To convert tablespoons of water into grams, multiply by 14.75: one tablespoon comes to 14.75 grams. Every ingredient has its own figure here, because the units are measuring different things and only the density links them.
The density behind that figure is 0.99751 g per mL, against 1.00 for water. A cup of water weighs 236.6 g and a cup of water weighs 236 g, so this ingredient is 99.75% as heavy as the same volume of water — the single fact the whole page rests on.
A level tablespoon of water is 14.75 g, which puts a teaspoon at 4.917 g and a tablespoon and a half — the quantity recipes are fondest of — at 22.12 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 0.424% of a cup of water, so weighing gets an accuracy no measuring cup can reach. A 500 g pack of it is 2.119 cups, and a 1 kg pack 4.237.
How the figure is arrived at: The reference case. A US cup is 236.6 mL and water is 1 g per mL, so the two numbers are the same and every other ingredient can be read against it.
The formula
tablespoons- The amount of water you are converting, in tablespoons
14.75- Grams per tablespoon for water, from its density of 0.99751 g/mL
grams- The equivalent quantity in grams
How it works, step by step
- Enter the quantity in tablespoons.
- It is multiplied by 14.75, the grams-per-tablespoon figure for water.
- 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 water in grams
A recipe calling for 2 tbsp of water needs 29.5 grams on the scale. The arithmetic is 2 × 14.75 = 29.5, and halving the recipe halves the weight to 14.75 grams.
4 tbsp of water in grams
Take 4 tbsp of water: 4 × 14.75 gives 59 grams. Doubling the batch takes it to 118 grams, because the relationship is a straight proportion once the density is known.
12 tbsp of water in grams
12 tbsp of water weighs out at 177 grams. Divide 177 by 14.75 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 water?
One tablespoon of water is 14.75 grams. Half that quantity is 7.375 grams and double it is 29.5 grams, so the figure scales straight up and down — there is no offset in this conversion, only the factor.
Why is a cup of water not 236 g like water?
Because weight per cup depends on what is in the cup. Water has a density of 0.99751 g per mL where water has 1.00, so a cup of it weighs 236 g rather than 236.6 g. That is a difference of 0.6 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?
Barely. Water does not compress, so a cup of it is 236 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 water 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 water weighs 1.041 oz, so the two readings differ by 4.06%. 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 water would weigh 249.38 g instead of 236 g — 13.4 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 water — roughly 2.36 g on a 236 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 water is 500 g?
500 g of water is 33.898 tablespoons — 0.0677966 tablespoons to one gram, so 500 × 0.0677966 = 33.898. Going that way is a division by 14.75, or a multiplication by 0.0677966 if you prefer.
Water in tablespoons and grams
| Tablespoons | Grams | Unrounded |
|---|---|---|
| 1/2 tbsp | 7.375 g | 7.375 |
| 1 tbsp | 14.75 g | 14.75 |
| 2 tbsp | 29.5 g | 29.5 |
| 3 tbsp | 44.25 g | 44.25 |
| 4 tbsp | 59 g | 59 |
| 6 tbsp | 88.5 g | 88.5 |
| 8 tbsp | 118 g | 118 |
| 12 tbsp | 177 g | 177 |
| 16 tbsp | 236 g | 236 |
Based on 236 g per cup of water. One tablespoon of water is 14.75 grams.
| Measure | Grams | Ounces | Millilitres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 236 g | 8.32 oz | 236.6 mL |
| 1 tbsp | 14.75 g | 0.52 oz | 14.79 mL |
| 2 tsp | 9.833 g | 0.347 oz | 9.858 mL |
| 1 tsp | 4.917 g | 0.173 oz | 4.929 mL |
| 3/4 tsp | 3.688 g | 0.13 oz | 3.697 mL |
| 1/2 tsp | 2.458 g | 0.0867 oz | 2.464 mL |
| 1/4 tsp | 1.229 g | 0.0434 oz | 1.232 mL |
| 1/8 tsp | 0.6146 g | 0.0217 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coconut oil | 218 g | 7.69 oz | 0.9214 |
| Mayonnaise | 220 g | 7.76 oz | 0.9299 |
| Cream cheese | 227 g | 8.007 oz | 0.9595 |
| Water (this page) | 236 g | 8.325 oz | 0.9975 |
| Heavy cream | 238 g | 8.395 oz | 1.006 |
| Vinegar | 239 g | 8.43 oz | 1.01 |
| Sour cream | 240 g | 8.466 oz | 1.014 |
Ordered by weight. The spread across this group is why a single generic cups-to-grams factor cannot work.