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US cups to millilitres

Multiply US cups by 236.5882 to get millilitres.

1 cup = 236.5882 mLNIST HB 44 · BIPM SI
cup
236.5882mL

1 cup = 236.5882 mL

How to convert US cups to millilitres

The millilitre is one thousandth of a litre, equal to one cubic centimetre (cm³). The US cup is a US customary cup, one sixteenth of a gallon (236.5882365 millilitres).

Worked example — 1 cup: 1 × 236.5882 = 236.5882 mL.

US cups to millilitres table

Common conversions. The reverse table is on millilitres to US cups.
US cupsMillilitres
0.25 cup59.1471 mL
0.33 cup78.0741 mL
0.5 cup118.2941 mL
0.75 cup177.4412 mL
1 cup236.5882 mL
1.5 cup354.8824 mL
2 cup473.1765 mL
3 cup709.7647 mL
4 cup946.3529 mL

Reverse and related

About US cups and millilitres

US cup (cup)

1 cup = 236.5882 mL

Definition. A US customary cup, one sixteenth of a gallon (236.5882365 millilitres)

History and origin

The US customary cup was standardised as a cooking measure at one sixteenth of a gallon, about 237 millilitres. It became popular through American recipe books in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Current use

The cup is the dominant volume measure in US home cooking and baking; metric recipes usually give millilitres or grams instead.

Source: NIST Handbook 44, Appendix C §2 (U.S. Customary Units) and §5 (Tables of Equivalents)

Millilitre (mL)

1 mL = 0.00422675 cup

Definition. One thousandth of a litre, equal to one cubic centimetre (cm³)

History and origin

The millilitre is one thousandth of a litre, equal to one cubic centimetre. It came with the decimal metric system as the unit for small liquid volumes.

Current use

Millilitres are used for recipes, medicine doses and cosmetics, and are printed on most small bottles and cans.

Source: BIPM SI Brochure (2019); the litre is an SI-accepted unit (1 L = 1 dm³)

Where people use this

US cups: recipes, baking. Millilitres: recipes, medicine doses, cosmetics. 1 US cup is about 237 mL.

How we know this is right
The factor is fixed by the standards that define the units, not chosen — so it is exact, not a measurement:
1 mL = 0.004226752838 cup, so 1 cup = 1 ÷ 0.004226752838 = 236.5882 mL.

Every value is carried to full double precision; the display is rounded.

Sources: BIPM SI Brochure (2019); the litre is an SI-accepted unit (1 L = 1 dm³); NIST Handbook 44, Appendix C §2 (U.S. Customary Units) and §5 (Tables of Equivalents).

Questions people ask

How many mL is 1 cup?

One US cup is about 237 mL (236.6 mL). To convert cups to mL, multiply by 237.

How many mL is 2 cups?

2 US cups is about 473 mL, and 3 cups is about 710 mL.

How many mL is half a cup?

Half a US cup is about 118 mL, and a quarter cup is about 59 mL.

How many mL is three quarters of a cup?

Three quarters of a US cup is about 177 mL.

Is a US cup the same as a metric cup?

No. A US cup is 237 mL, while the metric cup used in many countries is 250 mL.

All US cup conversions