How to calculate field area: square metre, decare, dönüm and hectare
Field area seems simple: walk the boundary, close the polygon and read the area. The details decide whether the number is useful.
Field takeaways
- 1 decare is 1000 square metres; 1 hectare is 10,000 square metres.
- Phone GPS is useful for approximate field area, not official parcel area.
- A polygon must close and the boundary source must be noted.
- Clean geometry produces more reliable area.
- MapLab Survey stores area, perimeter, layers, notes and export together.
Units
1 decare is 1000 square metres. 1 hectare is 10,000 square metres, or 10 decares. In Türkiye, dönüm is often used in daily language as decare, but technical delivery should state the unit clearly.
Which boundary?
Area depends on the boundary source: fence, occupation, cadastral parcel, design line or RTK measured corners. Always record the boundary source with the result.
MapLab Survey workflow
Draw or walk the polygon, keep important corners, close the polygon, check area and perimeter, then attach notes and photos.
Try these steps on your own phone.
MapLab Survey handles RTK/GNSS point capture, drawing, area and volume calculations and coordinate conversion, then exports to DXF, KML/KMZ, GeoJSON, Shapefile, GeoPackage, NCZ or CSV. Capture, calculation and export work offline. Live NTRIP corrections and online basemaps need a connection.
Frequently asked questions
How many square metres is 1 decare?
1000 square metres.
How many decares is 1 hectare?
10 decares.
Can a phone measure field area?
For approximate planning, yes. Not as official parcel area.
What matters most?
The boundary source used for the polygon.
Technical references
The field guidance in this article is aligned with the technical and official references below.
Related: Phone area measurement · Finding parcel corners · How to measure land · MapLab Survey