Script to find the area of shapes in Adobe Illustrator

GetShapeArea.jsx

/* Save this file with a jsx extension and place in your
Illustrator/Presets/en_US/Scripts folder. You can then
access it from the File > Scripts menu */

var decimalPlaces = 3;

if (app.documents.length > 0) {

	if (app.activeDocument.selection.length < 1) {
		alert('Select a path');
	} else if (app.activeDocument.selection[0].area) {
		// Individual Items
		var objects =  app.activeDocument.selection;
	} else if (app.activeDocument.selection[0].pathItems) {
		// Group/Compound Shape
		var objects = app.activeDocument.selection[0].pathItems;
	} else {
		alert('Please select a path or group.');
	}

	// Collect info
	var totalArea = 0;
	for (var i=0; i<objects.length; i++) {
		if (objects[i].area) {
			var totalArea = totalArea + objects[i].area;
		}
	}

	// Conversions
	var ppi = 72;
	var areaIn = totalArea / ppi / ppi;
	if (areaIn < 0) var areaIn = -areaIn;
	var areaCm = areaIn * 6.4516;

	// Display
	alert('Shape Area\
	' + areaIn.toFixed(decimalPlaces) + ' in² \
	' + areaCm.toFixed(decimalPlaces) + ' cm² \n\
	' + i + ' shapes');

}

@schroef is it that it includes the negative/cutout area in the area calculation?

Seems to work for something like this. But is this too simple?

@candiceda

Those simple shapes work. I'll post a more complex shape when I'm at work. It when there is a group build of sub items which are compound shapes. Each of these have lots of cutouts. This is where it goes wrong. I must have made an error somehwere

@candiceda

Look here is an example of a more complex shape. The item in the middle is a group build of 4 compoundPathItem, noticed how the end result is wrong. It should be 250.0952 if my math is still correct

If i run on a single section, it does work

When i run a multi selection of compoundPathItems, it also seems to work correct. I did some tricks applying some filters and expanding it, to make sub items work. But something is going wrong

Its really depends on how the shape is build. Because if i group the the above version and then run it, it also returns that 250....

Notice this, look how they are looking to be the same in terms of structure. The outcome is different though, i dont get why that is?!

Check the sub items, i noticed that a shape can be build in different manner and looking the same. The way i am calculating compounds with negative shapes is by checking the polarity. Normally a cutout is negative. But it seems the most outer shape can also be negative and still show the same. Look at the images below. They look the same, but the outer shape has different polarity. Its kinda weird that its actually showing the shape correctly

Example negative polarity on outer shape

Example positive polarity on outer shape

@schroef are you only finding this with the design above or have you seen the same in other cases? I am not sure I can replicate the error.