Convert square yards to square feet (sq yd to sq ft)

One square yard is exactly 9 square feet: three feet by three feet. The factor follows from the yard and needs nothing else.

Worked through: 20 sq yd x 9 = 180 sq ft.

Going the other way, one square foot is 0.1111111111 square yards.

For mental arithmetic: Multiply by 9. For prices per unit, divide by 9 instead.

Where this matters most is comparing prices, because flooring is quoted in both units and the price converts the opposite way from the area. Carpet at $27 a square yard is $3 a square foot, which is the figure to put beside a vinyl plank or tile quote in dollars per square foot. Multiplying the price by 9 instead of dividing it makes the carpet look eighty-one times more expensive than it would if the area were converted correctly. That error is large enough that someone catches it. Dividing by 3, which gives $9, is not, and that is the one that survives into a budget.

Precision is worth matching to the input. A measurement given as 1 sq yd carries one or two significant figures, and reporting its conversion to six implies a precision the original never had.