Updated for 2026 · Converts between the land units used in Tamil Nadu property dealings.
- 1 cent = 435.6 sq ft
- 1 ground = 2,400 sq ft (about 5.51 cents)
- 1 acre = 100 cents = 43,560 sq ft (about 18.15 grounds)
- 1 hectare = 2.471 acres
- Chennai quotes grounds; rural land is quoted in cents and acres.
The units you will actually meet
| Unit | In square feet | Where it is used |
|---|---|---|
| Cent | 435.6 | Most common across Tamil Nadu for plots and agricultural land |
| Ground | 2,400 | Chennai and larger towns, for house sites |
| Acre | 43,560 (100 cents) | Agricultural land |
| Hectare | 107,639 | Official revenue records |
| Square metre | 10.764 | Approved layouts, building plans |
| Square yard | 9 | Occasionally in older documents |
Why this trips people up
Tamil Nadu property is quoted in different units depending on who is speaking. A Chennai broker talks in grounds. A village seller talks in cents. The revenue record shows hectares and ares. An approved layout plan shows square metres. All four can describe the same piece of land, and a buyer comparing two properties quoted in different units can easily misjudge which is larger.
The safest habit is to convert everything to square feet before comparing price or size, because that is the unit in which rate-per-unit is most intuitive. A plot at "₹8 lakh per ground" and one at "₹18,000 per cent" are much easier to compare once both are expressed per square foot.
A worked example
3 × 2,400 = 7,200 sq ft
7,200 ÷ 435.6 = 16.53 cents
7,200 ÷ 43,560 = 0.165 acre
So "3 grounds" and "16.5 cents" describe the same land. If one seller quotes ₹9,00,000 per ground and another ₹1,70,000 per cent, the second is dearer — ₹1,70,000 per cent works out to roughly ₹9,36,000 per ground.
A caution on local units
Older documents and rural transactions still use local units — kuzhi, ankanam, ma and veli — and these are not standard across districts. The same word can mean different areas in Thanjavur and in Tirunelveli. Because of that variation, this converter deliberately covers only the units that are consistent statewide. If a document quotes a local unit, confirm its value with the village administrative officer or the sub-registrar office for that taluk rather than assuming a figure from the internet — on a land purchase, a wrong assumption about a local unit is an expensive error.
Check the area against the record
Whatever the seller quotes, the extent that matters legally is the one in the revenue records. Verify it against the patta and chitta, and where boundaries are in question, against the FMB sketch, which shows the measured shape of the parcel. If the marketed extent and the recorded extent differ, resolve that before paying an advance, not afterwards.
Related guides
See the stamp duty calculator, the guideline value guide, and how to run a survey number search.
Comparing price, not just size
Once you can convert area, the more useful trick is converting rate. Divide the asking price by the area in square feet and you get a figure you can compare across any two properties, however they were quoted. A site of 3 grounds at ₹27,00,000 works out to ₹27,00,000 ÷ 7,200 = ₹375 per sq ft. A plot of 20 cents at ₹35,00,000 works out to ₹35,00,000 ÷ 8,712 = ₹402 per sq ft. Expressed that way the comparison is immediate, whereas "₹9 lakh a ground" against "₹1.75 lakh a cent" tells you very little at a glance.
The units in your revenue record
One more conversion catches buyers out. Revenue records — the patta and the A-register — express extent in hectares and ares, not cents or grounds. An are is 100 square metres, and a hectare is 100 ares. So a patta showing 0.40.5 is reading hectares, ares and square metres: 0 hectares, 40 ares and 5 square metres, which is 4,005 square metres, or roughly 43,110 sq ft — just under an acre.
This matters because the extent in the revenue record is the legally recorded area, while the figure in the sale advertisement is whatever the seller chose to quote. If you convert the patta extent and it does not match what you are being sold, stop and resolve the difference before paying anything. Discrepancies usually mean either an unrecorded subdivision, an encroachment, or simply an optimistic advertisement — but all three are cheaper to discover before the advance than after.
Frequently asked questions
How many square feet is 1 cent?
435.6 square feet.
How many square feet is 1 ground?
2,400 square feet, which is about 5.51 cents.
How many cents in an acre?
100 cents, which is 43,560 square feet.
How many grounds in an acre?
About 18.15 grounds.
Are kuzhi and ankanam standard?
No. These local units vary between districts, so confirm the value locally with the village administrative officer or sub-registrar rather than relying on a general figure.
About ComplyKraft. Built by Dinesh Kumar S in Chennai — B.Sc. Mathematics, M.Sc. IT. Plain-language guides to Tamil Nadu government services and schemes.
Disclaimer: Informational guide, updated 2026. This is not official government communication. Conversion factors for cent, ground and acre are standard, but local units vary by district — confirm local measures with the village administrative officer or sub-registrar office.