Area Formula math

How to Calculate the Area of a Polygon

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Calculating the area of a polygon can be as simple as finding the area of a regular triangle or as
complicated as finding the area of an irregular eleven-sided shape. If you want to know how to find the
area of a variety of polygons, just follow these steps.

Part One of Three:

Find the Area of Regular Polygons Using Their Apothems

Edit

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 1

Write down the formula for finding the area of a regular polygon. To find the area of a regular polygon,
all you have to do is follow this simple formula: area = 1/2 x perimeter x apothem. Here is what it
means:

Perimeter = the sum of the lengths of all the sides

Apothem = a segment that joins the polygon's center to the midpoint of any side that is perpendicular to
that side

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 2

Find the apothem of the polygon. If you're using the apothem method, then the apothem will be
provided for you. Let's say you're working with a hexagon that has an apothem with a length of 10√3.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 3

3
Find the perimeter of the polygon. If the perimeter is provided for you, then you're nearly done, but it's
likely that you have a bit more work to do. If the apothem is provided for you and you know that you're
working with a regular polygon, then you can use it to find the perimeter. Here's how you do it:

Think of the apothem as being the "x√3" side of a 30-60-90 triangle. You can think of it this way because
the hexagon is made up of six equilateral triangles. The apothem cuts one of them in half, creating a
triangle with 30-60-90 degree angles.

You know that the side across from the 60 degree angle has length = x√3, the side across from the 30
degree angle has length = x, and the side across from the 90 degree angle has length = 2x. If 10√3
represents "x√3," then you can see that x = 10.

You know that x = half the length of the bottom side of the triangle. Double it to get the full length. The
bottom side of the triangle is 20 units long. There are six of these sides to the hexagon, so multiply 20 x 6
to get 120, the perimeter of the hexagon.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 4

Plug the apothem and the perimeter into the formula. If you're using the formula area = 1/2 x perimeter
x apothem, then you can plug in 120 for the perimeter and 10√3 for the apothem. Here is what it will
look like:

area = 1/2 x 120 x 10√3

area = 60 x 10√3

area = 600√3

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 5

Simplify your answer. You may need to state your answer in decimal instead of square root form. Just
use your calculator to find the closest value for √3 and multiply it by 600. √3 x 600 = 1,039.2. This is your
final answer.

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Part Two of Three:

Finding the Area of Regular Polygons Using Other Formulas

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 6

Find the area of a regular triangle. If you want to find the area of a regular triangle, all you have to do is
follow this formula: area = 1/2 x base x height.

If you have a triangle with a base of 10 and a height of 8, then the area = 1/2 x 8 x 10, or 40.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 7

Find the area of a square. To find the area of a square, just square the length of one side. This is really
the same thing as multiplying the base of the square by its height, because the base and height are the
same.

If the square has a side length of 6, then the area is 6 x 6, or 36.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 8

Find the area of a rectangle. To find the area of a rectangle, simply multiply the base times the height.

If the base of the rectangle is 4 and the height is 3, then the area of the rectangle is 4 x 3, or 12.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 9

Find the area of a trapezoid. The find the area of a trapezoid, you just have to follow this formula: area =
[(base 1 + base 2) x height]/2.

Let's say you have a trapezoid with bases that have a length of 6 and 8 and a height of 10. The area is
simple [(6 + 8) x 10]/2, which can be simplified to (14 x 10)/2, or 140/2, which makes for an area of 70.

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Part Three of Three:

Finding the Area of Irregular Polygons

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 10

Write down the coordinates of the vertices of the irregular polygon. Determining the area for an
irregular polygon can be found when you know the coordinates of the vertices.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 11

Create an array. List the x and y coordinates of each vertex of the polygon in counterclockwise order.
Repeat the coordinates of the first point at the bottom of the list.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 12

Multiply the x coordinate of each vertex by the y coordinate of the next vertex. Add the results. The
added sum of these products is 82.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 13

Multiply the y coordinate of each vertex by the x coordinate of the next vertex. Again, add these results.
The added total of these products is -38.

Image titled Calculate the Area of a Polygon Step 14

Subtract the sum of the second products from the sum of the first products. Subtract -38 from 82 to get
82 - (-38) = 120.

