RecipeScan › Grams in a Cup of Flour

How many grams
in a cup of flour?

The honest answer: it depends how you fill the cup. Spooned correctly it's 120–125g. Scooped straight from the bag it can hit 155–160g. That 30% difference is why recipes using cup measurements often produce inconsistent results — and why bakers who switch to grams never go back.

All Flour Types Scoop vs Spoon Method US & UK Names Sifted vs Unsifted
🌾 1 cup of flour — by type
Not all flours weigh the same. Here's what 1 correctly measured cup actually weighs for each type.
🌾
Plain / AP
120g
spooned & levelled
🍞
Bread flour
125g
spooned & levelled
🌾
Self-raising
120g
spooned & levelled
🌿
Wholemeal
128g
spooned & levelled
🌰
Almond flour
96g
spooned & levelled
🥥
Coconut flour
128g
spooned & levelled

Cups of Flour to Grams

Select your flour type and enter the number of cups — get the gram weight instantly.

Enter an amount above to see the result

All weights assume the spoon & level method — flour spooned into the cup and levelled off. Scooped cups can weigh 25–35% more.

Quick-Glance Reference

The most common flour amounts — bookmark this section.

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The Scooping Problem

How you fill the cup matters more than which flour you use.

⚠️ Scooped vs Spooned — A 30% Difference
120g
Spooned & levelled
vs
155–160g
Scooped from bag
When you dip a measuring cup directly into the flour bag, you compress the flour as you push through it. The result is a cup that's packed significantly tighter than intended — often 25–35% heavier than a correctly spooned cup.

The correct method: use a spoon to scoop flour into the measuring cup until it's overflowing, then sweep a straight edge (the back of a knife) across the top to level it. This is what recipe developers mean when they write "1 cup flour".

The real fix: use grams. 120g of flour is always 120g regardless of technique, humidity, or how tightly the bag has been stored.
⚠️ Sifted Flour — Even Lighter
120g
Unsifted, spooned
vs
100–105g
Sifted, then measured
Sifting aerates flour, making it significantly lighter and fluffier. A cup of sifted flour contains 15–20% less flour by weight than a cup of unsifted flour.

Pay attention to the order: "1 cup flour, sifted" means measure first, then sift. "1 cup sifted flour" means sift first, then measure. These are different amounts and the distinction matters in delicate recipes like chiffon cake or angel food cake.

Most modern recipes mean unsifted unless they explicitly state otherwise.
💡 Plain Flour, All-Purpose Flour — Same Thing
Plain flour (UK) and all-purpose flour (US) are the same product. Both are medium-protein white wheat flour, typically 9–11% protein. They are fully interchangeable in any recipe.

Bread flour / strong flour has higher protein (12–14%), which develops more gluten and gives bread its chewy texture. It weighs slightly more per cup (125g vs 120g) but the difference is minimal. Do not substitute bread flour for plain flour in cakes — the extra gluten makes them tough.

Self-raising flour is plain flour with baking powder (and sometimes salt) already added — typically 1½ teaspoons of baking powder per cup of flour. Never substitute self-raising for plain in a recipe that already has baking powder — you'll over-leaven the bake.
💡 Almond Flour vs Almond Meal — Not the Same
Almond flour is made from blanched (skinless) almonds ground very finely. It's pale and fine-textured. Almond meal is made from whole almonds with skins, ground more coarsely — it's darker and has a slightly grainy texture.

Both weigh approximately 96–100g per cup, but they behave differently in baking. Almond flour produces a finer crumb; almond meal is denser and more rustic. They're often used interchangeably in everyday baking but aren't identical.

Never substitute almond flour for wheat flour 1:1 by volume — it has no gluten, absorbs liquid differently, and requires a completely different recipe structure.

Full Flour Conversion Table

All common flour types — cups to grams. All weights use the spoon & level method.

Flour type ¼ cup ⅓ cup ½ cup 1 cup 2 cups
Plain flour (all-purpose)30g40g60g120g240g
Strong flour (bread flour)31g42g63g125g250g
Self-raising flour30g40g60g120g240g
Wholemeal flour32g43g64g128g256g
Almond flour24g32g48g96g192g
Coconut flour32g43g64g128g256g
Oat flour23g31g46g92g184g
Rice flour40g53g79g158g316g
Cornflour (cornstarch)32g43g64g128g256g
Semolina42g56g84g167g334g
Spelt flour28g37g56g112g224g
Rye flour30g40g60g120g240g
Buckwheat flour30g40g60g120g240g
Tapioca flour30g40g60g120g240g

All values assume spooned and levelled. Scooped cups will be 25–35% heavier — always weigh for consistent results.

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