The drawing scale determines how a distance on the page represents a distance in the real world. For example, 1 inch on an office layout might represent 1 foot in the actual office. In metric drawings, 2 centimeters might represent 1 meter. You can change the drawing scale in any Visio drawing.
Note: The Drawing Scale options you set only apply to the currently displayed drawing page, not to the entire file, or to any background pages assigned to the drawing page.
No scale (1:1)
Use this option to create an unscaled drawing.Â
Pre-defined scale
Use this option to set the drawing page to a pre-defined scale:
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Architectural  Includes measurements in US units, such as 3/32" = 1' 0".
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Civil Engineering  Includes measurements in US units, such as 1" = 10' 0".
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Metric  Includes standard metric scales, such as 1:100.
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Mechanical Engineering  Includes standard engineering scales, such as 1/32:1.
Custom scale
Use this option to set a custom ratio of drawing page size to physical dimensions. For example, at 2 cm = 1 m, a shape that measures 2 centimeters on the printed page (when printed at 100 percent) measures 1 meter on the Visio rulers and represents a real-world object that is 1 meter long.
Page size (in measurement units)
Sets the real-world size of what you are drawing. Enter the physical dimensions of the area you're drawing; for example, for a large room or an entire floor you might enter 20 feet × 50 feet.
Preview
Displays a thumbnail of how the printer paper and drawing page are currently set to work together.
Printer paper
Lists the current printer paper settings (as set on the Print Setup tab).
Drawing page
Lists the current drawing page settings (as set on the Page Size tab).
Print zoom
Lists any reduction or enlargement (as set on the Print Setup tab).