Divide this difference by 2 to get the area of the polygon. Just divide 120 by 2 to get 60 and you're all
done.

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Area Help

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Area of a Regular Polygon Cheat Sheet

Area of an Irregular Polygon Cheat Sheet

Community Q&A

Question

What is the area of a pentagon with sides measuring in feet 105, 100, 170, 43, 135?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

Polygons with more than three sides cannot be determined from side lengths alone. You need to know
some of the angles.

21 13

Question

How can I find the area of a hexagon?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

a=1/2ap. a=apothem (like the radius except it comes from the middle of a side). p=perimeter.

13 8

Question

How do I calculate the area of an octagon?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

Cut it into smaller shapes, such as triangles or other quadrilaterals using angles. Find the area of each
smaller shape, then add the areas together to find the area of the whole shape.

18 13

Question

How can I calculate the area of an irregular polygon?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

Divide the polygon into several triangles and/or rectangles. Calculate the area of each, then add them to
find the total.

17 14

Question

How do I find the area of a 4-sided shape?

Donagan

Top Answerer

Assuming it's not a square or rectangle, you would have to subdivide the figure into smaller sections
consisting of squares, rectangles, triangles, and other shapes whose areas can be easily calculated. Then
add those areas together.

5 4

Question

How do I calculate the area of a quadrilateral polygon?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

There are two ways: Mentally cut the polygon up into other shapes that are easy to calculate, such as
triangles and squares. Then calculate each part and sum up the results. Another approach you might
take is to imagine the polygon is a shape that can be easily calculated, such as a square. Then find the
area of the square. Next, subtract the area you used to fill the square from the square.

8 10

Question

How do I calculate the area of a polygon?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

Write down the formula for finding the area of a regular polygon. To find the area of a regular polygon,
all you have to do is follow this simple formula: area = 1/2 x perimeter x apothem. Here is what it
means: Perimeter = the sum of the lengths of all the sides.

12 18
Question

According to part 3, how do I calculate the area of a circle having a radius of 7 cm, or four points are
(0,7), (7,0), (0,-7), (-7,0)?

Donagan

Top Answerer

Part 3 above has nothing to do with circles. Any circle with a 7 cm radius has an area of 49π or 153.937
square centimeters.

0 1

Question

How do I find the area of an eight-sided polygon?

Donagan

Top Answerer

The formula for the area of a regular octagon is 4.828 s², where s is the length of any side. (If the
octagon is not regular, no area formula is available.)

0 1

Question

Will this formula work for all regular polygons, regardless of the number of sides?

Donagan

Top Answerer

Not sure which formula you mean. Here's a trig formula that will work for any regular polygon if you
know the length of a side: A = s²n / [4 tangent(180°/n)], where s is the length of a side, and n is the
number of sides. Here's a trig formula that will work if you know the radius of the polygon (distance
from the center to any vertex): A = r²n [sine(360°/n)] / 2, where r is the radius, and n is the number of
sides. Finally, here's a trig formula that will work if you know the apothem of the polygon (perpendicular
distance from the center to any side): A= a²n[tangent(180°/n)], where a is the length of the apothem,
and n is the number of sides.

Show more answers

You make photo props by cutting rectangles out of parallelogram-shaped pieces of wood. Which photo
props have an area of 50 square feet?
Answer

How do I calculate a decagon?

Answer

How do I find the area of an icosidigon polygon?

Answer

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Tips

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If you list the points in a clockwise order instead of counterclockwise, you will get the negative of the
area. Hence this can be used as a tool to identify the cyclic path or sequence of a given set of points
forming a polygon.

Helpful?

This formula computes area with orientation. If you use it on a shape where two of the lines cross like a
figure eight, you will get the area surrounded counterclockwise minus the area surrounded clockwise.

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Low Angle View Of Building Corner Against Clear Blue Sky

Arno Wölk / EyeEm / Getty Images

by

Deb Russell

Updated September 28, 2018

Surface Area and Perimeter: Triangle

D. Russell

A triangle is any geometric object with three sides connecting to one another to form one cohesive
shape. Triangles are commonly found in modern architecture, design, and carpentry, making the ability
to determine the perimeter and area of a triangle centrally important.

