half that quantity is 0.359274 grams and double it is 1.4371 grams, so the figure scales straight up and down — there is no offset in this conversion, only the factor.
Why is a cup of dry couscous not 236 g like water?
Because weight per cup depends on what is in the cup. Dry couscous has a density of 0.71855 g per mL where water has 1.00, so a cup of it weighs 170 g rather than 236.6 g. That is a difference of 66.6 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 dry couscous by roughly 20% — about 17 g either side of 170 g — because before steaming. Weighing removes the question entirely.
Is a fluid ounce of dry couscous 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 dry couscous weighs 0.7496 oz, so the two readings differ by 25%. 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 dry couscous would weigh 179.64 g instead of 170 g — 9.64 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 millilitre of dry couscous is 0.7185 g, and a scale reading to the nearest gram is working at 139% 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 millilitres of dry couscous is 500 g?
500 g of dry couscous is 695.85 millilitres — 1.3917 millilitres to one gram, so 500 × 1.3917 = 695.85. Going that way is a division by 0.718548, or a multiplication by 1.3917 if you prefer.
Dry couscous in millilitres and grams
| Millilitres | Grams | Unrounded |
|---|---|---|
| 5 mL | 3.59274 g | 3.592739912 |
| 10 mL | 7.18548 g | 7.185479824 |
| 15 mL | 10.7782 g | 10.77821974 |
| 30 mL | 21.5564 g | 21.55643947 |
| 50 mL | 35.9274 g | 35.92739912 |
| 100 mL | 71.8548 g | 71.85479824 |
| 125 mL | 89.8185 g | 89.8184978 |
| 150 mL | 107.782 g | 107.7821974 |
| 200 mL | 143.71 g | 143.7095965 |
| 250 mL | 179.637 g | 179.6369956 |
| 500 mL | 359.274 g | 359.2739912 |
Based on 170 g per cup of dry couscous. One millilitre of dry couscous is 0.71854798 grams.
| Measure | Grams | Ounces | Millilitres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 170 g | 6 oz | 236.6 mL |
| 3/4 cup | 127.5 g | 4.5 oz | 177.4 mL |
| 2/3 cup | 113.3 g | 4 oz | 157.7 mL |
| 1/2 cup | 85 g | 3 oz | 118.3 mL |
| 1/3 cup | 56.67 g | 2 oz | 78.86 mL |
| 1/4 cup | 42.5 g | 1.5 oz | 59.15 mL |
| 1 tbsp | 10.62 g | 0.375 oz | 14.79 mL |
| 1 tsp | 3.542 g | 0.125 oz | 4.929 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steel-cut oats | 160 g | 5.644 oz | 0.6763 |
| Semolina | 167 g | 5.891 oz | 0.7059 |
| Uncooked quinoa | 170 g | 5.997 oz | 0.7185 |
| Dry couscous (this page) | 170 g | 5.997 oz | 0.7185 |
| 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 |
Ordered by weight. The spread across this group is why a single generic cups-to-grams factor cannot work.