Square meters to Square feet conversion

Square meters to square feet

Floor plans, apartment listings and land descriptions use square meters in most of the world and square feet in the United States and, informally, in the UK, India and Canada. Because one foot is 0.3048 m, one square foot is 0.3048² = 0.092903 m², and therefore 1 m² = 10.7639 sq ft. To convert, multiply square meters by 10.7639.

Mental shortcut

Multiply by 10 and add about 8 %. A 50 m² flat is 500 + 40 = 540 sq ft (538 exactly). A 100 m² house is roughly 1 076 sq ft.

Reference values

• 1 m² = 10.76 sq ft
• 10 m² = 107.6 sq ft (a small bedroom)
• 20 m² = 215.3 sq ft
• 50 m² = 538.2 sq ft (a one-bedroom apartment)
• 100 m² = 1 076.4 sq ft
• 150 m² = 1 614.6 sq ft
• 200 m² = 2 152.8 sq ft
• 1000 m² = 10 763.9 sq ft (0.1 hectare)

Real estate

Property prices are compared per square meter in Europe and per square foot in the US. To convert a price, divide by 10.7639: €5 000 per m² is €465 per sq ft. Be aware that what counts as "floor area" differs between countries — some include balconies, garages or wall thickness, others do not — so compare like with like.

Flooring, paint and tiles

Tiles and laminate are sold by the square meter or the square foot, and packs are labelled with coverage. Convert the room area to the unit on the pack, then add 5–10 % for cuts and waste. Paint coverage is usually quoted per liter or per gallon in square meters or square feet respectively.

A common error

Converting the side lengths and forgetting to square: a 3 m × 4 m room is 12 m², which is 129 sq ft — not 3.28 × 4 = 13.1 of anything.

Worked examples

A 12 m² bedroom. 12 × 10.764 = 129 sq ft — a typical secondary bedroom in a US home.

A 75 m² apartment. 75 × 10.764 = 807 sq ft. US listings would call it a one- or small two-bedroom.

Laminate at €25 per m². 25 ÷ 10.764 = €2.32 per sq ft — the figure to compare with an American quote.

Frequently asked questions

How many square feet are in a square meter? 10.764. For a rough estimate multiply by 11 and subtract 2 %.

Is 100 m² a big house? In much of Europe it is an average family home; in the US the average new house is about 2 300 sq ft, 214 m².

How do I measure a room in square meters? Multiply length by width in meters. A 4 m × 3.5 m room is 14 m², and only then convert to 151 sq ft.

Related conversions

For land, hectares to acres and acres to square feet; for the reverse of this page, square feet to square meters.

Good to know

Hotel rooms, offices and retail spaces are quoted per square metre outside the US and per square foot inside it, and the two markets have different "normal" sizes. A European hotel room of 20 m² is 215 sq ft, small by American standards where 300–350 sq ft (28–33 m²) is typical. Office planning allows 10–15 m² per person in Europe, 150–250 sq ft in the US — the same range. Retail rents are quoted per square foot per year in the US and per square metre per month in much of Europe, so converting rent needs the area factor and a ×12 as well.