Carpet Area vs Built-Up vs Super Area: What's the Difference?
Short answer
Carpet area is the actual usable floor inside your flat. Built-up area adds wall thickness and balconies. Super area adds a share of lobbies, lifts and amenities. In Haryana, builders must now price and sell on the carpet area basis, so compare the carpet number, not super area.
Carpet area is the net usable floor area inside your apartment, the space you can actually lay a carpet on. Under Section 2(k) of RERA it includes the area under internal partition walls but excludes external walls, service shafts, and any exclusive balcony, verandah or open terrace. Built-up area is the carpet area plus the thickness of the walls and your private balcony, usually about 10 to 15 percent more than carpet. Super built-up area, also called saleable area, is the built-up area plus your proportionate share of common spaces like the lobby, staircases, lifts, clubhouse, gym and pool. It is always the largest of the three figures.
The gap between carpet and super area is the loading factor, worked out as super area minus carpet area, divided by carpet area. In Gurgaon this varies a lot by project. New Gurgaon projects typically run 25 to 35 percent loading, Dwarka Expressway around 30 to 40 percent, Golf Course Extension Road 35 to 45 percent, and amenity-heavy luxury branded residences 45 to 55 percent. A 30 to 35 percent loading is considered balanced in 2026. Higher loading means you pay for more common area and get less living space, so two flats quoted at the same rate per square foot on super area can deliver very different usable homes.
Since RERA took effect in Haryana this is no longer just maths. HRERA has directed that builders must charge and sell on the carpet area basis, and has held that pricing on super area is an unfair trade practice. Your builder-buyer agreement must state the carpet area, and if the carpet area at possession differs from what was agreed, the price is adjusted at the same rate per square foot, with any increase the builder can charge for capped at three percent. So when you compare two projects, ask for the carpet area and the per square foot rate on carpet, not on super area.
The terms shift by property type. Independent builder floors and villas are often quoted on built-up or super area, so ask for the carpet number and check how the balcony and terrace are counted. Residential plots are sold on plot area in square yards, where loading does not apply, though the house you build is limited by the permitted FAR and ground coverage. Whatever you are buying, make the carpet area the figure you negotiate and compare on.