The Tape Measure tool can measure a distance, create a guide, or reveal coordinates along an axis. The default keyboard shortcut for the Tape Measure (
) and the tool can be found in the following toolbars:
- Getting Started toolbar
- Construction toolbar
- Large Tool Set toolbar
- Tools menu on the menu bar
- Tools palette (macOS)
The Tape Measure has three modes, identified by a unique cursor. You can press CTRL while the Tape Measure is active to cycle through each mode:
- Create Guide Lines (
) - Create Guide Points (
) - Measure ()
For information on how to create a guide line or point with the Tape Measure, see Using Guides.
If you want to know the measurement of a line in your model, activate the Tape Measure and hover over it. The measurement will appear in the Measurements Box. To measure specific parts of your geometry, like a smaller segment of a line, with the Tape Measure, follow these steps:
- Activate the Tape Measure tool ().
- By default, the Tape Measure will be in Create Guide Lines mode. Press CTRL to cycle through the modes until it is in Measure mode.
- Click the starting point of your measurement.
Move the cursor in the direction you want to measure.
- Press Esc at any time to cancel if you need to start over.
- Click at the ending point of your measurement. The distance from the start point appears in the Measurements box.
When you enter a value in the measurements box after measuring an entity, SketchUp asks whether you want to resize your model. See Scaling Your Model or Parts of Your Model for more details on resizing entities.