Convert tablespoons to cups

cups = tbsp ÷ 16

This is the conversion people need when a measuring cup is in the dishwasher, or when scaling a recipe down. The useful landmarks:

• 2 tbsp = ⅛ cup
• 4 tbsp = ¼ cup
• 5 tbsp + 1 tsp = ⅓ cup
• 8 tbsp = ½ cup
• 10 tbsp + 2 tsp = ⅔ cup
• 12 tbsp = ¾ cup
• 16 tbsp = 1 cup

⅓ cup does not divide evenly into tablespoons — it is 5⅓, which is why recipes write "5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon".

Eight. A US stick of butter is ½ cup, 4 oz or 113 g, and the wrapper is usually printed with tablespoon marks so you can cut it without measuring. A recipe that says "6 tablespoons butter" means three quarters of a stick.

In American recipes a capital T (or Tbsp) is a tablespoon and a lowercase t (or tsp) is a teaspoon. Handwritten recipe cards blur the two, and the mistake triples the amount — a disaster with salt or baking soda. When in doubt, the quantity usually tells you: "1 T salt" in a single loaf is suspicious; "1 t salt" is not.

Teaspoons convert separately — see tbsp to tsp.

Because the US tablespoon is defined as half a fluid ounce and the cup as 8 fluid ounces. NIST Special Publication 811, the US guide to the SI lists the tablespoon as 1.478676 × 10⁻⁵ m³ (14.79 mL) and the cup as 2.365882 × 10⁻⁴ m³. On nutrition labels, 21 CFR 101.9 rounds them to 15 mL and 240 mL — still 16 to 1.