You're standing in the kitchen. Flour is on your nose, the oven is preheating to 350 degrees, and you’re looking at a recipe that calls for two-thirds of a cup of butter. Then you look at your butter wrappers. They’re marked in tablespoons. Or maybe you have a big tub of Kerrygold and a single tablespoon measure. You realize the math isn't quite clicking because most sticks of butter are designed for easy quarter-cup or half-cup increments.
So, how many tablespoons in 2/3 cup of butter?
The short answer is 10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons.
That’s it. But if you’re a baker, you know "that’s it" is never actually the whole story. If you’re off by even a little bit in a delicate pastry or a batch of shortbread, the structural integrity of your bake goes sideways. Butter isn't just flavor; it's moisture, it's leavening, and it's the difference between a crisp cookie and a greasy puddle on a baking sheet.
The Raw Math of 2/3 Cup of Butter
Standard U.S. culinary measurements operate on a base-16 system when it comes to cups and tablespoons. It’s a bit clunky compared to the metric system, but it's what we have. One full cup contains exactly 16 tablespoons. To find two-thirds of that, you do the division: 16 divided by three, then multiplied by two.
The result is 10.666... tablespoons.
Since you likely don't have a "0.66" tablespoon measure sitting in your drawer, you have to convert that decimal. In the world of kitchen volume, 0.66 of a tablespoon is exactly two teaspoons.
Let's break that down into a visual you can actually use. If you are using standard sticks of American butter, one stick is 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup). To get to 2/3 cup, you need one full stick plus another 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons from a second stick.
Honestly, it’s a pain. Most people just eyeball it and wonder why their cake is dry. Don't be that person.
Why "Close Enough" Ruins Your Biscuits
Precision matters. I talked to a pastry chef once who told me that the biggest mistake home cooks make is treating volume measurements like suggestions. When you’re wondering how many tablespoons in 2/3 cup of butter, you’re usually dealing with a recipe that has a specific fat-to-flour ratio.
Think about pie crust. If you use 10 tablespoons instead of the full 10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons, you are missing roughly 7% of the required fat. In a sourdough biscuit or a flaky croissant, that 7% represents the steam pockets that create layers. Less butter means less steam. Less steam means a dense, sad puck of dough.
On the flip side, if you round up to 11 tablespoons because you’re feeling lazy, you risk "spreading." This is what happens when cookies lose their shape and turn into thin, oily wafers because the flour couldn't absorb the excess fat.
The Stick Dilemma: Working with West Coast vs. East Coast Butter
Did you know butter sticks aren't the same shape across the U.S.? It's one of those weird regional quirks. East Coast sticks (Elgin style) are long and skinny. West Coast sticks (Western Stubby) are short and fat.
Regardless of the shape, they both weigh 4 ounces (113 grams) and contain 8 tablespoons.
If you are trying to measure 2/3 cup using the markings on the wrapper, you’ll notice the wrapper usually stops at 8 tablespoons. To get your 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons, you’ll need to unwrap two sticks.
- Take the first stick. That’s 8 tablespoons.
- Take the second stick. Cut off 2 tablespoons using the guide on the paper.
- Then, measure out 2 level teaspoons from what’s left of that second stick.
Mix those three portions together, and you have exactly 2/3 cup.
Metric vs. Imperial: The Case for the Kitchen Scale
If you really want to stop worrying about how many tablespoons in 2/3 cup of butter, buy a digital scale. Seriously. It’ll change your life.
Professional bakers like King Arthur Baking or Stella Parks (BraveTart) almost exclusively use weight. Why? Because a tablespoon of "cold" butter might have air pockets, or it might be heaped slightly, whereas a gram is always a gram.
A cup of butter weighs 227 grams.
Therefore, 2/3 cup of butter weighs approximately 151.3 grams.
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If you put your bowl on a scale, hit "tare" to zero it out, and slice off chunks of butter until the screen says 151g, you are done. No dirty measuring spoons. No scraping butter out of a tiny plastic cup with a spatula while complaining about the cleanup.
Temperature Changes the Volume (Kinda)
Here is something most "quick tip" blogs won't tell you: the state of your butter changes how you should measure those tablespoons.
If your recipe calls for melted butter, measure it after it's melted. Why? Because butter contains water (usually around 15-18%). When you melt it, some of that water evaporates, and the milk solids might settle differently. If the recipe says "2/3 cup butter, melted," you measure the solid sticks, then melt. If it says "2/3 cup melted butter," you melt a bunch and then measure the liquid. It's a subtle distinction, but it matters for the final hydration of the dough.
For softened butter, avoid the "microwave trick" if you can. Softened butter should be about 65°F (18°C). At this temperature, it’s pliable but still holds its shape. If it’s too oily, those 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons will actually occupy less space because the air has been deflated out of the fat.
Real-World Substitutions for 2/3 Cup of Butter
Sometimes you realize you don't have enough butter. It happens to the best of us. If you’re short of that 10-tablespoon mark, you can supplement, but you have to be smart about it.
- Shortening: You can do a 1:1 swap. Shortening is 100% fat, whereas butter has water. Your cookies will be taller and softer, but they won't have that rich flavor.
- Coconut Oil: Use a 1:1 ratio, but make sure the oil is in a solid state if the recipe calls for "creaming" the butter with sugar.
- Margerine: It’s basically 1:1, but modern margarines have a high water content. If you use 2/3 cup of cheap tub margarine, your cake might turn out spongy or rubbery.
Common Conversions for Your Fridge Door
Keep these in your head so you don't have to Google them every time you're mid-knead.
- 1/3 cup: 5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
- 1/2 cup: 8 tablespoons (1 stick)
- 2/3 cup: 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
- 3/4 cup: 12 tablespoons (1.5 sticks)
Is it Different in the UK or Australia?
Yes. Just to make things difficult, the "cup" isn't universal. In the US, a legal cup is 240ml. In the UK, Canada, and Australia, a "metric cup" is 250ml.
If you are using a British recipe and asking how many tablespoons in 2/3 cup of butter, you’re looking at a slightly larger amount. However, most modern UK recipes have moved away from cups entirely and gone to grams, which is significantly more sensible. If you're using a vintage Commonwealth recipe, that 2/3 cup would be about 166ml, which is roughly 11 US tablespoons.
Stick to the 10 tbsp + 2 tsp rule for any American recipe (like those from AllRecipes, NYT Cooking, or Joy of Cooking).
Actionable Steps for Perfect Measurement
Stop guessing. If you want your baking to improve immediately, follow this protocol next time you hit a 2/3 cup requirement:
First, check your stick markings. Most wrappers are accurate enough for casual cookies. Slice at the 8-tablespoon mark, then take 2 more tablespoons from a fresh stick.
Second, handle the "leftover" teaspoons. If you don't want to dirty a teaspoon, remember that a tablespoon is three teaspoons. So, two teaspoons is basically 2/3 of a single tablespoon square. It’s about the width of a thick slice of American cheese.
Third, buy a scale. Seriously. I’m repeating it because it’s the single best piece of advice for any home cook. Weighing 151 grams of butter is faster, cleaner, and 100% accurate every single time.
Finally, account for salt. If you are measuring out your 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons using salted butter but the recipe calls for unsalted, reduce the added salt in your recipe by about 1/4 teaspoon. Most sticks of salted butter contain about 1/4 teaspoon of salt per half-cup.
Precision in the kitchen isn't about being a perfectionist for the sake of it; it's about ensuring the effort you put into mixing, kneading, and waiting actually results in something delicious. Now that you know exactly how many tablespoons are in that 2/3 cup of butter, go get the oven started.