38 Grams of Sugar to Cups
¼ cup in a US cup — and what that looks like with a measuring spoon
38 grams of granulated sugar is about 9 teaspoons — ¼ of a US cup. At this size measure it with spoons; a cup measure cannot show it.
Grams weigh and cups fill, so the answer only exists once you say what is in the cup. A US cup of granulated sugar weighs 200 g, and every figure on this page comes from that one number.
It also depends on whose cup you mean. In a 250 ml metric cup — the standard in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada — 38 g of granulated sugar is ⅛ cup, because that cup holds about 5.7% more than the 236.6 ml US cup.
Round to the nearest measure in a standard cup set — ¼ cup — and you are 12 g over, about 32% of the amount.
38 g of sugar in each cup standard
| Cup standard | Size | Grams per cup | Cups |
|---|---|---|---|
| US customary | 236.6 ml | 200 g | ¼ |
| Metric (UK, AU, NZ, CA) | 250 ml | 211 g | ⅛ |
| Imperial (older UK) | 284 ml | 240 g | ⅛ |
A recipe that says "cups" without saying which one is almost always American. If it came from a British, Australian or New Zealand source, use the metric row.
How to measure 38 g of sugar without scales
Granulated sugar does not compact the way flour does, so scooping and spooning give almost the same weight. Fill the cup and level it off.
This is white granulated sugar at 200 g per cup. Caster sugar is finer and packs to 225 g, and powdered sugar is much lighter at 120 g, so those are different conversions.
- Measure 9 teaspoons rather than trying to read a cup fraction.
- 38 g is 3.04 tablespoons of granulated sugar, at 12.5 g per tablespoon.
- A digital scale removes the question entirely, and costs less than the ingredients it saves.
Nearby amounts of sugar
| Grams | US cups | Metric cups | Tablespoons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28 g | ⅛ | ⅛ | 2.24 |
| 30 g | ⅛ | ⅛ | 2.4 |
| 35 g | ⅛ | ⅛ | 2.8 |
| 36 g | ⅛ | ⅛ | 2.88 |
| 39 g | ¼ | ⅛ | 3.12 |
| 40 g | ¼ | 0.19 | 3.2 |
| 45 g | ¼ | ¼ | 3.6 |
| 46 g | ¼ | ¼ | 3.68 |
38 grams in other units
| Unit | Amount |
|---|---|
| US cups | ¼ |
| Tablespoons | 3.04 |
| Teaspoons | 9.12 |
| Ounces (weight) | 1.34 oz |
| Pounds | 0.08 lb |
| Millilitres (volume it fills) | 45 ml |
Frequently asked questions
How many cups is 38 grams of sugar?
38 grams of granulated sugar is ¼ of a US cup, which is easier to measure as 9 teaspoons. A 250 ml metric cup gives ⅛ of a cup.
What is the easiest way to measure 38 g of sugar?
3 tablespoons — built from a standard cup and spoon set. Granulated sugar does not compact the way flour does, so scooping and spooning give almost the same weight. Fill the cup and level it off.
Is 38 g of sugar the same in cups in the UK?
No. A UK, Australian, New Zealand or Canadian metric cup is 250 ml against the US cup's 236.6 ml, so 38 g of granulated sugar is ⅛ cup there and ¼ cup in the US.
Can I just use ¼ cup instead?
¼ cup of granulated sugar weighs about 50 g, so you would be 12 g over. For a sauce or a soup that is fine; for a cake, where the flour-to-liquid ratio sets the crumb, weigh it.
How many ounces is 38 grams?
38 grams is 1.34 ounces by weight. Unlike cups, that answer is the same whatever you are measuring — ounces weigh, fluid ounces fill, and they are not the same unit.