← All guides

How to Export a Floor Plan for Measurement

Getting the floor plan out of a scanning app in the right format makes a significant difference to measurement accuracy. Here are the export steps for the most common tools.

What format works best

For floor plan measurement, you want the highest-resolution, most losslessly compressed version available. In order of preference:

1. PDF — vector-based PDFs render at any resolution. Upload directly; the tool renders page 1 automatically.
2. PNG — lossless compression preserves sharp wall lines and corners. Best for raster exports.
3. JPG at high quality — acceptable for most uses. Avoid heavily compressed JPGs, which blur wall edges.

Never screenshot a web viewer if you can download the original file. Screenshotting adds lossy compression and reduces resolution, which reduces measurement accuracy at corners.

CubiCasa

CubiCasa delivers floor plans via email after a scan. The delivery email contains a PDF attachment with all floors on separate pages. Open the PDF and print individual pages to separate single-page PDFs if you need to measure each floor independently. Alternatively, open the PDF, zoom to a single floor, and screenshot at high resolution.

CubiCasa PDFs include dimension labels on most walls. Use the longest labeled exterior dimension as your scale reference for best accuracy. See CubiCasa floor plan measurement for more detail.

Matterport

In the Matterport web platform, open the space and navigate to the Floor Plan view. Use the download icon (or "Export" in the left menu, depending on your plan tier) to download a PDF or PNG of the schematic floor plan. The "Schematic" or "2D floor plan" view is what you want — not the 3D dollhouse or outside view.

Matterport floor plans show interior wall positions from the scan. For ANSI GLA, trace slightly outside the interior wall lines to approximate the exterior perimeter. See accuracy tips for more on interior vs exterior tracing.

iGUIDE

iGUIDE floor plans are available in the iGUIDE portal under the "Downloads" or "Export" section of the tour. Download the PNG or PDF floor plan export. iGUIDE floor plans are laser-measured and typically include labeled dimensions on exterior walls, making scale-setting straightforward.

iGUIDE exports are among the highest-quality floor plan images for measurement purposes — the laser scanner captures accurate wall positions and the export resolution is high.

Apex Sketch

In Apex Sketch, use File → Export or File → Print to generate a PDF or image of the sketch. Choose the highest available DPI setting (300 DPI if selectable). The export will include all floors and any labeled dimensions from the sketch.

Apex Sketch files already have the appraiser-measured dimensions labeled, so scale verification is easy: set scale from one labeled wall and verify against a second. See Apex Sketch floor plan measurement.

Magicplan

In the Magicplan app, open a project and tap Export. Select PDF or PNG at the highest available resolution. The app offers multiple export formats; choose "2D Floor Plan" with dimensions shown if available, as the labeled dimensions let you set scale easily.

Magicplan exports vary in quality depending on how the scan was captured. AR-assisted scans are generally more accurate than manual point-and-tap sketches.

Canvas (by Trimble)

Canvas exports are available from the Canvas app or the web portal. Export the floor plan as a PDF with dimensions. Canvas scans are LiDAR-based and highly accurate; the exported floor plan will have labeled dimensions on most wall segments.

Architect drawings and PDFs

For architect-drawn PDFs, upload the PDF directly. If the PDF is multi-page and you only need one floor, use "Print to PDF" in your PDF viewer with the page range set to the specific page, creating a single-page PDF that uploads cleanly.

Architect drawings typically have a scale bar or explicit wall dimensions labeled. Use a labeled exterior wall dimension for scale rather than the scale bar — typing in "24" for a labeled 24-foot wall is more precise than clicking two endpoints of a printed scale bar.

What if I only have a screenshot or photo?

If the only version of the floor plan you have is a screenshot or a photo, it still works — the tool accepts any image. Accuracy will be lower than a native export, especially if the image has low contrast, distortion from camera angle, or heavy JPEG compression. For photos of printed floor plans, photograph straight-on under good lighting with the paper flat on a surface.