Convert liters to cups
1 l is 4.2268 US cups and exactly 4 metric cups. Type a volume in litres, such as the size of a bottle or a carton, and the converter shows how many cups it holds. The Cup type switch picks the US customary cup, the US legal cup from food labels or the metric cup used in Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
How many cups are in a liter?
A litre is 4.2268 US customary cups. With the US legal cup it comes to 4.1667 cups, and with the metric cup to exactly 4.
So is 1 litre equal to 4 cups? Only in metric cups, the ones used in Australian, New Zealand and Canadian recipes.
The litre is the unit on milk cartons, soda bottles and water jugs outside the US. It is the volume of a cube 10 cm on each side, since in 1964 the litre became a special name for the cubic decimetre[1].
The cup has three common sizes. A US customary cup is 0.2366 l, a sixteenth of a US gallon[2]. The cup on a Nutrition Facts panel is 0.24 l by regulation[3]. The metric cup of Australia, New Zealand and Canada is a quarter of a litre[2]. Where each of these numbers comes from is explained next to the cups to ml converter. You choose one with the Cup type switch, which starts on the US customary cup.
How do you convert liters to cups?
Divide the number of litres by the size of one cup in litres.
Formula: cups = litres ÷ 0.2365882365 for the US customary cup, which is the same as multiplying by 4.2268. Divide by 0.24 for the US legal cup. For the metric cup, just multiply the litres by four.
A two-litre soda bottle, a size first introduced in 1970[4], holds 8.4535 US cups. A 1.5 litre water bottle holds 6.3401 US cups or 6 metric cups.
The field also takes a fraction of a litre. Type 1/4 and you get 1.0567 cups, since a quarter litre is a touch more than one US cup. Small amounts are easier to start from millilitres with the ml to cups converter, and the cups to liters converter works the other way round.
How many cups is each number of liters?
| Litres | US customary cup | US legal cup | Metric cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 l | 0.4227 | 0.4167 | 0.4 |
| 0.125 l | 0.5283 | 0.5208 | 0.5 |
| 0.2 l | 0.8454 | 0.8333 | 0.8 |
| 0.25 l | 1.0567 | 1.0417 | 1 |
| 0.33 l | 1.3948 | 1.375 | 1.32 |
| 0.4 l | 1.6907 | 1.6667 | 1.6 |
| 0.5 l | 2.1134 | 2.0833 | 2 |
| 0.6 l | 2.5361 | 2.5 | 2.4 |
| 0.7 l | 2.9587 | 2.9167 | 2.8 |
| 0.75 l | 3.1701 | 3.125 | 3 |
| 1 l | 4.2268 | 4.1667 | 4 |
| 1.25 l | 5.2834 | 5.2083 | 5 |
| 1.5 l | 6.3401 | 6.25 | 6 |
| 1.7 l | 7.1855 | 7.0833 | 6.8 |
| 1.75 l | 7.3968 | 7.2917 | 7 |
| 1.8 l | 7.6082 | 7.5 | 7.2 |
| 2 l | 8.4535 | 8.3333 | 8 |
| 2.5 l | 10.5669 | 10.4167 | 10 |
| 3 l | 12.6803 | 12.5 | 12 |
| 4 l | 16.907 | 16.6667 | 16 |
| 5 l | 21.1338 | 20.8333 | 20 |
| 10 l | 42.2675 | 41.6667 | 40 |
How many of other kitchen cups fit in a liter?
| Measure | Size | How many in a litre |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-metric Canadian cup | 227.3045 ml | 4.3994 |
| Japanese cup | 200 ml | 5 |
| Gō, the Japanese rice and sake measure | 180.39 ml | 5.5435 |
| Rice cooker cup | 180 ml | 5.5556 |
| Drip coffee maker cup of water | 147.87 ml | 6.7628 |
How many cups is a 1.8 liter rice cooker?
A rice cooker sold as 1.8 litres holds 10 cups of rice, even though 1.8 litres converted to US cups is 7.6082. The difference lies in the cup: rice cooker capacity is counted with the 180 ml rice cup that comes in the box, filled with uncooked rice[5].
The same maker lists its two common sizes as 5.5 cups or 1.0 litre and 10 cups or 1.8 litres[6]. Multiply the rice cups by 180 ml and you get the litres on the box: 10 × 180 ml is 1.8 l. If a cookbook gives rice in US cups and you measure with the rice cooker cup, each US cup takes 1.31 rice cups.
What number formats does this converter accept?
| What you type | What the converter shows | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1.5 | 6.3401 US cup | A decimal point reads the usual way in English. |
| 1,5 | 6.3401 US cup | A decimal comma from a European bottle label reads as a decimal too, because only one digit follows it. |
| 1,500 | 6340.1293 US cup | Three digits after the comma make it a thousands separator, so this is one thousand five hundred litres. A note under the field shows the other possible reading, 1.5. |
| 1/4 | 1.0567 US cup | A quarter litre written with a slash is worked out for you, with no need to type 0.25. |
| ½ | 2.1134 US cup | The ½ character copied from a web page counts as half a litre. |
| 0.33 | 1.3948 US cup | The size of a drinks can works as a plain decimal, with or without the zero in front. |
| 1.5 l | 6.3401 US cup | The litre symbol typed after the number is skipped, and only the number is converted. |
| 2L | 8.4535 US cup | A capital L straight after the number, as printed on bottles, is skipped the same way. |
Convert other units to Cups
Convert Litres to other units
Sources
- Resolution 6 of the 12th CGPM (1964): Litre — Bureau International des Poids et Mesures
- Cup (unit) — Wikipedia
- 21 CFR 101.9 — Nutrition labeling of food — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- Two-liter bottle — Wikipedia
- Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer NS-TSC10/18 — Zojirushi
- Neuro Fuzzy Rice Cooker & Warmer NS-ZCC10/18 — Zojirushi
Every figure in the tables was computed from the unit definitions and checked arithmetically before publication. Historical values and the names of local units come from the sources listed above.
Content last reviewed: · written and checked by the Arteon team
Frequently asked questions about converting liters to cups
How do I measure a liter with US measuring cups?
Fill four full cups, then add 3.6 tablespoons. Four US cups hold 0.9464 l, which leaves 53.65 ml to go, and a US tablespoon is 14.79 ml. Other amounts in tablespoons come from the ml to tbsp converter.
Is a liter of milk the same number of cups as a liter of water?
Yes. The converter works with volume, and a litre of milk, water or oil fills the same measuring cup to the same line. Only the weight differs, because the liquids have different densities.
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