Parking Space Dimensions 9 × 18 Feet, By Angle
Stall, aisle and curb-to-curb sizes for 90°, 60°, 45° and parallel parking, compared with seven local codes.
What size is a standard parking space?
9 feet wide and 18 feet long, 162 square feet: the size the SUDAS design manual recommends where cars come and go, such as retail and medical lots. Where cars sit all day, such as offices and schools, it allows 8'6". Real lots can run tighter: the retail lot in the photo measures 8'6" off its paint. A row of 90° stalls needs a 24' two-way aisle, so two rows facing each other take 60' from curb to curb. How much paved lot a space takes once its share of the aisles is counted is on the parking lot square footage calculator.
- 9' × 18'
- Standard stall, 162 sq ft
- 8'6"
- Wide, where cars stay all day
- 24'
- Two-way aisle for 90° stalls
- 60'
- Two rows and the aisle, curb to curb
Parking Space Dimensions by Angle
Angling a stall does not change its size. It changes how much curb each stall takes along the aisle, how far the row reaches out from it, and how wide the aisle has to be for a car to swing in. Pick an angle.
- Stall
- 9' × 18'
- Along the curb
- 9'
- Depth from aisle
- 18'
- Aisle, two-way
- 24'
- Curb to curb
- 60'
- Overhang
- 2'6"
SUDAS Table 8B-1.02, adapted from ULI and the National Parking Association. SUDAS tabulates 90° parking with a two-way aisle only.
Stall and Drive Aisle Width by Angle
SUDAS Table 8B-1.02 minimums for a 9 × 18 ft stall, adapted from the Urban Land Institute and the National Parking Association. Two-way aisles let cars pass; one-way aisles let angled stalls lean with traffic.
| Angle and aisle | Curb per stall | Depth from aisle | Aisle | Curb to curb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90°, two-way | 9' | 18' | 24' | 60' |
| 60°, two-way | 10'5" | 15'7" | 25'10" | 57' |
| 45°, two-way | 12'9" | 12'9" | 29'8" | 55'2" |
| 60°, one-way | 10'5" | 15'7" | 20'4" | 51'6" |
| 45°, one-way | 12'9" | 12'9" | 21'6" | 47' |
The aisle may be up to 3 ft wider for comfort, and 1 ft narrower where at least 30% of the stalls have a curb. Two-way angled rows take 10 to 15% more pavement per stall than 90° or one-way angled rows.
What Local Codes Actually Require
The engineering numbers are a design guide. The legal minimum is your city's zoning code, and it moves: of the seven codes below, stalls run from 8' to 10' wide. Read in September 2026.
| Code | Standard stall | 90° aisle, two-way | 60° aisle, one-way | 45° aisle, one-way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUDAS / ULI guidance | 9' × 18' | 24' | 20'4" | 21'6" |
| Chicago, ILZoning Ordinance §17-10-1001 | 8' × 18' | 22' | 16'* | 12'* |
| Kansas City, MOZoning Code §88-420-15 | 8'6" × 18' | 24' | 18' | 12' |
| Phoenix, AZZoning Ordinance §702.B.2 | 9'6" × 18'8'6" for office, industrial, multifamily | 24' | not set | not set |
| Columbus, OHZoning Code §3312.09, §3312.29 | 9' × 18' | 20' | 17' | 13' |
| Peoria, AZCity Code §21-903.A | 9'6" × 20' | 24' | 18' | 15' |
| London, OHCodified Ordinances §1266.03 | 10' × 20' | 25' | 18' | 13' |
| Douglas County, GAZoning Ordinance Art. 6 §607(b) | 9' × 20' | 24' | 18' | 13' |
* Chicago, IL sets one aisle per angle for either direction, and lets the 90° aisle drop to 20 ft when stalls are 8.5 ft wide. Phoenix, AZ sets its angled aisles in a separate guideline. Some codes also tabulate 30° parking.
Why the angled aisles disagree
SUDAS's stall projection is the stall line's length times the sine of the angle: at 45° a stall reaches 12'9" from the aisle. Chicago tabulates the stall's depth to the wall instead, 18.4 ft at 45°, which also counts the stall's width, and pairs it with a narrower aisle. Phoenix's parking guideline draws its depth the same way. Compare the whole module, curb to curb, and they land close together. That is the number that decides whether a layout fits the lot.
- 45° module
- 47'SUDAS48.8'Chicago, computed
- 60° module
- 51'6"SUDAS55.4'Chicago, computed
- 90° module
- 60'SUDAS58'Chicago, computed
Parallel Parking Space Dimensions
A parallel stall is about 8 ft deep and 22 to 26 ft long: the car plus room to pull in and back out. The federal traffic manual draws street stalls at 8 × 22-26 ft, with 20 ft typical for an end space. Lot codes set their own.
- Peoria, AZ8' × 24'
- London, OH10' × 22'
- Kansas City, MOstandard stall + 4' to maneuver
Compact Parking Space Dimensions
Where a code still allows them, compact stalls run 7.5 to 8 ft wide and 15 to 16 ft long, capped at a share of the spaces or allowed only beyond the required count. Iowa's design manual no longer recommends compact-only spaces: car sizes no longer split cleanly into small and large, a larger car takes the convenient compact stall anyway, and it crowds the stall beside it, down the row.
- Kansas City, MO7.5' × 15', up to 50%
- Peoria, AZ8' × 16', up to 15%
- Phoenix, AZ8' × 16', only beyond the required count
Accessible Parking Space Dimensions
Under the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, a car space is 8 ft wide and a van space 11 ft, each beside a 5 ft access aisle two spaces can share. How many a lot needs, the signs and the slope are on the ADA parking requirements calculator.
