3 Cups of Powdered Sugar in Grams
360 g in a US cup — and what that figure assumes
3 cups of powdered sugar weighs 360 grams, measured in a US cup.
That figure comes from one number: a full US cup of powdered sugar is 120 g. Everything else on this page is that number scaled.
Powdered sugar clumps. Sift it, then spoon it into the cup and level it. Scooping straight from the bag packs the lumps in and overshoots.
Whose cup you mean changes the answer. A 250 ml metric cup — the standard in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada — is 5.7% larger than the 236.6 ml US cup, so three cups of powdered sugar is 380 g there rather than 360 g.
3 cups of powdered sugar in each cup standard
| Cup standard | Size | Grams | Ounces |
|---|---|---|---|
| US customary | 236.6 ml | 360 g | 12.70 oz |
| Metric (UK, AU, NZ, CA) | 250 ml | 380 g | 13.42 oz |
| Imperial (older UK) | 284 ml | 432 g | 15.25 oz |
A recipe that just says "cups" is almost always American. If yours came from a British, Australian or New Zealand source, take the metric row — on a 360 g measure the gap is 20.4 g.
Halving and doubling powdered sugar
Recipes get scaled more often than they get followed exactly. These are the portions of powdered sugar a cook actually reaches for, already weighed out.
| Cups | Grams | Ounces | Tablespoons |
|---|---|---|---|
| ¼ cup | 30 g | 1.06 oz | 4 |
| ⅓ cup | 40 g | 1.41 oz | 5.33 |
| ½ cup | 60 g | 2.12 oz | 8 |
| ⅔ cup | 80 g | 2.82 oz | 10.67 |
| ¾ cup | 90 g | 3.17 oz | 12 |
| 1 cup | 120 g | 4.23 oz | 16 |
| 1½ cups | 180 g | 6.35 oz | 24 |
| 2 cups | 240 g | 8.47 oz | 32 |
| 3 cups | 360 g | 12.70 oz | 48 |
3 cups of powdered sugar in other units
| Unit | Amount |
|---|---|
| Grams | 360 g |
| Ounces (weight) | 12.70 oz |
| Pounds | 0.794 lb |
| Tablespoons | 48 |
| Teaspoons | 144 |
| Millilitres (the space it fills) | 710 ml |
Powdered sugar, icing sugar and confectioners' sugar are the same thing, at 120 g per cup. Sifted before measuring it can be lighter still, which is why frosting recipes usually say to sift first.
3 cups of something else
The same cup holds a different weight of everything, because ingredients do not weigh the same for their size.
| Ingredient | Grams per US cup | 3 cups weighs |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 125 g | 375 g |
| Sugar | 200 g | 600 g |
| Butter | 227 g | 681 g |
| Rice | 185 g | 555 g |
| Milk | 244 g | 732 g |
| Oats | 90 g | 270 g |
Frequently asked questions
How many grams is 3 cups of powdered sugar?
3 cups of powdered sugar is 360 grams in a US cup, based on 120 g per full cup. In a 250 ml metric cup it is 380 g.
Is that weighed or measured?
Measured, then weighed on a scale. Powdered sugar clumps. Sift it, then spoon it into the cup and level it. Scooping straight from the bag packs the lumps in and overshoots. A scale skips the question, which is why recipes that care about the result give grams.
How many tablespoons is 3 cups of powdered sugar?
48 tablespoons, or 144 teaspoons — 7.5 g per tablespoon for powdered sugar.
How many ounces is 3 cups of powdered sugar?
12.70 ounces by weight. That is not the same as fluid ounces — 3 cups is 24 US fluid ounces of space, whatever is filling it.
Why do different sites give different grams for 3 cups of powdered sugar?
Because a cup is a volume and the weight depends on how it was filled, and on whose cup. This site uses 120 g per US cup. Powdered sugar, icing sugar and confectioners' sugar are the same thing, at 120 g per cup. Sifted before measuring it can be lighter still, which is why frosting recipes usually say to sift first.