In one of my webcasts, I discussed how to work effectively in AutoCAD, where I discussed a few tools to improve productivity and precision when working on design projects. Among them were the various Measure tools provided with the software. I am writing this blog post to further explain the Area tool, which is one of these tools.
If you want to check out the Working Effectively in AutoCAD webcast, click here to view the on-demand recording.
Using the Area Tool
There are a few ways to measure the area of an object. They are:
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Using the Quick Measure tool (Measuregeom command).
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Using the Area command to pick points around an area.
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Using the Area command to select objects to define the area.
Measure Area Using the Quick Measure Tool
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In the Home tab>Utilities panel, expand the Measure flyout and click
(Quick). The cursor displays an infinite plus mark.
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Click inside a closed area. It is highlighted in green with the area and perimeter displayed near the cursor (as shown in the figure) and in the Command Line.
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If you want to get the cumulative area and perimeter of multiple closed areas, hold down <Shift> and then click in various closed areas. The cumulative area of all the selected regions is displayed.
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Press <Esc> to exit the command.
Measure an Area by Picking Points
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In the Home tab>Utilities panel, expand the Measure flyout and click
(Area). The cursor displays a question mark symbol.
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Select points around the area that you want to measure. A green fill indicates the selection and the area is calculated.
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Press <Enter> to display the area and perimeter of the selected region, as shown in the figure below.
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For accurate measurements, use object snaps to select the precise points to measure.
Measure an Area by Selecting an Object
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In the Home tab>Utilities panel, expand the Measure flyout and click
(Area). The cursor displays a question mark symbol.
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At the Specify first corner: prompt, type O and press <Enter> to select the Object option.
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Select an object, such as a polyline, circle, or rectangle. The area displays, as shown in the figure below.
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The polyline object can be either open or closed. If the object is open, the area is calculated by adding an imaginary line along the open section.
Add and Subtract Areas
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In the Home tab>Utilities panel, expand the Measure flyout and click
(Area). The cursor displays a question mark symbol.
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Select the Add area option first (press <Down Arrow> and select Add area). You are placed in ADD mode.
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Select items to add by selecting points or using the Object option.
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Press <Enter> to end ADD mode.
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Select the Subtract area option (press <Down Arrow> and select Subtract area).
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Select the areas to subtract by selecting points or using the Object option. When you are in SUBTRACT mode, the selected areas display with a brown fill, as shown in the figure below.
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Press <Enter> to end SUBTRACT mode. The area of the selected region without the area of the circles is displayed.
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Select eXit or press <Esc> to end the command.
The information above was pulled from our AutoCAD 2026: Essentials learning guide, which is available for you on Amazon or our ASCENT eStore.
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