One acre is defined as 43,560 square feet, which is a helpful measurement for understanding land size. To put it in perspective, that’s slightly smaller than an American football field. But what does an acre really mean in terms of value and practical use? This guide breaks down the size of an acre, explores the factors influencing its worth, and provides valuable insights for anyone curious about land ownership, from potential homebuyers to those interested in agricultural land.
Key Facts About an Acre of Land:
- An acre is approximately the size of a football field, offering a relatable visual.
- The value of an acre fluctuates significantly based on numerous variables, making generalizations challenging.
- The average cost of land in the contiguous United States is around $12,000 per acre, but this figure is highly variable.
- Location and land development status (presence of roads, buildings, utilities) are crucial determinants of an acre’s value and cost.
- In many urban centers, the land itself can be worth more than any structures built upon it.
Visualizing an Acre: How Big is it Really?
The precise measurement of an acre is 43,569 square feet.
In other units, an acre is also equivalent to:
- 4,840 square yards
- 0.4047 hectares (where one hectare is 4,047 square meters)
- 1/640th of a square mile (one square mile contains 640 acres, often referred to as a “section” in land surveying)
- 1/16th of a “quarter” section in land surveying (a “quarter” is 40 acres)
While these numbers are accurate, they can be difficult to visualize. For most people, picturing square footage or hectares doesn’t immediately translate to a real-world sense of size. That’s where relatable comparisons come in handy.
Alt text: Aerial view of an American football field, used as a size comparison to visualize one acre of land.
The Football Field Analogy: Imagine an American football field. A standard football field covers approximately 48,000 square feet. This makes it about 10% larger than an acre. So, to visualize an acre, picture roughly 90% of a football field. For a quick estimate, thinking of five acres as roughly the size of five football fields is a useful approximation.
This comparison provides a memorable and easily understood benchmark for grasping the size of an acre. It’s also a fun fact to share – a football field is just slightly bigger than one acre!
Other Acre Comparisons:
- Houses: You could comfortably fit around eighteen 2,400 square foot homes on a single acre of land.
- Tennis Courts: A tennis court is about 2,800 square feet. Therefore, approximately sixteen tennis courts would fill an acre.
- Parking Spaces: Assuming a standard parking space size of 10 feet by 18 feet (180 square feet), you could fit about 242 parking spaces on an acre. This calculation excludes driving lanes and turning areas, envisioning only rows of parking spaces.
Historical Origin of the Acre: Interestingly, the term “acre” has historical roots related to agriculture. It originally represented the amount of land a yoke of oxen could plow in a single day. The Middle English word “aker” essentially meant “field,” highlighting its long-standing connection to land measurement.
What Factors Determine the Value of an Acre of Land?
Determining the value of an acre of land is not straightforward. There’s no single “price per acre” that applies universally. Numerous factors come into play, making land valuation a complex process. To accurately assess the value, specific details about the land and its context are essential.
Key questions to consider when evaluating land value include:
- Existing Structures: Is there a house or any other building on the land? Existing structures significantly impact value, whether adding to or detracting from it, depending on their condition and desirability.
- Development Potential: Is the land suitable for building? Zoning regulations, soil quality, and topography all influence development potential and, consequently, value.
- Location and Surroundings: What are the surrounding areas like? Proximity to urban centers, amenities, natural features, and even viewsheds greatly affect land prices.
- Market Demand: How desirable is land in this particular area? Supply and demand dynamics play a crucial role in determining market value.
A 2015 report by economist William Larson, analyzing land values across the United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii), provides some broad context. This report estimated that the total value of the 1.9 billion acres in the contiguous US was nearly $23 trillion, resulting in an average value of approximately $12,000 per acre.
However, Larson’s report emphasizes the inherent difficulty in precisely valuing land, particularly in urban areas. He notes, “While farmland quantities and values have been regularly tracked by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) since the 19th century, urban land is typically transacted as part of a bundle including structures and other improvements, making separated land value data difficult to estimate and tabulate. Because the most valuable land is in cities, the issue of land-structure value separability is fundamental to national land value accounting.”
Essentially, because land is often bought and sold with buildings and improvements, isolating the pure value of the land itself is challenging, especially in densely populated areas. The report also highlights the vast disparity in land values across states, with the most valuable state’s land being over 100 times more expensive per acre than the least valuable state.
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States with the Lowest Land Value (General Land Value)
These figures represent general land value per acre and can vary significantly based on specific location and land characteristics within each state.
