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Butter converter: sticks, cups, tablespoons and grams
1 stick of butter = ½ cup = 8 tablespoons = 4 ounces = 113 g. Enter any amount below to get every other measure, or read the chart.
Quick answers
Butter measurements at a glance
- How many tablespoons in a stick of butter? 8 tablespoons. The wrapper of a US stick is marked in tablespoons, one line each.
- How many cups in a stick of butter? ½ cup. Two sticks make 1 cup.
- How many sticks of butter is a cup? 2 sticks. A cup of butter is 16 tablespoons, 8 ounces or about 227 g.
- How many tablespoons in ½ cup of butter? 8 tablespoons, which is one stick.
- How many ounces in a stick of butter? 4 ounces by weight. Four sticks make a 1 pound package.
- How many grams in a stick of butter? 113 g (4 ounces is 113.4 g).
- How many cups is 2 sticks of butter? 1 cup.
- How many sticks of butter in a pound? 4 sticks, or 2 cups.
- How many tablespoons in half a stick of butter? 4 tablespoons, which is ¼ cup or about 57 g.
- How many grams is 1 tablespoon of butter? About 14 g (USDA lists 14.2 g).
- How many grams is ½ cup of butter? And ¼ cup? ½ cup is about 113 g. ¼ cup is about 57 g.
- How many tablespoons is 100 g of butter? About 7 tablespoons (7.1 tbsp), a little less than one stick.
Butter conversion chart
Read across from the tablespoon marks on a US stick wrapper. Grams are rounded to the nearest gram; cups use the measures in a kitchen drawer.
| Tablespoons | Sticks | Cups | Ounces | Grams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 tbsp | ⅛ stick | 1 tbsp | 0.5 oz | 14 g |
| 2 tbsp | ¼ stick | 2 tbsp | 1 oz | 28 g |
| 3 tbsp | ⅜ stick | 3 tbsp | 1.5 oz | 43 g |
| 4 tbsp | ½ stick | ¼ cup | 2 oz | 57 g |
| 5 tbsp | ⅝ stick | ¼ cup + 1 tbsp | 2.5 oz | 71 g |
| 6 tbsp | ¾ stick | ⅓ cup + 2 tsp | 3 oz | 85 g |
| 8 tbsp | 1 stick | ½ cup | 4 oz | 113 g |
| 10 tbsp | 1¼ sticks | ½ cup + 2 tbsp | 5 oz | 142 g |
| 12 tbsp | 1½ sticks | ¾ cup | 6 oz | 170 g |
| 16 tbsp | 2 sticks | 1 cup | 8 oz | 227 g |
| 24 tbsp | 3 sticks | 1½ cups | 12 oz | 340 g |
| 32 tbsp | 4 sticks | 2 cups | 16 oz | 454 g |
Grams of butter to tablespoons, sticks and cups
For recipes written in grams, and for butter sold by weight in 250 g packs or 454 g bricks. Tablespoons are rounded to the nearest half.
| Grams | Tablespoons | Sticks | Cups |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 g | about ½ tbsp | about ⅛ stick | 2 tsp |
| 25 g | about 2 tbsp | about ¼ stick | 1 tbsp + 2½ tsp |
| 50 g | about 3½ tbsp | about ½ stick | 3 tbsp + 1½ tsp |
| 100 g | about 7 tbsp | about ⅞ stick | ⅓ cup + 1 tbsp + 2 tsp |
| 115 g | about 8 tbsp | about 1 sticks | ½ cup + ½ tsp |
| 125 g | about 9 tbsp | about 1⅛ sticks | ½ cup + 2½ tsp |
| 150 g | about 10½ tbsp | about 1⅜ sticks | ½ cup + 2 tbsp + 1½ tsp |
| 200 g | about 14 tbsp | about 1¾ sticks | ¾ cup + 2 tbsp + ½ tsp |
| 225 g | about 16 tbsp | about 2 sticks | ¾ cup + 3 tbsp + 2½ tsp |
| 250 g | about 17½ tbsp | about 2¼ sticks | 1 cup + 1 tbsp + 2 tsp |
| 454 g | about 32 tbsp | about 4 sticks | 2 cups |
| 500 g | about 35½ tbsp | about 4⅜ sticks | 2 cups + 3 tbsp + 1 tsp |
How the numbers fit together
A US stick of butter is sold by weight: 4 ounces. Its wrapper is printed with 8 tablespoon marks and labeled ½ cup, and four sticks make a 1 pound package. An ounce is exactly 28.349523125 g, so a stick is 113.4 g and a tablespoon of butter is 14.2 g, the same values USDA FoodData Central lists for butter. Everything on this page, and in the converter, comes from those four facts.
Worked example: a 250 g pack in a US recipe
250 ÷ 113.4 = 2.2 sticks. In tablespoons that is 17.6, so a recipe that asks for 2 sticks (1 cup) uses about 227 g of the pack and leaves about 23 g, a little over 1½ tablespoons.
Worked example: ¾ cup of butter
¾ cup is 12 tablespoons: one full stick plus half of a second one. In grams it is about 170 g.
Measuring butter without a stick
- Weigh it. A kitchen scale is the most accurate way to measure butter from a block or tub. NIST's culinary measurement tips recommend weighing ingredients.
- Mark the block. A 1 pound brick is 4 sticks: cut it into four equal pieces and each piece is ½ cup.
- Pack a measuring cup. Press softened butter into a dry measuring cup so there are no air pockets, then level it with a knife.
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central, Butter, salted (FDC 173410): 1 stick = 113 g, 1 cup = 227 g, 1 tbsp = 14.2 g, 1 pat = 5 g. Checked October 2, 2026.
- Land O'Lakes, Cooking measurements and abbreviations: one stick is ½ cup and 8 tablespoons; four sticks make 1 pound. Checked October 2, 2026.
- NIST, Handbook 44, Appendix C: 1 avoirdupois ounce = 28.349 523 125 g; 1 cup = 16 tablespoons; 1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons.
- Dairy Farmers of Canada, How to measure butter: a 454 g (1 pound) brick is 2 cups. Checked October 2, 2026.
Good to know
Butter questions
Is a stick of butter the same everywhere?
No. The 4 ounce stick, marked in tablespoons, is the usual US format. In Canada butter is often sold in 454 g (1 pound) bricks, and in the UK, Ireland and much of Europe and Australia packs are commonly 250 g. A 250 g pack is about 2¼ US sticks. Read the weight on your package and convert from grams.
Do I measure butter before or after melting it?
When a recipe says "½ cup butter, melted", measure the solid butter (one stick) and then melt it. When it says "½ cup melted butter", melt first and measure the liquid. The difference is small for butter, and weighing removes the question: 1 stick is 113 g either way.
Can I measure whipped butter from a tub with these numbers?
No. Whipped butter has air beaten into it, so a cup of it holds less butter than a cup of stick butter. Weigh it, or use the measures printed on the tub.
Does salted or unsalted butter change the conversion?
Not in a way you can measure at home. Both come in the same 4 ounce sticks. Swap one for the other by the same amount, and adjust the recipe's salt to taste if it matters.
Why do some charts say a stick is 115 g?
Rounding. A stick is 4 ounces, which is 113.4 g. Some charts round that to 115 g, and some Canadian references give ½ cup of butter as 115 g. USDA FoodData Central lists 113 g. In a recipe, 113 g and 115 g behave the same.
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