millilitre (mL)
1 millilitre = 0.001 litres
What is millilitre?
A millilitre is a metric unit of volume equal to one thousandth of a litre. It is commonly used in medicine, cooking, laboratory measurements, and the labelling of food and beverage products.
Notes: Metric unit
Real-world uses
Millilitres are used for medication dosages (cough syrup, injectable solutions), cooking measurements, cosmetic product volumes, and laboratory reagent quantities. A standard medical syringe is graduated in mL, and espresso shots are typically 25–30 mL.
History
The millilitre emerged naturally from the litre with metric prefix conventions. It became essential in medicine and laboratory science where precise small-volume measurements are critical. In medical contexts, "cc" (cubic centimetre) was long used interchangeably with mL.
Common mistakes
Confusing millilitres with cubic centimetres—they are numerically equal (1 mL = 1 cm³) but conceptually different units. Also, mixing up mL with mg; one is volume, the other is mass.
When is this conversion used?
Fuel economy, beverage volumes, and liquid measurements frequently require converting between litres and US gallons, especially for automotive and cooking contexts across different markets.
How to convert millilitre to litre
To convert millilitre to litre, multiply the value by 0.001.
Conversion formula (from base unit)
x * 0.001
Measurement standards
The cubic metre is the SI derived unit of volume. The litre, equal to exactly one cubic decimetre (0.001 m³), is accepted by the BIPM for use alongside SI units. Both the lowercase "l" and uppercase "L" are approved symbols for the litre.
Did you know?
An Olympic swimming pool holds 2,500 cubic metres of water — about 2.5 million litres. The Amazon River discharges roughly 209,000 cubic metres per second, enough to fill 84 Olympic pools every single second.
| millilitres | litres |
|---|---|
| 0.1 | 0.0001 |
| 0.5 | 0.0005 |
| 1 | 0.001 |
| 2 | 0.002 |
| 5 | 0.005 |
| 10 | 0.01 |
| 25 | 0.025 |
| 50 | 0.05 |
| 100 | 0.1 |
| 250 | 0.25 |
| 500 | 0.5 |
| 1,000 | 1 |
Common values
| millilitres | litres | |
|---|---|---|
| A teaspoon | 5 millilitres | 0.005 litres |
| A cup of coffee | 250 millilitres | 0.25 litres |
| A water bottle | 500 millilitres | 0.5 litres |
| A bathtub | 300,000 millilitres | 300 litres |
| A swimming pool (Olympic) | 2.500000e+09 millilitres | 2,500,000 litres |
Full millilitre conversion table
| Unit | Value | Factor |
|---|---|---|
| litre | 1 mL = 0.001 L | × 0.001 |
| US gallon | 1 mL = 0.00026417 gal (US) | × 0.00026417 |
| cubic metre | 1 mL = 0.000001 m³ | × 0.000001 |
| Imperial gallon | 1 mL = 0.00021997 gal (Imp) | × 0.00021997 |
| US fluid ounce | 1 mL = 0.03381402 fl oz (US) | × 0.03381402 |
| Imperial fluid ounce | 1 mL = 0.03519508 fl oz (Imp) | × 0.03519508 |
| teaspoon (metric) | 1 mL = 0.2 tsp | × 0.2 |
| tablespoon (metric) | 1 mL = 0.06666667 Tbsp | × 0.06666667 |
| cubic centimetre | 1 mL = 1 cm³ | × 1 |