The Complete Guide to Area Conversions

Everything you need to convert area units lives on this page: definitions of each unit, exact conversion factors, mental-math shortcuts, and complete tables between the most-used pairs.

Prefer a calculator? Every conversion on this page has an instant, free tool — start at the tools hub or use the links under each unit below.

The units at a glance

Square meter (m²)

The square meter is the SI unit of area and the global standard for apartment and house sizes outside North America.

• 1 m² = 0.000001 square kilometers (km²) — Square meter to Square kilometer converter
• 1 m² = 10.7639 square feet (ft²) — Square meter to Square foot converter
• 1 m² = 1.196 square yards (yd²) — Square meter to Square yard converter
• 1 m² = 0.00024711 acres (ac) — Square meter to Acre converter
• 1 m² = 0.0001 hectares (ha) — Square meter to Hectare converter

Square kilometer (km²)

The square kilometer (a million square meters) measures cities, lakes and countries — about 0.386 square miles.

• 1 km² = 1,000,000 square meters (m²) — Square kilometer to Square meter converter
• 1 km² = 10,763,910.42 square feet (ft²) — Square kilometer to Square foot converter
• 1 km² = 1,195,990.05 square yards (yd²) — Square kilometer to Square yard converter
• 1 km² = 247.1054 acres (ac) — Square kilometer to Acre converter
• 1 km² = 100 hectares (ha) — Square kilometer to Hectare converter

Square foot (ft²)

The square foot rules North American real estate: homes, offices and rentals are all priced and compared per square foot.

• 1 ft² = 0.092903 square meters (m²) — Square foot to Square meter converter
• 1 ft² = 0.00000009 square kilometers (km²) — Square foot to Square kilometer converter
• 1 ft² = 0.111111 square yards (yd²) — Square foot to Square yard converter
• 1 ft² = 0.00002296 acres (ac) — Square foot to Acre converter
• 1 ft² = 0.00000929 hectares (ha) — Square foot to Hectare converter

Square yard (yd²)

The square yard (9 square feet) persists in carpeting, concrete and fabric trades, and in land measurement across South Asia (as the "gaj").

• 1 yd² = 0.836127 square meters (m²) — Square yard to Square meter converter
• 1 yd² = 0.00000084 square kilometers (km²) — Square yard to Square kilometer converter
• 1 yd² = 9 square feet (ft²) — Square yard to Square foot converter
• 1 yd² = 0.00020661 acres (ac) — Square yard to Acre converter
• 1 yd² = 0.00008361 hectares (ha) — Square yard to Hectare converter

Acre (ac)

The acre — historically the area a yoke of oxen could plow in one day — equals 43,560 square feet and remains the standard US unit for land parcels.

• 1 ac = 4,046.86 square meters (m²) — Acre to Square meter converter
• 1 ac = 0.004047 square kilometers (km²) — Acre to Square kilometer converter
• 1 ac = 43,560 square feet (ft²) — Acre to Square foot converter
• 1 ac = 4,840 square yards (yd²) — Acre to Square yard converter
• 1 ac = 0.404686 hectares (ha) — Acre to Hectare converter

Hectare (ha)

The hectare is a 100 m × 100 m square (10,000 m²), the metric unit of farmland and forestry worldwide. One hectare is about 2.47 acres.

• 1 ha = 10,000 square meters (m²) — Hectare to Square meter converter
• 1 ha = 0.01 square kilometers (km²) — Hectare to Square kilometer converter
• 1 ha = 107,639.1 square feet (ft²) — Hectare to Square foot converter
• 1 ha = 11,959.9 square yards (yd²) — Hectare to Square yard converter
• 1 ha = 2.4711 acres (ac) — Hectare to Acre converter

Every conversion formula

The table below lists the exact formula for every area pair we support. All factors derive from the SI definitions of the units, so chaining them never introduces error.

One-line cross reference: every unit in every other unit

The complete pairwise reference — every supported area unit expressed in each of the others:

• 1 square meter = 0.000001 square kilometers
• 1 square meter = 10.7639 square feet
• 1 square meter = 1.196 square yards
• 1 square meter = 0.00024711 acres
• 1 square meter = 0.0001 hectares
• 1 square kilometer = 1,000,000 square meters
• 1 square kilometer = 10,763,910.42 square feet
• 1 square kilometer = 1,195,990.05 square yards
• 1 square kilometer = 247.1054 acres
• 1 square kilometer = 100 hectares
• 1 square foot = 0.092903 square meters
• 1 square foot = 0.00000009 square kilometers
• 1 square foot = 0.111111 square yards
• 1 square foot = 0.00002296 acres
• 1 square foot = 0.00000929 hectares
• 1 square yard = 0.836127 square meters
• 1 square yard = 0.00000084 square kilometers
• 1 square yard = 9 square feet
• 1 square yard = 0.00020661 acres
• 1 square yard = 0.00008361 hectares
• 1 acre = 4,046.86 square meters
• 1 acre = 0.004047 square kilometers
• 1 acre = 43,560 square feet
• 1 acre = 4,840 square yards
• 1 acre = 0.404686 hectares
• 1 hectare = 10,000 square meters
• 1 hectare = 0.01 square kilometers
• 1 hectare = 107,639.1 square feet
• 1 hectare = 11,959.9 square yards
• 1 hectare = 2.4711 acres

Real-world reference points

Handy area anchors: a sheet of A4 paper is 0.062 m², a parking space about 12 m², a tennis court 261 m², an American football field 5,351 m² (1.32 acres), and a soccer pitch roughly 0.7 hectares. An acre — 43,560 square feet — is about 40% of a hectare.

Most-used conversion tables

Acre to Square foot

Hectare to Acre

Square meter to Square kilometer

Square kilometer to Square meter

Square kilometer to Square foot

Square foot to Square kilometer

Square foot to Square yard

Square yard to Square foot

Common mistakes to avoid

The classic area error is squaring confusion: there are 3.28 feet in a meter but 10.76 square feet in a square meter — you must square the linear factor. Similarly, doubling a room's dimensions quadruples its area. Regional land units (the Indian "gaj", the Thai "rai") add another layer worth double-checking.

Tips for accurate conversions

• Round once, at the end. Chaining conversions and rounding each step compounds error surprisingly fast.
• Watch for regional unit variants. Some unit names have US and imperial variants with different sizes — always check which one your source means.
• Estimate first, then compute. A rough mental figure catches order-of-magnitude mistakes before they end up in your work.
• Use exact factors for anything official. The factors in this guide are the internationally defined values, not approximations.

Frequently asked questions

Which area unit should I use?

Use the unit your audience expects: metric units for international and scientific audiences, US customary units for American everyday contexts. When in doubt, give both — "5 km (3.1 mi)" style.

Are these conversion factors exact?

Yes. Every factor on this page comes from the internationally agreed definition of the units involved (most were fixed by treaty in 1959 or by SI definition), so the only inaccuracy is the rounding you choose for the final answer.

Can I use these tables offline?

Yes — print this page or save it as a PDF. The tables are computed from exact factors and will not go out of date.