The history of the measuring system dates to the early Indus Valley Civilization of around the 5th millennium BCE.
The Maurya empire (322–185 BCE), formulated the regulations of using the complex system of weights and measure but later it was the Mughal empire which started using these measures to determine land holdings and collect land tax as a part of Mughal land reforms.
The adoption of different units of weights and measurements are applied while measuring lands depending upon the region. The system is highly reflected in the architecture, folk and artifacts.
The standardized measure of 1 marla in sq feet is (1 Marla= 272.25 square feet) and (2.5 marla in square feet = 680.626 sq. ft) , but many housing schemes at the moment consider three marla measurements in Pakistan which are mentioned below.
Multiple agrarian reforms were introduced during the Mughal empire in the subcontinent. Akbar the Great (1556-1605) was the one who took the liberty of enforcing standardized units of weights and measurement systems in his reign. In that era, the units that were used were called Gaz and Bigha. Gaz being equal to 3 feet and Bigha being equal to 2420 square ghaz. Bamboo rods with iron joints were used to measure the land. The weight and size of the land determined the land revenue of people. British units of measurement were first adopted in India by the East India Company on the first of October 1958.
A 160th part of an acre is basically known as marla, square feet area for a marla is 272.25. One Marla is also equal to 30.25 square yards or approximately 25.2929 square meters. Approximately 20 marlas make up for a Kanal equaling 5445 sq. ft of an area.
The use of marla as a land measurement unit is not only common in Pakistan but in Bangladesh as well. The unit, however, constitutes various sizes in India and Pakistan.
To understand Pakistan’s real estate market better, let us get to know what the units mean before you intend on buying a property in Pakistan.
A square foot is a unit of measurement equal to a square with the length of one foot.
The symbol for square feet is ft2.
As the name says, square meters mean a square whose each side is a meter each. This unit is generally used for measuring houses, rooms, etc.
The symbol for square meters is m2.
Square Yards is rarely used but it means the same as ‘gazz’. You must have heard this term many times while shopping for clothes. It is similar to square feet. Gazz is used to express plot sizes in Karachi.
The northern side of Pakistan mostly uses Kanal for measuring land. To make it easy to understand, a 20 marla land equals 1 kanal. Find 1 kanal houses for sale in Islamabad.
Acres is used the most in the US and UK equate to 4,840 square yards or 4,047 square meters.
Murabba is a very unique unit as such that it does not define a particular area but a certain dimension. 25 acres of land is called a murabba, the term has been in use since the British rule. Get to know how land is transferred in Pakistan.
Hectare is sometimes mixed with acres, but it is a square with four sides equal to 100 meters. 1 hectare is almost 2.5 acres.
Keep in mind that the standard measuring units used for farms or agriculture are different from the ones used for housing. We know that people sometimes get confused with both, therefore the list down below represents all the units that are used for housing. Marla is the most common unit of land that is used in most areas of Pakistan. Under the British rule Marla had a standard measuring unit equivalent to 272.25 square feet or 30.25 square yards. But in present time, three different measurements are used for plots for housing schemes of Pakistan. In bigger cities such as Lahore, Islamabad etc. Marla is smaller and equals to 225 sq. ft. However, it has three different sizes now; 272.25 sq ft, 250 sq ft, and 225 sq ft. Yard which is called Gaz in Urdu is also used for measuring plots.
Note: 3 feet equals to 1 yard. The unit is most used in the Indo-Pak subcontinent.
| Marla | Square Feet | Square Yards (Gaz) | Square Meters |
| 1 | 272.25 | 30.25 | 25.29 |
| 5 | 1361.25 | 151.25 | 126.47 |
| 10 | 2722.5 | 302.5 | 252.93 |
| 15 | 4083.75 | 453.75 | 379.40 |
| 20 (1 Kanal) | 5445 | 605 | 505.86 |
| Marla | Square Feet | Square Yards (Gaz) | Square Meters |
| 1 | 250 | 27.7 | 23.23 |
| 5 | 1250 | 138.5 | 116.13 |
| 10 | 2500 | 277 | 232.26 |
| 15 | 3750 | 415.5 | 348.39 |
| 20 = 1 Kanal | 5000 | 554 | 464.52 |
| Marla | Square Feet | Square Yards (Gaz) | Square Meters |
| 1 | 225 | 25 | 20.90 |
| 5 | 1125 | 125 | 104.52 |
| 10 | 2250 | 250 | 209.03 |
| 15 | 3375 | 375 | 313.55 |
| 20 (1 Kanal) | 4500 | 500 | 418.06 |
Converting 1125 sq feet apartment is equal to 5 marla
Converting 2250 sq feet house is equal to 9 marla
Converting 1300 sq feet apartment and the house is equal to 4.7 marla
Converting 1200 sq feet apartment is equal to 4.40 marla
If you want to measure the size of the land yourself, you can do so by multiplying the length with the width, the total obtained will be the square footage of the property. From there, you can determine the acreage by dividing the square footage by 43,560, which will give you the actual square feet in an acre. However, calculating this on your own can be confusing and challenging. It can be more tedious if the land is in an odd shape then there is a different equation for each shape variant.
Before construction, it would be wise to carry out a Geotechnical Investigation of the ground which will lay out all the factors that are important for budget considerations such as the cost for a rock breaker for excavation. Alternatively, if the ground is too soft or there is a natural spring or groundwater you will also be looking at additional costs to drill down foundations through this to stabilize the ground.
There are 272.25 square feet in 1 marla. This is the standardized definition used in most parts of Pakistan.
One marla is equivalent to 225 square feet. Therefore, 10 marlas would be 2,250 square feet.
3 marla in square feet is equal to 816.752 square feet.
3 marla in square feet is equal to 1089 square feet.
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