Quick answer: An acre is 43,560 square feet (4,046.86 m²), and a hectare is 10,000 square metres. So 1 hectare = 2.471 acres, and 1 acre = 0.4047 hectares. A hectare is a little under two and a half times the size of an acre.
For exact conversions, use the area converter. This guide explains what each unit is, how big they really are, where each is used, and how to convert between them.
Key takeaways
- 1 acre = 43,560 ft² = 4,840 yd² = 4,046.86 m² = 0.4047 ha.
- 1 hectare = 10,000 m² = 107,639 ft² = 2.4711 acres.
- Acres × 0.4047 = hectares. Hectares × 2.4711 = acres.
- Quick mental math: acres × 0.4 (about 1% low), hectares × 2.5 (about 1% high).
- 1 square mile = 640 acres = 259 hectares.
What Is an Acre?
An acre is a unit of land area from the imperial and US customary systems. One acre is 43,560 square feet.
It has an easy shape to picture. An acre is the area of a strip 1 furlong long (660 ft) and 1 chain wide (66 ft): 660 × 66 = 43,560 ft². If you made an acre a square, each side would be about 208.7 feet.
| 1 acre equals | Value |
|---|---|
| Square feet | 43,560 |
| Square yards | 4,840 |
| Square metres | 4,046.86 |
| Hectares | 0.4047 |
| Square miles | 1/640 (0.0015625) |
The acre has medieval roots, and is traditionally described as the area a team of oxen could plough in a day. (Verify the history before publishing.) Today it’s defined exactly through the metre: 1 international acre = 4,046.8564224 m².
What Is a Hectare?
A hectare (symbol ha) is a metric unit of land area. One hectare is 10,000 square metres, which is the area of a square 100 metres on each side.
The name comes from “hecto-are”: an are is 100 m², and a hectare is 100 ares. (The hectare is not an SI unit itself, but it’s accepted for use alongside SI. Verify before publishing.)
| 1 hectare equals | Value |
|---|---|
| Square metres | 10,000 |
| Square feet | 107,639 |
| Square yards | 11,960 |
| Acres | 2.4711 |
| Square kilometres | 0.01 |
Acres vs Hectares at a Glance
| Feature | Acre | Hectare |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | ac | ha |
| System | Imperial / US customary | Metric |
| Size in m² | 4,046.86 | 10,000 |
| Size in ft² | 43,560 | 107,639 |
| Square shape side | about 208.7 ft (63.6 m) | 100 m (328.1 ft) |
| In the other unit | 0.4047 ha | 2.4711 acres |
| Typical use | Land and property in the US, and in some UK and Commonwealth contexts | Land, farming, forestry and statistics in most of the world |
(Usage varies by country and context. Verify the “typical use” row against current sources before publishing.)
How to Convert Acres to Hectares
hectares = acres × 0.404686
- Take the area in acres.
- Multiply by 0.404686.
Example: 10 acres
- 10 × 0.404686 = 4.0469 ha
Quick reference: acres to hectares
| Acres | Hectares |
|---|---|
| 0.25 | 0.1012 |
| 0.5 | 0.2023 |
| 1 | 0.4047 |
| 2 | 0.8094 |
| 5 | 2.0234 |
| 10 | 4.0469 |
| 20 | 8.0937 |
| 50 | 20.2343 |
| 100 | 40.4686 |
| 640 | 259.00 |
How to Convert Hectares to Acres
acres = hectares × 2.47105
Example: 3 hectares
- 3 × 2.47105 = 7.413 acres
Quick reference: hectares to acres
| Hectares | Acres |
|---|---|
| 0.25 | 0.6178 |
| 0.5 | 1.2355 |
| 1 | 2.4711 |
| 2 | 4.9421 |
| 5 | 12.3553 |
| 10 | 24.7105 |
| 20 | 49.4211 |
| 50 | 123.5527 |
| 100 | 247.1054 |
How to Convert Acres and Hectares to Square Feet and Metres
| From | To | Multiply by |
|---|---|---|
| acres | ft² | 43,560 |
| acres | m² | 4,046.86 |
| hectares | m² | 10,000 |
| hectares | ft² | 107,639 |
| ft² | acres | 0.000022957 (÷ 43,560) |
| m² | hectares | 0.0001 (÷ 10,000) |
Example: 5 acres in square feet
- 5 × 43,560 = 217,800 ft²
Example: a quarter-acre plot
- 0.25 × 43,560 = 10,890 ft², which is about 1,011.7 m²
Why Is the Hectare to Acre Factor 2.471?
