1 Cup Demerara Sugar in Grams
1 cup of demerara sugar weighs 220 g (spooned and levelled, King Arthur Baking). Large-crystal golden cane sugar with a toffee note. All the figures on this page are approximate conversions based on the King Arthur Baking value, so when a recipe really matters, verify with a kitchen scale.
Demerara sugar is a large-crystal golden cane sugar with a toffee note, named after the Demerara region of Guyana where it was first made. Its crystals are bigger than turbinado sugar and carry more molasses, which gives it a deeper flavour and a crunch that survives baking. A cup weighs 220 g, heavier than granulated sugar, because the large crystals pack with less air between them than you might expect. It is the sugar of crumble toppings, shortbread and the top of a creme brulee, where its crunch and its caramel flavour are the point of the recipe.
Demerara Sugar cups to grams conversion table
| Cups | Grams | Tablespoons |
|---|---|---|
| 1/4 cup | 55 g | 4 |
| 1/3 cup | 73.3 g | 5.3 |
| 1/2 cup | 110 g | 8 |
| 2/3 cup | 146.7 g | 10.7 |
| 3/4 cup | 165 g | 12 |
| 1 cup | 220 g | 16 |
| 1 1/2 cups | 330 g | 24 |
| 2 cups | 440 g | 32 |
| 3 cups | 660 g | 48 |
| 4 cups | 880 g | 64 |
One tablespoon of demerara sugar weighs about 13.8 g, and a cup is 16 tablespoons, so the tablespoon column is simply the cup weight divided by 16. For small amounts, a scale that reads to the gram is far more reliable than a spoon, because a heaped tablespoon can weigh half as much again as a level one. All the values in this table are approximate, and they assume the ingredient is measured spooned and levelled, exactly as the source measured it.
Why a scale beats a cup for demerara sugar
Sugar looks like the easiest ingredient to measure in cups, because the crystals pour cleanly and level neatly, but the weight per cup still varies a lot between types. A cup of granulated sugar weighs about 198 g, a cup of powdered sugar about 113 g, and a cup of packed brown sugar about 213 g, so swapping one sugar for another cup-for-cup changes the sweetness and the structure of a bake by a large margin. Sugar does more than sweeten: it holds moisture, tenderises crumb, feeds yeast, helps browning and sets the texture of everything from meringues to caramel. Getting the weight right is what keeps a cake moist instead of dry, a meringue crisp instead of weeping, and a jam setting instead of running. Because sugar dissolves, small errors are forgiving in drinks and sauces, but in baking they are not.
Worked examples
A crumble topping for apple crumble
A crumble topping that calls for 1 cup of demerara sugar needs 220 g, rubbed into flour and butter until it forms clumps. The large crystals do not dissolve fully in the oven, so the topping bakes into crunchy, caramelised nuggets rather than a smooth, sandy layer. Weigh 220 g and rub it in lightly: overworking the topping melts the butter and turns the crumble into a flat, greasy sheet.
Shortbread with a toffee edge
A shortbread that uses 3/4 cup of demerara sugar needs 165 g, creamed with butter until the mixture is pale. The sugar's toffee flavour deepens the shortbread, and the crystals that survive the creaming give the finished biscuit a pleasant crunch at the edges. Because demerara sugar is heavier per cup than granulated sugar, weighing it is important: a cup measured by volume would give you too much sugar and a shortbread that spreads and burns.
Sweetening hot drinks
Demerara sugar is a classic for coffee and tea, where its large crystals dissolve slowly and its toffee flavour adds depth. A cup weighs 220 g, and a teaspoon is about 5 g, so one or two spoonfuls is enough for a mug. Keep it in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, because the crystals are hygroscopic and will clump in a humid kitchen if the jar is left open.
How the weight was measured
The figure on this page comes from King Arthur Baking, measured spooned and levelled unless the method line says otherwise. Spooning means filling the cup with a spoon rather than plunging the cup into the bag, and levelling means sweeping a knife across the rim. Scooping packs the ingredient down and can add a fifth or more to the weight, which is why two bakers following the same cup-based recipe can get visibly different results. Confidence in this value is high. That reflects how consistent the ingredient is from brand to brand: a uniform, factory-packed ingredient is more predictable than a fresh, variable one. Even a high-confidence figure is still an approximation, because moisture, grind size and settling all shift the weight a little. Treat the grams on this page as a reliable starting point and check with a scale when the recipe is fussy, expensive, or being made for the first time.
