How to find the total length of multiple lines in AutoCAD?

ByCADbrief Staff

Short Answer

To find the total length of multiple lines in AutoCAD, the fastest professional method is to use DATAEXTRACTION to report the Length property for selected linework and total it automatically. This works well for lines, polylines, and arcs in one workflow. Limitation: separate object types or broken segments may need cleanup first.

What You Need to Know Before

Warning: If your objects are mixed between Lines, Polylines, Arcs, or splined geometry, the extracted results can be split into different categories and your total may not match what you expect at first glance. Objects inside blocks or on locked/xref layers can also be missed depending on selection scope.

How to Find the Total Length of Multiple Lines in AutoCAD

  • Command: DATAEXTRACTION

  • Shortcut: DX

  • Quick Steps:

    1. Type DATAEXTRACTION in the command line, or go to the Insert tab > Linking & Extraction panel > Extract Data.
    2. Create a new data extraction, choose Select objects in the current drawing, and select the lines/polyline objects you want to measure.
    3. In the object/property pages, keep only the needed object types, enable the Length property, and turn on the option to Sum values or output the table so AutoCAD totals the length.

Variables & Settings

  • Key Setting: Combine identical rows in the Data Extraction wizard

  • Expert Setting: If this option is enabled, AutoCAD groups matching objects and can summarize quantities more cleanly. If disabled, every object is listed separately, which is useful for checking odd segments before trusting the total length.

Why it Fails

  • Cause 1 (Geometry): The selected objects are not all measurable as simple linear elements, or some are splines/3D objects with different reported properties.
  • Cause 2 (Layers/Locks): Some linework is inside blocks, on locked layers, or in xrefs, so it is not included in the extraction scope.
  • Cause 3 (Command/Logic): Users often use Properties on multiple objects expecting one grand total, but AutoCAD does not always give a combined length across mixed object types that way.

Quick Fix & Best Practice

  • Quick Fix: Run PEDIT and use Join to combine connected segments into a polyline before extracting length if the geometry is fragmented.
  • Manager’s Verdict: Use DATAEXTRACTION when you need a reliable, reportable total for multiple objects. For quick checks, Properties may help, but for production quantity takeoff, extraction is the safer workflow.

FAQ

Can I total polyline lengths in AutoCAD?

Yes, DATAEXTRACTION can total the Length property for selected polylines.

Can AutoCAD show total length directly in Properties?

Not reliably for all mixed object selections; use DATAEXTRACTION for a proper total.

Do lines inside blocks count in the total?

Yes, but only if your extraction scope includes block contents and the objects are selectable in the workflow.

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