If you are not familiar with the metric system (i.e. didn’t grow up measuring ingredients in grams), you might find it difficult to visualize how much is 100 grams. Yet you can bump into 100 gram (g for short) measurements more and more often in online recipes and other applications.
In this article we aim to help you understand the concept behind measuring in grams and also have a strong grasp on how much actually 100 grams are. To see an easy table showing how much 100 g of the most common ingredients is, click on this link.
100 Grams In Context
Let’s start with something simple to understand. Grams are a weight unit, so you cannot directly compare them to cups or tablespoons. But more on this later.
What you can do though is compare grams to ounces or pounds as all of these are weight measurements. 100 grams are roughly 3 ounces (3.5274 precisely) or 1/4 of a pound (0.220462 precisely). Not an exact conversion, but these can give you an impression about 100 grams of weight.
There is an even simpler way to visualize 100 grams. It is roughly equal to the weight of one stick of butter or 2 large eggs. These are not precise comparisons, as 1 stick of butter is 113.4 grams and 2 large eggs, including their shells, have roughly the same weight. So both of these are a bit above 100 grams, but they can definitely give you an idea of how much 100 grams are in real life.
Interesting Fact
Just a quick interesting fact. Butter in Europe comes in 100 g packaging and its shape is more like a brick than a stick.
Grams VS Cups, Tablespoons and Teaspoons
100 grams as a quantity is mostly used in recipes, so chances are that’s why you want to find out how much it is exactly. But here is the catch.
American recipes use volume measurements, such as cups, tablespoons, and teaspoons. On the other hand recipes pretty much all over the world tend to use weight measurements. 100 grams are a weight quantity indeed. And there is no easy conversion between weight and volume, because that depends on the density of the substance we’d like to measure.
But to understand 100 grams better, we compiled a simple table that shows you how much 100 grams of the most common cooking ingredients is. Please note that this table shows US cup, tbsp, and tsp sizes, and they are rounded.
How Much Is 100 Grams
| Ingredient | How Much Is 100 Grams |
|---|---|
| Water | 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp + 1 tsp |
| Flour | 2/3 cup + 2 tbsp |
| Sugar (white, granulated) | 1/2 cup |
| Butter | 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp + 1 tsp |
| Brown sugar | 1/3 cup + 2 tbsp |
| Powdered sugar | 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp + 1 tsp |
| Honey | 1/4 cup + 2 tsp |
| Cocoa powder | 1 cup |
Perfect Way To Measure Out 100 Grams
There is a perfect yet easy way to measure out 100 grams of any ingredient or substance. The best solution is to have a set of measuring cups and a food scale at home, and try to weigh your ingredients whenever you can. This way when a recipe says 100 grams you can be sure you will always measure it out precisely.