1 Cup Raisins in Grams

1 cup of raisins weighs 149 g (spooned and levelled, King Arthur Baking). Dried grapes, sweet and chewy. 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.

Why weighing raisins beats measuring it in cups

Raisins are the classic dried fruit in baking, and the weight matters because they are sticky, clumpy and irregular. A cup of raisins straight from the bag can be mostly air gaps or mostly fruit depending on how it was poured, and the difference between a loose cup and a packed cup can be 20 g or more. In a fruit cake that uses two cups of raisins, that is a 40 g swing in sugar and moisture, enough to change the crumb from moist to dry.

The second reason to weigh raisins is that they pull moisture out of a batter. Dry raisins added to a cake or a loaf absorb water as they bake, and a recipe that was balanced with soaked raisins will come out dry if the raisins went in dry and heavy. Soaking the raisins first, then weighing them, is the reliable approach: the soaked weight is consistent, the fruit stays plump, and the crumb stays moist. A ten-minute soak in warm water or juice is enough, and the raisins should be drained and patted dry before they are weighed.

Raisins cups to grams conversion table

Cups Grams Tablespoons
1/4 cup 37.2 g 4
1/3 cup 49.7 g 5.3
1/2 cup 74.5 g 8
2/3 cup 99.3 g 10.7
3/4 cup 111.8 g 12
1 cup 149 g 16
1 1/2 cups 223.5 g 24
2 cups 298 g 32
3 cups 447 g 48
4 cups 596 g 64

One tablespoon of raisins weighs about 9.3 g, since a cup is 16 tablespoons. That is useful when a recipe calls for a spoonful or two rather than a whole cup, though 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.

Worked examples

Fruit cake for a celebration

A rich fruit cake uses about 2 cups of raisins, which is 298 g, along with currants and peel. Soak the raisins in warm water or rum for at least 30 minutes, drain them well, and weigh 298 g before folding them into the batter with a spoonful of flour to stop them sinking. Weighing after soaking is the reliable method, because soaked raisins are heavier than dry ones and a cup measured before soaking will not match a cup measured after.

Raisin oatmeal for a family breakfast

Oatmeal for four people uses about 1/2 cup of raisins, which is 75 g, stirred into the oats near the end of cooking. Add them late so they plump in the hot oats without turning mushy, and weigh 75 g so the porridge is fruity rather than overwhelmingly sweet. Raisins are concentrated sugar, so a heavy hand here changes the breakfast from wholesome to dessert.

Trail mix for a week of lunches

A batch of trail mix for a week uses about 1 cup of raisins, which is 149 g, mixed with nuts, seeds and a few chocolate chips. Weigh the raisins rather than pouring them from the bag, because they settle at the bottom of the bag and a poured cup can be mostly clumps. Break the clumps apart first so the mix distributes evenly and every handful has the same balance.

How the weight was measured

How you fill the cup decides what the cup weighs. The method used here is spooned and levelled: the ingredient is spooned into the cup and levelled with a straight edge, never scooped and never tapped down. If you scoop, you compress the ingredient and the same cup can weigh noticeably more, which is the single most common reason a recipe that worked for its author fails in another kitchen.

The value is taken from King Arthur Baking with high confidence. King Arthur Baking is the reference used across this site because its chart is consistent and widely used by recipe developers. No other source was mixed in, and nothing on this page was estimated from a different ingredient. Remember that every conversion on this page is approximate: check the weight on a kitchen scale whenever accuracy matters, and use the table as a guide rather than a guarantee.

Practical guidance

Keep raisins in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months, and refrigerate them if your kitchen is warm, because they dry out and harden with age. If a bag has gone hard, soak the raisins in warm water for ten minutes and they will plump up again. Before adding raisins to a batter, toss them in a spoonful of the recipe's flour, which coats them and stops them sinking to the bottom of the cake. Chop sticky raisins with an oiled knife so they do not glue themselves to the blade. If you do not have a scale, break the clumps apart, spoon the raisins loosely into the cup and level it, and remember the 149 g figure is approximate, so check the sweetness and moisture of the finished bake rather than trusting the cup alone.

Common mistakes with dried fruit

The most common mistake is measuring dried fruit straight from the bag without accounting for stickiness: pieces clump together, leave air gaps, and a cup can be mostly empty space or mostly fruit depending on how it was poured. Break the clumps apart and spoon the fruit in loosely. The second mistake is skipping the soak: dried fruit added dry to a batter pulls moisture out of it, leaving a dry crumb and hard fruit, so a ten-minute soak in warm water or juice pays off. The third is forgetting that dried fruit is concentrated sugar, so a recipe balanced around fresh fruit becomes much sweeter when dried fruit is swapped in cup for cup. Weighing keeps the swap honest. Finally, do not chop sticky fruit with a dry knife: oil the blade lightly and the pieces fall away cleanly instead of gluing themselves to the steel.

Frequently asked questions

How many grams is 1 cup of raisins?

1 cup of raisins weighs 149 g when spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. The figure is approximate, because the sticky fruit clumps and leaves different amounts of air depending on how it is poured, so verify with a kitchen scale when it matters.

Should I soak raisins before baking?

Yes, in most cakes and breads. Soak them for ten to thirty minutes in warm water, juice or rum, then drain and pat dry. Soaked raisins stay plump and do not steal moisture from the batter, and the crumb comes out moister.

How many cups is 100 g of raisins?

100 g of raisins is about 0.67 cups, or 2/3 cup. At 149 g per cup, divide 100 by 149 to get the answer, and use a scale for the most accurate result.

Why do my raisins sink to the bottom of the cake?

Because they are heavy and the batter is thin. Toss the raisins in a spoonful of flour before folding them in, use a thicker batter, and add them at the end with only a couple of folds so they stay suspended.

Are raisins and sultanas the same weight per cup?

They are close but not identical, because sultanas are larger and softer and pack slightly differently. Do not assume the 149 g figure for raisins applies exactly to sultanas or currants: check the weight for the fruit you are actually using.

Related conversions

If you need a different amount, the table above scales in both directions, and the converter tool will do the maths for any quantity. When a recipe really matters, weigh the ingredient on a kitchen scale rather than trusting the cup alone, because the figures on this page are approximate and natural ingredients vary by brand, variety and moisture.