Step-by-step guides on measuring floor plans, calculating GLA, and getting accurate square footage from any image or PDF.
Setting scale is the single most important step. Click two points on any wall you know the length of. Everything else calibrates from that one reference.
Trace each floor as a separate polygon and sum them for total GLA. How to handle staircases, voids, and partial upper floors.
Open plans have no interior walls to define areas. Trace the outer perimeter of the entire above-grade finished space as a single polygon.
Trace the full L as one polygon or split into two rectangles. The tracing tool handles irregular shapes natively, no manual math needed.
Bay windows, angled walls, curved walls, and bump-outs all handled. Tips for tracing complex shapes accurately.
Condos typically use interior wall-to-wall measurement rather than exterior. How to trace interior perimeter and which convention to use.
Multiple floors, shared party walls. Trace each floor separately. For shared walls, measure to the centerline. Stack floor totals for GLA.
How appraisers use the tool to verify or recalculate GLA from scanned sketches and digital floor plans. Faster than re-drawing in sketch software.
Catch square footage discrepancies before listing. How to verify MLS square footage from the floor plan before the appraisal finds a problem.
County records, Zillow, and MLS numbers often disagree. How to get the floor plan and check the math before making an offer.
Accurate square footage affects per-square-foot lease pricing. How to measure rentable area from a floor plan and what to count.
Verify square footage on acquisition targets from the floor plan before making an offer. Fast workflow for running multiple properties.
What does this guide library cover?
Step-by-step guides on measuring floor plans, calculating square footage, and getting accurate GLA from any image or PDF. Topics include CubiCasa, Matterport, iGUIDE, Apex Sketch, ANSI Z765, condo and townhouse measurement, multi-story homes, and accuracy tips.
Where should I start?
Start with "Measure Floor Plan Online" for the basic 4-step process. Then read "What Is GLA?" for the appraisal context, and "ANSI Z765 Measurement Guide" for the official standard. Topic-specific guides cover specialized cases (condos, basements, irregular shapes, etc).
Do the guides apply to commercial floor plans?
Most guides focus on residential floor plan measurement (homes, condos, townhouses, manufactured homes). The general principles (perimeter tracing, scale calibration) apply to commercial floor plans, but commercial uses BOMA standards rather than ANSI Z765 for square footage.
Are these guides for appraisers only?
No. The guides are written for anyone who needs to measure a floor plan: appraisers, agents, homebuyers, homeowners, landlords, investors, contractors, and renovation planners. Each guide identifies its target use case at the top.
How accurate is online floor plan measurement?
For a clean to-scale floor plan, results are typically within 1 to 2 percent of a field measurement. Hand sketches and angled phone photos vary more (3 to 10 percent). The "Floor Plan Measurement Accuracy Tips" guide covers how to maximize accuracy.