---
title: "Township and Range System Explained | PLSS Converter | Township America"
description: "Learn how the township and range system works: a township is 36 square miles with 36 sections of 640 acres. PLSS converter for 30+ US states."
url: https://townshipamerica.com/about
---

# Township and Range System: How Legal Land Descriptions Work

A township is 36 square miles. A section is 640 acres. A quarter section is 160 acres. This guide explains the Public Land Survey System (PLSS) used across 30+ US states, plus the Texas Survey System (TXSS) for the one state that does its own thing, and how to convert any legal land description to GPS coordinates.

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#### On this page

01

## What is a Legal Land Description?

A **legal land description (LLD)** is a standardized method of identifying land parcels in the United States using the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). This system divides land into a hierarchical grid that uniquely identifies every parcel across 30+ states.

The PLSS hierarchy works from large to small:

* **Principal Meridian + Base Line** , 37 reference lines across the US
* **Township (T#N/S)**, Six-mile-wide rows numbered north or south from the base line
* **Range (R#E/W)**, Six-mile-wide columns numbered east or west from the meridian
* **Section (1-36)**, One-square-mile divisions within each township
* **Quarter Section (NE/NW/SE/SW)** , 160-acre subdivisions of each section
* **Quarter-Quarter**, 40-acre subdivisions for finer detail

02

## How to Convert Township and Range to GPS Coordinates

Converting a township and range description to latitude and longitude takes seconds with Township America:

1. 1**Enter your legal land description** in the search box (e.g., NENE 12-4N-5E Indian Meridian)
2. 2**Click "Search"** or press Enter
3. 3**View the exact coordinates** on the map and in the results panel

You can also do reverse lookups, enter GPS coordinates or an address to get the legal land description.

### Try it yourself

Convert any township, range, and section to GPS coordinates

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03

## The Township and Range System (PLSS)

Used across 30+ states in the western and central United States, the PLSS divides land relative to **Principal Meridians** and **Base Lines** that serve as reference points. Texas is the notable exception, see the [Texas Survey System](#texas-txss) section below for how the Lone Star State describes its land instead.

The hierarchy works as follows:

* **Principal Meridians**, 37 north-south reference lines across the US
* **Townships**, Six-mile-wide rows numbered north or south from the base line
* **Ranges**, Six-mile-wide columns numbered east or west from the meridian
* **Sections**, 36 one-square-mile divisions within each township, numbered in a serpentine pattern
* **Quarter Sections**, Four quarters (NE, NW, SE, SW) per section, each 160 acres
* **Quarter-Quarters**, Further subdivisions of 40 acres each

### PLSS Format Examples

Format Examples

Township-RangeT4N R5E Indian Meridian

Quarter-Quarter SectionNENE 12-4N-5E Indian Meridian

Quarter-QuarterNENW 25 5N 30E Mount Diablo Meridian

##### Sections in a Township

31

32

33

34

35

36

30

29

28

27

26

25

19

20

21

22

23

24

18

17

16

15

14

13

7

8

9

10

11

12

6

5

4

3

2

1

Section 12 highlighted

##### Quarter Sections

NW

NE

SW

SE

NENE Sec 12 T4N R5E

[ OK OklahomaIndian Meridian](/converters)[ CO Colorado6th Principal Meridian](/converters)[ MT MontanaPrincipal Meridian](/converters)

04

## Sections & Quarter Sections

Each township contains **36 sections**, each approximately one square mile (640 acres). Sections are numbered in a serpentine (back-and-forth) pattern starting from the northeast corner.

Sections are further divided into **Quarter Sections** of 160 acres each (NE, NW, SE, SW). These can be subdivided again into **Quarter-Quarter Sections** of 40 acres each for precise parcel identification.

Subdivision Sizes

Township36 sq miles (\~23,040 acres)

Section1 sq mile (640 acres)

Quarter Section160 acres

Quarter-Quarter40 acres

05

## Principal Meridians

The PLSS uses **37 Principal Meridians** as north-south reference lines, each paired with a Base Line running east-west. All township and range numbering originates from these reference points.

Some of the most commonly used principal meridians include:

* **Indian Meridian**, Oklahoma
* **6th Principal Meridian**, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming
* **5th Principal Meridian**, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota
* **Salt Lake Meridian**, Utah
* **Willamette Meridian**, Oregon, Washington
* **Montana Principal Meridian**, Montana

When writing a PLSS description, the meridian is always included to avoid ambiguity. For example, "NENE 12-4N-5E Indian Meridian" specifies the Northeast Quarter of the Northeast Quarter of Section 12, Township 4 North, Range 5 East, referenced from the Indian Meridian in Oklahoma.

