- What it measures
- Overall land size as the owner and the government publish it: 17 million m² in the Foundation's 2025 brochure, more than 17 million m² on the Royal Commission's project page and in its October 2026 statement. We lead with this because it comes from the owner and the oversight body, is the most recent, and sits inside the 16.6 to 17.2 range that other sources give; it is a rounded figure, so we show the others beside it.
- Date
- Oct 2026
Why figures differ
Is it the world's largest urban park?
What is behind the 'world's largest urban park' billing?
Explained
Updated 12 Nov 2026
The figures, side by side
What each source says
- What it measures
- Project size on the landscape architect's project page (undated). Gerber Architekten's page gives 16.6 km² too.
- What it measures
- Area cited in an SPA report on private asset development (undated). Asharq Al-Awsat also gave 16.7 km² on 20 November 2025.
- What it measures
- Project overview in MEED's May 2024 construction update. The three phase areas in one secondary source (7.3 + 6.0 + 3.6 million m²) also total 16.9 million m², but Phase 3 is now being replanned.
- Date
- May 2024
- Source
- MEEDMay 2024
- What it measures
- Development footprint on Parsons' project page; the same 17.2 km² was also used in March 2026 MIPIM coverage. A footprint can include parcels that other figures leave out.
- Date
- Mar 2026
- Source
- ParsonsArab NewsMar 2026
- What it measures
- Site area as announced at the launch on 19 March 2019, reproduced in Arabic press. A historical figure from before the masterplan was refined, shown for context only.
- Date
- Mar 2019
- Source
- AjelMar 2019
- What it measures
- Printed in a September 2023 fund story. It looks like a figure for part of the site, or an error, and is unexplained; we keep it out of the headline.
- Date
- Sep 2023
- Source
- Al EqtisadiahSep 2023
Why the figures differ
The phrase appears in headlines from Gulf News, Domus, CairoScene and UIS Journal, and in a video sponsored by Parsons titled 'This Will Be The World's Biggest Park'. UIS Journal adds that it is five times the size of Central Park. We have not found a Foundation source that makes the claim in those words. The ratios shift with the area used: 2019 Arabic coverage compared the 13.4 km² site with Hyde Park and Central Park, while Saudipedia, working from about 16 km², says seven times Hyde Park and five times Central Park. 'Largest' also depends on how an 'urban park' is defined, which the headlines do not say.
What we show
We describe it as 'billed by press coverage and a Parsons-sponsored video as the world's largest urban park', with the area figures shown alongside. We do not state it as fact.
What would resolve it
A stated definition of 'urban park' and a published comparison list that includes the park's boundary.
More figures explained
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