1 tablespoon of table salt weighs 18 g. Salt is the ingredient where the tablespoon matters most, because it is almost always measured in spoons, and the difference between salt types is dramatic at this scale. A tablespoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt is only about 8 g, less than half the weight of a tablespoon of table salt, so swapping salt types by the spoon is one of the most common seasoning mistakes.
All figures on this page are approximate, and they come from King Arthur Baking, measured spooned and levelled. When a recipe has to work the first time, verify with a kitchen scale.
Conversion table
| Amount | Grams of salt |
|---|---|
| 1 teaspoon | 6 g |
| 1 tablespoon | 18 g |
| 2 tablespoons | 36 g |
| 3 tablespoons | 54 g |
| 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) | 72 g |
| 1/3 cup | 96 g |
| 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) | 144 g |
| 3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) | 216 g |
| 1 cup (16 tablespoons) | 288 g |
One tablespoon is one sixteenth of a cup, so every figure above is simply the cup weight divided by 16, rounded to one decimal place. All figures are approximate; verify with a kitchen scale when it matters.
How the measurement works
The figure on this page comes from King Arthur Baking, measured spooned and levelled. Fine-grained salt; the default seasoning salt. Seasoning every dish and controlling yeast in bread.
A note on disputed figures. Fine table salt packs at 288 g per cup (18 g per tablespoon). Kosher salt is far lighter: Diamond Crystal is about 128 g per cup and Morton about 256 g - never swap them cup-for-cup.
All results on this page are approximate. Ingredient weights vary with brand, humidity, temperature and how firmly you pack the cup, so when a recipe has to work the first time, weigh the ingredient on a kitchen scale and use the numbers here as a guide.
Worked examples
Seasoning a large pot of pasta water
A big pot of pasta water needs 1 tablespoon of table salt, 18 g, to taste like the sea. The rule is roughly 10 g of salt per litre of water, so a tablespoon is right for a pot holding about 2 litres. Add the salt after the water boils, because salted water takes slightly longer to come to the boil.
A bread dough that needs precise salt
A bread recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of salt, about 12 g, which is two thirds of a tablespoon. Salt controls the yeast in bread, and the amount matters: too little and the dough over-proofs, too much and the yeast barely works. Weigh the salt if you can, because a teaspoon measure of salt varies by brand and crystal size.
Brining a chicken for roasting
A brine for a whole chicken uses 4 tablespoons of table salt, about 72 g, dissolved in 2 litres of water. The salt concentration is what makes the brine work, drawing moisture into the meat. If you used kosher salt at the same volume, you would have half the salt and a brine that does almost nothing.
Practical guidance
Dry powders and leavening agents are measured spooned and levelled, never heaped and never scooped from the container. A heaped tablespoon of baking soda can be double the intended amount, and that much extra leavening leaves a soapy, metallic taste and a collapsed crumb. Dip a dry spoon into the container, fill it, then level it with the back of a knife. Keep leavening in airtight containers away from humidity, and replace baking powder every six months once opened, because stale powder is the most common silent cause of flat cakes.
Scaling with tablespoons is easy once you know the weight of one spoon. To measure 100 g of salt, count out about 5.6 tablespoons, and for 50 g, about 2.8 tablespoons. Halving a recipe that calls for 4 tablespoons means using 2 tablespoons, or 36 g, and doubling it means 8 tablespoons, or 144 g. The key is to scale every ingredient by the same factor, because changing one ingredient without changing the others throws the recipe out of balance. For large amounts, switch to a cup measure or a scale: counting out 16 tablespoons is slow and error-prone, and a cup is faster and more accurate.
When should you weigh salt instead of measuring it? Whenever the recipe has to work the first time, and whenever the amount is large. A kitchen scale costs less than a single failed cake, and it removes the biggest source of variation in home cooking: the way ingredients pack into a cup or a spoon. Put the bowl on the scale, press tare, and add the salt until the display shows the number you need. There is nothing to wash afterwards except the bowl, and the result is the same every time. For small amounts, a level spoon is accurate enough, and for liquids, a jug is fine, but for anything where precision matters, the scale is the tool to reach for.
Storage. Dry cupboard, indefinitely.
- Swap salts by weight, never by volume.
- A tablespoon of table salt is 18 g; Diamond Crystal is 8 g.
- Add salt to pasta water after it boils.
Frequently asked questions
How many grams is a tablespoon of salt?
One tablespoon of fine table salt weighs 18 g, and one teaspoon is 6 g. These are the figures that matter in real cooking, because salt is almost always measured in teaspoons and tablespoons.
Why is kosher salt lighter per tablespoon?
Because the crystals are larger and flakier, with more air between them. A tablespoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt is about 8 g, and a tablespoon of Morton kosher salt is about 16 g, against 18 g for table salt. The crystal shape decides the weight, not the salt itself.
Can I swap kosher salt for table salt by the tablespoon?
No, never. The weights differ by up to half, so swapping by volume can halve or nearly double the salt in a recipe. Swap by weight instead: 10 g of any salt is 10 g, regardless of the crystal size.
How much salt should go in pasta water?
About 10 g per litre of water, which is roughly a tablespoon per 2 litres. The water should taste like the sea. Most of the salt stays in the water, so the pasta itself ends up seasoned but not salty.
Does the type of salt matter in baking?
Yes, for the same reason: volume differs by type. Recipes written by weight are safe with any salt, but recipes written in teaspoons assume table salt unless they say otherwise. If a recipe says a teaspoon of kosher salt, it means a teaspoon of kosher salt, which weighs less.
A note on cup sizes: every figure on this page uses the US cup, which holds 236.6 millilitres. A metric cup, used in Australia and some other countries, holds 250 millilitres, which is about six percent larger, so the same ingredient measured in a metric cup will weigh about six percent more. If your measuring cups are metric, multiply the gram figures here by 1.06, or better still, weigh the ingredient on a scale and skip the cup altogether. The scale does not care which country your cups came from.