Calculate the perimeter of a triangle by adding the distance around its three outer sides: a + b + c =
Perimeter

The area of a triangle, on the other hand, is determined by multiplying the base length (the bottom) of
the triangle by the height (sum of the two sides) of the triangle and dividing it by two:

b (h+h) / 2 = A (*NOTE: Remember PEMDAS!)

To best understand why a triangle is divided by two, consider that a triangle forms one half of a
rectangle.

Continue Reading Below

Trapezoid: Surface Area and Perimeter

Surface Area and Perimeter: Trapezoid

D. Russell

A trapezoid is a flat shape with four straight sides with a pair of opposite parallel sides. The perimeter of
a trapezoid is found simply by adding the sum of all four of its sides: a + b + c + d = P
Determining the surface area of a trapezoid is a bit more challenging. In order to do so, mathematicians
must multiply the average width (the length of each base, or parallel line, divided by two) by the height
of the trapezoid: (l/2) h = S

The area of a trapezoid can be expressed in the formula A = 1/2 (b1 + b2) h where A is the area, b1 is the
length of the first parallel line and b2 is the length of the second, and h is the height of the trapezoid.

If the height of the trapezoid is missing, one can use the Pythagorean Theorem to determine the missing
length of a right triangle formed by cutting the trapezoid along the edge to form a right triangle.

Continue Reading Below

Rectangle: Surface Area and Perimeter

Surface Area and Perimeter: Rectangle

D. Russell

A rectangle consists of four interior 90-degree angles and parallel sides that are equal in length, though
not necessarily equal to the lengths of the sides to which each is directly connected.

Calculate the perimeter of a rectangle by adding two times the width and two times the height of the
rectangle, which is written as P = 2l + 2w where P is the perimeter, l is the length, and w is the width.

To find the surface area of a rectangle, multiply its length by its width, expressed as A = lw, where A is
the area, l is the length, and w is the width.

Parallelogram: Area and Perimeter

Surface Area and Perimeter: Parallelogram

D. Russell
A parallelogram is a "quadrilateral" with two pairs of opposite and parallel sides but whose internal
angles are not 90 degrees, as are rectangles.

However, like a rectangle, one simply adds twice the length of each of the sides of a parallelogram,
expressed as P = 2l + 2w where P is the perimeter, l is the length, and w is the width.

To find the surface area of a parallelogram, multiply the base of the parallelogram by the height.

Continue Reading Below

Circle: Circumference and Surface Area

Surface Area and Perimeter: Circle

D. Russell

The circle's circumference -- the measure of the total length around the shape -- is determined based on
the fixed ratio of Pi. In degrees, a circle is equal to 360° and Pi (p) is the fixed ratio equal to 3.14.

The perimeter of a circle can be determined one of two ways:

C = pd

C = p2r

wherein C - circumference, d = diameter, r i= radius (which is half of the diameter), and p = Pi, which
equals 3.1415926.

Use Pi to find the perimeter of a circle. Pi is the ratio of a circle's circumference to it's diameter. If the
diameter is 1, the circumference is pi.

For the measurement of the area of a circle, simply multiply the radius squared by Pi, expressed as A =
pr2.
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MathGeometryPolygon

Area of a Polygon

Polygons are the shapes having sides and angles. The sides do make a closed circuit, and they join to
make vertex and angles. Number of sides equal to number of vertices of a polygon. The total space
inside the boundary of the polygon is called as the area of a polygon. The area of a regular polygon is
usually calculated using the side length of a polygon. However, the area can also be calculated using the
inradius and the circumradius of the polygons. Area is measured in terms of square unit.
Formula

The area of a regular polygon is calculated by using below mentioned formulas. But, there is no specific
formula for calculating the area of the irregular polygons.

Area of n Sided Polygon

The formula for calculating the area of a regular polygon with length of the apothem (A) and perimeter
(P) is,

Area = [Math Processing Error] AP The formula for calculating the area of a regular polygon with ‘N’
sides and side length ‘S’ is,

Area of a Polygon = [Math Processing Error]

The formula for calculating the area of the regular polygon with inradius A and N sides is,

Area of a Polygon = A2 N tan[Math Processing Error]

The formula for calculating the area of the regular polygon with circumradius R and N number of sides
is,

Area of a Polygon = [Math Processing Error] sin ([Math Processing Error]

Inradius - Distance from the center of any polygon to the sides of the polygon.
Circumradius - Distance from the center of the polygon to any of the vertices.

