How this calculator works
A US teaspoon is 4.929 mL, one third of a tablespoon. It is used for salt, leavening, spices and yeast, where small differences matter. The calculator divides the ingredient's USDA cup weight by 48 to get grams per teaspoon. Table salt is the densest of the common kitchen ingredients at about 5.7 g per teaspoon, while cocoa powder is one of the lightest at about 1.8 g.
Formula
grams = teaspoons x grams per teaspoon. grams per teaspoon = grams per cup / 48. teaspoons = grams / grams per teaspoon. One teaspoon of table salt is 5.69 g, one teaspoon of granulated sugar is 4.17 g, and one teaspoon of instant yeast is 3.1 g.
Worked example
A bread recipe calls for 10 g of salt. At 5.69 g per teaspoon, 10 / 5.69 = 1.76 teaspoons, or about 1 3/4 teaspoons. The same 10 g of instant yeast at 3.1 g per teaspoon is 3.22 teaspoons, a little over one 7 g packet.
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Frequently asked questions
How many grams are in a teaspoon of yeast?
About 3.1 g of active dry or instant yeast fills a level US teaspoon. A standard 7 g packet is therefore about 2 1/4 teaspoons, which is the figure most recipes quote.
Is a teaspoon of baking powder the same weight as a teaspoon of baking soda?
No. Baking powder weighs about 4.6 g per teaspoon and baking soda about 4.8 g. They are also different chemicals and are not interchangeable in a recipe, even at the same weight.
Can a kitchen teaspoon measure really be exact?
Only approximately. Household spoons vary, and how the powder is scooped changes the mass. For small quantities a 0.1 g resolution scale is more repeatable, especially for yeast, salt and leavening.
Why does the calculator use 4.929 mL for a teaspoon?
That is the US customary teaspoon, defined as exactly 1/768 of a US gallon by the NIST Handbook 44 definitions. The rounded 5 mL metric teaspoon is slightly larger, about 1.4 per cent, which is negligible in most recipes.