Tool · coffee measurements
Coffee measurements: tablespoons, scoops and grams
A level US tablespoon holds 14.79 ml. Filled with ground coffee it weighs roughly 4 to 6 g, mostly depending on roast and grind, and about 5 g for a medium roast. Below: exact spoon volumes, published density measurements, what branded scoops hold, and a converter that shows its working.
Quick conversions (level spoons of ground coffee)
| Measure | Volume | Dark roast | Medium | Light roast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US teaspoon | 4.93 ml | 1.4 g | 1.6 g | 1.9 g |
| US tablespoon | 14.79 ml | 4.1 g | 4.9 g | 5.8 g |
| Metric tablespoon | 15 ml | 4.2 g | 5.0 g | 5.9 g |
| Australian tablespoon | 20 ml | 5.6 g | 6.6 g | 7.8 g |
| 2-tablespoon scoop | 29.57 ml | 8.3 g | 9.8 g | 11.5 g |
| US cup | 236.59 ml | 66.2 g | 78.1 g | 92.3 g |
Densities: 0.28, 0.33 and 0.39 g per ml, the loose bulk densities Nakilcioğlu-Taş and Ötleş (2019) measured for one Arabica coffee roasted dark, medium and light and ground very fine. Other coffees, coarser grinds, whole beans and packed spoons give different numbers, as the sections below show. For how many spoons a pot or mug needs, see how much coffee per cup.
Spoon ⇄ gram converter
grams = 2 × 14.79 ml × 0.33 g/ml ≈ 9.8 g · range uses 0.28–0.41 g/ml, the lowest and highest loose densities in the table below
The formula
spoons = grams ÷ (ml per spoon × bulk density)
own density = grams in one level US tablespoon ÷ 14.79 ml
Worked example: the National Coffee Association’s drip guidance is “1 to 2 tablespoons of ground coffee for every 6 ounces of water”. Two level US tablespoons of a medium roast at 0.33 g/ml is 2 × 14.79 × 0.33 ≈ 9.8 g; the same spoons of a dark roast at 0.28 g/ml give ≈8.3 g. The Specialty Coffee Association writes its brewing reference in mass (55 g per liter ± 10%) and its cupping protocol has the coffee weighed to within ±0.25 g, which is why ratio pages on this site, such as the coffee-to-water ratio guide, work in grams.
How big is a spoon?
| Unit | Volume | Defined by |
|---|---|---|
| US teaspoon | 4.928 922 ml | NIST SP 811 conversion table (4.93 ml in NIST’s short list) |
| US tablespoon | 14.786 76 ml | NIST SP 811; ½ US fluid ounce = 3 teaspoons (Wikipedia) |
| US fluid ounce | 29.573 53 ml | NIST SP 811; equals a “2-tablespoon scoop” |
| US cup | 236.588 2 ml | NIST SP 811 |
| Nutrition-label tablespoon | 15 ml | FDA, 1993 (teaspoon 5 ml, cup 240 ml) |
| Metric tablespoon | 15 ml | Wikipedia |
| Australian tablespoon | 20 ml | Wikipedia: four teaspoons, not three |
| Historical UK tablespoon | ≈14.2 ml | Wikipedia: ½ imperial fluid ounce |
The gap between a US and a metric tablespoon is about 1.4%, too small to matter for coffee. An Australian tablespoon holds about a third more than either, so an Australian recipe’s spoon counts need converting.
How dense is roasted coffee?
