Printable mm Ruler & Inches Ruler

Are you looking for printable rulers? Our free printable mm rulers and inches rulers are perfect for classroom and at-home use! These graphic resources are designed to help students read rulers in both metric and customary systems. We’ve also included ruler activities below!

As teachers and parents, you can easily incorporate ruler-based activities into everyday learning. Have your student measure household items or compare the growth of plants in a home garden.

For the printables below, print the page at 100%. Don’t choose printer settings such as “fit to margins” or “fit to page” as it might distort the size and scale of the ruler. If the printer margins chop off the ruler corners, use the two 6-inch segments and tape them together.

What is customary (e.g., inches) vs metric (e.g., centimeters)

What is customary vs metric?

This can be a bit confusing for students. Customary and metric units are two different systems of measurement that young students will encounter when learning how to read rulers.

Customary units, also known as the Imperial system or U.S. Customary system, are mostly used in the United States. In this system, length is measured in inches, feet, and yards. When using a customary ruler, you’ll typically see increments divided into halves, quarters, eighths, and so on. To give an idea of scale, 12 inches make up 1 foot, and 3 feet are equal to 1 yard.

Metric units are part of the International System of Units (SI) and are widely used across the globe. Length in this system is measured using millimeters, centimeters, and meters. A metric ruler is marked in increments of 1 millimeter, with 10 millimeters making up 1 centimeter, and 100 centimeters equaling 1 meter. This system is based on multiples of 10, which makes conversions and calculations a bit easier and more straightforward.

As your students grow into adults, they’ll encounter both systems regularly. For example, they might find that a particular tool like a wrench is marked with metric measurements. Or maybe something describing volume uses yards. For example, your student might run a “40-yard” race.

A few fun ruler activities for home

Here are some fun ruler activities for home:

Scavenger Hunt: Create a scavenger hunt at home or outside where kids need to find items of specific lengths, such as a 2-inch long object or a 10-cm tall item.
Measure Your Room: Work together to measure the dimensions of a room, furniture, or other household items, and calculate the total area and perimeter. This can be particularly fun and educational if you’re working on a project like painting the room or making a shelf to fit on a wall.
Nature Walk: Go for a walk outside and use rulers to measure different leaves, branches, or rocks!
DIY Ruler Art: Encourage creativity by using rulers to draw geometric shapes, patterns, or designs, and then discuss the dimensions of each element.
Grow a Plant: Plant seeds in a pot or garden and use rulers to track and record the growth of the plants over time, discussing the differences between cm and inches.
Cook with Measurements: Prepare a simple recipe together that requires measuring ingredients, and use the ruler to measure lengths and widths of food items, like vegetables or pastries.
Popsicle Stick Crafts: Provide popsicle sticks, a ruler, and glue or tape, then have the children measure, cut, and assemble the sticks into bridges or buildings!

Printable MM Rulers and Inches Rulers

Can’t find your ruler? Need budget-friendly rulers for an entire class? Whatever brought you here, we have what you’re looking for – FREE PRINTABLE RULERS! Look below for a 6-inch, 12-inch, and printable metric ruler. We even have a printable protractor!

Click to View

Free 12 Inch Printable Ruler

Here you’ll printable 12 inch rulers. Just print them out and use!

Click to View

Free 6 inch printable rulers

Here you’ll find 5 colorful 6 inch rulers you can print out!

Click to View

Free Printable mm (metric) rulers

Here you’ll printable Metric rulers. Six different colors. Just print them out and use!

Click to View

Free Printable protractor

Reading a Ruler - Customary Units Worksheets

In this section, you’ll find ruler activities that use the customary system of measurement. We have multiple worksheets which instruct students to identify the lengths of given items. We also have a more interactive option where students cut out a printable ruler and use it to measure things on the page.

Click to View

Reading a Ruler worksheet - Customary Units Worksheet

Here’s some ruler practice in customary units.

Click to View

Measuring with a Ruler - Customary Units Worksheet

Let’s get measuring – and the ruler is included! Students will measure the lines and write the height and width in customary units.

Click to View

How Does a Ruler Work? Customary unit Worksheet

This basic worksheet explains how a ruler works in customary units.

Reading Metrics Rulers

In this section, you’ll find metric ruler activities. We have multiple worksheets which instruct students to identify the lengths of given items. We also have a more interactive option where students cut out a printable ruler and use it to measure things on the page.