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Metric only tape measure UK

Updated: 22 October 2026

You are marking a board, the plan says 863 mm, and the tape in your hand also shows inches along the top edge. A metric only tape measure UK buyers argue about is that second scale: useful when the instruction is in inches, and a misread when everything you cut is in millimetres. This page chooses which blade to buy. It does not teach you to count sixteenths. That method is on [how to read a tape measure](/hub/measuring-and-marking-tools/tape-measure-5m/sub/tape-measure-5m-how-to-read). Width and class stay in the [5 m tape measure buying guide](/hub/measuring-and-marking-tools/tape-measure-5m/sub/tape-measure-5m-buying-guide). Prices and review notes are the amazon.co.uk rows in the [Tape measure 5m comparison](/hub/measuring-and-marking-tools/tape-measure-5m). Products Compared editorial team, 20 October 2026. No lab, and a dual scale is not more accurate than a metric one. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are marking a board, the plan says 863 mm, and the tape in your hand also shows inches along the top edge.

Our top picks

OX OX Trade 5 m twin pack

Best overall

OX OX Trade 5 m twin pack
9.0/10about £9.00
View offer
Stanley Stanley Powerlock 0-33-553, 5 m

Alternative

Stanley Stanley Powerlock 0-33-553, 5 m
8.4/10about £9.51
View offer
Stanley Stanley FatMax 0-33-720, 5 m

Alternative

Stanley Stanley FatMax 0-33-720, 5 m
8.9/10about £16.52
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What a UK job is usually measured in
  2. 2.Why the inch edge gets in the way
  3. 3.What these 5 m listings actually print
  4. 4.Which blade matches the paper

What a UK job is usually measured in

Kitchen plans, stud layouts, plasterboard, and window linings in the UK are written in millimetres. The UK Metric Association says building regulations have been metric since 1972. That is their statement. It is not a law that bans a dual-scale tape, and it does not make inches illegal on a blade you already own. It does mean that if you convert 2 ft 10 in into millimetres at the saw, you are adding a step the plan did not ask for. You still meet inches. American flat-pack sheets, some pipe and fitting sizes, older timber lists, and the odd workshop habit all use feet and inches. A chippy who only ever cuts metric sheet to a metric drawing can ignore that edge. A DIYer following a US manual, or replacing a window to a size given in inches, needs the inch marks on purpose. Metric Views recorded a 2014 anecdote about a window repair specified in millimetres and a young adult who could read only the inch edge of a typical UK tape. That is one story, not a survey. If your plan and your materials are in millimetres, a second scale is a misread waiting. Do not decide this by brand.

Why the inch edge gets in the way

On many dual tapes the imperial scale sits on the upper edge and the metric scale sits on the lower edge. The UK Metric Association points out the practical result: when you run the tape along the top of a board to mark a millimetre length, the upper edge is the inch edge, so the mark you want is on the far side of the blade. You either crane over to see the millimetres, or you mark the inch tick by mistake. Their preference is metric on the upper edge. That is an association view, not a requirement in the listings here. BuildWiz argues for buying metric-only because UK construction is metric and a dual scale causes a wrong-edge reading. The wrong-edge risk is fair. The claim that imperial is a relic is opinion. Inches are still on some jobs. A metric-only blade removes the wrong edge. It also removes the scale you need when the sheet says 32 1/2 in. Covering one edge with tape is not a method: the tape lifts, the adhesive picks up dust, and you still glimpse the other numbers. A metric-only tape is not more accurate. Class II, where a listing states it, does not depend on whether inches are printed beside the millimetres.
OX OX Trade 5 m twin pack