- Wyoming: $1,558 per acre
- New Mexico: $1,931 per acre
- Nevada: $2,116 per acre
- South Dakota: $2,135 per acre
- Montana: $2,283 per acre
- North Dakota: $2,517 per acre
- Nebraska: $2,936 per acre
- Idaho: $3,435 per acre
- Kansas: $4,220 per acre
- Arizona: $4,328 per acre
States with the Highest Land Value (General Land Value)
- New Jersey: $196,410 per acre
- Rhode Island: $133,730 per acre
- Connecticut: $128,824 per acre
- Massachusetts: $102,214 per acre
- Maryland: $75,429 per acre
- Delaware: $57,692 per acre
- New York: $41,314 per acre
- California: $39,092 per acre
- Ohio: $32,077 per acre
- Pennsylvania: $31,923 per acre
These lists illustrate the dramatic range in land values across the US, emphasizing that “How Much Is An Acre” is highly dependent on location.
Key Factors Influencing Acre Value:
Beyond location, several other factors significantly impact the value of an acre of land:
- Land Development: Development is arguably the most significant value driver. Larson’s report highlights that over half of the total land value in the contiguous US is concentrated in just 6% of the acreage, precisely because this land is developed with infrastructure and buildings. Developed land, ready for use, commands a premium.
- Location (Urban vs. Rural): As expected, land in urban areas is generally more valuable than land in rural or suburban settings. Coastal areas, particularly on the East and West Coasts, often have the highest land values due to demand and limited supply. Farmland valuation follows different metrics, discussed later. Supply and demand dynamics are fundamental to location’s impact on land value.
- Infrastructure and Accessibility: Beyond just urban vs. rural, the accessibility and infrastructure available to a piece of land are critical. Are there paved roads providing access? Are essential utilities like sewer, water, and electricity readily available (“on the grid”)? Land with established infrastructure is more valuable as it reduces development costs and timelines.
- Permissible Land Use: Zoning regulations and the potential uses of the land significantly impact its value. Factors like soil stability for building, environmental considerations (e.g., flood zones, wetlands), and suitability for specific activities (e.g., agriculture, commercial development) all play a role. Topography, water rights, and mineral rights also fall under this category.
- Economic Activity: Local and regional economic conditions directly influence land values, similar to housing prices. Areas with strong economies, job growth, and thriving industries tend to have higher land values. Just as a house in a booming city is more expensive, land in economically vibrant areas commands higher prices.
- Aesthetic and Environmental Amenities: Even neighboring plots of land can differ in value based on subjective factors like views. Scenic views, proximity to natural amenities (parks, lakes, mountains), and even privacy can enhance land value.
Residential Land Value Per Acre
For those interested in building a home on a vacant lot or redeveloping a property, understanding residential land prices is crucial. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) conducted in-depth research on residential land prices. Their Working Paper 19-01, “The Price of Residential Land for Counties, ZIP codes, and Census Tracts in the United States,” using millions of appraisals from 2012 to 2019, provides detailed estimates of residential land values.
Analyzing state-level rankings from this FHFA data (pooled cross-sectional estimates, base year 2015) provides a valuable overview of residential land costs.
States with the Most Affordable Residential Land (As-Is)
These figures represent the value of residential land in its “as-is” condition, reflecting the cost of land suitable for residential development before significant improvements.
- Mississippi: $39,400 per acre
- Arkansas: $47,200 per acre
- West Virginia: $53,800 per acre
- Alabama: $63,200 per acre
- Indiana: $72,200 per acre
- Oklahoma: $76,800 per acre
- Tennessee: $78,900 per acre
- Kentucky: $82,500 per acre
- Kansas: $88,300 per acre
- Iowa: $89,100 per acre
States with the Most Expensive Residential Land (As-Is)
- District of Columbia: $4,140,100 per acre (Note: DC is a district, not a state, but included in the data)
- New York: $2,163,600 per acre
- Hawaii: $2,049,200 per acre
- California: $1,832,300 per acre
- New Jersey: $689,000 per acre
- Massachusetts: $573,000 per acre
- Washington: $450,800 per acre
- Maryland: $435,800 per acre
- Colorado: $416,400 per acre
- Oregon: $413,200 per acre
These rankings underscore the immense regional variations in residential land costs across the United States.
Land vs. House Value: Which is Worth More?
The FHFA research also revealed interesting trends regarding land value appreciation relative to house prices. In major metropolitan areas, land prices increased at a faster rate than house prices during the study period (2012-2019). Conversely, in smaller metropolitan areas, house prices tended to appreciate more than land values.
Hawaii stands out as the state where land constitutes the largest proportion of overall property value. FHFA data indicated that land accounted for 62% of property value in Hawaii in 2019. In contrast, North Dakota had the lowest land share, at only 18% of property value, highlighting the diverse relationship between land and structure value across different markets.
