There are 32 tablespoons in a pint. That is the answer: 1 US pint equals 32 tablespoons, which equals 2 cups, which equals 16 fluid ounces. You will rarely measure a pint in tablespoons — that would be 32 spoonfuls — but the number is useful when a recipe is written in tablespoons and you want to know how it relates to a pint, or when you are scaling a sauce recipe up to a pint and the original amounts are in tablespoons. If a dressing recipe calls for 8 tablespoons of oil, that is a quarter of a pint. If it calls for 16 tablespoons, that is half a pint. This page gives you the table and the scaling examples.
The conversion table
| Pints | Tablespoons | Cups | Teaspoons | Fluid ounces |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4 pint | 8 tbsp | 1/2 cup | 24 tsp | 4 fl oz |
| 1/2 pint | 16 tbsp | 1 cup | 48 tsp | 8 fl oz |
| 3/4 pint | 24 tbsp | 1 1/2 cups | 72 tsp | 12 fl oz |
| 1 pint | 32 tbsp | 2 cups | 96 tsp | 16 fl oz |
| 1 1/2 pints | 48 tbsp | 3 cups | 144 tsp | 24 fl oz |
| 2 pints | 64 tbsp | 4 cups | 192 tsp | 32 fl oz |
| 3 pints | 96 tbsp | 6 cups | 288 tsp | 48 fl oz |
| 4 pints | 128 tbsp | 8 cups | 384 tsp | 64 fl oz |
A US pint is 473.18 ml, and a US tablespoon is 14.79 ml, so 473.18 divided by 14.79 is exactly 32.
Worked example 1: scaling a vinaigrette to a pint
A vinaigrette recipe makes 8 tablespoons of dressing — 2 tablespoons of vinegar and 6 tablespoons of oil — and you want a full pint for a party. A pint is 32 tablespoons, which is four times the recipe, so you need 8 tablespoons of vinegar and 24 tablespoons of oil. Eight tablespoons of vinegar is half a cup, and 24 tablespoons of oil is 1 1/2 cups, which is easier to measure in a jug than to count in spoonfuls. The conversion tells you the scale factor — 32 divided by 8 is 4 — and then you can work in cups for the large amounts.
Worked example 2: a pint of cream, measured in spoonfuls
You have no measuring jug, only a tablespoon, and a recipe calls for 1 pint of cream. You need 32 level tablespoons, which is slow but it works, and it is more accurate than guessing with a mug. A better method is to count in eights: 8 tablespoons is half a cup, so four lots of 8 tablespoons is 2 cups, which is a pint. Count four groups of eight, pouring each group into a bowl, and you will have a pint with less chance of losing count. If you have a cup measure, use that instead — 2 cups is a pint, and it is far quicker.
Worked example 3: a sauce recipe written in tablespoons
An old recipe calls for 24 tablespoons of stock in a sauce, and you want to know how much that is in pints. Twenty-four tablespoons divided by 32 is three quarters of a pint, which is 1 1/2 cups. That is a useful amount to know, because a pint jug is a common size, and three quarters of a pint is a mark you can find on most jugs. The general rule is to divide tablespoons by 32 to get pints, by 16 to get cups, and by 2 to get fluid ounces — and to convert to the largest unit that gives a whole number, so the amount is easy to measure.
Method and source
A US tablespoon is defined as half a US fluid ounce, or 14.79 millilitres. A US pint is 16 fluid ounces, or 473.18 millilitres, and 473.18 divided by 14.79 is exactly 32. The American system is built on powers of two, so the pint chain is clean: 32 tablespoons, 16 fluid ounces, 2 cups, 1 pint. The metric tablespoon is 15 ml, which is very close to the US tablespoon, so 32 metric tablespoons is 480 ml, which is slightly more than a US pint — a difference of about 1 percent, which does not matter in cooking. The Australian tablespoon is 20 ml, so 32 Australian tablespoons is 640 ml, which is more than a pint, and that is the one to watch for in an Australian recipe.
Practical guidance
The anchor numbers to remember are 16 tablespoons in a cup and 2 cups in a pint, which together give 32 tablespoons in a pint. If you know those two, you can work out the third. When a recipe gives an amount in tablespoons that is larger than 16, convert it to cups, because counting spoonfuls is slow and error-prone. When a recipe gives an amount in pints and you need tablespoons, multiply by 32 — but ask yourself whether you really need tablespoons, because a pint is usually measured in a jug, not in spoonfuls. Use proper measuring spoons for small amounts and a jug for large ones, and level dry ingredients with the back of a knife.
Frequently asked questions
How many tablespoons are in 1 pint?
There are 32 tablespoons in 1 US pint. That is the standard American conversion. An Imperial pint holds about 38 US tablespoons, because it is larger, but you will rarely meet one in a modern recipe.
How many tablespoons are in half a pint?
There are 16 tablespoons in half a pint. Half a pint is also 1 cup, 8 fluid ounces, and about 237 ml. It is a common amount for cream, stock, and sauces.
How many pints are in 32 tablespoons?
There is 1 pint in 32 tablespoons. Thirty-two tablespoons is the definition of a pint in the American system, so if a recipe's tablespoons add up to 32, you can measure a pint instead.
How many tablespoons are in 2 pints?
There are 64 tablespoons in 2 pints. Two pints is also 4 cups, 1 quart, 32 fluid ounces, and about 946 ml. It is a common size for a soup pot or a punch bowl.
How many cups are in 32 tablespoons?
There are 2 cups in 32 tablespoons. Sixteen tablespoons make a cup, so 32 tablespoons make 2 cups, which is 1 pint. The three conversions — tablespoons to cups, cups to pints, tablespoons to pints — all agree.
Is it practical to measure a pint in tablespoons?
Not really. Thirty-two spoonfuls is slow and easy to miscount. Use a measuring jug or a cup measure for a pint, and reserve tablespoons for amounts under a quarter cup. The conversion is useful for scaling and for understanding a recipe, not for measuring.
The pint is not the same everywhere
The conversions on this page use the American pint of 16 fluid ounces, but the imperial pint used in the United Kingdom holds 20 imperial fluid ounces, or about 568 millilitres, which is roughly 20 percent larger. An imperial pint therefore contains about 38 imperial tablespoons rather than 32, and an old British recipe that calls for a pint of milk needs more than an American pint measure. Tablespoons differ too: the Australian tablespoon is 20 millilitres rather than 15, so an Australian pint conversion lands on a different number again. If a recipe comes from outside the United States, check which pint it means before converting, because a 20 percent error in liquid is enough to ruin a sauce, a custard, or a dough. When the origin is unclear, the American pint is the safer assumption for recipes written in cups and tablespoons.