Volume Calculator - Rectangles, Cubes
Calculate the volume of a rectangle or square, plus its surface area, and amount of liquid it can hold.
Rectangle Volume Calculator FYIs...
Cubes are square, so you only need to enter 1 dimension, as all sides are equal. Enter height only for cubes; Other dimensions are ignored for cubes. For rectangles, enter:
Height is from top to bottom; Width is left to right distance; Depth is front to back measurement.
Rectangle Surface Area Calculation
Surface area is calculated by adding up all external sides of the rectangle or cube.
For a rectangle, there are six sides: 3 sets of 2 sides across from each other that are the same size. To calculate the area of a rectangle:
Top/Bottom Area (S1): 2 x width x depth
Front/Back Side Area (S2): 2 x width x height
Left/Right Area (S3): 2 x depth x height
Area = S1 + S2 + S3
For a cube, all 6 sides are the same size, so the calculation is:
Note that we used height for a cube, but any side could be used.
Rectangle Volume Calculation
Volume is how much of a liquid (or solid) the rectangular piece can hold. For example, in a fish tank, it's the number of gallons of water the tank holds. In a rectangular pottery casserole, it's the amount of dirt it could hold. To calculate the volume of a rectangle:
The result of calculating the rectangle's volume is in cubic inches (or centimeters). Using the volume, the liquid capacity of the rectangle is calculated in several common metrics (cups, ounces, pints, litres, etc.)
Note that the volume capacity will be slightly larger than required unless you measure from the inside walls of the container; Otherwise, the wall width for all sides are included in the calculation.