Bulk density is the mass of loose coffee that fills a container, air gaps included. It is the number that turns a volume measure into grams. Published values:
| Source | Coffee measured | g/ml | ≈ g per level US Tbsp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nakilcioğlu-Taş & Ötleş 2019 | Arabica, light roast, ground below 300 μm, loose | 0.39 | 5.8 |
| same study | middle (medium) roast, loose | 0.33 | 4.9 |
| same study | dark roast, loose | 0.28 | 4.1 |
| same study | tapped until the volume stopped changing: light / middle / dark | 0.51 / 0.41 / 0.34 | 7.5 / 6.1 / 5.0 |
| Corrêa et al. 2016 | Robusta, medium-light (SCAA #65) and moderately dark (#45), whole beans and fine, medium and coarse grinds | 0.30–0.41 | 4.4–6.1 |
| Illy & Viani 1995, as cited by Corrêa et al. | roasted coffee | 0.30–0.45 | 4.4–6.7 |
| Vargas Elías 2011 (dissertation abstract) | medium-light roast; the abstract does not say whole or ground | 0.365 | 5.4 |
| Engineering ToolBox (reference table, no study named) | roasted beans / ground coffee | 0.368 / 0.400 | 5.4 / 5.9 |
- Dark roast, ground, loose: 0.28 g/ml → 4.1 g (Nakilcioğlu-Taş & Ötleş).
- AeroPress level scoop: 11.5 g ÷ “about 2.5 tablespoons” → 4.6 g per tablespoon (dashed: derived from the maker’s figures).
- Medium roast, ground, loose: 0.33 g/ml → 4.9 g.
- Whole roasted beans: 0.368 g/ml → 5.4 g (dashed: reference table, no study named).
- Light roast, ground, loose: 0.39 g/ml → 5.8 g.
- Dark roast, tapped: 0.34 g/ml → 5.0 g.
- Medium roast, tapped: 0.41 g/ml → 6.1 g.
- Light roast, tapped: 0.51 g/ml → 7.5 g. Shaded band: Corrêa et al.’s robusta range, 0.30–0.41 g/ml → 4.4–6.1 g.
What changes the number
- Roast. Roasting drives off 15–18% of a bean’s mass while its volume roughly doubles, according to Wikipedia’s roasting article; Vanegas and colleagues (2018) report final volumes up to 1.8 times the green bean’s. In the 2019 Arabica study, loose density fell from 0.39 g/ml (light) to 0.28 (dark), about 28% less coffee in the same spoon. Corrêa’s robusta was likewise denser at medium-light than at moderately dark. More on roast levels: light, medium and dark roast explained.
- Grind. Corrêa et al. found that ground coffee’s bulk density decreased as particle size increased. The 2019 figures come from very fine grounds (below 300 μm), so a coarse French press grind of the same coffee would likely fill a spoon with less. Grind settings by method are in the grind size chart.
- Packing. Tapping the 2019 samples until they settled raised their density by about 21–31%. A heaped scoop does the same: AeroPress puts its level scoop at 11.5 g and a heaping one at 14 g, about 22% more.
- Whole beans vs ground. The sources do not agree on direction (see below), so weigh whole beans before grinding if the dose matters.
Scoops: what the makers say
We found no standard that fixes the size of a “coffee scoop”; makers state their own. Three published specs:
| Scoop | Maker’s figure |
|---|---|
| AeroPress scoop (same for all models) | Level: 11.5 g, “about 2.5 tablespoons”. Heaping: 14 g or 3 tablespoons (grams page); “roughly 14–15 grams” (FAQ). The brewing instructions pair one heaping scoop with 16–18 g. |
| HARIO V60 Measuring Spoon (M-12CP, M-12SV) | Capacity 12 g of ground coffee |
| Moccamaster coffee measuring spoon | 12 g of ground coffee, “sufficient for 2 cups” |
The AeroPress figures imply about 4.6 g per level tablespoon, or 0.31 g/ml, inside the measured range above. How AeroPress’s scoop-based recipes translate into ratios is covered in the AeroPress ratio guide.
Where the sources disagree
| Question | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Whole beans vs ground: which is denser? | Corrêa et al. 2016: whole beans showed higher bulk density than ground coffee. Engineering ToolBox: roasted beans 0.368, ground 0.400 g/ml, the opposite. |
| How much is a heaping AeroPress scoop? | 14 g (grams page), 14–15 g (FAQ), and the instructions pair one heaping scoop with 16–18 g. |
| How much does roasting expand a bean? | Volume “approximately doubles” (Wikipedia) vs up to 1.8 times (Vanegas et al. 2018). |
| How big is a tablespoon? | 14.79 ml (NIST, US customary) vs 15 ml (FDA labeling, metric) vs 20 ml (Australia). |
Calibrate your own spoon in two minutes
- Put a small cup on a kitchen scale and tare it.
