---
name: "m.measure"
section: "1grass"
platform: "linux"
package: "grass-doc"
version: "8.4.1-1"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/m.measure"
---

# m.measure(1grass)

Measures the lengths and areas of features.

## NAME

**m.measure**  - Measures the lengths and areas of features.

## KEYWORDS

miscellaneous, measurement, distance, area

## SYNOPSIS

**m.measure**\
 **m.measure --help**\
 **m.measure** \[-**g**\] **coordinates**=*east,north*\[,*east,north*,...\]  \[**units**=*string*\]   \[--**help**\]  \[--**verbose**\]  \[--**quiet**\]  \[--**ui**\]

### Flags:

- **-g**

  Shell script style

- **--help**

  Print usage summary

- **--verbose**

  Verbose module output

- **--quiet**

  Quiet module output

- **--ui**

  Force launching GUI dialog

### Parameters:

- **coordinates**=*east,north\[,east,north*,...\] **\[required\]**

  Coordinates

- **units**=*string*

  Units\
   Default: project map units\
   Options: *miles, feet, meters, kilometers, acres, hectares*

## DESCRIPTION

*m.measure* provides the user with a way to measure the lengths and areas of lines and polygons. Areas can be stated in acres, hectares, square miles, square feet, square meters and square kilometers.

## EXAMPLES

Distance example in a latitude-longitude coordinate reference system (on great circle, i.e. an orthodrome):\

```
Bonn_DE="7.09549,50.73438"
Philadelphia_US="-75.16379,39.95233"
m.measure coordinates="$Bonn_DE,$Philadelphia_US" units=kilometers
Length:  6217.916452 kilometers
```

*Visualization (with d.geodesic) of m.measure distance example*

As an example for the North Carolina sample dataset, here four points describing a square of 1000m side length:\

```
m.measure units=meters \
  coordinates=922000,2106000,923000,2106000,923000,2107000,922000,2107000
Length:  3000.000000 meters
Area:    1000000.000000 square meters
# script style output:
m.measure -g units=hectares \
  coordinates=922000,2106000,923000,2106000,923000,2107000,922000,2107000
units=meters,square meters
length=3000.000000
area=1000000.000000
```

## SEE ALSO

*d.geodesic*

## AUTHORS

Glynn Clements\
 Some updates by Martin Landa, CTU in Prague, Czech Republic\
\
 Derived from d.measure by James Westervelt, Michael Shapiro, U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratory

## SOURCE CODE

Available at: m.measure source code (history)

Accessed: Monday Feb 24 17:51:28 2025

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