Sugar Substitution Calculator

How it works

Each substitute is converted by the rule its source publishes. Honey is sweeter than sugar, so King Arthur Baking uses about ¾ cup of honey per cup of sugar. For maple syrup, the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association uses ¾ cup per cup of sugar, while King Arthur Baking treats maple syrup as about as sweet as sugar and swaps it cup for cup; both rules are offered.

Liquid sweeteners bring water with them, so their rules take some liquid out of the recipe, per cup of sugar replaced: 3 to 4 tablespoons in King Arthur's rules and 2 to 4 tablespoons in the Vermont rule, which also adds ¼ to ½ teaspoon of baking soda and lowers the oven by 25 °F. The calculator scales each range by the cups of sugar being replaced.

Packed brown sugar is taken as replacing granulated sugar cup for cup; King Arthur Baking's homemade brown sugar is 1 cup (198 g) granulated sugar plus 2 teaspoons molasses. Powdered sugar is swapped by weight: a cup weighs 113 g against 198 g for granulated sugar, so the same weight takes about 1¾ cups. King Arthur Baking notes that confectioners' sugar does not cream with butter the way granulated sugar does, so the texture of a creamed batter changes.

The reverse direction divides by the same ratio. The published adjustments are written for replacing granulated sugar, so the page reports them only in that direction.

Formula

cups in     = amount converted to cups (grams ÷ g per cup of the ingredient entered)
by volume:  substitute cups = sugar cups × ratio;  sugar cups = substitute cups ÷ ratio
            ratio: honey 0.75; maple 0.75 (Vermont) or 1 (King Arthur); brown sugar 1
by weight:  powdered sugar cups = sugar cups × 198 ÷ 113 (and the reverse)
grams       = cups × g per cup:  sugar 198, honey 336, maple 312, brown 213, powdered 113
liquid      = (low to high tbsp per cup) × sugar cups;  baking soda likewise in tsp

Example

The default, 1 cup of granulated sugar replaced with honey, needs 0.75 cup (12 tablespoons, 252 g) of honey, with 3–4 tablespoons less of the recipe's other liquid.

Replacing 2 cups of sugar with maple syrup under the Vermont rule takes 1.5 cups (468 g) of syrup, 4–8 tablespoons less liquid, ½–1 teaspoon of baking soda and an oven 25 °F cooler. 1 cup of granulated sugar replaced by powdered sugar by weight is 198 g, or 1.752 cups.

Assumptions and limitations

• Rules and their sources: King Arthur Baking "Baking with liquid sweeteners" (2017) for honey and its maple rule; Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association "Cooking with maple" (vermontmaple.org, retrieved October 2026) for the ¾ cup maple rule; King Arthur Baking's sugar guide (2023) for homemade brown sugar and for swapping homemade confectioners' sugar by weight; the cup-for-cup brown sugar and equal-weight powdered sugar swaps here are this calculator's application of those recipes. Results are estimates; texture, browning and spread change with any sweetener swap.
• Cup weights are from King Arthur Baking's ingredient weight chart: granulated sugar 198 g, packed brown sugar 213 g, confectioners' sugar 113 g, honey 21 g per tablespoon, maple syrup 156 g per ½ cup.
• Where a rule gives a range, the range is scaled by the cups of granulated sugar replaced. The Vermont rule's baking soda is taken as per cup of sugar replaced.
• King Arthur Baking adds about 1 tablespoon of flour per ¼ cup of honey or maple syrup when the recipe has no liquid to reduce; that case is not computed.
• The National Honey Board's baking guidance is not included because its website could not be retrieved for verification.
• Sugar substitutes and sweetener blends vary by brand and are not covered; their package ratios apply.

Frequently asked questions