Surface Area to Volume Ratio and Karyotypes Surface Area= Area of each side of an object combined (Ex= Cube has 6 sides so the surface area would be the area of each side added all together) Volume= The amount of space that an object occupies, length x width x height Surface area to volume ratio can be described as the bigger something is or the more volume, the less surface area. On the other hand, the smaller something is or the less volume, then the more surface area.