You can check it with the idea from how to convert area units (planned): area factors are squares of length factors.
- 1 hectare = 100 m × 100 m. Each side is 100 × 3.28084 = 328.084 ft.
- Area: 328.084 × 328.084 = 107,639 ft².
- Divide by 43,560 ft² per acre: 107,639 ÷ 43,560 = 2.4711 acres ✔
How Big Is an Acre? Size Comparisons
Numbers on their own are hard to picture. These comparisons help:
| Comparison | Size | In acres | In hectares |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 acre | 43,560 ft² | 1 | 0.40 |
| American football field without end zones (100 yd × 53⅓ yd) | 5,333 yd² | 1.10 | 0.45 |
| American football field with end zones (120 yd × 53⅓ yd) | 6,400 yd² | 1.32 | 0.54 |
| A common international soccer pitch (105 m × 68 m) | 7,140 m² | 1.76 | 0.71 |
| 1 hectare | 10,000 m² | 2.47 | 1 |
Rule of thumb: an acre is roughly three-quarters of a football field with end zones, and a hectare is close to two football fields with end zones (1.87), or about 1.4 soccer pitches.
Bigger areas: New York’s Central Park covers about 843 acres, which is about 341 hectares. (Verify the figure before publishing.)
How Big Is a Hectare? Size Comparisons
- 100 m × 100 m: a square about the length of a football pitch on each side.
- 2.47 acres: roughly two and a half US football fields’ worth of land.
- 0.01 km²: 100 hectares make a square kilometre.
Bigger Units: Square Miles and Square Kilometres
| Larger area | In acres | In hectares |
|---|---|---|
| 1 square mile | 640 | 259.00 |
| 1 square kilometre | 247.11 | 100 |
| 160 acres (a quarter-section) | 160 | 64.75 |
Handy facts:
- 1 mi² = 640 acres = 259 ha = 2.59 km²
- 1 km² = 100 ha = 247.1 acres
Mental Math: Acres and Hectares
| Conversion | Shortcut | Error |
|---|---|---|
| Acres to hectares | × 0.4 | −1.2% |
| Hectares to acres | × 2.5 | +1.2% |
Examples:
- 50 acres × 0.4 = 20 ha (exact: 20.23)
- 8 hectares × 2.5 = 20 acres (exact: 19.77)
A simple way to remember: 2.5 acres per hectare, or 0.4 hectares per acre.
Where Are Acres and Hectares Used?
- Acres: commonly used for land and property in the United States, and in some contexts in the UK, Canada and other countries that kept imperial units for land.
- Hectares: the standard in most of the world for farming, forestry, planning, conservation and official statistics, and widely used in science.
- Both: documents and listings that cross borders often quote both. International property or farmland listings often show both units.
Some regions also use local land units, such as marla, kanal and bigha in South Asia. We cover them in marla, kanal and bigha explained (planned).
(Check which unit your country’s land records use, since practices vary.)
Common Mistakes
- Confusing acres with square feet. An acre is a lot: 43,560 ft².
- Multiplying the wrong way. Hectares are the bigger unit, so the acre number is larger than the hectare number for the same land.
- Using the length factor for an area. See how to convert area units (planned).
- Mixing up “square mile” and “mile square”. A mile-square block is exactly 1 mi² (640 acres).
- Assuming 1 hectare = 2 acres. It’s about 2.47.
- Rounding too early in large-area conversions.
Acres vs Hectares: FAQs
How many acres are in a hectare?
2.4711.
How many hectares are in an acre?
0.4047.
How many square feet are in an acre?
43,560.
How many square metres are in an acre?
4,046.86.
How many square metres are in a hectare?
10,000.
How many acres are in a square mile?
640
How many hectares are in a square kilometre?
100
Is a hectare bigger than an acre?
Yes. A hectare is about 2.47 times larger.
How big is an acre in feet?
A square acre is about 208.7 feet by 208.7 feet.
What is 5 hectares in acres?
12.355 acres.
What is 10 acres in hectares?
4.047 hectares.
How do I convert acres to hectares quickly?
Multiply by 0.4 for an estimate, or by 0.4047 for an exact answer.
Convert Any Land Area in Seconds
For exact answers, use the ConversionFree area converter to switch between acres, hectares, square feet, square metres and more. You can also browse our measurement converters, or visit the ConversionFree for other free tools.
