Flag size calculator – the size of flag for each pole
Published Written by Flagpole Guides
This page is an English translation of the Portuguese original. Where the two versions differ, the Portuguese text is the original.
No Portuguese law sets the size of the national flag according to the pole, but there is current practice and there are some official references: the flag’s height is usually between one seventh and one fifth of the pole’s height. The calculator shows the size of flag for the height of pole entered.
Calculator
How the calculator works
- Nearest standard size: The calculator looks up the nearest row in a Portuguese flag supplier’s table, which covers poles from 3 to 15 metres. Below it appears the alternative that the same table gives for exposed or sheltered sites. Sizes are height × length.
- Reference proportion: The flag’s height between one seventh and one fifth of the pole’s height, rounded to 5 centimetres. This is the reference that the GNR Heraldry Regulations give for their flags for flying, and the one the supplier uses too.
- Flag of the Azores: The range in Decreto Regulamentar Regional n.º 13/79/A, under which the flag of the Azores is no more than half and no less than a quarter of the pole’s height.
The height of the pole here means the height of a vertical ground-mounted pole. The calculator does not apply to façade poles, where the flag is chosen according to the length of the pole and the space next to the wall.
Examples
| Height of the pole | Size in the table | Reference proportion |
|---|---|---|
| 5 m | 80 × 120 cm | 70–100 cm high |
| 6 m | 100 × 150 cm | 85–120 cm high |
| 8 m | 120 × 180 cm | 115–160 cm high |
| 10 m | 150 × 225 cm | 145–200 cm high |
The length of the national flag is always one and a half times its height, under the 1911 decree. The proportions and usual sizes are in the guide to flag sizes, and the choice of pole height in the guide to flagpole heights.
Size and half-mast
At half-mast the flag is halfway down the pole, and a very large flag on a short pole can come close to the ground or to obstacles. The procedure is described in the guide to half-mast.
Frequently asked questions
How does the calculator work out the flag size?
The calculator shows three values: the nearest size in a Portuguese flag supplier’s table, the flag height between one seventh and one fifth of the pole’s height that the GNR Heraldry Regulations give as a reference, and the range under the rule of the Azores.
Is the calculator’s result compulsory?
No. No Portuguese law sets the size of the national flag according to the pole. The calculator shows current practice and the official references that exist, and the pole’s manufacturer states the largest flag the pole can carry.
Why does the Azores rule give such large values?
Decreto Regulamentar Regional n.º 13/79/A provides that the flag of the Azores is no more than half and no less than a quarter of the pole’s height, without saying which measurement of the flag it refers to. The range is therefore wider than current practice, which lies between one seventh and one fifth.
Sources
This guide is based on the following sources, most of them in Portuguese:
- Como escolher o tamanho da bandeira para o mastro – Mundo das Bandeiras
- Portaria n.º 1194/2009, de 8 de outubro (Regulamento de Heráldica da GNR) – Diário da República
- Decreto Regulamentar Regional n.º 13/79/A, de 18 de maio – Diário da República
- Decreto de 30 de junho de 1911 (medidas e proporções da Bandeira Nacional) – Presidência da República
Related guides
- Flag sizesFlag sizes in Portugal: the official proportions of 1911, the usual sizes, the relationship with the height of the pole and the rules of the Azores and the GNR.
- Flagpole heightsFlagpole heights in Portugal: usual heights for houses, businesses and public buildings, the relationship with the flag, half-mast and municipal permits.
- Half-mastHalf-mast in Portugal: when it applies, raising the flag to the top before half-mast, what happens to other flags and the difference from municipal mourning.
- Flag typesTypes of flags in Portugal: the national flag, the naval jack and pennants, the flags of the Azores and Madeira, and municipal and parish flags.