How Many Ounces in a Pound?
The exact answer, the metric equivalents, and the fluid-ounce trap that ruins recipes.
There are exactly 16 ounces in a pound. One ounce is 28.349523125 grams, so a pound is 453.59237 grams. Do not confuse ounces (weight) with fluid ounces (volume): 8 fluid ounces of water weighs about 8 ounces, but 8 fluid ounces of flour weighs roughly 4.4 ounces.
The exact numbers
Sixteen ounces make one pound, exactly, by definition. From there: one ounce equals 28.349523125 grams, and one pound equals 453.59237 grams (16 times 28.349523125). A kilogram is about 2.20462 pounds.
These are defined conversions, not measurements, so they are exact to as many decimals as you care to carry. Your kitchen scale rounds them; the definitions do not.
Ounces vs fluid ounces
The ounce measures weight (mass); the fluid ounce measures volume. They coincide for water at room temperature, where 1 fluid ounce weighs about 1 ounce, which is why the confusion persists. For anything else, density decides.
One cup is 8 fluid ounces of volume. A cup of water weighs about 8 ounces (half a pound). A cup of all-purpose flour weighs about 4.4 ounces. A cup of honey weighs about 12 ounces. Recipes that give volume for dry ingredients are approximate by nature; weighing in grams is the fix.
Quick kitchen conversions
Memorize these five: 1 tablespoon = 0.5 fluid ounces; 1 cup = 8 fluid ounces = 16 tablespoons; 1 pint = 2 cups; 1 quart = 4 cups; 1 gallon = 16 cups. In weight: 1 pound = 16 ounces, and a quarter pound (a 'quarter pounder') is 4 ounces.
For metric-minded cooking: 1 ounce is about 28 grams, so 4 ounces is about 113 grams, 8 ounces about 227 grams, and 16 ounces (a pound) about 454 grams. Most scales switch units with one button; weighing beats scooping for baking.
Troy ounces: the exception
Precious metals use the troy ounce, which is heavier: 31.1034768 grams versus 28.35 for the everyday (avoirdupois) ounce. A troy pound is 12 troy ounces, not 16. If you are pricing gold, make sure the quote is per troy ounce, which it almost always is.
This is the one place where 'ounce' does not mean 1/16 of a pound. Everywhere else in daily life, ounce means the avoirdupois ounce and pound means 16 of them.
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Ounce and pound questions
How many ounces are in a pound?
Exactly 16 ounces in one pound. Since one ounce is defined as 28.349523125 grams, a pound is 453.59237 grams. This is the avoirdupois system used for everyday weights in the US.
How many grams are in an ounce?
Exactly 28.349523125 grams per avoirdupois ounce. Multiply by 16 for a pound: 453.59237 grams. For kitchen purposes, 28 grams per ounce is close enough.
Are fluid ounces the same as ounces?
No. A fluid ounce measures volume and an ounce measures weight. Eight fluid ounces of water weighs about 8 ounces, but 8 fluid ounces of flour weighs about 4.4 ounces and 8 fluid ounces of honey weighs about 12 ounces, because density differs.