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Grams to Teaspoons Converter

Convert grams to teaspoons with our free grams to teaspoons converter — or flip it and turn teaspoons back into grams. Pick your ingredient first, because the answer depends on it: a teaspoon of salt weighs more than twice as much as a teaspoon of flour. Choose from 20 ingredients, and switch to tablespoons when the amount is bigger.

Grams per teaspoon by ingredient

How it works

Grams and teaspoons measure different things, and that is what makes this conversion interesting. Grams measure weight — how heavy something is. Teaspoons measure volume — how much space something takes up. Converting between them is only possible once you know the density of the ingredient, which is how much a fixed volume of it weighs.

Water is the easy reference point. One teaspoon holds 5 milliliters, and one milliliter of water weighs exactly 1 gram, so one teaspoon of water weighs 5 grams. That gives the simple rule: grams of water divided by 5 equals teaspoons, and teaspoons of water times 5 equals grams. Every other ingredient is measured against that same 5-milliliter teaspoon, but each one weighs something different.

The values this converter uses are, in grams per teaspoon: water 5, granulated sugar 4.2, salt 6, flour 2.6, butter 4.7, honey 7.1, oil 4.5, milk 5.1, cocoa powder 2.4, oats 2.8, rice 4.6, baking soda 4.6, baking powder 3.6, peanut butter 5, yogurt 5, cream cheese 4.8, brown sugar 4.6, powdered sugar 2.5, coffee grounds 2.7, and cinnamon 2.6. Honey is the heaviest because it is dense and syrupy, while cocoa powder is the lightest because it is fine and airy; flour is nearly as light at 2.6 grams per teaspoon. Butter sits close to sugar at 4.7 grams per teaspoon.

To convert grams to teaspoons, divide the grams by the grams-per-teaspoon value for your ingredient. To convert teaspoons to grams, multiply the teaspoons by that same value. For example, 5 grams of granulated sugar divided by 4.2 is 1.19 teaspoons, while 5 grams of water divided by 5 is exactly 1 teaspoon. The same 5 grams of flour, divided by 2.6, is 1.92 teaspoons — nearly twice as much by volume, because flour is so light.

These values are for level teaspoons, measured with a knife swept flat across the top of the spoon. A heaped teaspoon can hold half as much again, and how firmly you pack the spoon matters too — scooping flour straight from the bag packs it down and weighs more than spooning it in lightly. For baking, where small differences change the result, a kitchen scale is the most reliable tool, and this converter is the next best thing when a recipe gives you grams and all you have is a spoon.

Common uses include following a recipe that lists ingredients in grams when you only have measuring spoons, measuring out a small amount of baking powder or yeast, working out how much sugar is in a serving, and converting a nutrition label that lists grams into spoonfuls you can picture.

Worked example

Emma is baking cookies. The recipe calls for 5 grams of granulated sugar for the topping, but her scale is broken and she only has a teaspoon. She wants to know how many teaspoons to use.

Step 1: Write down the amount — 5 grams.
Step 2: Pick the ingredient — granulated sugar, at 4.2 grams per teaspoon.
Step 3: Divide: 5 ÷ 4.2 = 1.19.
Step 4: Read the result — about 1.19 teaspoons, or one heaped teaspoon.

With water the same 5 grams works out differently: 5 ÷ 5 = exactly 1 teaspoon. That contrast is the whole point of the ingredient selector — the same weight gives a different volume for every ingredient. If Emma had used the water value for her sugar, she would have measured a little under a teaspoon instead of 1.19 teaspoons, and her topping would have come out less sweet than the recipe intended.

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