How land area is converted
Every unit here is a fixed number of square feet, so converting is one multiplication and one division.
The square foot, square yard, square metre, acre and hectare are the same everywhere. The marla is not. Its size depends on where the land is and who measured it. Pick the right marla size first, or every answer in marla and kanal will be off by up to 21%.
Which marla size should I use?
| Marla size | Kanal (20 marla) | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|
| 225 sq ft | 4,500 sq ft | Lahore district: LDA, DHA Lahore, Bahria Town and most Lahore societies |
| 250 sq ft | 5,000 sq ft | Some older societies, mainly around Rawalpindi and Islamabad |
| 272 sq ft | 5,440 sq ft | Other districts of Punjab under the Punjab Private Housing Schemes Rules 2022 |
| 272.25 sq ft | 5,445 sq ft | Revenue (patwari) records and agricultural land |
The 225 sq ft marla is the default because it is what most buyers in Pakistan’s biggest housing market see on files and allotment letters. The Punjab Private Housing Schemes Rules 2022 fix the marla at 225 sq ft in Lahore district and 272 sq ft in other Punjab districts, and LDA’s building regulations say the same.
The 272.25 sq ft marla comes from the old revenue system. Land was measured with a karam of 5.5 feet. A square karam (sarsahi) is 30.25 sq ft, and 9 sarsahi make one marla. That system fits neatly into the acre: 160 marla, or 8 kanal, make exactly 43,560 sq ft.
Your allotment letter, registry or fard should state the size used. When in doubt, ask for the plot area in square feet.
Other units
- Square yard (gaz): 9 sq ft. Karachi and the rest of Sindh measure plots in square yards, so a “120-yard house” is 1,080 sq ft.
- Acre (killa): 43,560 sq ft, or 8 revenue kanal.
- Hectare: 10,000 m², about 2.47 acres. Used in official and international statistics.
- Murabba (square): 25 acres, the standard block of canal-colony farmland in Punjab.
- Bigha: here 4 revenue kanal, half an acre, as in Punjab land records. Bigha sizes vary widely in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, so check the local value before you rely on it.
Worked examples
A 10 marla house in DHA Lahore. With a 225 sq ft marla, 10 marla is 2,250 sq ft, or 250 square yards. A typical 10 marla plot is 35 × 65 ft (2,275 sq ft, a little over 10 marla).
A 1 kanal plot in Faisalabad. Under the 272 sq ft standard, 1 kanal is 5,440 sq ft. The same “1 kanal” in Lahore is 4,500 sq ft, which is 940 sq ft smaller.
Farmland in a revenue record. A fard shows 3 kanal 12 marla. With the 272.25 sq ft marla that is 72 marla × 272.25 = 19,602 sq ft, or 0.45 acres.
Common plot sizes
| Plot | Area at 225 sq ft | Usual size |
|---|---|---|
| 3 marla | 675 sq ft | 22.5 × 30 ft |
| 5 marla | 1,125 sq ft | 25 × 45 ft |
| 7 marla | 1,575 sq ft | 30 × 52.5 ft |
| 8 marla | 1,800 sq ft | 30 × 60 ft |
| 10 marla | 2,250 sq ft | 35 × 65 ft |
| 1 kanal | 4,500 sq ft | 50 × 90 ft |
| 2 kanal | 9,000 sq ft | 75 × 120 ft |
Plots are rarely exact. Use the Plot size box under the converter to turn your plot’s length and width in feet into marla, kanal and square yards.
Tips
- Compare prices per square foot. A 5 marla plot in Lahore and a 5 marla plot in Multan are different sizes. Price per square foot shows which is really cheaper.
- Check corner and park-facing plots. They are often slightly larger than the marla on the file, and sold at a premium.
- Convert lengths too. Old documents may give sides in karam or gaz. The length converter handles both.
- Budgeting for a new home? Estimate running costs with the electricity bill calculator and work out percentages with the percentage calculator.
This converter is for information. For a sale or a legal dispute, rely on the measured area in your official documents.