Draw Boundaries and Calculate Land Area in Google Earth
Last updated 26 September 2026
Join survey points into boundary lines by code, close them into plots, and get lengths and areas in square metres and hectares.
1. Give the boundary points a code
Put a CODE column in your sheet and give every corner of a boundary the same code — BOUNDARY, FENCE, KERB, PLOT-12 — in the order they run round the site. The order of the rows is the order the line is drawn in.
2. Join the points
Open the sheet in the web app or the Windows app, choose the coordinate system, then open Lines and areas. Under Join the points, pick:
- One line for each code — the usual choice: all BOUNDARY points make one line, all FENCE points another.
- One line through all of them, in order — for a sheet that is a single traverse or run.
3. Close the shape for an area
Tick Close the shape and give the area, which closes each line back to its first point. A closed boundary gets its area in square metres and hectares, as well as its perimeter. Open lines, such as a kerb or a pipe run, get their length.
4. Check and save
The tool lists every line with its number of points, length and, when closed, its area. Lengths are measured on the ground, point to point. Save KML or KMZ: the lines go into their own folder in Google Earth, and clicking a line shows its length and area.
Tips
- If the outline crosses itself, the rows are out of order. Sort them round the boundary and try again.
- For a road or pipe centreline, Level profile gives chainage and grade along the line, and every other point can get its chainage and offset from it.
Try it with your own sheet