One of the first things people want to know about artificial grass is, “How much does it cost?”
Clearly, the answer depends on how big the yard or installation area is.
The bigger the area, the more materials, time, and labor are needed, so the more the installation will cost.
But if you’re seriously considering synthetic turf for your lawn, the question you really want the answer to is, “How much will installing artificial grass cost for MY lawn?”
The first step to getting an answer is to calculate the square footage of your lawn.
This isn’t too complicated, but you’ll need a few simple tools for the process.
How To Measure for Artificial Grass & Calculate Square Footage
In this guide, we’ll show you step-by-step how to measure an area and calculate the square footage of your artificial grass installation.
Given the versatility of artificial grass, it can be installed just about anywhere, which means your installation area can be one of an endless variety of shapes and sizes.
For the purposes of this article, we’ll refer to the example spaces as “lawns,” but the same principles apply for any space you want to measure for artificial grass, whether that’s a patio, rooftop garden, baseball field, or traditional backyard.
We’ll show you how to measure and calculate the square footage for:
- Square and rectangular lawns
- Round lawns
- Triangle-shaped lawns
- L-Shaped lawns
Why Do You Need To Measure For Artificial Grass?
One of the first questions people want to know about installing fake grass is how much they should plan to spend.
It’s impossible to project an accurate cost estimate without knowing how much turf you’ll need.
To get an accurate estimate of the cost of installing fake grass, you’ll need to know the area of your lawn.
Artificial grass is sold by the square foot, so it will be easiest to take measurements in feet (though you could easily convert meters to feet using an online calculator).
Rolls of turf come in a wide variety of sizes, but most are 15 feet wide by 100 feet long.
Keep in mind that turf is directional, meaning the blades list to one direction, kind of like fur or certain fabrics.
To avoid a “cowlick” in your lawn, this means that you may need extra turf to allow enough room for the pieces to be cut facing the right direction; cobbling extra pieces together won’t work.
What Tools Do I Need to Measure for Artificial Grass?
Measuring the area for your artificial grass lawn isn’t too hard, but you’ll need a few tools to help you get the most accurate dimensions.
Gather the following items before you measure your lawn/space/area.
- Tape measure
- Pen or pencil
- Paper [graph paper is best, especially for odd-shaped areas]
- Calculator
Step-By-Step Fake Grass Measuring Guide
Now that you have your materials, you’re ready to measure how much square footage of synthetic grass your yard or space will require.
If you’re not sure how to do this, don’t worry.
We’ll guide you through and break down each step of the process.
STEP #1: Measure Widest & Longest Points
Regardless of how the space you’re measuring is shaped, you should measure as if it’s a square/rectangle.
Even if the area has curves, sharp angles, or an unusual shape, just extend the measurements so the area can sit in a square or rectangle.
Remember — artificial grass is manufactured in long, 15-foot by 100-foot rectangular strips.
Any curves or wide angles must be cut from those rectangles of turf.
Below are examples of different lawn shapes and how to measure them for artificial grass.
Square & Rectangular Lawns
Thank your lucky stars if your lawn is rectangular or square, as those are the easiest shapes to measure for.
Simply measure the length and the width of your lawn, as shown in the diagram above.
Divide the width into 15-foot segments (this is the typical width of a roll of artificial grass).
If the width of the lawn doesn’t divide evenly by 15, you’ll just have one strip of turf where you don’t use the whole thing.
Triangular Shaped Lawns
If you need to cover a triangular area that is less than 15 feet at its widest, then you can treat the triangle as half of a square.
Simply measure the two sides that form the right angle.
However, if your triangle is larger than this, there are a few more steps involved.
First, measure all three sides of your triangular lawn.
Using graph paper, plot out your triangle.
Then, divide the leg of your triangle that’s on the x-axis into 15-foot segments, as shown in the example above.
For each 15-foot segment, see how long the strip of turf needs to be by measuring where the hypotenuse (the longest leg) of the triangle hits the y-axis.
If your x-axis leg doesn’t divide evenly into 15-foot lengths, account for an extra strip of turf to cover the remainder.
Remember, turf is directional, so you can’t just cobble together scrap material to cover a small space.
Round Lawns
Measuring turf for round lawns or areas is surprisingly simple.
First, measure the diameter of your round lawn, then draw it to scale on a piece of graph paper.
Next, divide the circle into 15-foot-wide stripes.
Measure each stripe at its longest point.
L-Shaped Lawns
The easiest way to measure an L-shaped lawn is to split the area into two rectangular sections.
Measure each one, then plot them on graph paper.
Note the length and width of each independent section; it’s best to treat these as two separate, rectangular areas.
You’ll add them together in the next step.
STEP #2: Multiply the Width x Length
To calculate the area of your rectangular or square artificial turf installation, multiply the length of the turf strip you need by the width.
- For example, if your lawn is 25 feet wide and 15 feet long, you’ll need 375 square feet of turf (25 x 15 = 375).
- If you have a larger yard, say 57 feet by 29 feet, you’ll need 1,653 square feet of artificial grass (57 x 29 = 1,653).
To measure this for triangular, circular, or L-shaped lawns, this gets a little tricky.
You’ll need to calculate the area of each strip of turf needed, then add them up to get the total amount of synthetic grass you’ll need to purchase.
(Basically, your lawn’s shape becomes a series of rectangles.)
For instance, in the triangular yard illustrated above, you’d need three strips of turf with the following measurements:
- 15 feet x 48 feet = 720 square feet
- 15 feet x 32 feet = 480 square feet
- 15 feet x 18 feet = 270 square feet
When you add up each of these strips, you get a total of 1,470 square feet.
You follow the same process for a circular or L-shaped lawn: just measure the area of each strip of turf needed, then add them to get the total square footage for the artificial grass installation.
STEP #3: Check Areas Estimated Cost
Calculating your lawn’s square footage will help you approximate the cost of installing artificial grass.
You can do this manually by multiplying your total square footage by the cost per square foot of artificial grass.
Alternatively, you can use our free artificial grass cost calculator.
If you’re measuring an area to install a backyard putting green, you can use our putting green cost calculator to get an approximation of the cost.
Keep in mind that the square footage will only give you an estimate.
The quality of the turf product you select, the amount of labor needed to prep the site, the type of infill, and many other factors will affect your final price.
Key Takeaways on How To Measure for Artificial Grass
If you’ve always wondered how much it would cost to get hassle-free, always-green artificial grass installed in your yard, you don’t have to wonder anymore.
With some graph paper and a measuring tape, you can get a quick and accurate measurement of the square footage of your lawn.
These measurements (along with our handy cost calculators) will give you a good idea of how much you’ll spend on your artificial grass installation.
If you have any questions about synthetic grass (or you just want to make sure you’re measuring right), give our experts at Ideal Turf a call.
They’re happy to equip you with a FREE artificial grass design and installation estimate, which will help you decide if synthetic turf is the right choice for your lawn.
You can get your estimate by clicking “GET A QUOTE” button or feel free to give us a call at 800-204-4650.