Farmland Value Per Acre
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Alt text: Bird’s eye view of green farmland, illustrating the agricultural use and value of land.
Acreage is a fundamental consideration for agricultural purposes. For those considering farming or investing in agricultural land, understanding farmland values is essential.
Several key definitions are important when discussing farmland value:
- What Defines a Farm? The USDA typically defines a farm as any operation that produces and sells at least $1,000 worth of agricultural products annually.
- Farm Real Estate Value: This metric, central to farmland valuation, represents the estimated market value of a farm if sold under typical market conditions at the time of reporting (data cited here is from August 2020). It encompasses both the land and any buildings on the farm, including residences and agricultural structures.
- Cropland Value: Cropland includes land used for growing crops and land harvested for hay. Cropland can be further categorized as irrigated or non-irrigated. Irrigated land, which receives supplemental water, is generally more valuable than non-irrigated land relying solely on rainfall. For example, in Texas in 2020, irrigated cropland was valued at $2,360 per acre, while non-irrigated cropland was valued at $1,980 per acre (USDA-NASS data). The average US cropland value (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) in 2020 was $4,100 per acre.
- Pasture, Grazing, and Grassland Value: This category includes land primarily used for livestock grazing. The average value for pastureland in the US (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) in 2020 was $1,400 per acre. The Southeast region had the highest pastureland values, averaging $4,230 per acre in 2020.
Data on farmland values is primarily sourced from the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The “Land Values 2020 Summary” from USDA-NASS provides comprehensive data on farmland values across the US.
According to NASS, the average farm real estate value in the US (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) in 2020 was $3,160 per acre. This represents a significant increase of 73% since 2006, when the average was $1,830 per acre, highlighting the long-term appreciation of farmland.
2020 Farm Real Estate Value by Region (Lowest to Highest Value)
These regional values reflect average farm real estate value per acre in 2020, ordered from lowest to highest. Note that for the Mountain region, data excludes American Indian Reservation land in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
- Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY): $1,240 per acre
- Southern Plains (OK, TX): $2,110 per acre
- Northern Plains (KS, NE, ND, SD): $2,120 per acre
- Delta States (AR, LA, MS): $3,130 per acre
- Southeast (AL, FL, GA, SC): $4,120 per acre
- Appalachian (KY, NC, TN, VA, WV): $4,140 per acre
- Lake States (MI, MN, WI): $4,860 per acre
- Northeast (CT, DE, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT): $5,710 per acre
- Pacific (CA, OR, WA): $5,910 per acre
- Corn Belt (IL, IN, IA, MO, OH): $6,110 per acre
These regional figures provide a valuable perspective on the geographic distribution of farmland values across the United States.
Understanding Acre Value: Key Takeaways
Determining “how much is an acre” is not a simple question with a single answer. The value of an acre of land is dynamic and influenced by a complex interplay of factors. Location, development status, available infrastructure, permitted land uses, economic conditions, and even aesthetic qualities all contribute to its worth.
However, you now have a solid understanding of the size of an acre – visualize it as slightly smaller than an American football field, or imagine fitting 16 tennis courts or 242 parking spaces within its boundaries. This knowledge, coupled with an understanding of the key factors influencing land value, provides a valuable foundation for anyone exploring the world of land ownership and investment.
Frequently Asked Questions About Acre Size and Cost
What is considered a good price per acre?
A “good” price is entirely dependent on your intended use for the land and its location. Factors like location, development, infrastructure, permitted uses, and economic activity all determine what constitutes a good price. The average value of land in the contiguous US is around $12,000 per acre (according to a 2015 report), but this is just a broad average. Specific land parcels can vary dramatically in value.
How many football fields equal one acre?
An American football field is approximately 10% larger than one acre. An acre is 43,569 square feet, while a football field is about 48,000 square feet. Therefore, an acre is slightly less than a football field.
What does one acre actually mean in practical terms?
One acre is 43,569 square feet. This area could accommodate approximately 16 tennis courts or 242 standard parking spaces. It’s also roughly 90% the size of an American football field.
How many houses can you fit on five acres?
If you can comfortably fit eighteen 2,400 square foot houses on one acre, then five acres could potentially accommodate around 90 houses, assuming similar density and layout.
How many acres is a square mile?
One square mile is equivalent to 640 acres.
Cover photo image by Maria Orlova on Pexels.com
If you are considering buying a house and have questions about property size, land value, or any other aspect of the home buying process, the experts at Flyhomes are available to assist you. Contact us today for personalized guidance.
