How Many Tablespoons In 1/2 Cup

Quick Summary: There are 8 tablespoons in ½ cup in the US system. Half a cup also equals 24 teaspoons, 4 fluid ounces, or about 118 ml.

½ cup glass of water with text overlay: ½ cup equals 8 tablespoons.

Jump to:

American cup size
Different cup sizes
What is a tablespoon?
Tablespoon sizes
How many tablespoons in a half cup
How to convert ½ cup to tablespoons
½ cup to tablespoon conversion
How many tablespoons of butter in ½ cup
How to measure ½ cup
Tablespoon conversion chart
Printable conversion charts
Related conversions
Conclusion
Frequently asked questions
Comments

American cup size

The United States has its measurement convention called 'US cups,' where ½ customary or ½ standard measuring cup is equal:

½ US Cup = 118.294 mL
½ US Cup = 8 US tablespoons (tbsp)
½ US Cup = 7.89 metric tablespoons (United Kingdom, international)

An American tablespoon equals 0.0625 American cups.

The legal US cup is used in cooking units, serving sizes, and nutrition labeling in the USA.

½ US Legal Cup = 120 mL
½ US Legal Cup = 8.115 US tablespoons (tbsp)
½ US Legal Cup = 8 metric tablespoons (UK, international)

Different cup sizes

A US cup differs slightly from those in other English-speaking countries, such as Australia, Canada, and South Africa. This is because these countries employ metric measurements:

½ Metric Cup = 125 mL.

Old recipes in the United Kingdom use the British imperial system, where an Imperial (UK) cup is a non-metric unit of volume. Modern recipes in the UK use the UK metric cup.

½ Imperial Cup = 142.07 mL
½ UK Metric Cup = 125 mL

1 cup	Milliliters	½ cup	Milliliters
US Customary Cup	236.59 ml	US Customary Cup	118.3 ml
US Legal Cup	240 ml	US Legal Cup	120 ml
UK Metric Cup	250 ml	UK Metric Cup	125 ml
UK Imperial Cup	284.13 ml	UK Imperial Cup	142.07 ml
Australian Cup	250 ml	Australian Cup	125 ml
Canadian Cup	250 ml	Canadian Cup	125 ml
South African Cup	250 ml	South African Cup	125 ml

What is a tablespoon?

A tablespoon is a unit of volume used in cooking and baking. In the US system, one tablespoon equals 3 teaspoons or about 15 milliliters. Since 1 cup equals 16 tablespoons, half a cup contains 8 tablespoons.

Tablespoon sizes

A tablespoon, a measure of volume, also varies across regions of the world. Most countries, except the USA and Australia, use a metric tablespoon of 15 ml.

Here are different sizes of tablespoons:

1 US tablespoon = 14.8 ml or 0.5 US fl oz
1 UK tablespoon = 15 ml
1 Canadian tablespoon = 15 ml or 0.51 US fl oz
1 Australian tablespoon = 20 ml or 0.68 US fl oz

How many tablespoons in a half cup

There are 8 tablespoons in ½ cup in the US system. Half a cup also equals 24 teaspoons, 4 fluid ounces, or about 118 milliliters.

Measurement	½ cup equals
Tablespoons	8 tbsp
Teaspoons	24 tsp
Fluid ounces	4 fl oz
Milliliters	118 ml

How to convert ½ cup to tablespoons

1 cup = 16 tablespoons (US system), so here is a conversion formula:

Tbsp = cups x 16, where the conversion factor is 16;

½ x 16 = 8 tbsp

So there are 8 tablespoons in ½ cup.

½ cup to tablespoon conversion

Here is a handy chart of dry measuring cups (abbreviated 'c'), tablespoons (or tbsp), fluid ounces (or fl oz), and milliliters (ml) equivalencies.

Note: Half a cup to tablespoons, and fluid ounces conversion is in bold. Half a cup in ml is also included in this conversion.

Cups	Tablespoons	Fluid ounces	Milliliters
1/16 cup	1 tbsp	½ fl. oz.	14.79 ml
⅛ cup	2 tbsp	1 fl. oz.	29.57 ml
⅙ cup	2 tablespoon + 2 tsp	1 ⅓ fl. oz.	39.43 ml
¼ cup	4 tbsp	2 fl. oz.	59.15 ml
⅓ cup	5 tablespoon + 1 tsp	2 ⅔ fl. oz.	78.86 ml
½ cup	8 tbsp	4 fl. oz.	118.29 ml
⅔ cup	10 tablespoon + 2 tsp	5 ⅓ fl. oz	157.73 ml
¾ cup	12 tbsp	6 fl. oz.	177.44 ml
1 cup	16 tbsp	8 fl. oz.	236.59 ml

Cup and tablespoon conversions

The above conversion table works perfectly for all types of flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and other dry ingredients if you measure by volume.

