190 g of caster sugar is 1 cup — approximately, spooned and levelled, per King Arthur Baking. One cup of caster sugar weighs 190 g, so the arithmetic is 190 ÷ 190. Fine-grained white sugar that dissolves faster than granulated sugar. It is a staple for meringues, cocktails, shortbread and custards, and the grams-to-cups direction is the one people search for when the recipe came from a scale-first kitchen and theirs is not. Below you will find the full table from 25 g to 500 g, examples that show the conversion inside real recipes, and the method and storage notes that keep the figure honest.
Grams to cups for caster sugar
The conversion is linear: cups = grams ÷ 190. That makes the table easy to check — double the grams, double the cups — but it is still worth having the weights written out, because the in-between amounts (75 g, 150 g, 250 g) are the ones people estimate badly. Every figure below is approximate.
| Grams | Cups (approx.) |
|---|---|
| 25 g | 1/8 cup |
| 50 g | 1/4 cup |
| 75 g | 2/5 cup |
| 100 g | 1/2 cup |
| 150 g | 4/5 cup |
| 190 g | 1 cup |
| 200 g | 1.05 cups |
| 250 g | 1 1/3 cups |
| 300 g | 1 4/7 cups |
| 400 g | 2 1/8 cups |
| 500 g | 2 5/8 cups |
Reading the table is straightforward, but using it well takes one habit: weigh the ingredient into the bowl on the scale instead of weighing the cup and tipping it in. A cup measure holds a slightly different amount every time you fill it, while a scale reads the same every time. If you must use cups, spoon the ingredient in loosely and level it off, then check the weight — the table tells you what the cup should weigh, so the scale can confirm the cup rather than replace it.
Examples from the kitchen
The recipe from abroad
Recipes written in grams are the norm in much of the world, and 190 g of caster sugar is one of the friendliest conversions you will meet: it is exactly one cup. Measure it spooned and levelled and move on. The conversions that cause trouble are the in-between weights, and this page's table covers those too — but when the recipe hands you an exact cup, take the gift.
The doubled batch
Your usual recipe uses 190 g (1 cup) of caster sugar and tonight there are twice as many people. Two cups is 380 g. Weigh it, double the other ingredients by the same factor, and give the bake more room and more time. A doubled batch that is weighed is a doubled batch you can repeat; a doubled batch that is scooped is a doubled batch you will have to debug.
Two recipes, one bag
Here is a quieter use for the number: you have 380 g of caster sugar and two recipes that each need 190 g. Weigh 190 g for the first and 190 g for the second, and both recipes get exactly their share. Splitting by weight like this is how professional kitchens portion ingredients, and it beats splitting a bag by eye every single time.
Measuring caster sugar properly
To reproduce the numbers on this page, measure caster sugar the way King Arthur Baking did: spooned and levelled. Use a proper dry measuring cup for dry ingredients and a liquid jug for poured ones, level dry measures with a straight edge, and read liquid measures at eye level. The figure carries high confidence, which is as good as cup measures get — but a cup measure is still a volume, and volume is the less precise half of this conversion. When a recipe matters, the scale is the authority and the cup is the estimate. There is no famous dispute about the weight of caster sugar: the figure used here is stable across the sources we checked, which is one reason this conversion is reliable. Even so, every figure on this page is labelled approximate, because how full the cup is, how settled the ingredient is, and the temperature in your kitchen all move the number a little. When precision matters, verify with a kitchen scale.
What can go wrong — and the fix
Too much caster sugar and the recipe turns heavy, dry or over-set; too little and it turns slack, crumbly or under-structured. The fix for either is the same: weigh the next batch. If a bake has already gone wrong, diagnose by the symptom rather than the number — a dry crumb points to too much dry ingredient or too long in the oven, while a sunken middle points to too much liquid or underbaking. Note what you weighed, change one thing next time, and the recipe converges quickly. Storage: Airtight container, cool and dry, indefinitely.
Scaling this conversion to other amounts
This page's headline amount is 190 g, but the conversion is a line, not a point: cups = grams ÷ 190. A half batch is 95 g (1/2 cup). A quarter batch is 47 g (1/4 cup). A double batch is 380 g (2 cups). A triple batch is 570 g (3 cups). The reason to scale by weight rather than by volume is that the errors do not scale with you: a scooped cup that is a little heavy is a small error in a single cake and a large error in a triple batch, while a weighed cup is exact at any size. What does change with size is the equipment. Big batches need big bowls and big tins, and they need checking early because the outside finishes before the middle. Small batches need small tins and short bakes, and they overbake fast if you use the full recipe's time. Scale every ingredient by the same factor — including the salt, the raising agents and the fat — weigh each scaled amount, and note the numbers on the recipe so the next scaling is a copy, not a calculation.
Frequently asked questions
How many cups is 190 g of caster sugar?
190 g of caster sugar is 1 cup (approximately). One cup weighs 190 g (spooned and levelled, King Arthur Baking), so the calculation is 190 ÷ 190. The figure is approximate, so verify with a kitchen scale when precision matters.
How many grams is 1 cup of caster sugar?
One cup of caster sugar weighs 190 g, spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. That is the anchor figure for every conversion on this page: divide any gram weight by 190 to get cups, or multiply any cup amount by 190 to get grams.
Can I measure 190 g of caster sugar without a scale?
Yes — measure one cup with a dry measuring cup, spooning the caster sugar in loosely and levelling it off with a straight edge. Do not scoop with the cup and do not pack it unless the method says packed. A careful cup lands close to 190 g, which is good enough for everyday cooking, though a scale is better for baking.
Why do different websites give different weights for caster sugar?
Because they measure the cup differently. King Arthur Baking lists 190 g per cup spooned and levelled, while other sources may scoop, sift or pack, and each method gives a different weight. The ingredient itself has not changed — only the measuring method has. Match the method and the numbers agree.
How many tablespoons is 190 g of caster sugar?
One tablespoon of caster sugar weighs about 11.9 g, so 190 g is about 16 tablespoons — which is 16, the number in a cup, as expected. Tablespoons are useful for small adjustments, but for a full cup, weighing or using a cup measure is more accurate than counting spoonfuls.
Is it better to weigh caster sugar or measure it in cups?
Weighing is better whenever the recipe is a bake or a batch you want to repeat, because a scale reads the same every time while a cup varies with how you fill it. For soups, sauces and weekday cooking, a careful cup measure is usually fine. The threshold is the recipe: if the result depends on the ratio, weigh it.