How Many Grams in a Cup of Olive Oil? 216 Grams
216 grams. That is the answer to how many grams in a cup of olive oil, and it is the number I use when a recipe gives me cups and my scale gives me grams. A US cup holds about 236.6 milliliters, and olive oil weighs about 0.91 to 0.92 grams per milliliter, so the math lands at about 216 grams. If your recipe uses the legal cup of 240 milliliters, the same oil weighs about 219 grams. The 3 gram difference will not ruin a vinaigrette. It can matter in a cake where the fat ratio is tight, which is why weighing beats measuring for baking.
The reason a cup of oil weighs less than a cup of water is density, and it is the whole reason this converter exists. Water weighs 1 gram per milliliter, so a cup of water is about 237 grams. Olive oil is lighter, at about 0.915 grams per milliliter, so the same cup is about 216 grams. Honey goes the other way, at about 1.42 grams per milliliter, so a cup of honey is about 340 grams. Anyone who assumes a cup is a cup will overpour oil by about 21 grams and underpour honey by about 100 grams, and then wonder why the recipe behaved differently the second time.
Olive oil, cup to gram, at a glance. 1 tablespoon is about 13.5 grams. 1/4 cup is about 54 grams. 1/3 cup is about 72 grams. 1/2 cup is about 108 grams. 1 cup is about 216 grams. 2 cups is about 433 grams. These figures use a US customary cup of 236.6 milliliters and a density of 0.915 grams per milliliter. Round to the nearest gram for baking, and to the nearest 5 grams for dressings and marinades, where precision matters less.
How many grams in a cup of olive oil versus other cooking oils?
Most cooking oils land within a few grams of each other, which is convenient and slightly misleading. Vegetable oil is about 0.92 grams per milliliter, so a cup is about 218 grams. Canola oil is close to the same. Extra virgin olive oil varies a little by variety and filtration: published densities for extra virgin oils cluster between 0.913 and 0.918 grams per milliliter, which moves a cup by only about 1 gram. Cold oil is slightly denser than warm oil, but the difference at kitchen temperatures is under a gram per cup. If a recipe calls for olive oil and you substitute vegetable oil gram for gram, the result will be fine. The substitution that fails is volume for weight across different ingredients, not oil for oil.
There is a reason American recipes still use cups for oil even though grams are more accurate, and it is not a good reason. Cups were the tool in the drawer when the recipe was written, and recipe writers copy the format they learned. Professional bakers switched to weight decades ago because a cup of flour can vary by 30 grams depending on how you scoop it, while a gram is a gram everywhere. Oil is more forgiving than flour, because liquids level themselves, but the habit carries over: once you own a scale, weighing oil takes the same ten seconds as pouring it into a cup, and it removes the cup you have to wash afterward. I switched for the washing up as much as the accuracy, and I am not embarrassed to say so.
Measure oil by weight when the recipe is delicate. Cakes, enriched breads, and emulsions like mayonnaise depend on fat ratio, so weigh the oil. For a pan sauce, a roast, or a marinade, a cup measure is fine, and the 216 gram figure is close enough that nobody will notice.
How to convert olive oil without a scale
If you have no scale, use a liquid measuring cup at eye level and read the bottom of the meniscus, not the top edge. Oil clings to the cup, so let it drain for a few seconds before you call the measure done, and do not use a dry measuring cup for oil if you can avoid it: dry cups are meant to be leveled, and oil does not level. A tablespoon of olive oil is about 13.5 grams if you need a small amount, and 16 tablespoons make a cup, which is a useful check when a recipe gives tablespoons. When you do buy a scale, and I recommend a cheap digital one that reads to 1 gram, convert every recipe you cook regularly to grams once, write the grams on the card, and never measure cups again for those dishes.
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Run the free cups to grams converterFrequently asked questions
How many grams in a cup of olive oil?
About 216 grams for a US customary cup (236.6 milliliters at about 0.915 grams per milliliter). A legal cup of 240 milliliters weighs about 219 grams.
Why does a cup of olive oil weigh less than a cup of water?
Density. Water is 1 gram per milliliter, while olive oil is about 0.91 to 0.92 grams per milliliter, so the same volume weighs about 21 grams less.
How many grams in a tablespoon of olive oil?
About 13.5 grams. A quarter cup is about 54 grams, a third cup about 72 grams, and half a cup about 108 grams.
Is extra virgin olive oil heavier than regular olive oil?
Barely. Published densities for extra virgin oils cluster between 0.913 and 0.918 grams per milliliter, a difference of about 1 gram per cup.
Should I measure olive oil by weight or volume?
By weight for baking, cakes, and emulsions where fat ratio matters. By volume is fine for dressings, marinades, and roasting, where a few grams either way will not change the result.
Related: How Many Grams in a Cup of Sour Cream? 230 Grams, and Why Sources Disagree · How Many Grams in a Cup of Greek Yogurt? 245, and Why It Outweighs Regular Yogurt · How Many Grams in a Cup of Shredded Cheese? 113, and Why the Shred Matters · How Many Grams in a Cup of Honey
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