US vs metric tablespoon
The most common confusion in home cooking: tablespoons are not standardised globally. The US tablespoon is 14.7868 ml (often rounded to 15 ml). The Australian tablespoon is exactly 20 ml — about 35% larger. UK recipes traditionally used 17.7 ml but most modern UK measuring spoons are now 15 ml.
For most recipes the difference is small enough to ignore (a teaspoon of vanilla extra is forgiving). For anything where ratios matter — leavening agents, salt, soy sauce — use the right system.
Quick reference
- 1 US tbsp = 14.7868 ml ≈ 15 ml
- 1 metric/AU tbsp = 20 ml exactly
- 1 US tsp = 4.92892 ml ≈ 5 ml
- 1 metric tsp = 5 ml exactly
- 3 tsp = 1 tbsp (in both systems)
- 1 US cup = 16 tbsp = 48 tsp = 236.6 ml
FAQ
Is a tablespoon 15 ml or 20 ml? Depends on the system. The US tablespoon is 14.7868 ml (commonly rounded to 15 ml). The Australian tablespoon is exactly 20 ml. The UK tablespoon is also conventionally 15 ml but historically 17.7 ml. When following an Australian recipe, always use 20 ml.
How many teaspoons in a tablespoon? 3 teaspoons in 1 tablespoon — this is true in both US and metric systems. So 1 US tbsp = 3 tsp = 14.79 ml, and 1 metric tbsp = 3 tsp = 15 ml (well, 20/3 = 6.67 ml per Australian tsp, but most metric kitchens use 5 ml tsp).
Why does my recipe specify "level" tablespoon? A "level" tablespoon means flush with the rim of the spoon (use a knife to scrape excess off). A "heaping" or "rounded" tablespoon has extra heaped on top — typically 50% more. Recipes that don't specify usually mean level.
Can I substitute a regular kitchen spoon? Not for baking. A "tablespoon" from your cutlery drawer can be anywhere from 8 to 25 ml depending on the brand. Use measuring spoons for any recipe where ratios matter.
Why does this tool give two systems? Because online recipes mix US and Australian conventions without saying which. If a recipe is from an American site (Allrecipes, Bon Appétit, NYT Cooking), use US. If it's Australian (Taste, Coles), use metric.