- Scoop your usual coffee, ground as you brew it, and sweep the spoon level without tapping or pressing.
- Tip it into the cup and note the grams. Repeat twice more and average the three.
- Choose “My own spoon” in the converter and enter the average for a US tablespoon (divide by 2 for a 2-tablespoon scoop, multiply by 3 for a teaspoon reading).
- Re-check when you change beans, roast or grind setting; the studies above show each one moves the number.
Once you know your spoon, the printable coffee ratio chart gives the grams for any brew size.
Sources
- NIST — Guide for the Use of the SI (SP 811), Appendix B.9: factors for units listed by kind of quantity (tablespoon 14.786 76 mL, teaspoon 4.928 922 mL, cup (U.S.) 236.588 2 mL, fluid ounce (U.S.) 29.573 53 mL, ounce 28.349 52 g)
- NIST Office of Weights and Measures — Approximate Conversions from U.S. Customary Measures to Metric (tsp 4.93 mL, Tbsp 14.79 mL, fl oz 29.57 mL)
- U.S. FDA — Guidelines for Determining Metric Equivalents of Household Measures, October 1993 (for nutrition labeling 1 tablespoon = 15 mL, 1 teaspoon = 5 mL, 1 cup = 240 mL)
- Wikipedia — Tablespoon (secondary: US tablespoon = ½ US fl oz = 3 teaspoons; metric 15 mL; Australian 20 mL = 4 teaspoons; historical UK ≈14.2 mL)
- Specialty Coffee Association — Protocols & Best Practices (brewing ratio 55 g/L ± 10%; cupping 8.25 g per 150 ml, coffee weighed to ±0.25 g)
- National Coffee Association — About Coffee: Drip coffee (“1 to 2 tablespoons of ground coffee for every 6 ounces of water”)
- Nakilcioğlu-Taş E., Ötleş S. (2019) Physical characterization of Arabica ground coffee with different roasting degrees. Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências 91(2): e20180191 (bulk density light 0.39, middle 0.33, dark 0.28 g/cm³; tapped 0.51/0.41/0.34; ground below 300 μm)
- Corrêa P.C., Oliveira G.H.H., Vasconcelos W.L., Vargas-Elías G.A., Santos F.L., Nunes E.H.M. (2016) Preservation of roasted and ground coffee during storage. Part 2: Bulk density and intergranular porosity. Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental 20(7): 666–671 (robusta, 300–410 kg/m³; literature 300–450 kg/m³)
- Vargas Elías G.A. (2011) Avaliação das propriedades físicas e qualidade do café em diferentes condições de torrefação. MSc dissertation, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (abstract: medium-light roast, apparent density 365 kg/m³)
- Vanegas J.D.B., Corrêa P.C. et al. (2018) Developing predictive models for determining physical properties of coffee beans during the roasting process. Industrial Crops and Products (abstract: final bean volume up to 1.8 times the initial volume)
- Wikipedia — Coffee roasting (secondary: beans lose 15–18% of their mass, volume approximately doubles; darker roasts are less dense)
- The Engineering ToolBox — Food products: bulk densities (reference table: coffee, roasted beans 368 kg/m³; coffee, ground 400 kg/m³)
- AeroPress — How much coffee do AeroPress scoops hold? (all scoops the same; level 11.5 g ≈ 2.5 tablespoons; heaping about 14–15 g ≈ 3 tablespoons)
- AeroPress — How many grams of coffee for AeroPress coffee makers? (level scoop 11.5 g ≈ 2.5 tablespoons; heaping scoop 14 g or 3 tablespoons)
- AeroPress — How to use AeroPress (16–18 g or 1 heaping scoop; XL 32–36 g or 2 heaping scoops; Go 12–14 g)
- HARIO USA — V60 Measuring Spoon (M-12CP and M-12SV, capacity 12 g ground coffee)
- Moccamaster — Coffee measuring spoon (holds 12 g of ground coffee, enough for 2 cups)