If you’re planning to purchase land in Thailand, you certainly need to understand how to measure land area in Thailand as it may not be what you are used to. Thailand has its own way of confusing foreign guests by referring to measurements of land not as miles, acres and kilometers, but as rai.

Most land sizes in Thailand are measured in “rai”, with 1 rai of land being equal to 1,600 square meters. In terms of acreage, 1 rai is roughly 0.4 acres / 0.16 hectares. 

Other terms you may hear when discussing land size in Thailand are “ngan” and “talang wah”. 1 ngan is equal to 100 talang wah or 400 sqm and 1 talang wah is equal to 4 sqm. 

Converting Thai To Metric 

1 Talang Wah = 4 m2
100 Talang Wah = 400 m2
400 Talang Wah = 1,600 m2 (1Rai)
1 Rai = 1,600 m2 (400 Talang Wah)
1 Rai = approx. 0.40 Acre
1 Rai = 0.16 Hectare
1 Rai = 17,216 ft2