Apple's Built-In iPhone Measure App Uses Camera and LiDAR as Digital Tape Measure

The app sits in the Utilities folder and is preinstalled on every iPhone from the iPhone 6s and first-generation iPhone SE onward. Users who deleted it can redownload it from the App Store. Pro models offer a more capable version because Apple added a LiDAR scanner with the 2020 iPhone 12 Pro and kept it in later Pro-series iPhones. According to Engadget, LiDAR fires invisible lasers to judge depth. It enables instant height measurements of people, guide lines that snap to edges, a ruler view with tick marks when the phone is close and a list of measurements from the current session.

Each time users open the app, they need to move the phone slowly around so it can map the surroundings and measure accurately. After the initial scan, the user aims the dot at one end of an object and taps the plus button, then moves the camera view to the other end and taps plus again. The length appears on the screen. The shutter button saves a screenshot to Photos. An undo button goes back, and a clear icon starts over. Pro models keep a list of measurements only until the app is closed, so users who need to revisit them should copy them into another app or save a snapshot to Photos.

The app can also automatically measure rectangles. If it detects the edges of a rectangular object, a white box appears around it. Tapping the white box or the plus button shows the dimensions. A Level tab at the bottom of the screen lets users lay the phone flat on a shelf or a hanging picture frame to see how many degrees they are off. Users can compare the slopes of two surfaces by tapping the screen to capture the first angle, then placing the iPhone on another surface and rotating it until the screen turns green.

Engadget said useful cases include checking whether a carry-on bag is within an airline's limits before a flight, or comparing a piece of furniture in a store with home measurements to see if it fits. For anything high-stakes, such as an expensive or potentially dangerous project, a real tape measure should be used. Apple says the app works best for objects with clear edges about 2 to 10 feet away, according to the report; even then, it is best treated as a quick, on-the-fly check rather than a definitive measurement.

On Android, a direct first-party equivalent will soon no longer exist. Google once offered one, but it was never as stable as Apple's and was quietly abandoned in 2021, Engadget reported. Samsung's Quick Measure app, which came preinstalled on some Galaxy phones, is shutting down at the end of 2026. Until then, users can still download it, and Samsung says it should keep working after the cut-off date. Samsung claims the app will return at an unspecified future date with improved services. Otherwise, third-party apps are the main option for Android users. No mainstream Android phone has a built-in LiDAR scanner like the Pro-series iPhones, so these apps work with a more limited toolset. Reviews suggest that Play Store options are often plagued with ads and aggressive in-app subscription prompts. Engadget said Android users' best bet may be to go analog and buy a tiny keychain tape measure.