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Cylinder Surface Area Calculator

Instantly get a cylinder's total, lateral, and base area

Privacy: your files never leave your device. All processing happens locally in your browser.

How to use

  1. 1.Enter the base radius (r) of the cylinder in any unit.
  2. 2.Enter the height (h) in the same unit as the radius.
  3. 3.Read the total surface area instantly, with the lateral (2πrh) and base (πr²) parts broken out below.

About Cylinder Surface Area Calculator

The total surface area of a right circular cylinder is 2πr² + 2πrh, which factors neatly to 2πr(r + h), where r is the base radius and h is the height. This calculator returns that total the moment you type a radius and height, and it also breaks the answer into its physical parts so you can see exactly where the number comes from.

A cylinder has two kinds of surface. The two flat circular ends — the top and bottom — each have area πr², so together they contribute 2πr². The curved side, called the lateral surface, is really a rectangle rolled into a tube: its width is the circumference of the base, 2πr, and its length is the height h, giving a lateral area of 2πrh. Add the two ends to the side and you have the full total, 2πr² + 2πrh.

Whether you want the total or only part of it depends on the object. A sealed can, a full pipe fitting, or a solid rod uses the total surface area with both ends. An open cylinder — a tube, a ring, or a cup without a lid — has no top, so you drop one πr², leaving a single base πr² plus the lateral 2πrh. A pipe open at both ends has no ends at all, so its surface is purely the lateral 2πrh. This tool shows the lateral area, one base, and both bases separately, so you can assemble whichever combination your problem needs.

Surface area answers real questions: how much sheet metal to cut a can, how much paint or label to wrap a tank, how much material to line a cylindrical duct, or how much heat a pipe sheds through its walls. Because it grows with both radius and height, a tall thin cylinder and a short wide one of the same volume can have very different surface areas — which is why packaging and engineering both care about it.

Units follow your input: if r and h are in centimetres, the area is in square centimetres; use metres and you get square metres. Keep both inputs in the same unit before you calculate. The math uses the full value of π (not 3.14), so results match a scientific calculator, and everything runs locally in your browser — nothing is uploaded. Enter a radius and height above to see the total surface area instantly, along with the lateral and base breakdown, and reach for the related volume and circle-area tools when you need the space a cylinder holds rather than the skin around it.

Frequently asked questions

What is the surface area of a cylinder?
The total surface area of a right cylinder is 2πr² + 2πrh, which factors to 2πr(r + h). The 2πr² covers the two circular ends and 2πrh covers the curved side. Enter the radius and height above to compute it instantly.
What is the difference between lateral and total surface area?
Lateral surface area is just the curved side, 2πrh. Total surface area adds the two flat circular ends (2πr²) to that side, giving 2πr² + 2πrh. Use the lateral area for an open tube and the total area for a closed can.
How do I find the surface area of an open cylinder?
An open cylinder has fewer ends than a closed one. Open at one end (a cup or bucket): use one base plus the side, πr² + 2πrh. Open at both ends (a pipe): use only the lateral area, 2πrh.
Why is the lateral surface area 2πrh?
Unroll the curved side and it becomes a rectangle. Its height is the cylinder's height h, and its width is the base circumference, 2πr. Multiplying the two gives 2πr × h = 2πrh.
What units does the surface area result use?
The area is in the square of your input unit — centimetres give square centimetres (cm²) and metres give square metres (m²). Keep the radius and height in the same unit before calculating.

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