Why You Need a Butter Conversion Chart
Butter is one of the trickiest ingredients to measure consistently, especially when a recipe from the UK or Australia calls for “grams,” your American recipe calls for “sticks,” and your grandmother’s recipe just says “a block.” Get the conversion wrong and your cookies spread too thin, your cake turns dense, or your pastry just won’t flake right.
This butter conversion chart takes the guesswork out of the equation. Whether you’re halving a recipe, scaling up for a crowd, or converting between metric and imperial measurements, you’ll find the exact butter equivalent you need in seconds.
Quick Reference: Master Butter Conversion Chart
| Butter in Blocks | Butter in Sticks | Butter by Cups | Butter by Tbsp | Grams | Ounces | Pounds | Milliliters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 block | 4 sticks | 2 cups | 32 Tbsp | 454 g | 16 oz | 1 lb | 500 mL |
| 3/4 block | 3 sticks | 1½ cups | 24 Tbsp | 345 g | 12 oz | 3/4 lb | 375 mL |
| 1/2 block | 2 sticks | 1 cup | 16 Tbsp | 227 g | 8 oz | 1/2 lb | 250 mL |
| 1/3 block | 1⅓ sticks | ⅔ cup | 10 Tbsp + 2 tsp | 151 g | 5.33 oz | 1/3 lb | 160 mL |
| 1/4 block | 1 stick | 1/2 cup | 8 Tbsp | 115 g | 4 oz | 1/4 lb | 125 mL |
| 1/6 block | 2/3 stick | 1/3 cup | 5 Tbsp + 1 tsp | 76 g | 2.67 oz | 1/6 lb | 80 mL |
Handy rule of thumb: 1 stick of butter = 1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons = 4 ounces = 115 grams.
Butter by Sticks: Full Breakdown
| Sticks | Cups | Tbsp | Grams | Ounces |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 sticks | 2 cups | 32 Tbsp | 454 g | 16 oz |
| 3 sticks | 1½ cups | 24 Tbsp | 345 g | 12 oz |
| 2 sticks | 1 cup | 16 Tbsp | 227 g | 8 oz |
| 1⅓ sticks | ⅔ cup | 10 Tbsp + 2 tsp | 151 g | 5.33 oz |
| 1 stick | 1/2 cup | 8 Tbsp | 115 g | 4 oz |
| 2/3 stick | 1/3 cup | 5 Tbsp + 1 tsp | 76 g | 2.67 oz |
| 1/2 stick | 1/4 cup | 4 Tbsp | 58 g | 2 oz |
| 1/4 stick | 1/8 cup (2 Tbsp) | 2 Tbsp | 28 g | 1 oz |
| 1/8 stick | 1 Tbsp | 1 Tbsp | 14 g | 1/2 oz |
Butter by Tablespoons: Full Breakdown
| Tbsp | Cups | Sticks | Ounces | Milliliters | Blocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 Tbsp | 2 cups | 4 sticks | 16 oz | 500 mL | 1 block |
| 24 Tbsp | 1½ cups | 3 sticks | 12 oz | 375 mL | 3/4 block |
| 16 Tbsp | 1 cup | 2 sticks | 8 oz | 250 mL | 1/2 block |
| 10 Tbsp + 2 tsp | ⅔ cup | 1⅓ sticks | 5.33 oz | 160 mL | 1/3 block |
| 8 Tbsp | 1/2 cup | 1 stick | 4 oz | 125 mL | 1/4 block |
| 5 Tbsp + 1 tsp | 1/3 cup | 2/3 stick | 2.67 oz | 80 mL | 1/6 block |
| 4 Tbsp | 1/4 cup | 1/2 stick | 2 oz | 60 mL | 1/8 block |
| 2 Tbsp | 1/8 cup (2 Tbsp) | 1/4 stick | 1 oz | 30 mL | 1/16 block |
| 1 Tbsp | 1 Tbsp | 1/8 stick | 1/2 oz | 15 mL | 1/32 block |
Butter by Cups: Full Breakdown
| Cups | Grams | Milliliters | Tbsp | Sticks | Blocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 cups | 454 g | 500 mL | 32 Tbsp | 4 sticks | 1 block |
| 1½ cups | 345 g | 375 mL | 24 Tbsp | 3 sticks | 3/4 block |
| 1 cup | 227 g | 250 mL | 16 Tbsp | 2 sticks | 1/2 block |
| ⅔ cup | 151 g | 160 mL | 10 Tbsp + 2 tsp | 1⅓ sticks | 1/3 block |
| 1/2 cup | 115 g | 125 mL | 8 Tbsp | 1 stick | 1/4 block |
| 1/3 cup | 76 g | 80 mL | 5 Tbsp + 1 tsp | 2/3 stick | 1/6 block |
| 1/4 cup | 58 g | 60 mL | 4 Tbsp | 1/2 stick | 1/8 block |
Remember: 1 stick of butter always yields half a cup of butter, no matter how you slice it.
Use the wrapper markings. Most U.S. butter sticks have tablespoon markings printed right on the wrapper , no measuring cup needed.
Weigh for precision. For baking, a kitchen scale is the most accurate method, especially when converting between metric and imperial recipes.
1 block = 1 pound = 4 sticks. This is the easiest anchor point to remember when scaling any recipe up or down.
Room temperature vs. cold matters. Softened butter packs differently into cup measures than cold, cubed butter ,when a recipe specifies “softened” or “cold,” follow it exactly for the best texture.
Melted butter volume stays roughly the same. Melting butter doesn’t meaningfully change its volume, so you can measure before or after melting with the same chart.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many cups is one stick of butter? One stick of butter equals 1/2 cup, or 8 tablespoons.
How many grams are in a cup of butter? One cup of butter weighs 227 grams.
Is a block of butter the same as a pound? Yes,in the U.S., a standard “block” of butter is 1 pound (454 grams), equal to 4 sticks or 2 cups.
How do I convert grams of butter to tablespoons? Divide the gram amount by roughly 14.2 (the weight of 1 tablespoon of butter) to get the number of tablespoons. For quick reference, use the chart above instead of doing the math by hand.
Does the size of a butter stick vary by country? Yes. U.S. butter sticks are standardized at 1/2 cup (115 g) each, but butter sold in blocks or by weight (common in Europe, the UK, and Australia) doesn’t come pre-marked into sticks ,this is exactly why a conversion chart comes in handy for international recipes.
Bookmark this butter conversion chart so you never have to second-guess a recipe’s measurements again . whether you’re baking cookies, scaling a cake recipe, or converting grandma’s recipe card into modern measurements.
