Milliliters to Grams Calculator: Convert mL to g
For water, 1 milliliter weighs 1 gram, so 250 mL is 250 g. For anything thicker or lighter than water, the weight changes with the ingredient.
Milliliters measure how much space a liquid takes up. Grams measure how heavy it is. The bridge between them is density, and that is the only number you need.
The Formula
grams = milliliters x density (g/mL)
Because density is already expressed per milliliter, there is no extra step here. Water sits at 1 g/mL, which is why the milliliter and the gram line up so neatly and why so many recipes treat them as interchangeable.
That shortcut breaks down as soon as the ingredient changes. Cooking oil is roughly 8 percent lighter than water, so 200 mL of oil is 184 g, not 200 g. Honey is about 42 percent heavier, so the same 200 mL comes to 284 g.
Milliliters to Grams for Everyday Amounts
Kitchen measures in milliliters, converted across four ingredients that span the usual density range:
| Milliliters | Water | Milk | Vegetable Oil | Honey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mL | 1 g | 1.03 g | 0.92 g | 1.42 g |
| 5 mL (1 tsp) | 5 g | 5.15 g | 4.6 g | 7.1 g |
| 15 mL (1 tbsp) | 15 g | 15.45 g | 13.8 g | 21.3 g |
| 25 mL | 25 g | 25.75 g | 23 g | 35.5 g |
| 50 mL | 50 g | 51.5 g | 46 g | 71 g |
| 100 mL | 100 g | 103 g | 92 g | 142 g |
| 150 mL | 150 g | 154.5 g | 138 g | 213 g |
| 200 mL | 200 g | 206 g | 184 g | 284 g |
| 250 mL | 250 g | 257.5 g | 230 g | 355 g |
| 500 mL | 500 g | 515 g | 460 g | 710 g |
| 750 mL | 750 g | 772.5 g | 690 g | 1,065 g |
| 1,000 mL | 1,000 g | 1,030 g | 920 g | 1,420 g |
100 mL of Common Liquids in Grams
| Liquid | Density | 100 mL in Grams |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 1.0 g/mL | 100 g |
| Milk | 1.03 g/mL | 103 g |
| Heavy Cream | 1.0 g/mL | 100 g |
| Coffee | 1.0 g/mL | 100 g |
| Orange Juice | 1.04 g/mL | 104 g |
| Vinegar | 1.01 g/mL | 101 g |
| Soy Sauce | 1.15 g/mL | 115 g |
| Vegetable Oil | 0.92 g/mL | 92 g |
| Olive Oil | 0.91 g/mL | 91 g |
| Maple Syrup | 1.32 g/mL | 132 g |
| Honey | 1.42 g/mL | 142 g |
Where the 1 mL = 1 g Shortcut Is Safe
Treating milliliters and grams as the same number is fine for water, and close enough for coffee, tea, stock, wine, milk and most juices, where the error stays within a few percent. On a 250 mL measure of milk that is a difference of about 7.5 grams, which will not change a recipe.
It is not safe for oils, syrups, honey or condensed milk. Those sit far enough from water that the shortcut can be out by 100 grams or more on a large measure, which is enough to change the texture of a bake. Once the totals run into thousands of grams, milliliters to kilograms is easier to read.
Dry Ingredients Need Care
The same formula works for flour, sugar and other powders, but the number you use is not a true density. It describes how the ingredient settles in a measure, including the air trapped between the particles. A rough guide: 100 mL holds about 53 g of all-purpose flour, 85 g of granulated sugar and 40 g of rolled oats.
How you fill the measure matters as much as the ingredient. Scooping flour straight from the bag compacts it and can add 10 percent or more against spooning it in loosely.
Accuracy and Temperature
The densities on this page are standard reference values near room temperature, which is the right basis for cooking, baking and general use. Liquids expand slightly as they warm, so a hot liquid weighs a little less per milliliter than a cold one. The difference is too small to matter in a kitchen and too large to ignore in a laboratory, where densities are quoted at a stated temperature for exactly that reason.
Questions People Ask
Is 1 mL the same as 1 gram?
Only for water, where 1 milliliter weighs exactly 1 gram at room temperature. For every other substance the two differ by the density. A milliliter of cooking oil weighs 0.92 grams, a milliliter of honey weighs 1.42 grams, and a milliliter of flour weighs roughly half a gram. The units measure different things, so they match only by coincidence in water.
How many grams is 250 mL?
For water it is 250 grams. For milk it is about 258 grams, for vegetable oil 230 grams, and for honey 355 grams. A 250 mL measure is a common recipe amount, close to a US cup, so it is worth knowing that the same measure can differ by more than 100 grams depending on what fills it. Recipes written in US weights are covered by milliliters to ounces.
Can I use this for medicine?
No. Liquid medicines are measured by the amount of active drug in each milliliter, printed on the label as something like 120 mg per 5 mL. That figure has nothing to do with the density of the liquid, so converting milliliters to grams will not tell you a dose. Always follow the label or your pharmacist.
What about milliliters to milligrams?
It is the same calculation with one more step, since a gram is 1,000 milligrams. One milliliter of water is 1,000 milligrams, and 5 milliliters is 5,000 milligrams. The multiplier makes the numbers large quickly, which is why milligrams are normally reserved for small amounts and laboratory work. The milliliters to milligrams page does that step for you.