How Big is an Acre of Land?
A question we frequently hear at Budget Land is, “How big is an acre?”
To help answer this question, we’ve created three illustrations to give you a clear idea of how much space an acre covers.
Then, we’ll discuss how much food you can grow, and how many animals you can keep on an acre.
Let’s get started!
Three Size Comparisons
Football Field
An acre is about the size of an American football field. To be exact, a football field (minus the endzones) is 48,000 square feet, and an acre is 43,560 square feet. So, an acre covers just over 75% of the field.
15 Tennis Courts
An acre is about the size of 15 tennis courts. A tennis court is 78 feet long and 36 feet wide (2,808 square feet), so you could fit 15 ½ tennis courts inside an acre.
Subdivision with 10 Single-Family Homes
Many single-family homes in the US have a lot size of 0.10 acres. So, these single-family subdivisions will have about ten homes per acre.
What Can You Do with an Acre of Land?
Now that you have a sense of the size of an acre, let’s talk about what you can do with an acre of land. If you search the internet, or look through books on homesteading, you’ll quickly find that there are hundreds of ideas for enjoying, thriving on, and even monetizing an acre of land.
We’re going to focus on two areas that we’re frequently asked about: how much food you can grow, and how many animals you can keep, on an acre.
How Much Food Can You Grow on an Acre?
How much food you can grow on an acre will depend on factors such as the climate and soil composition. But, under the right conditions, an acre can produce a large amount of produce and crops. According to some estimates, an acre of farmed land can produce as much as 42,000 pounds of strawberries, 25,000 pounds of potatoes, or 10,000 pounds of lettuce!
Some sources say that you can grow enough food on an acre of land to feed a family of four, although other sources suggest that about 2 acres is more realistic for a family to be entirely self-sufficient.
How Many Animals Can You Keep on an Acre?
The number of animals you can successfully raise on an acre will depend on several considerations, including the amount of available forage and how much supplemental feed you are willing to provide. In general, animals with lower feed conversion ratios will be better suited for smaller plots of land.
Therefore, while it wouldn’t be realistic to keep a herd of cows on 1-acre, other animals such as chickens, goats, sheep, pigs, ducks, and rabbits are very realistic.
To give you a general idea, it is estimated that you can comfortably keep 100 chickens, 8 goats or sheep, or 30 pigs on 1-acre of land.
Becoming a Landowner
As you can see, the opportunities that come with owning land are virtually limitless! If you’re interested in learning more about becoming a landowner, our team of local land experts are ready to help! We’ve helped individuals purchase land for years.
Whether you’re ready to buy land now, or are simply interested in learning more, a member of the Budget Land team is ready to help. Contact us today!