Area of a 4 Sided Polygon

There are some formulas that we can use to calculate the area of the special quadrilaterals (4 sided
polygons).

Sr. No. 4 sided Polygons Polygon Shapes

Area Formulas

1 Square Sqaure side * side

2. Rectangle Rectangle length * width

3. Parallelogarm Paralellogram Base * height

4. Trapezoid Trapezoid [Math Processing Error] (Sum of parallel sides)

5. Kite Kite [Math Processing Error] * longest diagonal * smallest diagonal

And, the area of any irregular quadrilateral can be calculated by dividing it into triangles. Lets see with
the help of example how to find the area of an irregular quadrilateral.

In a quadrilateral the diagonal is 52 cm and the two perpendiculars on it from B and from D are 7 cm and
11 cm respectively. Let us find the area of the quadrilateral.

Quadrilateral Problem

Area of ABCD = Area of [Math Processing Error] ACD + Area of [Math Processing Error] ABC

= [Math Processing Error] . AC.ND + [Math Processing Error] . AC . BM

= 286 + 182

= 468

Therefore, the area of a quadrilateral is 468 cm2.

Area of 5 Sided Polygon

A 5 sided polygon is called as pentagon. If s be the side length of the pentagon then,

Area of a Regular Pentagon = 1.72 s2

In case of irregular polygon: Simply divide the shape into triangles and calculate the area of each triangle
then add up the area of all the triangles.

Let us find the area for the polygon shown below:

Problem on Area of a Polygon

Area of ABCDE = Area of [Math Processing Error]ABC + Area of [Math Processing Error]EDC + Area of
[Math Processing Error] ACE

Area of [Math Processing Error] ABC = [Math Processing Error] * 10 * 2 = 10

Area of [Math Processing Error] EDC

S = [Math Processing Error] = 8.5

Area = [Math Processing Error] = 8.18

Area of [Math Processing Error] ACE

S = [Math Processing Error] = 11

Area = [Math Processing Error] = 16.24

Now, Area of ABCDE = 10 + 8.18 + 16.24 = 34.42

The area of the given polygon is 34.42 sq. units.

Area of Inscribed Polygon

Inscribed polygon is a polygon placed inside a circle so that all the vertices of the polygon lie on the
circumference of the circle.

All regular polygons can be inscribed in a circle.

The interior area of the polygon is given by the following formula-

Area (A) = [Math Processing Error] sin ([Math Processing Error])

Let us find the area of a regular hexagon inscribed within a circle whose radius is exactly 6 cm?

Inscribed Polygon Example

Here, N = 6 (polygon is hexagon) and r = 6 cm

Area (A) = [Math Processing Error] sin ([Math Processing Error])

= [Math Processing Error] sin ([Math Processing Error])

= 108 sin (60o)

= 93.53

The area of a inscribed regular hexagon is 93.53 cm2.

Find the Area of a Polygon

Given below are some of the examples to find the area of a regular polygon.

Solved Examples

Question 1: Calculate the area of the polygon with 6 sides and a side length of 5 cm.

Solution:

Given: N = 6 and S = 5 cm
The formula for the area of a regular polygon with ‘N’ sides and side length ‘S’ is

Area = [Math Processing Error]

By substituting the values, we get

Area = [Math Processing Error]

= [Math Processing Error][Math Processing Error]

= [Math Processing Error][Math Processing Error]

= [Math Processing Error]

= 65

Thus, the area of the polygon is 65 cm2.

Question 2: Calculate the area of the polygon with an inradius of 6 cm and 7 sides.

Solution:

Given: N = 7 and A = 6 cm

The formula for the area of the regular polygon with inradius A and N sides is,
Area = A2 N tan ([Math Processing Error])

= [Math Processing Error][Math Processing Error]

= 7 * 36 * 0.481

= 121.2

Hence, the area of the given polygon is 121.2 cm2.

Practice Problems on Area of a Polygon

Given below are some of the practice problems on area of a polygon.

Practice Problems

Question 1: Calculate the area of the polygon with 7 sides and each side length is 4 cm.

Question 2: Calculate the area of the regular polygon with 8 sides and an inradius of 5 cm.
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