There are about 14 grams in a tablespoon of butter. A standard US stick holds 8 tbsp and weighs 113 g according to the King Arthur Baking ingredient weight chart, which works out to 14.1 g per tablespoon, and butter labels like Land O Lakes list 1 tbsp as 14 g.
| Amount | Grams |
|---|---|
| 1 tsp | 4.7 g |
| 1 tbsp | 14.1 g |
| 2 tbsp | 28.3 g |
| 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) | 56.5 g |
| 1/3 cup | 75 g |
| 1/2 cup (1 stick) | 113 g |
| 1 cup (2 sticks) | 226 g |
Why butter is easy to convert
Butter is one of the most predictable ingredients in the kitchen. It's dense, it doesn't pack down like flour, and in the US it's sold in sticks of a known weight. That's why the numbers above line up so well between sources.
Where things drift is in how you measure it:
- Softened butter pressed into a spoon can trap air pockets, so you get a little less.
- Whipped butter from a tub has air beaten in, so a spoonful weighs noticeably less than stick butter. Weigh it instead.
- Melted butter weighs the same as solid butter gram for gram, but measuring it by the spoon gets messy.
Grams in a tablespoon of butter when the wrapper lines are off
Wrapper markings are handy, but they're printed on paper that doesn't always sit straight on the stick. Cut a stick at a crooked line and your "3 tbsp" might be closer to 2 1/2. If you've ever had a pie crust turn out greasy one week and dry the next, this could be why.
Weighing fixes it. Using 14.1 g per tablespoon:
- 3 tbsp is about 42.4 g.
- 5 tbsp is about 70.6 g.
- 6 tbsp is about 84.8 g.
And going the other way, a recipe that lists 100 g of butter needs about 7 tbsp. That's handy when you're baking from British or European recipes that use grams.
How to weigh butter cleanly
- Put a small plate or the mixing bowl on the scale and zero it.
- Slice a piece a little smaller than you think you need.
- Add thin slices until you hit the target. Cold butter is easier to slice evenly.
- Wrap the rest of the stick and write the remaining grams on it with a marker if you like.
For melted butter recipes, weigh the solid butter first, then melt it. You'll get the same amount without scraping a measuring cup.
Common butter mistakes
Confusing salted and unsalted. They weigh the same, but salted butter adds salt to the recipe. If you swap, you may want to cut back on the added salt.
Measuring browned butter after cooking. Browning cooks off water, so the butter weighs less afterward. Weigh it before you brown it unless the recipe says otherwise.
Eyeballing half sticks. Half a stick is 56.5 g. Cut by eye and you can easily be several grams off.
A practical tip: for small amounts like a teaspoon of butter for a pan sauce, a MeasureMate digital measuring spoon scoops and weighs in one step. Press tare to zero it, scoop the butter, and read the weight in 0.1 g steps.
Quick questions
How many grams is a stick of butter?
A standard US stick is 113 g, which is 8 tbsp or 1/2 cup.
Is a tablespoon of butter 15 grams?
It's a little less. Most sources put it at about 14 g, or 14.1 g if you divide a 113 g stick by 8.
Does melted butter weigh the same as solid butter?
Yes, gram for gram. Melting doesn't change the weight, although browning does because water cooks off.
Weights based on the King Arthur Baking ingredient weight chart and the Land O Lakes butter nutrition label.