Tablespoon
A tablespoon is about 15 ml in the US, UK and Sweden but 20 ml in Australia. It equals 3 teaspoons. Here is how to measure and convert it.
Also called Tbsp, tbs, T, Tablespoons.
A tablespoon is a measuring spoon that holds about 15 ml. It equals 3 teaspoons, and 16 tablespoons make a US cup. It is written tbsp, tbs or a capital T in recipes. The exact size changes a little by country, and in Australia it is noticeably bigger.
How to do it
- Use a measuring spoon, not a spoon from the cutlery drawer.
- For dry ingredients, dip or spoon in, then sweep it level with a knife.
- For liquids, hold the spoon over a small cup, not over the bowl, and fill to the brim.
- For sticky ones such as honey, oil the spoon first.
How to use it
| Country | One tablespoon |
|---|---|
| United States | 14.8 ml |
| United Kingdom | 15 ml |
| Sweden (msk) | 15 ml |
| Canada, New Zealand | 15 ml |
| Australia | 20 ml (4 teaspoons) |
For US, UK, Swedish and most other recipes, use any 15 ml tablespoon. For an Australian recipe made with a 15 ml spoon, add 1 teaspoon to every tablespoon. For an American recipe made with a 20 ml Australian spoon, use 3 teaspoons instead.
Useful conversions:
| Tablespoons | Other measures |
|---|---|
| 1 tbsp | 3 teaspoons, 15 ml |
| 2 tbsp | 1 fl oz, 30 ml, ⅛ cup |
| 4 tbsp | ¼ cup, 60 ml |
| 8 tbsp | ½ cup, 120 ml, 1 stick of butter |
Common mistakes
- Mixing up tbsp and tsp. The difference is three times. Some recipes use a capital T for tablespoon and a lowercase t for teaspoon, which is easy to misread.
- Using a soup spoon. Eating spoons vary from about 7 to 20 ml.
- Pouring liquids straight over the batter. If you overshoot, it is in.
- Ignoring heaping or level. A heaping tablespoon of flour is close to two level ones.
In recipes
You will see "2 tbsp olive oil", "1 T soy sauce" and "1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste". In weight, 1 tablespoon of butter is about 14 g, of granulated sugar about 12.5 g, and of all-purpose flour about 8 g.
Related terms
- TeaspoonA teaspoon holds 5 ml, and 3 teaspoons make a tablespoon. Here is how to measure one level, and how it compares to tsk and krm in Swedish recipes.
- MskMsk, short for matsked, is the Swedish tablespoon and holds exactly 15 ml. It equals 3 tsk and is close enough to a US tablespoon to swap directly.
- CupA US cup is about 240 ml, a metric cup is 250 ml, and a cup of flour weighs far less than a cup of sugar. Here is how to measure and convert.
- LevelA level measure is filled to the rim and swept flat with a knife. Unless a recipe says heaping or packed, every spoon and cup should be level.
- HeapingA heaping spoon or cup is filled above the rim in a mound instead of leveled. It adds roughly half again as much, so here is how to judge it.
- MilliliterA milliliter (ml) is a thousandth of a liter, the metric unit for measuring liquids. See how ml converts to teaspoons, cups and fluid ounces.