Coconut flour

One US cup of coconut flour weighs between 116 and 128 grams, depending on how the cup is filled and which source measured it. That range is the answer; a single number would not be. Every figure behind it is below, with the method each source used.

Also called organic coconut flour, gluten-free coconut flour, dehydrated coconut meat flour.

Two sources publish figures for a cup of coconut flour and they differ by 10.3%, just over the 10% milled tolerance. This entry publishes the range they cover rather than a single figure, at low confidence, because the variation reflects real differences in manufacturer grind rather than a measurement error.

King Arthur's Ingredient Weight Chart publishes 1 cup at 128 g, implying a density of 0.5411 g/mL. USDA Branded Foods records for coconut flour show manufacturer variation from approximately 116 g per cup (Pereg Coconut Flour, 29 g per 1/4 cup serving, extrapolated) to approximately 120 g per cup (Simply Balanced Organic Coconut Flour, FDC 2660191, standard 1/4 cup serving). King Arthur sits at the heavy end of the range; USDA Branded manufacturer figures cluster in the middle at 116-120 g per cup.

USDA SR Legacy has no cup-portion record for coconut flour, unlike wheat flour and cocoa powder which have long-established reference measurements. This is common for specialty and newer commercial products: SR Legacy predates the coconut-flour surge in North American gluten-free and paleo baking, and the reference database has not been extended to cover it. USDA Branded Foods fills the gap through manufacturer-submitted label data, which is why brand differences appear at the cup level even though the underlying nutritional data (calories, fat, fiber) is consistent per gram across products.

The physical reason for brand variation is grind fineness. Coconut flour is produced by drying and grinding coconut meat after coconut oil has been extracted, and different manufacturers use different final grinds. Finer grinds trap more air when scooped and settle into a lower bulk density; coarser grinds pack tighter. A fluffier flour weighs less per cup even though the underlying material is chemically identical. This is the same mechanism that causes brand-level variation in vital wheat gluten (published here as a range for the same reason) and that separates dip-and-sweep from spoon-and-sweep measurement in wheat flour.

Coconut flour sits in the milled category alongside wheat and other flours. The 10% category tolerance applies here, and the observed 10.3% gap between sources exceeds it, hence the range publish.

Coconut flour has a distinctive baking property that matters for the range: it is highly absorbent, requiring approximately four to six times its weight in liquid to hydrate fully, compared to about half its weight for wheat flour. This means a 12 g error in a cup measurement (the difference between 116 g and 128 g) translates to a 48-72 g error in required liquid, which meaningfully changes final batter or dough consistency. For coconut flour more than most flours, weighing rather than measuring by volume is essential.

Related coconut products not covered by this entry: sweetened and unsweetened shredded coconut (KA lists at 85 g and 53 g per cup respectively, a 60% difference driven by sugar coating; separate multi-state entry planned), coconut oil (already published at 218 g per cup, high confidence), coconut milk (already published as range 226-241 g per cup), coconut cream, coconut milk powder, and coconut sugar. Each is a distinct product with distinct sourcing.

No standards body publishes a bulk density for coconut flour. Codex Alimentarius standards for coconut products cover moisture content, oil extraction and grading rather than physical density. Two authoritative sources with real brand variation, so this entry is held at low confidence and range published until either a third authoritative source resolves the split or SR Legacy adds a cup-portion reference for coconut flour.