Garden Scale Drawing Calculator — Real to Plan Dimensions

The RHS recommends 1:50 or 1:100 for an average garden — 1:50 (2cm on paper = 1m) suits small courtyard and town gardens, and 1:100 (1cm = 1m) suits most medium plots. Use 1:200 or 1:500 for large gardens and estates, and 1:20 or 1:10 for detail areas such as a patio or planting bed. Pick the scale by your longest measurement: choose the largest ratio that still fits the whole garden on your sheet.

Measure your boundaries first, recording the longest run, then pick a scale that fits that run on your paper. Convert each real measurement to its drawing size with this calculator, and plot onto graph paper or design software. At 1:50 each 10mm grid square is 0.5m of real garden; at 1:100 each square is 1m — count squares to position features quickly.

At 1:50, 1mm on the drawing represents 50mm (5cm) in real life, so 1cm on paper equals 0.5m in the garden and 2cm equals 1m. A 6m wall is drawn 120mm (12cm) long. The drawing size is always the real size divided by the scale denominator.

Yes. Most garden design software accepts dimensions in millimetres or works at full real-world size with the scale applied at print time. Enter the real measurements, set the same scale (e.g. 1:100) within the software, and check a known dimension against this calculator before printing.

On graph paper a fixed grid (commonly 10mm or 5mm squares) maps to a real garden distance once you fix the scale. This calculator shows that real size: at 1:50 a 10mm square is 0.5m, at 1:100 it is 1.0m, at 1:200 it is 2.0m. Counting squares then lets you place beds, paths and trees without re-measuring each one.