On this page
Formula
Target value = Value × (Liters per source unit ÷ Liters per target unit)
- Value
- the volume you type in
- Liters per unit
- the exact size of each unit in liters (1 US gal = 3.785411784 L, 1 US cup = 0.2365882365 L, 1 ft³ = 28.316846592 L)
- Target value
- the same volume in the unit you convert to
What the volume converter does
This volume converter turns any amount of liquid or space into other units, from a teaspoon of vanilla to a cubic yard of soil. It covers three families of units:
- Metric: milliliters, liters and cubic meters. 1,000 mL make a liter, and 1,000 L make a cubic meter.
- US kitchen and liquid measures: teaspoons, tablespoons, fluid ounces, cups, pints, quarts and gallons.
- Cubic units: cubic inches, cubic feet and cubic yards, used for engines, appliances, landscaping and concrete.
Type a number, set From and To, and the result appears with its multiplier. The table below the result gives the same volume in all 13 units, which is handy when a label says liters and the recipe says cups.
Step by step with the volume converter
- Enter the amount in Value. Decimals such as 0.75 work, as do thousands separators.
- In From, pick the unit printed on your label, recipe or spec sheet.
- In To, pick the unit you measure in. The converted volume shows immediately, along with the multiplier.
- Read across the table under the result if you also need the amount in a third unit, such as quarts or cubic inches.
How US liquid measures fit together
The US customary system is built on doubling, which makes it easy to scale once you know the ladder:
| Unit | Equals | In milliliters |
|---|---|---|
| 1 teaspoon | — | 4.93 mL |
| 1 tablespoon | 3 teaspoons | 14.79 mL |
| 1 fluid ounce | 2 tablespoons | 29.57 mL |
| 1 cup | 8 fluid ounces | 236.59 mL |
| 1 pint | 2 cups | 473.18 mL |
| 1 quart | 2 pints | 946.35 mL |
| 1 gallon | 4 quarts | 3,785.41 mL |
Metric conversions in this table were calculated with the converter’s exact factors and rounded to two decimals.
Volume converter formula: converting by hand
Every unit is a fixed number of liters, so convert through liters. Suppose a recipe asks for 2 cups of stock and your measuring jug is in milliliters:
- One US cup is 0.2365882365 L.
- 2 × 0.2365882365 = 0.473176 L.
- Multiply by 1,000 for milliliters: about 473 mL.
Cubic units work the same way. A fridge listed at 20 cubic feet holds 20 × 28.3168 = 566.3 liters.
Volume converter chart
| Conversion | Multiply by | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Liters to US gallons | 0.264172 | 20 L = 5.283 gal |
| US gallons to liters | 3.785412 | 4 gal = 15.142 L |
| Milliliters to fluid ounces | 0.033814 | 500 mL = 16.907 fl oz |
| Fluid ounces to milliliters | 29.573530 | 16 fl oz = 473.18 mL |
| Liters to cups | 4.226753 | 1.5 L = 6.34 cups |
| Cubic feet to US gallons | 7.480519 | 10 ft³ = 74.81 gal |
| Cubic meters to liters | 1,000 | 0.5 m³ = 500 L |
| Cubic inches to milliliters | 16.387064 | 61 in³ = 999.6 mL |
Where volume conversions come up
- Cooking and baking. US recipes use cups and spoons; most other countries use milliliters and grams. Volume converts cleanly between cups and milliliters, but to turn a cup of flour into grams you need the ingredient’s density, which the cups to grams converter handles. To double or halve a recipe, use the recipe scaler.
- Drinks and labels. Bottles are often labeled in both systems: a 2 L soda bottle is 67.6 fl oz, and a 16.9 fl oz water bottle is 500 mL.
- Fuel and cars. Gas is sold by the gallon in the US and by the liter almost everywhere else, while engine displacement is given in liters or cubic inches. A 5.7 L engine is about 348 cubic inches.
- Home and garden. Aquariums, pools and hot tubs are sized in gallons, while concrete, mulch and topsoil are ordered by the cubic yard. Work out how much you need with the concrete calculator, then convert if the supplier quotes cubic meters.
