---
title: "Tablespoon: what it means in cooking — Tiny Plates"
description: "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."
url: "https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/tablespoon"
---

# 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](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/teaspoon), and 16 tablespoons make a US [cup](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/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

1. Use a measuring spoon, not a spoon from the cutlery drawer.
2. For dry ingredients, dip or spoon in, then sweep it [level](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/level)with a knife.
3. For liquids, hold the spoon over a small cup, not over the bowl, and fill to the brim.
4. 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](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/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](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/teaspoon)
* [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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/msk)
* [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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/cup)
* [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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/heaping)
* [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.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/milliliter)

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