How Many Cups in a Quart?
There are 4 cups in 1 US quart. The rest of the ladder: 2 cups in a pint, 8 cups in a half gallon, and 16 cups in a gallon. Type any amount below to convert between all four.
US customary liquid measures: 1 quart = 4 cups = 32 fl oz = 946 mL. UK/imperial pints and quarts are larger — see the FAQ.
Cups, pints, quarts and gallons
Every named US liquid measure, side by side. Each row is the same amount expressed five ways:
| Measure | Cups | Pints | Quarts | Fluid oz | Liters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 1 cup | 0.5 pt | 0.25 qt | 8 fl oz | 0.24 L |
| 1 pint | 2 cups | 1 pt | 0.5 qt | 16 fl oz | 0.47 L |
| 1 quart | 4 cups | 2 pt | 1 qt | 32 fl oz | 0.95 L |
| 1/2 gallon | 8 cups | 4 pt | 2 qt | 64 fl oz | 1.89 L |
| 1 gallon | 16 cups | 8 pt | 4 qt | 128 fl oz | 3.79 L |
Quarts to cups
| Quarts | Cups | Fluid oz | Liters | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.25 quarts | 1 cup | 8 fl oz | 0.24 L | |
| 0.5 quarts | 2 cups | 16 fl oz | 0.47 L | 1 pint |
| 1 quart | 4 cups | 32 fl oz | 0.95 L | |
| 1.5 quarts | 6 cups | 48 fl oz | 1.42 L | |
| 2 quarts | 8 cups | 64 fl oz | 1.89 L | 1/2 gallon |
| 2.5 quarts | 10 cups | 80 fl oz | 2.37 L | |
| 3 quarts | 12 cups | 96 fl oz | 2.84 L | |
| 4 quarts | 16 cups | 128 fl oz | 3.79 L | 1 gallon |
| 5 quarts | 20 cups | 160 fl oz | 4.73 L | |
| 8 quarts | 32 cups | 256 fl oz | 7.57 L | 2 gallons |
The trick: everything doubles
The US liquid ladder is easy to keep in your head because each step (almost) just doubles: 2 cups make a pint, 2 pints make a quart, and 4 quarts make a gallon — "quart" literally means a quarter of a gallon. Schoolkids learn it as the gallon man: a big G with four Qs inside, two Ps inside each Q, and two Cs inside each P. Multiply it out and you get the numbers on this page: 4 cups per quart, 16 cups per gallon, 8 pints per gallon.
Quick reference
- 1 pint = 2 cups = 16 fl oz ≈ 473 mL
- 1 quart = 2 pints = 4 cups = 32 fl oz ≈ 946 mL
- 1/2 gallon = 2 quarts = 8 cups = 64 fl oz ≈ 1.89 L
- 1 gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 16 cups = 128 fl oz ≈ 3.79 L
- 1 liter ≈ 1.06 quarts ≈ 4.23 cups
Need a different conversion?
Going smaller instead of bigger? See how many tablespoons are in a cup (16) or how many ounces are in a cup (8 fl oz — plus the fluid-vs-dry-ounce trap). Working in metric? The cups to mL page covers US, metric and imperial cup sizes, and the volume converter handles teaspoons through liters. Converting an ingredient to weight — how much a quart of flour or milk actually weighs? That depends on the ingredient: use the cups to grams converter.
Frequently asked questions
How many cups are in a quart?
There are 4 cups in 1 US quart. So 2 quarts is 8 cups, and half a quart (1 pint) is 2 cups. A quart is also 32 fluid ounces, or about 946 mL — just under a liter.
How many cups are in a gallon?
There are 16 cups in 1 US gallon — a gallon is 4 quarts, and each quart is 4 cups. That's also 128 fluid ounces, or about 3.79 liters.
How many cups are in a half gallon?
There are 8 cups in half a gallon — that's 2 quarts, 64 fluid ounces, or about 1.89 liters. A standard half-gallon carton of milk pours 8 full cups.
How many cups are in a pint?
There are 2 cups in 1 US pint (16 fluid ounces). A pint of ice cream is 2 cups — about 4 half-cup scoops.
How many pints are in a quart?
There are 2 pints in 1 quart. The whole ladder doubles and doubles again: 2 cups make a pint, 2 pints make a quart, and 4 quarts make a gallon.
How many quarts are in a gallon?
There are 4 quarts in 1 US gallon — the name literally comes from "quarter of a gallon." That makes 2 quarts in a half gallon and 8 pints in a gallon.
How many ounces are in a quart?
There are 32 fluid ounces in 1 US quart (4 cups × 8 fl oz each). A gallon is 128 fl oz and a pint is 16 fl oz. Note these are fluid ounces (volume) — what a quart weighs depends on what's in it.
Is a quart the same as a liter?
Close, but no. A US liquid quart is 0.946 liters, so a liter is about 5.7% bigger than a quart. If a recipe calls for a quart and you only have metric measures, use 950 mL. (An imperial quart is different again — 1.136 liters.)
How many cups are in 2 quarts?
2 quarts is 8 cups — the same as half a gallon or 64 fluid ounces. Most large soup and stock recipes land around this size.
Is a dry quart the same as a liquid quart?
No. Berries and produce in the US are often sold by the dry quart, which is about 1.101 liters — roughly 4.65 liquid cups, not 4. The 4-cups-per-quart rule on this page is for the liquid quart used in recipes and drinks.
Are UK pints and quarts the same as US ones?
No — imperial measures are bigger. A UK pint is 20 imperial fluid ounces (568 mL, about 2.4 US cups) versus 16 US fl oz for a US pint, and a UK quart is 1.136 liters (about 4.8 US cups) versus 0.946 liters. That's why a British pint of beer is noticeably larger than an American one.
How do I remember cups, pints, quarts and gallons?
Think in doublings: 2 cups = 1 pint, 2 pints = 1 quart, and 4 quarts = 1 gallon. Many cooks picture the "gallon man" diagram — a big G holding four Qs, each Q holding two Ps, each P holding two Cs.