Convert mL to teaspoons (metric and US) with medicine dosage reference and cooking ingredient weight table. Includes tbsp, fl oz, cups, and drops.
The teaspoon is a common small-volume unit in both cooking and medicine. The metric teaspoon is exactly 5 mL, while the US customary teaspoon is 4.93 mL, so the difference is small in recipes but can matter for medication dosing.
This converter works in both directions and shows the result in teaspoons, tablespoons, milliliters, fluid ounces, cups, drops, and liters. Presets make it easy to jump to common kitchen and dosage-sized volumes.
It also includes a medicine reference and a cooking ingredient table so you can compare small-volume substitutions without bouncing between separate charts.
Small-volume conversions are easy to get wrong because teaspoons are used casually in recipes but more carefully in medication instructions. This page keeps the metric and US teaspoon standards visible at the same time, which makes it easier to compare a dose or recipe amount without guessing.
Metric: 1 tsp = 5 mL (exact) US: 1 tsp = 4.92892 mL 3 tsp = 1 tbsp 6 tsp = 1 fl oz 48 tsp = 1 cup (US)
Result: 2 metric tsp = 2.03 US tsp = 0.67 tbsp
10 mL ÷ 5 = 2 metric teaspoons. This is a common "double dose" for liquid medications like cough syrup. It equals about ⅔ of a tablespoon.
The 5 mL teaspoon has been the standard dosing unit for liquid medications since the metric standardization of medicine. However, studies show that 40-70% of parents make dosing errors when using kitchen spoons. The AAP recommends using milliliter-marked syringes for all pediatric liquid medications, and many pharmacies have stopped including teaspoons on dosing labels.
In professional kitchens, teaspoons are used primarily for small quantities of spices, extracts, and leavening agents. The weight of a teaspoon varies dramatically by ingredient: a teaspoon of dried oregano weighs 1 gram, while a teaspoon of honey weighs 7 grams. This 700% variation is why professional recipes specify weight, not volume.
Standardized measuring spoons became common in the late 19th century, driven by Fannie Farmer's "Boston Cooking-School Cook Book" (1896), which advocated precise measurements over the "pinch" and "handful" estimates common in earlier recipes. Today's measuring spoons are calibrated to either 5 mL (metric) or 4.93 mL (US) per teaspoon.
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Metric: exactly 5 mL. US: 4.93 mL. For medicine, always use 5 mL (the metric standard on dosing cups and oral syringes).
No. Kitchen teaspoons vary from 2.5 to 7 mL. Always use a calibrated dosing cup, oral syringe, or measuring spoon for medication.
No. A teaspoon of fine salt weighs about 6 g, while a teaspoon of sugar weighs about 4.2 g—a 43% difference. Weight depends on density and granule size.
The US teaspoon derives from the US customary system (1/48 of a cup = 4.93 mL). The metric teaspoon was rounded to exactly 5 mL for simplicity.
Use a ½ tsp measuring spoon (2.5 mL) or measure 2.5 mL with an oral syringe. Do not estimate by filling a teaspoon halfway—it is unreliable.
"tsp" is the abbreviation for teaspoon. "Tbsp" or "T" is tablespoon. Always capitalize Tbsp to distinguish from tsp.