Xenmark/Tools/Scale Bar Generator

Scale Bar Generator

Make a true-size SVG scale bar from a drawing scale, a real length and one to ten labelled segments.

Nothing is sent anywhere. What you enter stays in this tab, on your machine.

Generate a scale bar

Use drawing:real, for example 1:50. The bar can be up to 500 mm long on paper, each segment at least 12 mm, and it must be long enough for its scale caption; the SVG adds 5 mm margins. Tick labels are display approximations.

The download is an SVG whose width and height are set in millimetres. Print at Actual size (100%), not Fit to page.

Save your download before you leave the page — it exists only in this tab.

How do I make a scale bar for a drawing?

  1. Enter the drawing ratio and the real length represented by the complete bar.

  2. Choose the real-length unit and a segment count from one to ten.

  3. Generate and download the SVG, preserve its physical dimensions when placing it, and verify the printed result.

How is a scale bar’s length worked out?

This scale bar generator makes a labelled SVG scale bar, sometimes called a graphic scale, at true size for any drawing scale, ready to place on a drawing or map layout.

The real length divided by the scale denominator gives the on-paper length for a 1:n ratio. A 10 m bar at 1:50 is 200 mm long. The download adds margins outside the bar and divides its length into equal labelled segments. Tick values are rounded to three significant figures for display; the bar geometry itself is not rounded.

How Xenmark makes it easy to make a scale bar for a drawing

  • A scale bar sized in real millimetres

    The SVG states its width and height in millimetres, so a 10 m bar at 1:50 downloads as a 200 mm bar with a 5 mm margin at each end.

  • Nothing you enter leaves this tab

    What you type is held and worked on in this tab only. There is no upload, no account and no server for it to go to.

  • One to ten labelled segments

    Divide the bar into as many as ten equal segments, alternating black and white, with a value under every tick and the unit printed beneath the bar.

  • Crowded labels are refused before download

    Segments narrower than 12 mm, or tick values that would run into each other, are refused with a reason instead of producing a scale bar nobody can read.

  • A plain vector file for your layout

    The download is one small SVG built from rectangles, lines and text, ready to place in layout or drawing software that accepts SVG. Labels are live text set in Arial or the nearest sans-serif available.

  • Nothing to install

    It runs in the browser you already have. There is no plug-in, no desktop application and no sign-up to get through first.

Limitations

What this tool does not do, stated up front.

  • The bar is accurate only when it retains its calculated dimensions through placement, export and printing.

  • Bars shorter than the labels need, or longer than 500 mm on paper, are refused, as are segments narrower than 12 mm. The screen preview is not a calibrated ruler.

  • A scale bar does not verify that the source drawing has the correct scale or satisfies project requirements.

Questions

How many segments can the bar have?

Choose one to ten. The generator also checks whether the selected physical length, up to 500 mm on paper, provides enough space for the labels.

How should I print the scale bar?

Keep the SVG at its stated millimetre dimensions and print at Actual size (100%) with Fit to page disabled. Measure the output to confirm its size.

How long is a 10 m scale bar at 1:50?

200 mm. Divide the real length by the scale: 10,000 mm ÷ 50 = 200 mm on paper.

Why did Xenmark build a free scale bar generator?

Xenmark AS is a Norwegian software company building browser-based drawing review tools for owners, consultants, operators and other teams that receive and review technical drawings. Those teams work with drawing numbers, revisions and client details that are not always meant to leave the office. So these everyday tools are free and run entirely in your browser: no account, and nothing you enter is sent anywhere. You can check that yourself — open your browser’s network tab, generate a scale bar, and watch nothing leave. What this tool cannot do is listed under Limitations above.

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