How many tablespoons of butter in ½ cup

Use the simple conversion chart below to measure butter, margarine, and shortening. As you can see, 1 cup equals 2 sticks of butter; half a cup equals

1 stick, or
8 tablespoons, or
4 ounces, or
113.4 grams.

tablespoon	Cups	Ounces	Grams	Stick of butter
16 tbsp	1 cup	8 oz.	226.8 g	2 sticks
12 tbsp	¾ cup	6 oz.	170.1 g	1 ½ sticks
10 tablespoon + 2 tsp	⅔ cup	5.33 oz.	151.2 g	1 ⅓ sticks
8 tbsp	½ cup	4 oz.	113.4 g	1 stick
5 tablespoon + 1 tsp	⅓ cup	2.66 oz.	75.6 g	⅔ stick
4 tbsp	¼ cup	2 oz.	56.7 g	½ stick
2 tbsp	⅛ cup	1 oz.	28.4 g	¼ stick

*Cup and tablespoons conversions from Traditional Oven

Around the world, ½ cups are not all equal. Depending on the recipe, ½ cup to tablespoon conversions are entirely different.

½ cup	Milliliters	US tablespoons	UK tablespoons Imperial
US (standard)	118.29 ml	8 tbsp	6.5 tbsp
UK (Imperial)	142 ml	9.6 tbsp	8 tbsp
UK (metric)	125 ml	8.5 tbsp	7 tbsp
Australia	125 ml	8.5 tbsp	7 tbsp
Canada	125 ml	8.5 tbsp	7 tbsp
South Africa	125 ml	8.5 tbsp	7 tbsp

How to measure ½ cup

You might be wondering how to make a ½ cup. There are different ways how to measure ½ cup:

Use a ½ measuring cup
Use a ¼ cup and fill it twice
Use 8 tablespoons
Use 24 teaspoons

But how do you measure ½ cup without a measuring cup or spoon? If you do not have measurement baking tools, try the eyeballing method:

Use a coffee mug or a cup with a capacity of 8 fl. oz. Fill the mug with water to ½ full, and you will roughly get half of a cup.
Eyeball the half a cup roughly equals the size of a tennis ball.
Eyeball the quarter cup, roughly equal to about the size of a golf ball or a large egg, and take it twice.

But please, remember that these methods are estimated and less accurate than measuring with cups, spoons, or a kitchen scale.

Tablespoon conversion chart

I thought it would be helpful to create a tablespoon conversion chart, a reference chart in PDF.

Download and print out this Tablespoon Conversion Chart >>

You can laminate it using a thermal laminator and put it inside your kitchen cabinet or on the side of the fridge. Or include this cheat sheet in your favorite recipe binder.

Printable conversion charts

Bakers of all levels, from novice to experienced, can find a lot of helpful information on this website, including baking conversions and ingredient substitutions, as well as answers to tricky baking questions.

You will find it helpful to discover numerous free kitchen printables gathered in one place, a free resource library:

Make sure to check out other common kitchen measurements and their conversions, especially for tablespoons and cups measurement conversions:

And if you ever need to convert your baking pan sizes, use this simple Cake Pan Converter.

Conclusion

I hope this article answers how many tablespoons make half a cup. You might see other frequently asked questions about ½ cup to tablespoons conversion, for example:

How many tablespoons in 0.5 cup
How many tablespoons is in a ½ cup
How many tablespoons make a ½ cup
How many tablespoons in half a cup

The answer is the same: ½ cup equals 8 tablespoons.

Frequently asked questions

How many tablespoons are in ½ cup?
There are 8 tablespoons in ½ cup in the US system.

How many tablespoons is half a cup?
Half a cup equals 8 tablespoons, which is the same as 24 teaspoons or 4 fluid ounces.

How much is half a cup?
Half a cup equals 8 tablespoons, 4 fluid ounces, and about 118 milliliters or 113.4 grams of water.

Is 8 tablespoon half a cup?
Yes, 8 tablespoons equal ½ cup, since a full cup holds 16 tablespoons.

How many tablespoon in ¼ cup?
There are 4 tablespoons in ¼ cup, which is half of the 8 tablespoons in ½ cup.