Tablespoons of molasses to grams runs on one number, 21.0625 grams per tablespoon. It is a measured property of this ingredient rather than a defined conversion, which is why a generic volume-to-weight tool cannot give you it.
Put next to water — 1 g per mL exactly — molasses measures 1.4244 g per mL. That ratio, 142.4%, is what separates this page from every other ingredient in the same units, and it is measured rather than defined.
A level tablespoon of molasses is 21.06 g, which puts a teaspoon at 7.021 g and a tablespoon and a half — the quantity recipes are fondest of — at 31.59 g. Levelling twice is where the error comes from, so the scale is the faster instrument once the quantity passes a couple of spoons.
Grams are the unit this conversion is really for. A domestic scale resolves to a gram, which is 0.297% of a cup of molasses, so weighing gets an accuracy no measuring cup can reach. A 500 g pack of it is 1.484 cups, and a 1 kg pack 2.967.
What the number depends on: What is left after sugar crystallises out, so almost all of its weight is dissolved solids.
The formula
tablespoons- The amount of molasses you are converting, in tablespoons
21.0625- Grams per tablespoon for molasses, from its density of 1.4244 g/mL
grams- The equivalent quantity in grams
How it works, step by step
- Enter the quantity in tablespoons.
- It is multiplied by 21.0625, the grams-per-tablespoon figure for molasses.
- 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
2 tbsp of molasses in grams
2 tbsp of molasses weighs out at 42.125 grams. Divide 42.125 by 21.0625 and you get back to 2 tbsp, which is the quickest check that the factor is the right way up.
4 tbsp of molasses in grams
Take 4 tbsp of molasses: 4 × 21.0625 gives 84.25 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 168.5 grams, because the relationship is a straight proportion once the density is known.
12 tbsp of molasses in grams
12 tbsp of molasses weighs out at 252.75 grams. Divide 252.75 by 21.0625 and you get back to 12 tbsp, which is the quickest check that the factor is the right way up.
How to read your score
Frequently asked questions
How many grams are in 1 tbsp of molasses?
One tablespoon of molasses is 21.0625 grams. Half that quantity is 10.5312 grams and double it is 42.125 grams, so the figure scales straight up and down — there is no offset in this conversion, only the factor.
Why is a cup of molasses not 236 g like water?
Because weight per cup depends on what is in the cup. Molasses has a density of 1.4244 g per mL where water has 1.00, so a cup of it weighs 337 g rather than 236.6 g. That is a difference of 100.4 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?
Barely. Molasses does not compress, so a cup of it is 337 g however it is poured — within about 1%, which is inside the accuracy of a domestic scale. This is the group where measuring by volume is defensible.
Is a fluid ounce of molasses 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 molasses weighs 1.486 oz, so the two readings differ by 48.6%. 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 molasses would weigh 356.1 g instead of 337 g — 19.1 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?
A scale, if the result matters. Volume measuring carries a spread of about 1% for molasses — roughly 3.37 g on a 337 g cup — while a domestic scale is accurate to a gram or two. For anything where the ratio of ingredients drives the outcome, bread and pastry above all, weigh it.
How many tablespoons of molasses is 500 g?
500 g of molasses is 23.739 tablespoons — 0.0474777 tablespoons to one gram, so 500 × 0.0474777 = 23.739. Going that way is a division by 21.0625, or a multiplication by 0.0474777 if you prefer.
Molasses in tablespoons and grams
| Tablespoons | Grams | Unrounded |
|---|---|---|
| 1/2 tbsp | 10.5312 g | 10.53125 |
| 1 tbsp | 21.0625 g | 21.0625 |
| 2 tbsp | 42.125 g | 42.125 |
| 3 tbsp | 63.1875 g | 63.1875 |
| 4 tbsp | 84.25 g | 84.25 |
| 6 tbsp | 126.375 g | 126.375 |
| 8 tbsp | 168.5 g | 168.5 |
| 12 tbsp | 252.75 g | 252.75 |
| 16 tbsp | 337 g | 337 |
Based on 337 g per cup of molasses. One tablespoon of molasses is 21.0625 grams.
| Measure | Grams | Ounces | Millilitres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 337 g | 11.9 oz | 236.6 mL |
| 1 tbsp | 21.06 g | 0.743 oz | 14.79 mL |
| 2 tsp | 14.04 g | 0.495 oz | 9.858 mL |
| 1 tsp | 7.021 g | 0.248 oz | 4.929 mL |
| 3/4 tsp | 5.266 g | 0.186 oz | 3.697 mL |
| 1/2 tsp | 3.51 g | 0.124 oz | 2.464 mL |
| 1/4 tsp | 1.755 g | 0.0619 oz | 1.232 mL |
| 1/8 tsp | 0.8776 g | 0.031 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peanut butter | 258 g | 9.101 oz | 1.091 |
| Sweetened condensed milk | 306 g | 10.79 oz | 1.293 |
| Maple syrup | 322 g | 11.36 oz | 1.361 |
| Corn syrup | 328 g | 11.57 oz | 1.386 |
| Agave nectar | 331 g | 11.68 oz | 1.399 |
| Molasses (this page) | 337 g | 11.89 oz | 1.424 |
| Honey | 340 g | 11.99 oz | 1.437 |
Ordered by weight. The spread across this group is why a single generic cups-to-grams factor cannot work.