How to Extract Quantities from AutoCAD: From Drawing to Takeoff Step by Step

Oct 1, 2026

The three ways to take off quantities from an AutoCAD drawing, how the Approx AutoCAD plugin transfers room measurements (area, perimeter, height) straight into takeoff rows, and how formula-based templates turn those measurements into work quantities.

Extracting quantities from AutoCAD means turning the geometry in a drawing (areas, lengths, counts) into work quantities. There are three ways to do it: read the dimensions by hand and type them into Excel, use AutoCAD's measurement commands and copy the values into a table, or use a takeoff plugin that sends the measurements straight into takeoff software. This article compares the three methods and walks through how the Approx AutoCAD plugin takes you from drawing to takeoff step by step.

Three ways to extract quantities from AutoCAD

1. Measuring by hand and typing into Excel

The most common method. The estimator reads the dimensions on the sheet, enters them room by room into an Excel table and builds the formulas manually. It works on small projects, but every dimension lives twice (in the drawing and in the table), a revision loses track of which cell belongs to which room, and the whole process depends on the person who built the file.

2. Using AutoCAD measurement commands

Commands such as AREA, DIST and LIST return the area and perimeter of a closed polyline. The values are still copied into Excel by hand. Measurement errors drop, but the data transfer step and the disconnect remain: when the drawing changes, the table does not update itself.

3. Transferring directly with a takeoff plugin

The plugin takes the measurement on the drawing and writes it to the matching work order in cloud-based takeoff software. The measurement is produced in one place, the room and work order context is preserved, and because formulas live in the template no calculation is built by hand. Approx offers this third path.

Step by step: from drawing to takeoff with the Approx AutoCAD plugin

  1. Install the plugin from the Autodesk App Store and restart AutoCAD.
  2. Sign in with your account from the Approx palette. The Projects, Work Type List and Work Order List tabs appear in the palette.
  3. Select the project and work order you will work on. The work order determines which room and work group the takeoff rows are written to in Approx.
  4. Select a row type from the Row Types palette. Today the ROOM and ODA row types are supported for room measurements.
  5. Type APL at the command line, enter the room height if prompted and click the points that form the room boundary. Press Enter or type Close to close the polyline.
  6. In the Transfer tab, refresh the transferable drawing elements and transfer them to the target work order. The measurements land in the Approx takeoff rows.

What the APL command creates

The APL (Approx Polyline) command creates two elements in the drawing:

  • Room boundary polyline: a closed polyline on the ApproxWorkOrder layer with a fixed line weight.
  • Room info block: a table placed at the centroid of the room containing the work order code, work group type, work type, row type, area (m²), perimeter (m) and height (m).

Area and perimeter are calculated automatically; the last entered height is remembered and suggested as the default for the next room. When a room is finished, the next work order in the list is selected automatically, so moving room by room is fast. See the APL command documentation for all options.

How drawing measurements become quantities

In Approx, takeoff rows are calculated with formula-based templates. The area, perimeter and height transferred for a room become inputs to the calculation fields in the template; work quantities such as wall area, plaster, paint, screed or ceiling are derived by the defined formulas. Because the same formula runs the same way in every room and for every user, the result is repeatable.

Once the quantities exist, the rows are linked to current public unit prices (ÇŞİDB, İLBANK, KGM and the other institution libraries), organization-specific analyses or pro forma prices, and the cost estimate tables are produced within the same structure. For the pricing step, see the Unit Prices, Work Items & Cost Analysis guide.

Things to watch out for

  • The room boundary must be a closed polyline; open lines return no area.
  • Measurements are taken in metric units (metres and square metres); make sure the drawing unit is metres.
  • Check that the correct work order and row type are selected before measuring; otherwise the data is written to the wrong room.
  • When the drawing is revised, re-transfer the measurements of the affected rooms; formula results and linked prices update on the existing structure, and regenerating the report is enough.
  • Not every work item comes from the drawing. Doors, windows, mechanical and electrical items are entered manually or imported with the Excel template.

Frequently asked questions

Does Approx extract a full takeoff from every drawing automatically?

No. The plugin transfers room measurements for the selected work order and the supported row types (currently ROOM and ODA). Turning quantities into work items happens through the template formulas; it is not an automation that converts a whole drawing into a takeoff by itself.

Can I export the transferred takeoff to Excel?

Yes. Approx exports takeoff rows and price data to Excel, and you can import your existing Excel tables with the template.

Is the AutoCAD integration included in the free plan?

The free plan is for access to public unit prices. Workplace features such as takeoff, work orders and AutoCAD transfer are part of the paid plans; compare them in the plans section.

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