Landscaping
Lawn Area Calculator
Work out lawn area from measurements, including irregular shapes and exclusions.
Result
Rectangular approximation. For irregular lots, break the space into rectangles and triangles, measure each and add them. That is far more accurate than one overall guess.
Get a Free Business AuditWhat moves the number
- How the shape is broken down, since irregular lawns are measured as a set of simple shapes.
- Exclusions for beds, paths and features within the lawn.
- Whether the figure is for material or for pricing maintenance.
Where this one goes wrong
Measuring the plot rather than the lawn. Beds, paths, patios and trees all come out of the area, and a material order based on the whole plot overbuys substantially.
Questions
About this calculator
How do I measure an irregular lawn?
Break it into rectangles, triangles and segments, measure each and add them. Trying to estimate an irregular shape in one go produces errors large enough to matter on material.
Should obstacles be deducted?
For material, yes. For maintenance pricing, obstacles usually add time rather than remove it, because mowing around them is slower than mowing open ground.
Can I measure from mapping imagery?
For a first estimate, often. For ordering material it is worth confirming on site, because imagery is dated and does not show recent changes.
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How to use this calculator
- Overall length (ft) (ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 80 ft.
- Overall width (ft) (ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 55 ft.
- Garden beds to deduct (sq ft) (sq ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 260 sq ft.
- Driveway, patio and paths (sq ft) (sq ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 700 sq ft.
- House footprint (sq ft) (sq ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 1,400 sq ft.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to lawn area, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Overall length (ft) | 80 ft |
| Overall width (ft) | 55 ft |
| Garden beds to deduct (sq ft) | 260 sq ft |
| Driveway, patio and paths (sq ft) | 700 sq ft |
| House footprint (sq ft) | 1,400 sq ft |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Lawn area main result | 2,040.0 |
| In acres | 0.046832 |
| In square metres | 189.5 |
| Total lot area | 4,400.0 |
The lot is 4,400.0 sq ft, leaving 2,040.0 sq ft of lawn, 0.046832 acres, or 189.5 square metres.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only overall length (ft), this is what happens to lawn area. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Overall length (ft) (ft) | Lawn area |
|---|---|
| 40 ft | 0.0 |
| 60 ft | 940.0 |
| 80 ft example above | 2,040.0 |
| 120 ft | 4,240.0 |
| 160 ft | 6,440.0 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Overall length (ft) (ft)
- Measured in ft, starting at 80 ft.
- Overall width (ft) (ft)
- Measured in ft, starting at 55 ft.
- Garden beds to deduct (sq ft) (sq ft)
- Measured in sq ft, starting at 260 sq ft.
- Driveway, patio and paths (sq ft) (sq ft)
- Measured in sq ft, starting at 700 sq ft.
- House footprint (sq ft) (sq ft)
- Measured in sq ft, starting at 1,400 sq ft.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Lawn area | The headline result. A decimal figure. |
| In acres | A number. |
| In square metres | A decimal figure. |
| Total lot area | A decimal figure. |
Seasonality is not in this
Coverage and material figures assume the area you enter. Slope, access for machinery, existing growth and the time of year all affect both quantity and labour, and none of them appear in a calculation like this.
Keep going
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