06

## Supported Input Formats

Township America accepts legal land descriptions in various formats:

| Format                                 | Example                              |
| -------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
| Township Range Meridian                | 6S 19W 5th Meridian                  |
| Township Range County State            | 6S 19W Clark County Arkansas         |
| Section Township Range Meridian        | 4 2N 18E Indian Meridian             |
| Section Township Range County State    | 4 2N 18E Pushmataha County OK        |
| Quarter-Quarter Section                | NENE 12 4N 5E Indian Meridian        |
| Quarter-Quarter Section (County/State) | NESW 25 5N 30E Mineral County Nevada |
| Lot                                    | L 12 25 5N 30E Mount Diablo Meridian |
| Survey                                 | MB 24 5N 30E Indian Meridian         |

Township America uses a simplified format: drop the T and R prefixes from township/range and do not include fractions like 1/4 or 1/8 for quarter sections. You can use County and State in place of Meridian (e.g., 6S 19W Clark County Arkansas).

07

## Geographic Coordinates

Township America also accepts GPS coordinates and addresses. Supported formats:

* **Decimal Degrees:** 51.05022, -114.08853
* **Degrees Minutes Seconds:** 51°27'17"N 114°38'56.2"W
* **Addresses:** Any US address or ZIP code

08

## States Covered

Township America supports the PLSS grid for **30 states**:

AlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoFloridaIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasLouisianaMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew MexicoNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonSouth DakotaUtahWashingtonWisconsinWyoming

Plus [Texas](#texas-txss), which uses its own land system (TXSS) and is covered across all 254 counties, see the next section.

09

## Texas Survey System (TXSS)

**Texas is the one US state** that never adopted PLSS. When Texas joined the Union in 1845, it kept the public land it had already surveyed under the Republic of Texas and continued issuing land grants through its own General Land Office. To this day, Texas land is described using the **Texas Survey System (TXSS)**, not townships, ranges, or sections.

Township America supports all three TXSS shapes across the 254 Texas counties. They show up in oil and gas leases, title work, ranch transactions, and pipeline right-of-way records:

Abstract-only

`A-123 Reeves County, TX`

Used in East Texas and the Coastal Bend, where the abstract number alone identifies the original land grant.

Block & Section

`Block 5, Sec 14, T&P Survey, Reeves`

Common in the Permian Basin and West Texas, railroad-survey grids of blocks and sections instead of PLSS townships.

Survey-name

`John Smith Survey, Bexar County`

Found across South Texas and the original Spanish/Mexican leagues and labors. The named survey is the parcel boundary itself.

TXSS Format Examples

AbstractA-203 Pecos County

Block & SectionBlock 5, Sec 14, T&P Survey, Reeves

Survey-nameJohn Smith Survey, Bexar County

Behind the scenes, Township America resolves a TXSS description against the Texas General Land Office's survey polygons and Railroad Commission datasets, then returns the same GPS coordinates, GeoJSON, and export formats you'd get for a PLSS section in Wyoming or Oklahoma. One API, both systems.

[ Texas converter hub ](/texas)[ Sample county page ](/texas/counties/reeves)

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FAQ

## Frequently Asked Questions

#### What is a legal land description?

A legal land description identifies a specific parcel of land using the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). It references a principal meridian, township, range, and section, for example, NENE 12 4N 5E Indian Meridian. This notation pinpoints a 40-acre quarter-quarter section within the survey grid.

#### How do I convert a legal description to GPS coordinates?

Use Township America's converter. Enter your section, township, range, and meridian (or county and state), and the tool returns the latitude and longitude coordinates instantly. You can also do reverse lookups, enter GPS coordinates to get the legal land description.

#### How big is a township?

A township is 6 miles by 6 miles, 36 square miles or about 23,040 acres. It contains 36 sections, each one square mile (640 acres). Sections are subdivided into quarter sections of 160 acres and quarter-quarter sections of 40 acres.

#### How many sections are in a township?

Every township contains exactly 36 sections, numbered in a serpentine (back-and-forth) pattern starting from the northeast corner. Each section is one square mile, or 640 acres.

#### What states use the township and range system?

About 30 states use the PLSS township and range system, primarily states west of the Mississippi River. This includes Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas, and others, plus Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, and Wisconsin.

#### What is the difference between metes and bounds and township and range?

Metes and bounds describes land using physical features and compass bearings, common in the original 13 colonies. Township and range uses a rectangular grid of townships, ranges, and sections measured from principal meridians. The township and range system covers about 30 states, mostly west of the Appalachians.

#### Does Texas use the township and range system?

No. Texas is the one US state that never adopted PLSS, when it joined the Union in 1845, it kept the public land it had surveyed under the Republic of Texas and continued issuing land grants through the General Land Office. Texas land is described using the Texas Survey System (TXSS): Abstract numbers (e.g., A-123 Reeves County), Block & Section (e.g., Block 5, Sec 14, T&P Survey), and Survey-name (e.g., John Smith Survey, Bexar County). Township America supports all three TXSS shapes across all 254 Texas counties.

#### Can I convert GPS coordinates to a legal description?

Yes. Township America supports reverse lookups. Enter latitude and longitude coordinates to find the corresponding section, township, range, and meridian for any location within the 30+ PLSS states, or the abstract, block, and survey for Texas.