Rent Per Square Foot Calculator
Comparing apartments of different sizes and rents is hard by eye. Cost per square foot puts them on the same footing — compare up to three at once.
Residential rent is usually quoted per square foot per month; commercial space is almost always quoted per square foot per year. Both are shown.
The Formula
Rent per sq ft = monthly rent ÷ square footage
$1,800 ÷ 900 sq ft = $2.00/sq ft per month, or $24.00/sq ft per year
Why Smaller Units Always Look Expensive
A studio nearly always has a higher cost per square foot than a two-bedroom in the same building, and that is not a rip-off. Every unit needs a kitchen and a bathroom regardless of size, so those fixed costs are spread across less space. Compare like with like — studio against studio, two-bed against two-bed — or the metric will mislead you.
Also check what the square footage includes. Some listings count balconies, basements, or shared space; some measure to the exterior wall. An apparently cheaper per-foot rate is sometimes just a more generous tape measure.
What It Misses
- Layout. An efficient 800 sq ft lives larger than an awkward 900 with wasted hallway.
- What is included. Heat, water, parking, or internet in the rent can be worth $150–300 a month.
- Condition and light. A renovated unit and a tired one can price identically per foot.
- Commute. Frequently worth more per month than the rent difference.
For Landlords Setting Rent
Per-square-foot rates are the cleanest way to price a unit against recently leased comparables, because they adjust for size automatically. Pull three or four genuinely comparable listings, compute their rate, and apply it to your footage as a sanity check on the number you had in mind. Then use the rent increase calculator at renewal, and the NOI calculator to see what the rent actually leaves you after expenses.
Related Calculators
rent affordability calculator · rent split calculator · rent increase calculator · NOI calculator
Pricing a Unit You Own?
Kelpic keeps rent, square footage, and lease history for every unit in one place — so setting a renewal rate does not start with digging through old paperwork.
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