Testsieger

OX OX Trade 5 m twin pack
9.0/10about £9.00
View offer

What these 5 m listings actually print

Sort the rows into dual, metric only, conflict, and unknown. Dual in the bullets, without a review file in this set that denies it: the Stanley Powerlock 0-33-553 at £9.51, 19 mm, 4.6 from 1,931 reviews, and a review describes red marks at each 10 cm and each 12 in. Amazon Basics at £3.50 says inch and metric in the bullets, with the separate problem that the title says 5 m and the blade-length field says 16 feet. G4GADGET at £4.99 says metric and imperial in the bullets. You still look at the blade, because a bullet is not the printing. Metric only, on the item name and in the reviews: the Stanley FatMax 0-33-720 at £16.52, 32 mm, Class 2, 4.6 from 1,629 reviews. Reviews repeatedly say there are no inch marks. The Stanley FatMax FMHT0-33864 at £20.72 is also metric only in the item name and in the reviews. It is also the magnetic hook listing, which is a different decision on the magnetic or plain hook page. If you wanted inches and a magnet together, this comparison does not give you a row where both are confirmed. The OX Trade twin pack is the conflict. It is £9.00 for two 25 mm tapes, Class 2, 4.6 from 11,418 reviews. The title and the bullets say metric and imperial. Several of the first 50 reviews say the tape is metric only. The Rolson 50535 at £2.38 does not state the scales. The Milwaukee title and the FatMax 0-33-719 title are 5 m/16 ft, which is a length in two units, not proof of two printed scales. The FatMax Xtreme title says 5 m/16 ft and a bullet mentions double-sided print, and it also carries an 11 m reach bullet, so do not use it as your clean dual-scale answer.

Which blade matches the paper

If the plan and the sheet are in millimetres, choose a metric-only blade you can confirm: 0-33-720, or FMHT0-33864 if you also need the magnet and you have read the reviews about that magnet. If the instruction is in inches, choose a dual claim you can confirm: the Powerlock first among the named tapes, or Amazon Basics or G4GADGET if you have already accepted their other listing conflicts. Leave the OX pack in the check-the-blade pile. A second scale you did not mean to read is how a figure becomes a cut in the wrong unit.

Common questions

Are UK building plans in millimetres?
They usually are. The UK Metric Association says building regulations have been metric since 1972. Attribute that date to them. It does not ban dual-scale tapes, and it does not mean every pipe fitting or American instruction you meet will be metric. Read the plan in front of you. If it says 2440 mm, cut 2440 mm.
Why are inches on the top edge?
On many dual blades the imperial scale is printed on the upper edge and millimetres on the lower edge. The UK Metric Association notes that a millimetre mark along the top of a board then sits on the awkward edge. That layout is a reading risk, not a legal defect. A metric-only blade removes it by printing one scale.
Will I miss feet and inches on a FatMax?
You will if the job is in inches. Reviews of the FatMax 0-33-720 and of FMHT0-33864 say there are no inch marks, which matches their metric item names. You will not miss them if your drawings and sheets are metric. A 32 mm Class 2 blade does not include inches as a hidden extra. The scale is what is printed.
Which listings in this comparison are metric only?
On the item name and in the reviews: FatMax 0-33-720 at £16.52 and FatMax FMHT0-33864 at £20.72. The OX title claims both scales and several reviews say metric only, so treat that as a conflict, not as a confirmed dual tape. The Rolson scales are not stated. A 5 m/16 ft title is a length, not proof of two scales.
The OX title says both. What do the reviews say?
The title and the bullets say metric and imperial. Several of the first 50 reviews say the blade is metric only. At £9.00 for two Class 2 tapes, that is a good spare if you work in millimetres. It is a bad assumption if you bought the pair because the title promised inches. Look at the blade.
I follow American flat-pack instructions. Do I want dual?
Yes, if those sheets are in inches and you do not want to convert every figure. The Powerlock 0-33-553 bullets say metric and imperial, and a review describes marks at each 12 in as well as each 10 cm. Amazon Basics and G4GADGET also claim both in the bullets. Read only the inch edge until the piece is marked, then put the metric edge away for the next job.
Can I ignore one edge with tape?
You can try, and the tape usually peels, gets dirty, and still lets you see the other numbers. It is not a reliable way to turn a dual blade into a metric-only one. If one unit is getting you into trouble, buy the blade that prints the unit you cut. Covering the edge does not change which scale is on the upper lip of the blade.

Related pages

Best 5 m tape measure

Tape measure 5m

5m tape measure buying guide: width, class, standout

How to read a tape measure: millimetres and the hook

Magnetic tape measure or not: steel, titles and hooks

Sources

Public UK sources from the digest first, then the Stanley pages. Shelf prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures in the display file. The score method is dated 20 October 2026. The digest notes a 19 October 2026 scrape. This is not a laboratory test.

  1. Measuring Instruments Regulations 2016, Schedule 1I (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK, Measuring Instruments Regulations 2016: Great Britain (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. GOV.UK, weights and measures business guidance (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. Stanley UK, FatMax 5 m magnetic FMHT0-33864 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. The Tape Store, how to read a tape measure (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. The Tape Store, taking care of a tape (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. UK Metric Association, dual measuring tapes (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. Stanley support, why the hook moves (retrieved 20 October 2026)