Stall Lines: Width, Color and Hairpins
What a crew needs before the first line goes down.
4-6"
Line width
The MUTCD's normal line. Chicago's and Peoria's codes and Phoenix's guideline ask for at least 4 inches.
Center
Where the width is measured
Stripe center to stripe center. Chicago's code allows it, and the ADA Standards measure accessible spaces that way.
Local
Line color
The MUTCD does not apply to parking lots, public or private, so the city's code decides.
12"
Hairpin gap
No national standard. Phoenix wants at least 12 inches between double stripes; El Segundo, CA one foot.
Read The Lot Before You Drive Out.
The stalls in the photo above were measured from 6-inch imagery, not a tape. SurfaceMeasure measures the whole lot from above: trace it on satellite, get its paved square footage, and send a branded quote your customer can accept online. To see how many stalls a lot of your size holds, run it through the parking lot layout calculator.
- 8'6"
- stall width, measured
- 60'
- bay to bay, measured
- ~18'
- stall line
- ~24'
- drive aisle
Parking Space Size Questions
9 feet wide by 18 feet long, 162 square feet: the size Iowa's SUDAS design manual, adapting the Urban Land Institute and National Parking Association, recommends for retail and medical lots. It allows 8'6" wide where cars park all day, such as employee and student lots, and adds at least 1 foot beside a wall, curb or island. Local zoning sets the legal minimum, and codes run from 8' wide (Chicago, IL) to 10' (London, OH).
9 feet where cars come and go, such as retail and medical lots, and 8'6" where they stay all day, by SUDAS's recommended minimums. The width is set by the car plus room to open a door: the 85th percentile vehicle is about 6'7" wide, and doors need 23 to 27 inches. Chicago's code lets a stall be measured from the center of one stripe to the center of the next, and the ADA Standards measure accessible spaces that way.
18 feet. Length does not change with how busy the lot is. Where the car may overhang the curb, the painted stall can be up to 2 feet shorter. Some codes ask for more: Peoria, AZ and London, OH both require 20 ft.
The stall is still 9 × 18 ft, but at 45° it takes 12'9" of curb along the aisle and reaches 12'9" out from it. Engineering guidance pairs it with a 21'6" one-way aisle, 47' curb to curb for two rows. Local codes allow one-way aisles of 12 ft (Chicago, IL) to 15 ft (Peoria, AZ). Chicago pairs its narrow aisle with a deeper stall: it tabulates an 18.4 ft stall depth to the wall at 45°, which counts the stall's width as well as its length.
A 9 × 18 ft stall at 60° takes 10'5" of curb and reaches 15'7" from the aisle. The recommended one-way aisle is 20'4", so two rows and their aisle take 51'6" curb to curb. Four of the seven local codes we read set an 18 ft one-way aisle at 60°.
24' for two-way traffic with 90° stalls, the minimum in four of the seven local codes we read, and the width SUDAS gives a lot driveway that carries both directions (two 12 ft lanes). Angled stalls on a one-way aisle need less by code: four of the seven set 18 ft at 60°, and three set 13 ft at 45°. The codes range from 20 to 25 ft for a 90° two-way aisle.
About 8 feet wide and 22 to 26 feet long. The federal traffic manual shows 8 × 22-26 ft for street parking, with 20 ft typical for an end space. Lot codes vary: 8 × 24 ft in Peoria, AZ, 10 × 22 ft in London, OH.
Usually 7.5 to 8 feet wide and 15 to 16 feet long, where a code allows them at all. Kansas City, MO allows 7.5 × 15 ft for up to 50% of spaces; Peoria, AZ 8 × 16 ft for up to 15%. Iowa's SUDAS design manual no longer recommends compact-only spaces: larger cars take them anyway and crowd the row.
The federal traffic manual's normal line is 4 to 6 inches wide, and Chicago's and Peoria's codes ask for at least 4. Color is a local rule: the federal traffic manual (MUTCD, 11th edition) does not apply to parking lots, public or private, and its white-line rule is written for street parking. Check the city's code before you change a lot's color.
There is no national standard. Phoenix and El Segundo, California both set about a foot: Phoenix requires at least 12 inches between double stripes, and El Segundo asks for double 4-inch stripes one foot apart.
Sources
Read September 2026 on the documents themselves. A reference for layout and bidding, not a code review: your city's zoning code and the site plan's reviewer have the last word.
- Iowa SUDAS Design Manual, Section 8B-1: Layout and Design (2013 edition)Design vehicle, stall widths by turnover (Table 8B-1.01), minimum parking dimensions by angle (Table 8B-1.02, adapted from ULI and NPA), compact spaces, lot entrances.
- Chicago, IL: Zoning Ordinance §17-10-1001Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- Kansas City, MO: Zoning Code §88-420-15Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- Phoenix, AZ: Zoning Ordinance §702.B.2Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- Columbus, OH: Zoning Code §3312.09, §3312.29Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- Peoria, AZ: City Code §21-903.AStall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- London, OH: Codified Ordinances §1266.03Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- Douglas County, GA: Zoning Ordinance Art. 6 §607(b)Stall sizes and drive aisles, read September 2026.
- FHWA: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition, Part 1Section 1B.01: the MUTCD does not apply to parking areas, public or private.
- FHWA: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition, Part 3Section 3A.04 line widths, Section 3B.27 and Figure 3B-23 on-street parking space markings.
- El Segundo, CA: Municipal Code §15-15-5Double four-inch stripes, one foot apart.
- U.S. Department of Justice: 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible DesignSection 502: accessible space and access aisle widths, measured to the centerline of the markings.
- NC OneMap: statewide orthoimageryThe aerial of the Pineville, NC lot, 6-inch resolution, flown February 2023.