Flag sizes in New Zealand: what size flag for a flagpole?

No law in New Zealand says how large a flag has to be. Section 10 of the Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981 allows the Minister to prescribe standard sizes for government purposes, but according to Manatū Taonga – Ministry for Culture and Heritage (MCH), the New Zealand flag can be made to any size, as long as its length is twice its width. The sizes sold in New Zealand follow a set of traditional sizes measured in yards.

The proportions

The New Zealand flag has the proportions 1:2: the flag is twice as long as it is high. MCH describes the length along the top of the flag as the main measurement. The Flag & Banner Company, which makes the flags for the Auckland Harbour Bridge, gives their size as 7000 × 3500 mm. According to the same maker, flags of other countries are often made at 2:1 in New Zealand too, to be consistent with the other flags flown here.

Standard sizes

According to MCH, New Zealand flags are produced commercially in five sizes, from one yard (0.91 metres) to three yards (2.74 metres), and the two-yard size is the most common. The Flag & Banner Company lists them in millimetres:

According to the Flag & Banner Company, sizing is nominal, and a two-yard flag at 1800 × 900 mm plus or minus 5 to 10 percent is normal. FlagSeller, another New Zealand maker, describes the 1800 × 900 mm flag as suited to many 5 to 8 metre flagpoles and the 1350 × 675 mm flag as a choice for smaller flagpoles, boats and sports clubs.

One yard for every 10 feet

MCH gives a simple guide: the flag is chosen so that it is in proportion with the height of the flagpole, and one yard of flag is allowed for every 10 feet of staff. In metric terms, the flag’s length is about 0.3 times the height of the pole: a 6 metre pole carries a two-yard flag, a 9 metre pole a three-yard flag. MCH adds that the choice also depends on how the flag is going to be used, and on a building, on an appropriate height for the staff. The flag size calculator works it out.

Small flags

Table and car flags are available in a 6 × 3 inch size, according to MCH, used with appropriate masts and stands or mountings. Car flags are usually flown only on cars carrying a Crown minister, an ambassador overseas or the Chief of the Defence Force.

Size and protocol

The display rules add one rule for flags flown together: when the New Zealand flag is flown with the flags of other countries, each flag is the same size and flies from a separate flagpole of the same height, according to MCH. More in the guide to foreign flags in New Zealand.

Size, wind and weather

A larger flag catches more wind and loads the pole more. According to MCH, large flags are more suitable for calm days or ceremonial occasions, and smaller storm flags can be used instead when wind speeds are expected to exceed 48 knots. The manufacturer’s maximum flag size for a pole is part of the picture too. More in the guides to flagpole heights and flagpole safety; how the flag sits at half-mast is in the guide to half-mast.