In this article, I will try to cover everything there is to know about the units of measure in WooCommerce. In most cases, the basic WooCommerce capabilities are enough, but in some scenarios, you need more. When? For example, if you want to sell wallpapers or nails in the WooCommerce store. In that case, it would be best to use an extra unit like square meters and kilograms. And now it's easier than you think! Let's start 🚀.
This post is about units of measure in WooCommerce and demonstrates the use of a free plugin that works great for this. I recommend you download it right away:
Contents
- WooCommerce unit of measure built in WooCommerce settings
- Additional units of measure with the Flexible Quantity WooCommerce Free plugin
- Add a new unit of measure for a WooCommerce product - Quickstart
- New Units of Measure in WooCommerce store
- More features with PRO
- Summary
- FAQ
- How to set the new unit of measure for WooCommerce products
- Advanced product quantities, decimals, and new units in WooCommerce
- WooCommerce measurement price calculator: Free download
- Use Measurement Price Calculator for WooCommerce (free plugin)
- WooCommerce price per unit and by quantity (guide & free plugin)
Flexible Quantity Calculator for WooCommerce
Enable product price calculation based on dimensions on the product page. Set price and shipping thresholds for product quantities. Support for product variations.
💾 Active Installations: 2,000+ | WordPress Rating:
Use the table of contents to go to the sections you are most interested in reading. You may also download our FREE plugin to set new units of measure for WooCommerce products right away!
Flexible Quantity plugin for FREE →WooCommerce unit of measure built in WooCommerce settings
In WooCommerce, you can change units only in the shipping section in the product edition. Go to WooCommerce → Settings → Products. You will find there the Measurements section, and you can change the Weight and Dimensions units. This setting will have an effect on the Weight and Dimensions in the product data section.
WooCommerce gives you the possibility to choose between kilogram, gram, lbs, and oz in the Weight unit and meter, centimeter, millimeter, inch, and yard in the Dimensions unit.
But please remember that you still sell products by items. The product weight and dimensions in that case are only visible as additional information on the product page.
That's it! So, this is the only option to change units in the "plain" WooCommerce. But what happens if you want to sell products not by items but, for example, by yards or milliliters? Don't worry. I'll show you how to change the product unit of measure in the next step. And I have even better news - you can do it with the free plugin!
This limitation catches a lot of store owners off guard. It's easy to assume that setting a weight or dimension unit in WooCommerce's Measurements settings actually changes how the product is sold — but it doesn't. Those settings only affect shipping calculations and the informational display in the Additional Information tab. The product itself is still sold, priced, and added to the cart as a single item, regardless of how heavy or large it is. If your business model depends on pricing that scales with weight, size, or volume, you need a dedicated solution rather than relying on WooCommerce's built-in measurement fields.
Additional units of measure with the Flexible Quantity WooCommerce Free plugin
This plugin allows you to use additional units of measure. Some products must be sold in particular units, and you can set it up with the Flexible Quantity WooCommerce plugin. In this case, the customer chooses the quantity of the new unit of measure. The plugin will calculate the final price based on the customer input for quantity.
Add a new unit of measure for a WooCommerce product - Quickstart
Follow the steps below:
- First, download and install the free plugin.
WP DeskFlexible Quantity Calculator for WooCommerce
Enable product price calculation based on dimensions on the product page. Set price and shipping thresholds for product quantities. Support for product variations.
Download for free or Go to WordPress.org💾 Active Installations: 2,000+ | WordPress Rating:
Last Updated: 2026-08-05Works with WooCommerce 10.7 - 11.0 - After that go to the Flexible Quantity tab.
- Here you can set up a new unit of measure.
- Also, use additional settings for increment value, min/ max quantity, and decide about the inventory options.
- Finally, see the new product's unit of measurement on the product page.
New Units of Measure in WooCommerce store
Let’s take a look now at a few examples of the WooCommerce product with new units of measure.
Choosing the right category of unit — weight, dimension, area, or volume — depends entirely on how your product is naturally measured and sold in your industry. Getting this right from the start matters, because it shapes how customers enter quantities and how your final price is calculated. A fabric store, for instance, should think in linear or area units rather than weight, while a store selling loose ingredients like rice or flour should default to weight. The examples below cover the most common scenarios, but the plugin's flexibility means you're not limited to a single unit type per store — different products can use entirely different measurement categories.
Sell products by weight
With the Flexible Quantity plugin, you can change the weight unit. You can choose between gram, kilogram, ton, ounce, pound, or tn (short tone equal to 2,000 pounds). You can use new units to sell goods like tea, coffee, rice, potatoes, flour, or cheese based on weight.
Sell products by dimension
In the dimensions section, you can choose mm, cm, m, km, in, ft, yd, mi. When to use such units? Shops with sailing ropes, ribbons, and all that stuff will love this feature.
Offer products by area
You can sell wallpapers, carpets, and artificial turf by square millimeters, sq centimeters, sq meters, hectare, square kilometers, square inch, square feet, square yard, acre, and square mile.
Sell WooCommerce products by volume
With the Flexible Quantity plugin, you can choose volume units like ml, l, cp, pt, qt, gal, fl oz, and square units, for example, cubic meters. WooCommerce stores with liquids or aquariums will use these units for sure.
More features with PRO
The Flexible Quantity PRO plugin gives you additional features. The powerful one is the possibility to use the Unit Dimensions.
You can specify the unit dimensions and allow the buyer to enter them. It's a good option in volume units; you can set two or three dimensions like height, weight, and length.
With the PRO version of the plugin, you can create a Pricing table that allows you to determine the different prices of the unit of measurement based on the unit quantity.
In Flexible Quantity PRO, you will also find the Shipping class table. With this feature, you can change the shipping class based on the quantity of the new unit of measure added to the cart.
Summary
As you can see, using units in your WooCommerce store can be easy, no matter what you're selling. Follow our blog to find out what features we will be adding in the future to the Flexible Quantity plugin. I am sure there is something to wait for.
Start by downloading the free version of the plugin 🆓.
Flexible Quantity Calculator for WooCommerce
Enable product price calculation based on dimensions on the product page. Set price and shipping thresholds for product quantities. Support for product variations.
💾 Active Installations: 2,000+ | WordPress Rating:
Read the plugin documentation to see all features and possible settings. And visit the Flexible Quantity PRO product page ➡️.
FAQ
Does changing WooCommerce's Measurements settings change how products are sold?
No. WooCommerce's built-in Weight and Dimensions settings only affect shipping calculations and the product's informational display — the product is still sold and priced per item unless you use a dedicated unit of measure plugin.
Which unit of measure category should I choose for my products?
It depends on how the product is naturally sold — weight for loose goods like tea or flour, dimension for items like rope or ribbon, area for wallpaper or flooring, and volume for liquids.
Can I use different units of measure for different products in the same store?
Yes. The unit of measure is set per product, so you can combine weight-based, area-based, and standard per-item products within the same WooCommerce store.
