If you have decided to landscape or remodel your house, it’s time to decide what materials to use and where to use them. Whether shopping for carpet or planning a home improvement project, one essential concept is calculating square footage for house measurement. So, how to make sense of all the numbers on materials product tags? Here are some easy tips. But first, let’s understand the meaning of square feet.
What is square feet?
Square feet is the standard measurement for calculating the size of an area. You may want to know the square feet in your new home before purchasing furniture and the size of a room or office when you are shopping for flooring. You need to measure the length and width of a rectangular surface to calculate the square feet.
A house’s square footage includes finished living spaces such as walls, floors, ceilings, attics, basements, garages and staircases.
Where are square feet used extensively?
Square fee is used extensively while measuring real estate projects, malls, commercial spaces etc.
Quick facts: Square feet
| Definition | Standard measurement for calculating size of an area. |
| Used in | Measuring real estate, large utility items. |
| Square feet formula | Length (in feet) x width (in feet) = Area (in square feet) |
What is square footage?
Square footage is one of the numbers used to quantify the floor space. Take the time to learn how to calculate square footage and measure square feet, and then use these skills when doing DIY projects.
If you’re planning a new bathroom, kitchen, or basement remodel, knowing how much square footage the project will require is important. Calculating square footage can be confusing because wall lengths vary depending on your building materials, and some rooms may be irregularly shaped. You’ll also need to measure actual square feet while taking careful notes of measurements on rough or uneven walls and ceilings.
See also: How is RERA carpet area defined?
How to calculate square feet of a room?
If you’re wondering how to do square foot calculations, you first need to measure two dimensions: the length and the width.
Square feet formula for house measurement
Length x Width = Square Feet
For example, if you measure the length at 20 feet and the width at 10 feet, the square foot calculation will be 20 x 10 = 200 sqft. While calculating the square feet of a room, the unit of measurement changes from feet to square feet, i.e., ft to sqft.
Square feet calculation: Calculating the length and breath
If you’re wondering how to measure square feet, just follow the steps below:
Step 1 -To determine the length, start by measuring the longest side. Fix one end of the tape measure to one end of the longest side. Make a note of the measurement.
Step 2 -Then, measure the width of the area to be determined, which is the shortest side. Repeat the steps above and take note of the result.
Square feet calculation for uneven shapes
Are you hoping to understand how to find square feet for uneven shapes? For this, you may need to account for unusual space measurements or other areas that don’t neatly link to your main room on occasion. In this scenario, you may need to partition the space into several regions to determine the square footage precisely.
You’ve got a lot of space and it needs to be broken down into smaller, manageable sections that are easier to calculate. Measure each section independently and then add the numbers to determine the total square footage. A square foot calculator is a great tool to make this process even easier.
For example, if you are decorating a bedroom, create separate sections for the area under the bed, the shelf area above the window and the wall space over the dresser. Measure each section separately and calculate the square footage of each. Use a calculator to add these numbers together to get your total square footage.
Let’s say there are two sections, A and B.
Calculate their length and breath and multiply them
Section A 5 ft x 10 ft = 15 sqft
Section B 10ft x 15 ft = 150 sqft
Then add both the values
Total area = section A+ Section B
Total area = 15 sqft +150 sqft = 165 sqft
Square feet calculation: Adjustments for waste
It is essential to determine the number of resources you’ll need to finish your project before heading out to shop. If a mistake were made or you shattered the wooden book or spilt the colours to be used as paints in your house, you may find yourself in a difficult situation as firstly you may need to buy a whole batch again instead of a smaller quantity. This may increase the budget. Secondly there are chances that what you are looking to use may run out of stock leaving you in a situation where you may need to compromise on the design because of unavailability of things.
Determine the quantity for your project before going to the store. Always take a sheet of paper and a pencil to your local hardware shop or even if you purchase online. This can help you decide on how much is needed and make it simpler to figure out where some cash can be saved by purchasing exactly what you need.
Tip: Order 5% to 10% more of your supplies than you anticipated. You’ll avoid wasting money if you do it this way.
What are the other units of measurement?
The square footage area can also be translated into other units of measurement like square inches, which is commonly used for measuring smaller items. To do this, all you need to do is follow the basic equation used above, but only after multiplying both length and width by 12. This is because one foot is equal to 12 inche.
You can also convert square feet into square yard, which is a common unit of measurement for fabrics. To do this, just follow the basic equation, but only after dividing both the width and the length by 3. This is because one yard is equal to 3 foot.
Another option is to translate square feet into square metre (sqm), which is used in metric systems. For doing this, again just follow the same basic formula, but only after dividing both length and width by 0.3. This is because one foot is equal to 0.3 metre.
Housing.com POV
When it comes to real estate, one should very well know the area in square feet that he is evaluating. And thus, it is important for an end buyer to understand the calculation and know how much money that area is actually commanding and if it’s actually worth that money.
FAQs
How to calculate the square feet area of different types of rooms?
Here’s how you can calculate the square footage of different types of rooms:
Rectangular rooms: For calculating the square feet area of a room with a square or rectangle shape, just follow the formula given above i.e.Length x Width.
Rooms with closets: Rooms with closets are simply rectangular rooms that come with small rectangular add ons. So, calculate each rectangle’s square footage and add them together.
Odd-shaped rooms: To measure the square footage of odd-shaped rooms, break the room down into different areas that are easy to calculate and then add up all the results.
What is usable square footage?
Usually used in commercial real estate settings, the term “usable square footage” refers to the amount of square footage an individual can actually use. This excludes common areas like hallways, lobbies, and stairwells. In the context of residential real estate, usable square footage describes the surface area of the personal household space.
| Got any questions or point of view on our article? We would love to hear from you. Write to our Editor-in-Chief Jhumur Ghosh at jhumur.ghosh1@housing.com |
