Marla, Kanal, Gaj: Understanding Pakistan's Land Measurement System
Pakistan's land measurement units are rooted in Mughal-era systems and vary by province. What a Marla means in Lahore is not the same as what it means in Peshawar.
Ask a property dealer in Lahore what "1 Marla" means, and ask the same question in Peshawar, and you'll get two different answers. Pakistan's land measurement system has the peculiarity of sharing the same unit names across provinces while assigning them different numerical values.
The Core Hierarchy
The fundamental structure is consistent: 20 Marla equals 1 Kanal, and 8 Kanal equals 1 Acre. These ratios hold everywhere in Pakistan — it's the absolute size of a Marla that varies by province.
The Gaj / Square Yard Question
In many Pakistani property contexts — particularly in Karachi — you'll encounter the term "Gaj" or "Square Yard." These are the same unit (1 Square Yard = 1 Gaj = 9 square feet).
Reading a DHA or Bahria Town Property Listing
When you see a DHA Lahore listing for a "10 Marla residential plot," that's 10 × 272.25 = 2,722.5 square feet. A "1 Kanal" plot is 5,445 square feet — just under half an acre.
Marla Size by Province
- Punjab (standard)
- 272.25 sq ft (25.29 sq m)
- Sindh
- 272.25 sq ft (same as Punjab)
- Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK)
- 225 sq ft (20.90 sq m)
- Balochistan
- 225–272 sq ft (varies)
- Islamabad (ICT)
- 272.25 sq ft (standard Punjab)
Sources & References
- [1] Pakistan Survey of India historical cadastral standards.
- [2] Lahore Development Authority (LDA) plot size specifications.