Oil to Butter Conversion
Free oil to butter conversion calculator for recipe substitutions. Convert between liquid cooking oil and butter/margarine using the proven 3:4 ratio. Includes coconut oil conversions for both weight and volume measurements. Perfect for baking and cooking when you need to substitute fats.
Last updated: January 23, 2026
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Conversion Result
3 tbsp oil = 0 tbsp butter
Conversion ratio: 3 parts oil = 4 parts butter
Coconut Oil Conversion
Note: Butter to coconut oil conversion differs for weight and volume due to density differences.
Butter (g) × 0.80 = Coconut Oil (g)
Butter (ml) × 0.75 = Coconut Oil (ml)
How to Convert Butter to Oil in Baking - Butter to Oil Ratio
While preparing baked goods, you might want to substitute oil for butter (or vice versa) for various reasons: dietary preferences, health considerations, or flavor preferences. However, it's important to understand how different fats affect your baked goods.
- • Buttery flavor is an added bonus
- • Helps cake rise - solid fat traps air in dough
- • Water content (15%) creates air bubbles when it evaporates
- • Gives more tenderness than liquid oil
- • Both fats affect cake's richness equally
- • Bigger flexibility - different oils add unique flavors
- • Liquid oils don't create air bubbles
- • Cakes made with oil are denser
- • Still quite tender, as is the case for every fat
- • Both fats affect cake's richness equally
The Conversion Ratio
To convert between oil and butter, use an oil to butter ratio of 3:4. This means that for every three parts of oil (e.g., three tablespoons), you need to take four exact parts of butter (4 tablespoons in our example).
Formula: Butter = Oil × (4/3) or Oil = Butter × (3/4)
| Liquid Vegetable Oil | Butter |
|---|---|
| 3/4 teaspoon | 1 teaspoon |
| 3/4 tablespoon | 1 tablespoon |
| 3 tablespoons | 1/4 cup |
| 3/4 cup | 1 cup |
How to Use Oil to Butter Conversion Calculator
Using our oil to butter conversion calculator is simple and intuitive. Just type in the amount of the ingredient that you want to replace. You can convert oil to butter or butter to oil.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Enter your value - Type in the amount of butter you want to switch or the amount of oil you wish to convert
- Select units - Click on the unit dropdown and select from tablespoons, cups, ounces, grams, pounds, milliliters, or teaspoons
- Get instant conversion - The calculator will immediately show you how much butter to use instead of oil and vice-versa
- Check coconut oil - If substituting butter for coconut oil, refer to the coconut oil conversion section at the bottom
- Note the difference - Coconut oil conversions differ for weight (×0.80) and volume (×0.75) due to density differences
Important: We only consider liquid cooking oil here. This applies to vegetable oil, olive oil, canola oil, and other liquid oils. It does not apply to solid coconut oil, which has different conversion ratios.
Butter to Oil Grams Conversion Example
Given: 250 grams of butter
Conversion to liquid cooking oil:
250 g × (3/4) = 187.5 g of liquid cooking oil
Conversion to coconut oil:
250 g × 0.80 = 200 g of coconut oil
Volume conversion:
250 g of butter = 277 ml of butter (using butter density ~0.955 g/ml)
277 ml × 0.75 = 188 ml of coconut oil
Note: The conversion from butter to coconut oil is different depending on whether your recipe calls for butter in weight units (grams) or volume units (milliliters). This is because butter and coconut oil have different densities due to their fat and water content.
Why Does Coconut Oil Conversion Differ?
Butter and coconut oil have different fat and water content, which affects their density. This is why the conversion differs for weight and volume measurements.
- • Contains about 15% water
- • Denser than coconut oil
- • A cup of butter weighs more than a cup of coconut oil
- • Weight conversion: ×0.80
- • Volume conversion: ×0.75
- • Contains less water
- • More fat molecules per volume
- • A cup of coconut oil contains more fat than a cup of butter
- • Less dense than butter
- • Pure fat content
Conversion Rules for Coconut Oil
- • Weight conversion: Butter (g) × 0.80 = Coconut Oil (g)
- • Volume conversion: Butter (ml) × 0.75 = Coconut Oil (ml)
- • Always check whether your recipe uses weight or volume measurements
- • Use the appropriate conversion factor based on the unit in your recipe
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