Convert Milliliters to US Cups
Milliliters to US cups is the conversion for reading a metric measurement on an American measuring cup. One milliliter is about 0.00422675 US cups, so the number gets smaller going from mL to cups because a cup holds well over two hundred milliliters.
Milliliters to US Cups conversion table
| Milliliters (mL) | US Cups (cup) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0.004227 |
| 2 | 0.008454 |
| 3 | 0.01268 |
| 5 | 0.021134 |
| 10 | 0.042268 |
| 20 | 0.084535 |
| 50 | 0.211338 |
| 100 | 0.422675 |
| 500 | 2.113376 |
| 1,000 | 4.226753 |
The formula
To convert milliliters to US cups, multiply the volume in milliliters by 0.00422675:
US cups = milliliters × 0.00422675
A worked example
Say a bottle of cream is 300 mL and your recipe is written in cups:
300 × 0.00422675 = 1.27 US cups
So 300 mL is about one and a quarter US cups.
Why 250 mL isn't quite a cup
People often assume a cup is 250 mL, but that's the metric cup. A US cup is 236.5882365 mL — a little less — so a 250 mL carton is actually just over a US cup, not exactly one. In baking, treating them as equal slowly throws off your ratios batch after batch.
When you'll use it
Reading metric-labeled cartons and bottles against a cups-based recipe, converting drink or ingredient volumes for American measuring cups, portioning from mL-marked containers, and following international recipes in a US kitchen.
Frequently asked questions
How many US cups is 250 milliliters?
About 1.057 US cups. It's a common surprise: 250 mL is a touch more than one US cup, because a US cup is 236.5882365 mL, not a round 250. The 250 mL 'cup' is the metric cup, which is slightly larger.
Is a US cup 240 mL or 236 mL?
The exact US customary cup is 236.5882365 mL. Nutrition labeling in the US sometimes rounds it to 240 mL for convenience, but for recipe conversions the 236.6 mL figure is the accurate one.
Does this use US or metric cups?
US cups. A US cup is about 236.6 mL, while a metric cup is 250 mL and a UK cup can differ again. Match the cup to your recipe's origin so quantities stay right.