What is a linear foot?
A linear foot is simply one foot of length. Width and thickness do not change the number of linear feet.
What is a square foot?
A square foot measures area. A square measuring one foot long and one foot wide has an area of one square foot.
Example: boards
Ten boards that are each 8 feet long contain 80 linear feet regardless of their width. However, the surface area covered by those boards depends on how wide each board is.
Can linear feet be converted to square feet?
Yes, but only when the material width is known. Multiply linear footage by width expressed in feet.
Example conversion
If 100 linear feet of material is 6 inches wide, convert 6 inches to 0.5 feet. Multiplying 100 × 0.5 gives 50 square feet of surface coverage.
When linear feet are commonly used
- Trim and molding
- Boards and lumber
- Fencing
- Pipe and conduit
- Countertop edges
- Continuous length materials
When square feet are commonly used
- Flooring
- Tile
- Painted wall surfaces
- Roofing area
- Siding
- Room area
There is no universal conversion from linear feet to square feet. Width is required because length alone does not define an area.