Area measurements calculate square footage for surfaces like flooring, patios, landscape beds, and roofing. Exayard offers three drawing methods to match the shape you need to measure.

Click the Area button in the canvas toolbar or press Q on your keyboard. The Symbol panel appears where you can name your measurement, choose a color, and select your drawing method: Polygon, Box, or Circle. Click Start to begin drawing.

The Polygon tool traces irregular shapes point by point. Click to place your first point, continue clicking around the perimeter, then double-click to close the shape. This works best for complex outlines like landscape beds or building footprints.

The Box tool creates rectangles with just two clicks. Click to place one corner, then click the opposite corner to complete the shape. Use this for quick rectangular measurements like patios or rooms.

The Circle tool measures round areas. Click to place the center point, drag outward, then click again to set the radius.

Each area symbol has appearance and dimensional settings. For appearance, you can adjust the fill Color, Opacity, and add diagonal stripe patterns to visually distinguish overlapping areas. Set the Stripe gap to enable stripes, then adjust the Stripe angle and Stripe thickness.

For dimensions, set Wall height to calculate vertical surface area (useful for retaining walls), Depth for volume calculations (excavation or fill), and Slope adjustments using pitch ratio, degrees, or percentage grade. Use slope for pitched roofs or graded surfaces to calculate true surface area.

The Unit setting lets you display measurements in square feet, square meters, square yards, or acres. The Offset expands or contracts your measurement from the drawn boundary.

To subtract areas from a measurement, select an existing area symbol, then use the cutout tool to draw within the shape. The cutout creates a hole and its area is subtracted from the total. Cutouts appear as child items in the sidebar showing the negative area value.

Zoom in before placing points for better accuracy at corners. Use descriptive names including material type, like "Decomposed Granite - Front Yard." Check your scale before measuring since incorrect scale produces inaccurate results.