Measurement Unit Converter
Convert length, area and volume between metric, imperial and US survey units, including US survey feet and acre-feet. Convert one value, a pasted list, or a whole CSV.
- Runs in your browser
- No sign-up
- Free
What are you converting?
Values
In meters.
Result
1 m = 3.2808 ft
The same value in every unit
Understanding measurement units
Different industries and countries use different measurement systems. The metric system (metres, hectares, square kilometres) is the international standard for scientific work and is used in most GIS applications. The imperial system (feet, acres, square miles) remains common in the USA.
Common conversions for surveying and mapping
- 1 metre = 3.281 feet = 39.37 inches
- 1 hectare = 2.471 acres = 10,000 square metres
- 1 square kilometre = 247.1 acres = 0.386 square miles
- 1 acre = 4,047 square metres = 0.405 hectares
The US survey foot
A US survey foot is 1200/3937 m, about 2 parts per million longer than the international foot. Over a short tape the difference is invisible; over a 10 km state plane coordinate it is about 2 cm, which is enough to matter in a survey deliverable.
Frequently Asked Questions About Unit Conversions
1 hectare = 2.471 acres. Conversely, 1 acre = 0.4047 hectares. For quick mental math: hectares × 2.5 ≈ acres. A hectare is 10,000 square meters (100m × 100m).
Surveying uses meters (SI/metric), feet (US/UK), chains (66 feet), and rods/perches (16.5 feet). Modern drone mapping typically uses meters (SI) or feet (US). Area is measured in hectares, acres, or square feet/meters depending on region.
Divide square meters by 4,047 to get acres. Example: 10,000 m² ÷ 4,047 = 2.471 acres. Our converter handles this automatically along with hectares, square feet, and other common units.