One tablespoon of beaten egg weighs 15.2 g (poured, USDA). A whole large egg weighs about 50 g, so a tablespoon is roughly a third of an egg — and that fraction is exactly why the tablespoon weight matters. Recipes that call for half an egg, a tablespoon of egg wash, or a beaten egg divided between two small batches all need this number, because you cannot split an egg by eye. The figure is for lightly beaten whole egg, yolk and white mixed together, poured from a jug. All weights on this page are approximate; eggs vary in size, and a tablespoon of white alone weighs slightly less than a tablespoon of yolk, so verify with a scale when precision matters.
How much does 1 tablespoon of eggs weigh?
One level tablespoon of eggs weighs 15.2 g, poured, according to USDA. That is the headline number, but a single tablespoon is rarely the whole story — most recipes use several spoonfuls, or a fraction of a cup, so the table below gives the weights you will actually reach for, from a teaspoon up to a full cup. Every figure is derived from the same source value of 243 g per cup, so the whole table is consistent. Treat all of these as approximate: poured is a technique, not a machine setting, and two cooks measuring the same ingredient can differ by a gram or two per spoonful. When the recipe matters, weigh the ingredient on a kitchen scale instead.
| Amount | Weight (approx.) |
| --- | --- |
| 1 teaspoon | 5.1 g |
| 1 tablespoon | 15.2 g |
| 2 tablespoons | 30.4 g |
| 3 tablespoons | 45.6 g |
| 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) | 60.8 g |
| 1/2 cup (8 tbsp) | 121.5 g |
| 3/4 cup (12 tbsp) | 182.2 g |
| 1 cup (16 tbsp) | 243 g |
A useful rule of thumb: there are 3 teaspoons in a tablespoon and 16 tablespoons in a cup, so you can move between any of these measures by multiplying or dividing. If a recipe calls for 2 teaspoons and you only have a tablespoon measure, that is two-thirds of a tablespoon — about 10.1 g. If a recipe calls for a quarter cup and you only have a tablespoon, that is 4 level tablespoons. Keep the tablespoons to grams converter open while you cook and you will never need to do the arithmetic in your head.
Worked examples
An egg wash for pastry
A pie for Sunday lunch needs an egg wash — 2 tablespoons of beaten egg brushed over the pastry, about 30 g — to give it a golden, glossy finish. The weight tells you how much of the egg you actually need: 2 tablespoons is a little over a third of a large egg, so you can beat one egg, use what you need for the wash, and save the rest for the filling or for scrambled eggs tomorrow. Brushing on too much egg wash leaves puddles that bake into rubbery patches; two tablespoons, applied thinly with a pastry brush, is the right amount for a standard 23 cm pie. The remaining beaten egg keeps in the fridge for a day in a sealed jar.
Halving a cake recipe
A cake recipe written for a 20 cm tin uses 3 eggs, and you want to make a half batch in a small tin. That means 1.5 eggs — an impossible number until you weigh them. Three large eggs weigh about 150 g, so half is 75 g, or about 5 tablespoons of beaten egg. Beat the eggs, weigh 75 g into the batter, and the recipe is perfectly halved. This is the standard professional method for scaling egg quantities, and it is far more reliable than guessing at half an egg by eye. The same trick works for any odd number: a recipe needing 2.5 eggs is simply 125 g of beaten egg.
A small batch of fresh pasta
A single serving of fresh pasta dough uses 1 egg and 100 g of flour, but a recipe for two servings needs 2 eggs and 200 g of flour — and a recipe for one and a half servings needs 1.5 eggs, or about 75 g of beaten egg. Weighing the egg lets you scale pasta dough to any number of eaters without waste, and it also lets you check the dough's hydration: pasta dough is roughly 1 part egg to 2 parts flour by weight, so 75 g of egg needs 150 g of flour. If the dough feels dry, the egg was probably smaller than average, and the weight tells you to add a tablespoon of water rather than guessing.
