Why a Cup of Flour and a Cup of Sugar Weigh Different Amounts
Volume matches; mass does not
Free Calculator Hub Editorial Team
7 min read
Why a Cup of Flour and a Cup of Sugar Weigh Different Amounts
Recipes speak in cups because home kitchens have measuring cups. Professional bakers prefer grams because the same cup of flour can swing 30 g depending on technique.
Same Volume, Different Mass
Granulated sugar at ~198 g/cup is denser than spooned flour at ~120 g/cup. Butter at 226 g/cup sits between them. Charts encode those averages.
- US cups are 236.588 mL, not 250 mL
- Spoon and level flour; don't scoop
- Weigh when precision matters
- Use ingredient-specific pages for flour, sugar, and butter