Rod

A rod is a unit of length in the U.S. customary system of measurement. In the past, a rod was also referred to as a perch or a pole. The unit of measurement originated as a surveying tool that, historically, ranged between 3 and 8 meters long. In the US customary system of units, it is defined as:

1 rod = 16.5 feet

1 rod = 5.0292 meters

The rod is often used alongside acres, which are traditionally defined as a rectangular area with a measurement of 66 × 660 feet, for a total area of 43,560 ft². Since a rod is 16.5 feet, rods and acres have the following relationship:

160 square rods = 1 acre = 43,560 ft²

In rods, a traditional acre is defined as the rectangular area with dimensions 40 × 4 rods. Below is the relationship between square rods and other measurements of area.

1 square rod = 1/160 = 0.00625 acres

1 square rod = 272.25 square feet

1 square rod = 30.25 square yards

1 square rod = 25.2928 square meters

It can be helpful to be able to convert between rods and other units of measurement of length and area since rods are not widely used, particularly outside of the US.