1 Cup Sugar in Grams: Accurate Baking Conversion Chart

How many grams is 1 cup of sugar?

The most straightforward answer is also the least precise: 1 cup of sugar can weigh anywhere from roughly 121g for powdered sugar up to 250g for raw sugar. The reason lies in density. A cup measures volume, while grams measure weight, and sugar crystals pack differently depending on their size and moisture content. Fine granulated sugar settles more densely than coarse crystals, and brown sugar’s molasses content adds both weight and a tendency to compress under its own bulk.

Granulated white sugar

The standard conversion most baking sites use is 200g per US cup of granulated sugar. This figure appears consistently across The Calculator Site, Easy Online Baking Lessons, and other baking conversion charts (The Calculator Site, Brownie Heaven). The US cup measures 240ml, and the fine granule size of American granulated sugar makes for consistent, reproducible results when leveled properly.

Variations by sugar type

The same cup filled with different sugars gives you different weights. Caster sugar, which has finer granules than standard granulated, weighs 225g per cup (Anna Olson). Powdered or icing sugar, ground much finer and often aerated, measures only around 121g per cup (The Calculator Site). Brown sugar packed firmly into a cup reaches 195g (Brownie Heaven), though some sources report slightly higher values depending on moisture content and packing method.

The implication: following a recipe that calls for “1 cup sugar” without knowing which sugar type it means could leave you 80g off the mark. For baking, where chemical reactions depend on precise ratios, that gap can noticeably affect texture and structure.

Is 1 cup of sugar 200g?

Yes, for granulated white sugar specifically. Multiple baking authorities confirm this figure. The Calculator Site lists 200g for 1 cup of granulated sugar (The Calculator Site), and Easy Online Baking Lessons’ conversion documentation similarly records 200g (Easy Online Baking Lessons). This 200g standard represents the most commonly cited value across baking resources.

Evidence from baking charts

Jamie Oliver’s UK-to-North America conversion page lists 200g for caster sugar (Jamie Oliver), though Anna Olson’s baking conversions page records caster at 225g (Anna Olson). The variation likely stems from differences in how tightly caster sugar packs, which can vary by brand and humidity. Both figures appear in respected baking resources, suggesting the practical range for caster sugar sits between 200g and 225g.

When 200g applies

The 200g figure applies when you’re using standard US granulated sugar (fine granules) and measuring with a level cup. The moment you switch to a coarser sugar or a different variety, the number shifts. US granulated sugar is fine-grained and designed to dissolve easily during baking (Bonni Bakery), which also makes it pack predictably at around 200g per cup.

What this means: if your recipe specifies “1 cup of sugar” and doesn’t specify a type, assume granulated white sugar and use 200g. This gives you the most reliable results for cookies, cakes, and most standard baking applications.

Is 1 cup of sugar 250 grams?

For certain sugar types, yes. Raw sugars like demerara or turbinado naturally have larger, coarser crystals that don’t pack as tightly, pushing the weight per cup higher. Weekend Bakery’s conversion charts list 250g for raw sugar per cup, a figure notably higher than standard granulated (Waiting for Blancmange).

Cases for 250g

Raw sugars, unrefined sugars with larger crystal sizes, consistently weigh more per cup because the crystals trap more air between them. Demerara sugar, light muscovado, and turbinado all fall into this category. If you’re following a recipe that specifically calls for raw sugar and you substitute with granulated, you’d be adding roughly 50g less sugar by volume — a difference that reduces sweetness and changes the caramelization patterns in baked goods.

Raw and packed sugar

Brown sugar presents its own complications. Some sources report brown sugar at 220g per packed cup (Industry Kitchens), while others cite 195g (Brownie Heaven). The discrepancy reflects real variation in how much moisture brown sugar contains and how firmly it compresses. A humid environment makes brown sugar clump and pack more heavily; dry conditions create lighter, fluffier measurements.

The pattern: raw and unrefined sugars run 20–25% heavier per cup than refined white sugars. For brown sugar specifically, “packed” vs “lightly scooped” can swing the measurement by 25g or more.

