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Cups to Milliliters

1 Cup (US) (cup) = 236.588 Milliliter (ml)

Result
236.588 ml
1 cup = 236.588 ml

How Many Milliliters in a Cup?

One US cup equals 236.588 milliliters. To convert cups to milliliters, multiply the number of cups by 236.588 (or use 237 ml for practical kitchen purposes). This conversion is critical when following American recipes with metric measuring tools, which is the reality for most cooks outside the United States. Cups are the standard volume measurement in US recipes for everything from flour and sugar to milk and broth, but most of the world measures liquids in milliliters and liters. Whether you are adapting a family cookie recipe for a European kitchen or following an American cookbook while living abroad, understanding this conversion ensures accurate results.

How to Convert Cup (US) to Milliliter

  1. Start with your measurement in US cups.
  2. Multiply the cup value by 236.588 to get the volume in milliliters.
  3. The result is your measurement in milliliters.
  4. For practical cooking, rounding to 237 ml or even 240 ml per cup is close enough. The difference (less than 1.5%) is negligible for most recipes.
  5. Be aware that metric cups (used in Australia) are 250 ml, not 236.588 ml. Check which cup standard your recipe uses.

Real-World Examples

An American pancake recipe calls for 1.5 cups of milk.
1.5 x 236.588 = 354.9 ml. Pour 355 ml of milk using a metric measuring jug.
A smoothie recipe needs 2 cups of orange juice.
2 x 236.588 = 473.2 ml. This is just under half a liter — a small juice carton.
Your recipe calls for 1/4 cup of olive oil.
0.25 x 236.588 = 59.1 ml. That is roughly 4 tablespoons or about 60 ml.
A cake recipe requires 3 cups of flour. You need to know the volume in ml to use a metric scoop.
3 x 236.588 = 709.8 ml. Note: for flour, weighing in grams is more accurate than measuring by volume.
A soup recipe calls for 6 cups of chicken broth.
6 x 236.588 = 1,419.5 ml, or about 1.42 liters. Buy a 1.5-liter carton of broth.

Quick Reference

Cup (US) (cup) Milliliter (ml)
1 236.588
2 473.176
5 1182.94
10 2365.88
25 5914.7
50 11829.4
100 23658.8
500 118,294
1,000 236,588

History of Cup (US) and Milliliter

The US customary cup was derived from the older English system of measurement and was standardized as exactly 8 US fluid ounces, or 236.588 milliliters. Interestingly, the US cup is slightly different from the old imperial cup used in the United Kingdom (284 ml) and the metric cup used in Australia and New Zealand (250 ml). These differences arose because each country standardized their cup measurement independently. The milliliter, one-thousandth of a liter, has been part of the metric system since it was established in France in the 1790s.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Using 250 ml for a US cup. The metric cup (used in Australia) is 250 ml, but the US cup is 236.588 ml. This 5.7% difference matters in baking, where it can mean nearly an extra tablespoon of liquid per cup.
  • Forgetting that cup measurements in recipes are for level cups, not heaping. A heaping cup of flour contains significantly more than a level cup, which throws off the ml conversion entirely.
  • Assuming all liquids measure the same. While a cup is always 236.588 ml regardless of the liquid, the weight will differ — a cup of honey (340 g) weighs much more than a cup of water (236 g). The ml measurement is about volume, not weight.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a US cup the same as a metric cup?
No. A US cup is 236.588 ml. A metric cup (used in Australia and New Zealand) is 250 ml. If you are using a recipe from an Australian source, use 250 ml per cup. For American recipes, use 237 ml.
How many milliliters are in common cup fractions?
1/4 cup = 59 ml, 1/3 cup = 79 ml, 1/2 cup = 118 ml, 2/3 cup = 158 ml, 3/4 cup = 177 ml, 1 cup = 237 ml. These are the fractions you will encounter most often in recipes.
Can I use a standard US measuring cup for metric recipes?
You can approximate, but for precision use a liquid measuring cup with ml markings. Most glass measuring cups sold in the US have both cup and ml markings, which makes cross-system conversion easy.
Why do American recipes use cups instead of milliliters?
The cup system developed because early American cooks needed a simple, accessible way to measure ingredients without scales. Fannie Farmer popularized standardized cup measurements in her 1896 cookbook, and the tradition stuck. Most US kitchens have measuring cups but not kitchen scales.
Quick Tip

For everyday cooking, you can safely round 1 US cup to 240 ml. The 1.4% difference (3.4 ml) is less than what you would lose sticking to the side of a measuring cup. For baking, use 237 ml for better accuracy. And if you see a recipe from Australia or the UK, remember their cups are different sizes — always check the recipe source.