US Tablespoon (tbsp)
Half a US fluid ounce (14.787 mL), equal to 3 teaspoons.
1 US tablespoon = 0.01478676478 liters (approximately).
About the US tablespoon
A tablespoon was once a spoon first and a unit second. Tablespoons entered place settings around 1700, first reserved for soup, and in the 18th century apothecaries used an unofficial tablespoon of four fluid drams, or half a fluid ounce. That is the origin of the modern US definition, which turns the spoon into precisely half a US fluid ounce.
The US tablespoon is therefore 14.7868 milliliters, equal to three US teaspoons, and sixteen of them make a US customary cup. It is often treated as 15 mL, and American nutrition labels define a tablespoon as exactly 15 mL, so the two figures sit within about 1.4 percent of each other. The regional difference that matters is Australia, which uses a larger 20 milliliter tablespoon, so a recipe asking for a tablespoon of oil or baking powder can go wrong when translated across the Pacific.
Sources: Wikipedia: Tablespoon; NIST SP 811, Appendix B.8: conversion factors for volume; 21 CFR 101.9: nutrition labeling household measures
US Tablespoon conversion chart
1 US tablespoon expressed in every other volume unit:
| Unit | 1 US tablespoon |
|---|---|
| Liters | 0.01478676478 |
| Milliliters | 14.78676478 |
| US Gallons | 0.00390625 |
| US Cups | 0.0625 |
| US Fluid Ounces | 0.5 |
| Cubic Meters | 0.00001478676478 |
| Cubic Centimeters | 14.78676478 |
| US Quarts | 0.015625 |
| US Pints | 0.03125 |
| US Teaspoons | 3 |
| Metric Cups | 0.05914705913 |
| Metric Tablespoons | 0.9857843188 |
| Metric Teaspoons | 2.957352956 |
| Imperial Gallons | 0.003252633534 |
| Imperial Pints | 0.02602106827 |
| Imperial Fluid Ounces | 0.5204213654 |
| Cubic Inches | 0.90234375 |
| Cubic Feet | 0.0005221896701 |
| Cubic Yards | 0.00001934035815 |
| Oil Barrels | 0.00009300595238 |
| Cubic Millimeters | 14,786.76478 |
| Microliters | 14,786.76478 |
| Centiliters | 1.478676478 |
| Deciliters | 0.1478676478 |
| Hectoliters | 0.0001478676478 |
| Cubic Kilometers | 1.478676478×10⁻¹⁴ |
| Australian Tablespoons | 0.7393382391 |
| US Legal Cups | 0.06161151992 |
| Imperial Quarts | 0.01301053413 |
| Cubic Miles | 3.547533529×10⁻¹⁵ |
| Wine Bottles | 0.01971568638 |
| Magnums | 0.009857843188 |
| Jeroboams | 0.004928921594 |
| Methuselahs | 0.002464460797 |
| Nebuchadnezzars | 0.0009857843188 |
| US Gills | 0.125 |
| US Fluid Drams | 4 |
| US Minims | 240 |
| Jiggers | 0.3333333333 |
| Pinches | 48 |
| Dashes | 24 |
| Imperial Gills | 0.1040842731 |
| US Bushels | 0.0004196127966 |
| US Pecks | 0.001678451186 |
| US Dry Quarts | 0.01342760949 |
| US Dry Pints | 0.02685521898 |
| US Dry Barrels | 0.0001278831845 |
| US Liquid Barrels | 0.0001240079365 |
| UK Beer Barrels | 0.00009035093149 |
| Firkins | 0.000361403726 |
| Kilderkins | 0.000180701863 |
| Hogsheads (ale) | 0.00006023395433 |
| Tierces | 0.00009300595238 |
| Hogsheads (wine) | 0.00006200396825 |
| Puncheons | 0.00004650297619 |
| Butts (pipe) | 0.00003100198413 |
| Tuns | 0.00001550099206 |
| Acre-feet | 1.19878253×10⁻⁸ |
| Cords | 0.000004079606798 |
| Board Feet | 0.006266276042 |
| Cyathi | 0.3250830731 |
| Sextarii | 0.02709025609 |
| Congii | 0.004515042681 |
| Modii | 0.001693141005 |
| Amphorae | 0.0005643803352 |
| Omers | 0.006721256719 |
| Hin | 0.004032754031 |
| Baths (biblical) | 0.0006721256719 |
| Homers | 0.00006721256719 |
| Gō | 0.08197077852 |
| Shō | 0.008197077852 |
| Tō | 0.0008197077852 |
| Koku | 0.00008197077852 |
| Charkas | 0.1202233667 |
| Shtofs | 0.01202233667 |
| Vedros | 0.001202233667 |
More US customary units
- US gallon (volume)
- US quart (volume)
- US pint (volume)
- US cup (volume)
- US fluid ounce (volume)
- US teaspoon (volume)
- US gill (volume)
- US fluid dram (volume)
- US minim (volume)
- US legal cup (volume)
- US bushel (volume)
- US peck (volume)
- US dry quart (volume)
- US dry pint (volume)
- US dry barrel (volume)
- oil barrel (volume)
Browse all volume units.