Measuring On-Screen in Photoshop

You can measure distances and objects within Photoshop many different ways. The rulers, used in combination with guides, are a good way to mark distances precisely so that you can create objects of a particular size. You can change the increments used for these measurements in Photoshop’s Preferences.

However, Photoshop also has a handy Measure tool you can use to lay measurement outlines in any direction (not just vertically or horizontally as with grids and guides). These lines tell you a great deal more than just the size of the object you’re measuring. You can also measure angles and determine the exact coordinates of an object.

When you use the Measure tool, the Options bar offers a read-out of information that includes the following values:

-->X, Y — the X and Y coordinates of the start of the line: For example, if you start at the 1-inch position on the horizontal ruler and the 3-inch position on the vertical ruler, the X and Y values in the Options bar are 1.0 and 3.0, respectively. (You select the increments for the X and Y values on the ruler in Photoshop’s Preferences.)

-->W, H — the horizontal (W) and vertical (H) distances traveled from the X and Y points: A 1-inch long, perfectly horizontal line drawn from the X,1 and Y,3 position shows a W value of 1.0 and an H value of 0.0.

-->A: The angle of the first line.

-->D1: The total length of the line.

-->D2: The total length of the second line.