3rd grade area & perimeter worksheets
Area and perimeter worksheets for third grade draw a labeled rectangle for every problem and ask for the space inside or the distance around. Sides are single-digit, so the formulas connect straight to counting squares.
Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core 3.MD.C.7, 3.MD.D.8.
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Need one more? These are the skills next door at this grade.
The kind of problems you'll get
Find each requested measurement. Show your work and include units.
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A rectangle is 3 cm by 2 cm. Find its area and perimeter.
Answer: Area: 6 square cm. Perimeter: 3 plus 2 plus 3 plus 2 = 10 cm.
Most problems on this sheet sit beside a picture, model or diagram, so this is the worked example the sheet itself prints. The answer key on page two prints the answer under every problem.
Every print pulls a fresh set of problems at this level, so a make-up test or a second sibling never gets the same sheet.
What's on a 3rd grade sheet
- Area and perimeter. Find each requested measurement. Show your work and include units. 8 problems per page.
- Area by counting unit squares. Count the unit squares to find each area. Include square units. 8 problems per page.
- Covering shapes with unit squares. Choose the covering with equal squares and no gaps or overlaps. 6 problems per page.
- Area and perimeter story problems. Find each requested measurement. Show your work and include units. 8 problems per page.
Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key after the problems.
How to teach this
Draw one rectangle on grid paper and do both measures on it: count the squares inside, then walk a finger around the border counting the edges. Area fills, perimeter fences. Have your child write the unit with every answer: square units inside, plain units around.
Watch for: Kids mix up the two measures. Perimeter adds the walk around the edge; area multiplies to fill the inside. Kids multiply for perimeter out of habit. A rectangle's perimeter is 2 × (length + width), an adding recipe, not length × width.
Common questions about 3rd grade area & perimeter
- Do area and perimeter use the same numbers?
- Same sides, different recipes. Area multiplies the two sides to fill the inside; perimeter adds all four sides to travel the border.
- Why does area come out so much bigger sometimes?
- It's counting every square inside the shape, not just the edge. A 6 × 4 rectangle holds 24 squares but only takes 20 steps to walk around.
Related worksheets
- 4th grade area & perimeter A step harder, same skill
- 3rd grade rectilinear area Same grade, nearby skill
- 3rd grade area & perimeter word problems Word problems for this skill
- 3rd grade area by counting unit squares A version of this sheet, on its own page
- Area & perimeter, all grades The full progression
- All 3rd grade math worksheets Every skill at this level
- All 3rd grade worksheets Everything at this level
- Geometry formulas chart Reference chart · 3rd grade to 8th grade
- Printable graph paper Reference chart · 3rd grade to 8th grade
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Aligned to Common Core 3.MD.C.7, 3.MD.D.8. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated September 2026.
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