Scale bar
The scale bar is the divided bar in the map margin for reading distances off the map. Each segment stands for a set distance on the ground, such as a mile or a kilometre, and the left end is divided more finely.
How to read it
The USGS calls it a graphic scale bar and says most of its topographic maps have scale bars in the margin, in miles, feet and kilometres. The ratio printed with it is the map’s scale: at 1:63,360, one inch on the map is one mile on the ground, and on the 7.5-minute maps at 1:24,000 one inch is 2,000 feet. Natural Resources Canada describes the scale bar at the bottom of its maps, with a secondary division on the left for fractions of a kilometre.
Also searched as: 1:24,000, bar scale, graphic scale, map scale, scale on a map.
These pages describe what each symbol on a map shows. They are not navigation instructions: the map’s own legend says what each of its symbols means, and symbols differ between map series and editions.
Differences by country
A standard Canadian topographic map is at 1:50 000, where 2 cm is 1 km on the ground, says Natural Resources Canada. The Ordnance Survey’s Landranger maps are at 1:50 000 and its Explorer maps at 1:25 000. The USGS 7.5-minute map is at 1:24,000.
Read next
- Next in Topographic map symbolsTrail symbolA thin black dashed line on a USGS topographic map is a trail, a symbol the USGS keeps separate from its roads.
- The same shape in TV ratingsContent letters (D, L, S, V, FV)The letters after a TV rating say what kind of content earned it: D for suggestive dialogue, L for coarse or crude language, S for sexual situations, V for violence, and FV for fantasy violence on children’s programs.
More topographic map symbols
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with letters and numbers or squares and rectangles.
Sources
- Finding Your Way with Map and Compass, USGS Fact Sheet 035-01, March 2001, U.S. Geological Survey, From near to far: distance
- Topographic Maps: The Basics, Centre for Topographic Information guide, Natural Resources Canada, What is scale?; How do I measure distance on a map?
- Map reading: from the beginner to the advanced map reader, Ordnance Survey leaflet, Ordnance Survey, Map scale
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 9, 2026. How we research
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