Volume Converter

Convert between liters, gallons, milliliters, cups, fluid ounces, tablespoons, and cubic meters.

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Quick Reference

Volume Conversion Guide

Volume measures the amount of space a substance occupies. The metric system uses liters while the imperial system uses gallons, cups, and fluid ounces.

Important: US vs UK Measurements

US and UK volume measurements differ significantly. A US gallon is 3.785 liters, while a UK (imperial) gallon is 4.546 liters — about 20% larger. The same difference applies to cups, pints, and fluid ounces.

Common Conversions

From	To	Factor
1 Liter	US Gallons	0.264172
1 US Gallon	Liters	3.78541
1 Cup (US)	Milliliters	236.588
1 Fluid Oz (US)	Milliliters	29.5735
1 Tablespoon (US)	Milliliters	14.7868
1 Cubic Meter	Liters	1,000

Kitchen Volume Reference

1 US Cup = 16 tablespoons = 48 teaspoons = 236.6 mL
1 US Pint = 2 cups = 473.2 mL
1 US Quart = 2 pints = 4 cups = 946.4 mL
1 US Gallon = 4 quarts = 16 cups = 3,785.4 mL

Frequently Asked Questions

A US gallon equals 3.78541 liters. A UK (imperial) gallon equals 4.54609 liters. Always check which gallon system is being used — US recipes use US gallons, while UK recipes use imperial gallons.

A US cup equals 236.588 mL. A metric cup (used in Australia, New Zealand) equals exactly 250 mL. A UK cup is 284.131 mL. Most international recipes specify "metric cups" (250 mL).

A UK gallon is about 20% larger (4.546 L vs 3.785 L). This means fuel economy figures from the US and UK aren't directly comparable — a car getting 30 mpg in the US would show about 36 mpg using UK gallons.

Volume measurement spans cooking, science, and trade

The metric base for volume is the litre (1 L = 1000 cm³ = 0.001 m³). Cubic metres dominate civil engineering and construction. Litres dominate consumer fuel, beverages, and most cooking. Cubic feet appear in HVAC and shipping. US and imperial gallons differ by about 20 percent and cause endless confusion in cross-Atlantic trade.

Useful conversion anchors

1 L = 1.0567 US quarts = 0.2642 US gallons = 0.2200 imperial gallons
1 m³ = 1000 L = 35.3147 ft³
1 US gallon = 3.7854 L = 0.8327 imperial gallons
1 imperial gallon = 4.5461 L = 1.2009 US gallons
1 cubic foot = 28.3168 L

Volume vs. capacity

"Volume" is the geometric three-dimensional measure of space. "Capacity" is what a container can hold. They are usually the same number in practice, but in shipping and packaging the distinction matters because containers have wall thickness, headspace, and regulatory fill limits.

Common conversion problems

Wine and spirits in the US are sold in metric (750 ml standard bottle, 1.75 L magnum) but consumed in fluid ounces. Petroleum is traded internationally in barrels (1 oil barrel = 158.987 L = 42 US gallons). Natural gas is traded in cubic metres in most of the world but in million British thermal units (mmBtu) in US contracts.