Out of Brown sugar, one case

Can you substitute maple syrup for brown sugar?

5 options, ranked, with the exact amount

Use thisBest of 5 options

Use Maple syrup

¾ cup for every cup of brown sugar

Yes, in sauces, glazes, oatmeal, muffins and quick breads: use ¾ cup of maple syrup for each cup of packed brown sugar, cut another liquid in the recipe by 3 to 4 tablespoons, and lower the oven 25°F. Do not replace all the brown sugar with syrup in cookies that cream butter and sugar; there, use 1 cup of granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon of maple syrup stirred in. The flavor is maple in place of molasses, and a little less sweet.

Verdict —: You'll taste it
The tweak —: Use ¾ cup per cup of brown sugar, or 2 ¼ tsp per tablespoon. In baking, cut another liquid by 3 to 4 tbsp per cup of sugar replaced and lower the oven 25°F.
Best for —: glazes for ham, salmon and carrots
Pantry —: Likely in your cupboard

One casethe full brown sugar card

Every option, one card

Ranked

Brown sugar substitutes compared
#	Substitute	Instead of 1 cup brown sugar	Verdict
1	Maple syrupglazes for ham, salmon and carrots	¾ cupYou'll taste it	You'll taste it
2	Granulated sugar + maple syrupchocolate chip, oatmeal and pecan cookies	1 cup + 1 tbspYou'll taste it	You'll taste it
3	Maple sugarcookies and shortbread	1 cupTweak it	Tweak it
4	Granulated sugar + molassesany recipe written for brown sugar	1 cup + 1 tbspWorks	Works
5	Pancake syrupoatmeal	¾ cupYou'll taste it	You'll taste it

What changesWhat changes, option by option5 options

Maple syrup

clearly maple, and a little less sweet per spoonful

Pure maple syrup is about one-third water, so swapping it for a dry sugar turns a dough into a batter. Where the recipe is already wet, that does not matter, and the syrup brings its own caramel flavor.

Best for: glazes for ham, salmon and carrots, barbecue sauce and baked beans, oatmeal and granola, muffins, quick breads and pancakes
Prep: Use ¾ cup per cup of brown sugar, or 2 ¼ tsp per tablespoon. In baking, cut another liquid by 3 to 4 tbsp per cup of sugar replaced and lower the oven 25°F.
Suits: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free
Where it fails: Creamed cookie doughs bake into flat, cakey mounds, because a syrup cannot cut air into butter. Not for caramel, toffee or candy cooked to a temperature, or for a tested canning recipe.

If the recipe has no other liquid to cut, as in most cookie doughs, use the granulated sugar and maple syrup row instead.

Granulated sugar + maple syrup

a light maple note in place of dark caramel; a shade paler

White sugar keeps the crystals that cream with butter, and a tablespoon of maple syrup holds moisture the way molasses does. This is the way to use maple syrup in cookies and cakes.

Best for: chocolate chip, oatmeal and pecan cookies, cakes that cream butter and sugar, streusel and crumble toppings
Prep: Stir the syrup through the sugar until the grains are evenly damp before it meets the butter. Keep it to 1 tbsp per cup.
Suits: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free
Where it fails: Past about 2 tbsp per cup the dough turns slack and the cookies spread thin.

If the recipe uses baking soda and no baking powder, add ¼ tsp lemon juice per ½ tsp of soda. Maple syrup is far less acidic than molasses.

Maple sugar

concentrated maple

Maple syrup boiled until it crystallizes. It is a dry sugar, so it creams with butter and needs no liquid cut, and it tastes strongly of maple.

Best for: cookies and shortbread, streusel, rubs and sprinkling, recipes where you want maple flavor without extra liquid
Prep: Add 1 tbsp of milk or water per cup in cookies and cakes; like white sugar, it is drier than brown sugar.
Suits: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free
Where it fails: It is expensive, and cookies bake a little crisper than with brown sugar.

Granulated sugar + molasses

the same as brown sugar

If there is molasses in the cupboard, this is brown sugar itself: 1 tbsp per cup for light brown, 2 tbsp for dark.

Best for: any recipe written for brown sugar, gingerbread and spice cakes, chewy cookies
Prep: Rub the molasses into the sugar until no dark streaks remain.
Suits: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free
Where it fails: Blackstrap molasses is bitter and much stronger; use regular molasses.

Pancake syrup

sweet with a thin, artificial maple flavor

Maple-flavored table syrup is corn syrup with flavoring. It sweetens the same way in a sauce or a bowl of oatmeal but has little real maple taste.

Best for: oatmeal, glazes and barbecue sauce, baked beans
Prep: Use it as you would maple syrup, and taste before adding more.
Where it fails: Baking: it has the same limits as maple syrup, with less flavor to show for it.

Tips for substituting brown sugar

5 tips

Sauces, glazes and baked beans: ¾ cup maple syrup per cup of brown sugar, or 2 ¼ tsp per tablespoon. Simmer a few minutes longer if the sauce is thinner than you want.
Muffins and quick breads: ¾ cup syrup per cup of brown sugar, 3 to 4 tbsp less milk or water, and an oven 25°F lower. Start checking 5 minutes early.
Cookies: keep the sugar crystalline. Use 1 cup granulated sugar plus 1 tbsp maple syrup per cup of brown sugar.
Darker maple syrup, labeled dark or very dark, tastes closest to brown sugar. The grade labeled golden is the mildest.
Brush a maple glaze on in the last 5 minutes under a broiler or on the grill; it burns quickly.

Questions

5 questions

How much maple syrup replaces ½ cup or ¼ cup of brown sugar?

Use 6 tablespoons of maple syrup for ½ cup of brown sugar and 3 tablespoons for ¼ cup. For 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, use 2 ¼ teaspoons of syrup. In baking, cut the other liquid by about 2 tablespoons for the ½ cup amount.

Can I use maple syrup in place of brown sugar in cookies?

Not as a full replacement in cookies that cream butter and sugar. Syrup has no crystals to aerate the butter and adds water, so the cookies bake flat and cakey. Use 1 cup of granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon of maple syrup stirred in for each cup of brown sugar.

Can I use maple syrup for brown sugar in oatmeal or on a ham glaze?

Yes, both work well. In oatmeal, use a little less syrup than the brown sugar you would have added and taste. In a ham glaze, use ¾ cup syrup per cup of brown sugar and simmer it 3 to 5 minutes to thicken before brushing it on.

Do I need to change the baking soda when I use maple syrup?

Only if the recipe uses baking soda with no baking powder and brown sugar was its main acid. Maple syrup is close to neutral, so add ¼ teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar per ½ teaspoon of baking soda to keep the rise.

Can I swap maple syrup for brown sugar in a canning recipe?

No. Do not change the sweetener, acid or proportions in a tested canning recipe. Syrup carries water that sugar does not, and that changes the balance in the jar. Follow the tested recipe as written.