Surface Area Calculator – Surface Area Formulas
Find the surface area of a shape by entering the dimensions and selecting a unit of measurement.
Rectangular Prism
Cube
Sphere
Cylinder
Cone
Pyramid
Capsule
Cap
On this page:
- Surface Area Calculator
- How to Find Surface Area
- Surface Area Formulas
- Cube Surface Area Formula
- Rectangular Prism Surface Area Formula
- Sphere Surface Area Formula
- Cylinder Surface Area Formula
- Cone Surface Area Formula
- Pyramid Surface Area Formula
- Capsule Surface Area Formula
- Cap Surface Area Formula
How to Find Surface Area
Surface area SA is the measure of the area of the surface of a 3-dimensional geometric shape or object. Surface area is measured in square units, such as square inches or feet.
Surface area is equal to the area of each side of an object added together. For instance, the surface area of a cube is equal to the area of each of the six sides of the cube added up.
When calculating the surface area of a shape, it is important to take all measurements using the same unit of measure. If your measurements are in different units, convert each measurement to the unit you want the results in.
Use our length unit conversion calculators to convert your measurements to a consistent unit.
Of course, the easiest way to find surface area is to use a calculator like the one above, but you can also find it using a formula. Read on to learn how to do it yourself.
Surface Area Formulas
Find the surface area for common shapes using the formulas below.
Cube Surface Area Formula
SA = 6a2
a = edge a length

Rectangular Prism Surface Area Formula
SA = 2lw + 2lh + 2wh
l = length
w = width
h = height

Sphere Surface Area Formula
SA = 4πr2
r = radius

Cylinder Surface Area Formula
SA = 2πr(r + h)
base surface area = 2πr2
lateral surface area = 2πrh
r = radius
h = height

Cone Surface Area Formula
SA = πr(r + r2 + h2)
base surface area = πr2
lateral surface area = πrr2 + h2
r = radius
h = height

Pyramid Surface Area Formula
SA = e2 + 2e(e ÷ 2)2 + h2
base surface area = e2
lateral surface area = 2e(e ÷ 2)2 + h2
e = edge length
h = height

Capsule Surface Area Formula
SA = 2πr(2r + h)
end surface area = 4πr2
lateral surface area = 2πrh
r = radius
h = height

Cap Surface Area Formula
SA = π(r2 + h2) + πr2
base surface area = πr2
top surface area = π(r2 + h2)
r = radius
h = height

You’ll probably also find our area and volume calculators useful. We have formulas for many geometric shapes.