What is 1 cup in the UK?

The UK cup is larger than its US counterpart: 250ml vs 240ml. This difference stems from historical standardization — the US customary system standardized the cup at 8 fluid ounces (roughly 237ml, rounded to 240ml in most conversion tables), while the UK imperial system uses 10 fluid ounces per half-pint, which translates to a 250ml cup.

UK vs US cup sizes

Brownie Heaven’s conversion tables, which directly compare US and UK measurements, show that the volume difference does affect weight calculations. A 1 UK cup of granulated sugar equals 213g, versus 201g for a 1 US cup (Brownie Heaven). The 12g difference compounds when scaling recipes up — a doubled batch using wrong cup standards could leave you 24g off target.

Sugar specifics

British baking tradition complicates the picture further. UK granulated sugar, intended primarily for hot drinks, has coarser granules than American granulated (Bonni Bakery). For actual baking, British home bakers typically reach for caster sugar instead — a finer variety closer to American superfine sugar. Waiting for Blancmange, a UK baking resource, notes that “granulated sugar in Britain is actually a larger granule than the American superfine, which made for interestingly gritty first bakes in the UK” (Waiting for Blancmange).

The trade-off: if you’re adapting a US recipe for UK ingredients, swap the American granulated for caster sugar — not the coarser UK granulated, which won’t dissolve properly in most baking applications.

What kitchen conversions are most useful?

Beyond sugar, most baking recipes involve a handful of core ingredients where getting the weight right makes the difference between success and failure. The Calculator Site and Brownie Heaven both maintain comprehensive conversion charts covering the most commonly called-for baking ingredients.

Butter, flour, milk

• Butter: 1 cup = 227g (The Calculator Site) or 220g UK standard (Waiting for Blancmange)
• All-purpose flour: 1 cup = 125g (Brownie Heaven)
• Milk: 1 cup = 240g (US standard, based on water-weight approximation)
• Cocoa powder: 1 cup = 85–100g (Brownie Heaven)
• Chocolate chips: 1 cup = 175g (Brownie Heaven)
• 1 large egg: approximately 50g (Brownie Heaven)

Sugar fractions

• ½ cup granulated sugar: 100–101g (The Calculator Site)
• ¼ cup granulated sugar: 50g (Delicious Magazine)
• ¾ cup granulated sugar: approximately 150g (linear extrapolation from ¼ and ½ cup data)

What to watch: these conversions assume leveled measurements. A heaping cup of flour weighs noticeably more than a sifted, leveled cup, which means inconsistent measuring technique introduces more error than any chart variation. Industry Kitchens recommends using a kitchen scale as the most reliable way to ensure accuracy — because the number of grams in a cup depends entirely on the ingredient’s density and how you filled the cup (Industry Kitchens).

Conversion comparison

Four sugar types, four weight ranges — here’s how they stack side by side according to the most frequently cited baking conversion charts.

The implication: across all sugar types, the difference between lowest and highest weight per cup spans nearly 130g — a margin that bakers ignore at the risk of inconsistent results.

Complete specifications

A comprehensive weight reference for cup measurements across the most common baking ingredients, drawn from cross-referenced conversion sources.

Granulated sugar in Britain is actually a larger granule than the American superfine, which made for interestingly gritty first bakes in the UK.

— Waiting for Blancmange (Baking blog/resource)

For standard baking sugar, in Britain you want caster sugar to equal American superfine granulated.

— Bonni Bakery (US-UK baking guide)

For bakers working across US and UK recipes, the choice is straightforward: invest in a kitchen scale that reads in grams. Cup measurements introduce too much variance through packing pressure, granule size, and regional cup volume differences. A scale eliminates the guesswork — you weigh the sugar, and you know exactly how much you’re using regardless of which country the recipe comes from.

Related reading: 15 oz to Cups: Exact Conversion Guide + Calculator · 15 oz to Cups: 1.875 Cups (Exact Recipe Conversion)

While US granulated sugar measures 200g per cup, precise baking conversions clarify caster at 225g, raw at 250g, and other essential variations.

Frequently asked questions