Convert liters to cups

One liter equals 4.226753 cups. To convert any number of liters to cups, multiply by 4.22675284.

The converter above works in both directions and updates as you type. Below you will find the formula, a worked example and a reference table of common values.

Volume is the category where the US and imperial systems diverge most damagingly. Gallons, quarts, pints and fluid ounces all exist in two sizes that differ by up to 20%, and nothing in the name warns you which one a figure uses. Recipes, fuel economy figures and container capacities all cross borders regularly, so it is worth checking which system a source is using before converting rather than after.

liters to cups formula

To go the other way, use liter = cup ÷ 4.22675284.

About these units

A litre is exactly one cubic decimetre, or 1,000 cubic centimetres. One litre of water weighs almost exactly one kilogram, which is not a coincidence.

The US customary cup is 236.6 millilitres. A metric cup is 250 ml and an old imperial cup was 284 ml, so recipes rarely travel cleanly between regions.

Liter is also written litre, litres, liters and ltr. Cup is also written cups.

Sources

1. NIST Special Publication 811, Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), 2008 edition — conversion factors for units outside the SI.