Measure Area
Area gives the area of a flat face, a circle or, on a drawing, a closed outline. It does not change the model.
Step by Step
- Click the Measure tab, click Advanced, then Area. The readout says "Tap a circle for its area, or a flat face for the face area."
- Click the face. The flat face lights up orange and its area is written on it, in square units like 12.5 in squared.
- The readout says Area and "the highlighted flat face, holes excluded".
- The result is kept as a numbered pill. See Kept Measurements.
What Gets Measured
- A flat face: every connected triangle of the face that points the same way (within about 2.6 degrees). Holes and cutouts are left out, so a 4 in by 4 in plate with a 1 in hole reads about 15.2146 in squared.
- A circle: if you click right on a round edge, you get the area inside that circle, and the diameter in the readout, as Circle area. Click well inside a face, away from the round edge, to get the face instead.
- A drawing (DXF): click inside a closed outline for the area it encloses, or on a circle. If nothing closed is near, the readout says "Tap inside a closed outline (or on a circle)."
Tips and Common Problems
- A curved face gives a small number. The tool follows the flat part under the click and stops where the surface turns. For a curved face, work out the area from the model instead, or measure the flat faces.
- I want the whole part's volume. Use Measure Volume.
- Units. Areas use the unit you chose on the Measure tab. Areas always show as decimals, even when you chose fractions for lengths.