Common mistakes
The most common mistake is treating all sugars as interchangeable by volume. A cup of powdered sugar is nearly half the weight of a cup of granulated sugar, so a recipe that expects one and gets the other will be badly under- or over-sweetened. The second mistake is packing brown sugar when the recipe expects it spooned, or the reverse: packed brown sugar weighs about 213 g per cup while loosely spooned brown sugar weighs around 170 g, a difference of more than 40 g. The third is measuring sticky syrups in a dry cup and losing half of it on the sides; a light wipe of oil on the cup helps a syrup slide out cleanly. And the fourth is sifting powdered sugar before measuring it, which adds air and drops the weight per cup to around 100 g. Measure first, then sift.
When this conversion matters most
This conversion matters most in baking and preserving, where sugar controls structure as well as sweetness. In cakes it tenderises the crumb and holds moisture; in meringues it stabilises the foam; in jams it sets the pectin and preserves the fruit. It matters less in a cup of tea or coffee, where a gram or two either way is a matter of taste and you can adjust by sipping. It matters again when you scale recipes, because sugar errors multiply just like flour errors, and a doubled batch of cookies with too much sugar spreads thin and burns at the edges. When a recipe was developed by weight, matching that weight is the simplest way to match the result.
What to do if you do not have a scale
If you do not have a scale, use a dry measuring cup and the method the figure on this page was measured with: spooned and levelled for free-flowing sugars, firmly packed for brown and muscovado sugars, and poured at eye level for syrups. For syrups, measure in a liquid jug at eye level and use a flexible spatula to scrape every last drop out. For powdered sugar, spoon it in lightly and level it, and do not press it down. These methods get you close, but sugar is cheap to weigh and expensive to get wrong in baking, so a scale is the better investment here than for almost any other ingredient.
Storing demerara sugar
Airtight container, cool and dry, indefinitely. Keeping demerara sugar properly stored matters for the conversion as well as for the flavour: an ingredient that has absorbed moisture from the air weighs more per cup than a dry one, and one that has dried out weighs less. Store it in an airtight container, away from heat and light, and measure it in the state the recipe expects, not straight from a damp or stale bag.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between demerara sugar and turbinado sugar?
They are similar but not identical. Demerara sugar has larger crystals and more molasses than turbinado sugar, so it tastes more of toffee and weighs more per cup: 220 g against turbinado sugar's 180 g. Turbinado sugar is lighter and more delicate, while demerara sugar is bolder and crunchier. Either can top a muffin, but for a crumble topping or a creme brulee crust, demerara sugar is the better choice.
Can I swap demerara sugar for granulated sugar?
You can, but weigh it rather than measuring by volume, because a cup of demerara sugar weighs 220 g while a cup of granulated sugar weighs 198 g. The swap will also change the flavour, adding a toffee note, and the texture, because the large crystals dissolve more slowly and may leave a crunch in the finished bake. For recipes where the sugar is dissolved in liquid first, the swap is nearly invisible.
Can I use cups instead of a scale for demerara sugar?
Yes, but a scale is more accurate. If you measure demerara sugar spooned and levelled, exactly as the figure on this page was measured, a cup will be close to 220 g, within a few grams. The problem is that most people scoop rather than spoon, which can add 15 to 25 percent to the weight, and that error is enough to change a bake. For everyday cooking, cups are fine. For baking, where the ratio of ingredients decides the result, weigh it and check the number on the scale.
How many tablespoons are in a cup of demerara sugar?
There are 16 tablespoons in a US cup, so a cup of demerara sugar is 16 tablespoons, and one tablespoon weighs about 13.8 g. A teaspoon weighs about 4.6 g. Tablespoons are useful when a recipe calls for a small amount, but they carry the same packing problem as cups: a heaped tablespoon can weigh half as much again as a level one, so level every spoon with the back of a knife, and use a scale for small amounts when accuracy matters.
Does the weight change if I pack or sift demerara sugar?
Yes, and this is the single biggest source of error in cup measurements. demerara sugar is measured spooned and levelled, and a scooped cup can weigh 15 to 25 percent more than a spooned cup, because scooping packs the ingredient down. Sifting has the opposite effect: it adds air and makes the cup lighter. Always measure the way the figure on this page was measured, spooned and levelled, and the weight will match the table.