Common mistakes
- Treating fluid ounces as weight. A fluid ounce is a volume. Only for water does 1 fl oz weigh close to 1 oz; for oil, honey or flour the weight is different. For weights use the weight converter.
- Mixing up US and UK measures. British recipes and pub pints use imperial units that are larger than US ones. An imperial gallon is about 1.2 US gallons.
- Confusing the cup sizes. The customary cup (236.59 mL), the nutrition-label cup (240 mL) and the metric cup (250 mL) differ by up to 5%, enough to matter in baking.
- Forgetting that cubic units grow fast. One yard is 3 feet, but one cubic yard is 3 × 3 × 3 = 27 cubic feet.
Glossary
- Customary units: the US system of teaspoons through gallons, defined from the 231 in³ gallon.
- Cubic centimeter (cc): identical to one milliliter; common in medicine and engine sizes.
- Displacement: the total volume swept by an engine’s pistons, given in liters or cubic inches.
Worked examples
Gallons to liters
A 5-gallon water jug in liters.
Inputs: Value = 5; From = Gallons (US) (gal); To = Liters (L)
5 gal × 3.785411784 = 18.927059 L
Answer: 5 gal = 18.927059 L
Wine bottle in fluid ounces
A standard 750 mL wine bottle in US fluid ounces.
Inputs: Value = 750; From = Milliliters (mL); To = Fluid ounces (US) (fl oz)
750 mL × 0.0338140227 = 25.360517 fl oz
Answer: 750 mL = 25.360517 fl oz
Tablespoons to teaspoons
A recipe calls for 3 tablespoons but you only have a teaspoon.
Inputs: Value = 3; From = Tablespoons (US) (tbsp); To = Teaspoons (US) (tsp)
3 tbsp × 3 = 9 tsp
Answer: 3 tbsp = 9 tsp
Cubic yard to cubic feet (edge case)
One cubic yard of mulch or concrete is 3 × 3 × 3 cubic feet.
Inputs: Value = 1; From = Cubic yards (yd³); To = Cubic feet (ft³)
1 yd³ × 27 = 27 ft³
Answer: 1 yd³ = 27 ft³
Assumptions and limitations
- Kitchen and liquid units are US customary measures. 1 US gallon is exactly 231 cubic inches (3.785411784 L), and a gallon holds 4 quarts, 8 pints, 16 cups or 128 fluid ounces.
- The US legal cup used on nutrition labels (240 mL) and the metric cup (250 mL) are slightly larger than the customary cup used here (236.59 mL).
- UK imperial gallons, pints and fluid ounces and US dry measures (bushels, dry pints) are not included in this version. An imperial gallon is 4.54609 L, about 20% larger than a US gallon.
- Results show up to 6 decimal places and volumes can't be negative.
Frequently asked questions
How many liters are in a gallon?
A US gallon is exactly 3.785411784 liters, usually rounded to 3.785 L. Two gallons is 7.57 L. A UK imperial gallon is larger, 4.546 L.
How many milliliters are in a fluid ounce?
One US fluid ounce is 29.5735 mL. A 12 fl oz soda can holds 354.9 mL, which is why cans are labeled 355 mL.
How many cups are in a liter?
A liter is 4.227 US customary cups. Recipes from countries that use a 250 mL metric cup get exactly 4 cups per liter, so the difference is about 5%.
How do you convert cubic feet to gallons?
Multiply by 7.48052. One cubic foot holds about 7.48 US gallons, so a 40 ft³ hot tub holds roughly 299 gallons.
What is the difference between volume and capacity?
Volume is the space an object takes up; capacity is how much a container can hold. Both use the same units, so this converter works for either.
Is a US pint the same as a UK pint?
No. A US liquid pint is 16 US fl oz (473 mL), while a UK pint is 20 imperial fl oz (568 mL), about 20% more.
Sources
- SI Units - Volume — National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Checked October 12, 2026.
- NIST Guide to the SI, Appendix B.8: Factors for Units Listed Alphabetically — National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Checked October 12, 2026.
- Unit Conversion — National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Checked October 12, 2026.