---
title: "Celsius and Fahrenheit: what it means in cooking — Tiny Plates"
description: "Most of the world cooks in degrees Celsius and the US cooks in Fahrenheit. Here is how to convert, with a table of common oven temperatures."
url: "https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/celsius-and-fahrenheit"
---

# Celsius and Fahrenheit

Most of the world cooks in degrees Celsius and the US cooks in Fahrenheit. Here is how to convert, with a table of common oven temperatures.

Also called Celsius, Fahrenheit, Centigrade, Oven temperature conversion.

Celsius (°C) and Fahrenheit (°F) are the two scales recipes use for temperature. The US uses Fahrenheit. Almost every other country, including the UK, Canada, Australia and the Nordic countries, uses Celsius. Water freezes at 0°C (32°F) and boils at 100°C (212°F) at sea level.

## How to use it

To turn Celsius into Fahrenheit, multiply by 9, divide by 5 and add 32\. To turn Fahrenheit into Celsius, take away 32, multiply by 5 and divide by 9.

Recipes round oven temperatures to neat numbers, so you do not need the exact answer. Use this table:

| Celsius | Fahrenheit | [Gas mark](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/gas-mark) | Use                    |
| ------- | ---------- | -------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------- |
| 120°C   | 250°F      | ½                                                        | Drying, meringues      |
| 150°C   | 300°F      | 2                                                        | Slow baking, custards  |
| 170°C   | 325°F      | 3                                                        | Rich cakes             |
| 180°C   | 350°F      | 4                                                        | Most cakes and cookies |
| 190°C   | 375°F      | 5                                                        | Muffins, pies          |
| 200°C   | 400°F      | 6                                                        | Roast vegetables       |
| 220°C   | 425°F      | 7                                                        | Roasting, bread        |
| 230°C   | 450°F      | 8                                                        | Pizza, crisp skin      |
| 240°C   | 475°F      | 9                                                        | Very hot ovens         |

For meat, safe [internal temperatures](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/internal-temperature) are given in both scales. USDA advice is 74°C (165°F) for poultry, 71°C (160°F) for ground meat and 63°C (145°F) for whole cuts of beef, pork and lamb followed by a 3 minute rest.

## Common mistakes

* Setting a Celsius oven to a Fahrenheit number. 350°C is not a baking temperature, and 180°F is barely warm.
* Forgetting that the temperature in a recipe may assume a conventional oven. If you use a [fan oven](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/fan-oven) (convection oven in the US), turn it down by about 20°C (25°F) unless the recipe says otherwise.
* Trusting the dial. Many home ovens run 10 to 20 degrees off. An oven [thermometer](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/thermometer) tells you what is really happening.

## In recipes

"Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F)" is the most common line you will see. A recipe that says "180°C fan" or "160°C fan" has already been adjusted for a fan oven. "Moderate oven" in older recipes means about 180°C (350°F), a "hot oven" about 220°C (425°F), and a "slow oven" about 150°C (300°F).

## Where it comes from

Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit proposed his scale in 1724 and Anders Celsius, a Swedish astronomer, proposed his in 1742\. Celsius was long called centigrade, which you will still see in older British cookbooks.

## Related terms

* [Gas markGas mark is the oven scale on British gas cookers, from ¼ to 9\. Here is the full table in Celsius and Fahrenheit and what each mark is for.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/gas-mark)
* [Fan ovenA fan oven blows hot air around the food so it cooks faster and browns more evenly. Turn the temperature down about 20°C (25°F) when you use one.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/fan-oven)
* [Top and bottom heatTop and bottom heat is the classic oven setting where the top and bottom elements heat still air, with no fan. Best for cakes, bread and custards.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/top-and-bottom-heat)
* [ThermometerA kitchen thermometer checks the heat of meat, oil, sugar and your oven, so food is safe and cooked how you want. Here is which type to use and how.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/thermometer)
* [Internal temperatureInternal temperature is the heat at the center of food, read with a probe thermometer. It is the surest way to know meat, fish and bread are done and safe.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/internal-temperature)

[More in measurements](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/category/measurements)[Every term from A to Z](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary)