How to Measure 2D Distance Between Two Points In AutoCAD

by George Mylne // Last edited February 18, 2023
Check results and see the 2d distance that you have measured 220416

By default, the DISTANCE command in AutoCAD measures the 3d distance between the two points you select. To measure the 2d distance between two points you can either:

  • Change the OSNAPZ variable to 1, or
  • FLATTEN the whole drawing to make the elevation of everything 0.

My preference is to change the OSNAPZ variable, and the steps to do this are listed below.

How to measure 2d distance between two points in autocad 220416

How to Measure 2D Distance In AutoCAD

Total Time: 1 minute

  1. Change OSNAPZ variable

    Autocad change osnapz variable to 1 220416

    Type in OSNAPZ into the command line and change it to 1.

  2. Measure a 2d distance

    Run the distance commant 220416

    Once you have changed the OSNAPZ variable you can enter in DISTANCE into the command bar and measure a 2d distance between 2 points in AutoCAD.

  3. Check results

    Check results and see the 2d distance that you have measured 220416

    Check the distance results to verify that you are measuring a 2d distance. The Delta Z is showing 0.000 so we can be sure that it has only measured a 2d distance.

    If you want to measure distance in 3d again, then change the OSNAPZ system variable to 0.

About the author George Mylne

George has been a surveyor for over 13 years, working across a wide range of projects and industries. In this blog, he shares his experiences and information gathered from his time on mining, civil and surveying projects.

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