Measure Workbench¶
In one sentence: The Measure workbench provides a unified measurement tool that reports distances, angles, lengths, areas, radii, positions, and centres of mass from selected geometry — with an optional quick- measurement display that shows live results as you hover over objects.
What is the Measure workbench for?¶
The Measure workbench is FreeCAD's Unified Measurement Facility (UMF) — a single, context-aware tool that detects what you have selected and applies the most appropriate measurement automatically.
Common uses:
- Checking the distance between two faces or vertices before adding a gap constraint.
- Reading the angle between two faces on an imported solid.
- Confirming the total edge length of a profile wire.
- Measuring the surface area of a face for coating calculations.
- Finding the radius of a cylindrical hole or arc.
- Locating the centre of mass of a solid for balance analysis.
Measure vs other measurement approaches¶
| Method | What it shows | Persists in document |
|---|---|---|
| Measure tool | Full measurement result with label in 3-D view | Yes (saved as Measure object) |
| Quick Measure | Live values in the status bar on selection | No — display only |
| Part → Check Geometry | Topological analysis, not measurement | No |
| TechDraw Dimensions | Dimensions on 2-D drawing sheet | Yes (in TechDraw page) |
| Sketcher dimensions | Driving/reference dimensions inside a sketch | Yes (in sketch) |
Use Measure when you want a measurement result displayed in the 3-D view and saved in the document. Use Quick Measure for fast spot checks.
Quick Measure (status bar)¶
Quick Measure is always active — it requires no activation. As you click to select geometry in the 3-D view, FreeCAD automatically evaluates what is selected and shows the result in the status bar at the bottom of the screen:
| Selection | Shown in status bar |
|---|---|
| One vertex | X, Y, Z position |
| One edge | Edge length (straight) or arc length |
| One circular edge | Radius |
| One face | Surface area |
| Two vertices | Distance between vertices |
| Two faces | Minimum distance between faces |
| Edge + face | Angle between edge and face |
Quick Measure results are not saved — they disappear when the selection changes. For a persistent annotation, use the full Measure tool.
See also¶
- Measure Tool — the unified measurement task panel