Square Feet to Square Metres: A Property Buyer's Guide
The factor is 0.0929, not 0.3048 — a mistake that makes a flat look three times bigger than it is.
16 March 2026 · 5 min read · Property
Area conversions catch people out because the factor is squared. One foot is 0.3048 metres, so one square foot is 0.3048² = 0.09290304 square metres.
square metres = square feet × 0.092903 square feet = square metres × 10.7639
Quick reference
| Square feet | Square metres | Typical |
|---|---|---|
| 400 | 37.2 | Studio flat |
| 750 | 69.7 | One-bed apartment |
| 1,000 | 92.9 | Two-bed apartment |
| 1,500 | 139.4 | Small family house |
| 2,400 | 223.0 | Large family house |
| 43,560 | 4,046.9 | One acre |
The three areas in a property listing
In many markets — India especially — a listing quotes several different numbers:
- Carpet area — the usable floor you can lay carpet on. Excludes walls.
- Built-up area — carpet area plus wall thickness and balconies. Typically 10–15% more.
- Super built-up area — built-up plus your share of lobbies, stairwells and amenities. Typically 25–40% more than carpet area.
A "1,200 sq ft" flat advertised on super built-up area may have only 850 sq ft of carpet. Always ask which figure is quoted. India's RERA legislation now requires carpet area in agreements, but marketing material still leads with the larger number.
Land units by region
| Unit | Square metres | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Acre | 4,046.86 | UK, US, India |
| Hectare | 10,000 | Global agriculture |
| Cent | 40.47 | South India |
| Guntha | 101.17 | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| Ground | 222.97 | Tamil Nadu |
| Marla | 25.29 | Punjab, Pakistan |
| Kanal | 505.86 | Punjab, Pakistan |
| Bigha | ~1,340–3,025 | North India — varies by state |
Bigha deserves a warning: it is not standardised. A bigha in West Bengal is about 1,338 m²; in Uttar Pradesh roughly 2,529 m². Always confirm the local definition before signing anything. Our area converter uses the pucca bigha of 3,025 square yards.
Ceiling height is not in the number
Two 90 m² flats can feel entirely different if one has 2.4 m ceilings and the other 3.2 m. Floor area is a proxy for space, not a measure of it.
Related conversions
This article is for general information. Please verify figures against the relevant standard before using them in critical work. About accuracy