How to measure a tablespoon of eggs correctly
Beaten egg is measured poured, and the method is simple: crack the eggs into a jug, beat them lightly until the yolk and white are fully combined, then pour into the tablespoon measure or weigh directly into the bowl. Do not measure egg white and yolk separately unless the recipe asks for it — a tablespoon of white alone weighs about 14 g and a tablespoon of yolk about 16 g, so the mixed figure of 15.2 g is the one to use for whole beaten egg. For amounts above a few tablespoons, weighing is far more accurate: tare the bowl, pour the beaten egg in, and stop at the target. The USDA figure of 15.2 g per tablespoon is based on a large egg of about 50 g; medium eggs weigh about 44 g and extra-large about 56 g, so if your eggs are a different size, the tablespoon weight shifts slightly. When a recipe depends on the egg count — meringues, custards, sponge cakes — weigh the eggs rather than counting them.
When the weight matters most
The tablespoon weight of beaten egg matters most when a recipe needs a fraction of an egg. Cakes, pasta dough and pastry are all written in whole eggs, and halving or scaling those recipes creates half-eggs and third-eggs that can only be measured by weight. It also matters for egg wash, where the difference between 2 tablespoons and 4 tablespoons is the difference between a golden glaze and a rubbery skin. And it matters for baking in general, because eggs are a structural ingredient: the proteins in the white set the crumb, the fat in the yolk enriches it, and the water in both hydrates the flour. A recipe that calls for 3 eggs expects about 150 g of egg; add 180 g by using extra-large eggs and the batter will be wetter, the cake will take longer to bake, and the crumb will be denser. Weighing the eggs removes that variable entirely.
Common mistakes to avoid
The most common mistake is guessing at half an egg by eye — cracking an egg, pouring roughly half into the bowl, and hoping for the best. The result is usually too much or too little, and in a small cake that error is proportionally huge. Always beat and weigh. The second mistake is using eggs straight from the fridge in baking: cold eggs do not emulsify well with butter, and the batter can curdle. Bring eggs to room temperature for 30 minutes before baking. The third mistake is confusing egg sizes: a recipe written for large eggs will be under-egged if you use medium eggs, and over-egged if you use extra-large. Weighing solves this — 50 g per large egg is the standard to aim for. Finally, do not keep beaten egg in the fridge for more than a day, and never use cracked or damaged eggs in a recipe that will not be fully cooked.
Frequently asked questions
How many grams is 1 tablespoon of beaten egg?
One tablespoon of lightly beaten whole egg weighs 15.2 g, poured, according to the USDA. One teaspoon weighs about 5.1 g. These are approximate weights — egg sizes vary, so weigh the eggs for the most accurate result.
How much does one large egg weigh?
A large egg weighs about 50 g in its shell, or about 50 g without the shell as well — the shell itself weighs only a few grams. The white is about 30 g and the yolk about 20 g. A medium egg weighs about 44 g and an extra-large egg about 56 g.
How do I measure half an egg?
Beat the egg lightly, then weigh half of it. A large egg is about 50 g, so half an egg is about 25 g, or roughly 1.5 tablespoons of beaten egg. This is the standard professional method for halving recipes that use an odd number of eggs.
Can I use egg whites instead of whole eggs?
It depends on the recipe. Two egg whites replace one whole egg by volume, but the result will be leaner and less rich, because the yolk carries the fat and emulsifiers. In meringues and angel food cake, whites are the point; in a rich cake, replacing whole eggs with whites will dry it out.
How long does beaten egg last in the fridge?
About 1 day in a sealed container. Use it promptly, and do not store beaten egg for longer. Whole eggs in their shells keep for several weeks in the fridge, well past the date on the box if they pass the float test.
Related conversions
If you cook with this ingredient regularly, these pages will help: the tablespoons to grams converter for any amount, the cups to grams converter for larger quantities, and the full ingredient guide for storage, substitutes and the weight of a whole cup. You can also compare the cup weight on the Eggs cups to grams page or work backwards from a gram amount on the Eggs grams to cups page.
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