The 100 Largest City Parks in the US (Update for 2022)

Updated August 25, 2022 | Infoplease Staff

Chicago skyline and city park — *Source: iStock*

The United States park system is one of the best and most extensive in the world. With thousands of city parks that bring nature into the heart of US cities to National Parks that preserve the wilderness and adventure of the natural world, the raw beauty of the US is undeniable!

So, if you are looking for a gorgeous open space to host your next boating, hiking, or riverside picnic day, read on for the top 100 urban parks by size.

What City Has the Largest City Park?

Chugach State Park in Anchorage, Alaska, is the largest park by acres, stretching 495,204 acres, but is not completely contained within the metropolitan city limits of Anchorage. It also extends into the south-central Alaskan wilderness, bordering the Chugach Mountain range.

What Is the Second Largest City Park in America?

At 30,580 acres, the Scottsdale McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Arizona is the second largest contiguous urban park in the US. It is a gorgeous desert region, carefully conserved by a non-profit organization.

However, Jacksonville, Florida’s Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve is larger, at 46,000 acres, but it is not strictly a city park and extends further into national park territory, instead of being entirely urban. As such, by acreage, it’s the second largest, but not in terms of urban parks.

What’s the Largest City Park in the United States?

While Alaska’s Chugach State Park is the largest city park in the US, there are other expansive parks across the United States, including properties in Florida, Arizona, and California.

Here's a list of the 100 biggest city parks in the United States, based on the acreage that these urban parks cover.

Rank	Park name	Acres	City
1.	Chugach State Park¹	495,204	Anchorage, Ala.
2.	Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve²	46,000	Jacksonville, Fla.
3.	McDowell Sonoran Preserve	30,580	Scottsdale, Ariz.
3.	Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge^2,3	30,000	San Jose, Calif.
5.	Franklin Mountains State Park¹	26,627	El Paso, Tex.
6.	Gateway National Recreation Area^2,3	26,607	New York, N.Y.
7.	Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge²	25,270	New Orleans, La.
8.	South Mountain Preserve	16,283	Phoenix, Ariz.
9.	Carvins Cove Natural Reserve	12,700	Roanoke, Va.
10.	Eufaula National Wildlife Refuge^2,3	11,184	Eufaula, Ala.
11.	Cullen Park	10,500	Houston, Tex.
12.	Trinity River Park	10,000	Dallas, Tex.
13.	George Bush Park¹	7,800	Houston, Tex.
14.	Newport News Park³	7,711	Newport News, Va.
15.	North Mountain Preserve	7,500	Phoenix, Ariz.
16.	Mission Trails Preserve	7,220	San Diego, Calif.
17.	Jefferson Memorial Forest	6,600	Louisville, Ky.
18.	Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve¹	5,600	Jacksonville, Fla.
19.	William B. Umstead State Park¹	5,599	Raleigh, N.C.
20.	Forest Park	5,172	Portland, Ore.
21.	Longview Lake Park¹	4,852	Kansas City, Mo.
22.	Eagle Creek Park	4,766	Indianapolis, Ind.
23.	Far North Bicentennial Park	4,500	Anchorage, Ala.
24.	Shelby Farms Park¹	4,500	Memphis, Tenn.
25.	Calero County Park¹	4,471	San Jose, Calif.
26.	Griffith Park	4,310	Los Angeles, Calif.
27.	Mission Bay Park	4,235	San Diego, Calif.
28.	Fairmount Park - Wissahickon Valley	4,167	Philadelphia, Pa.
29.	Los Penasquitos Canyon	4,000	San Diego, Calif.
30.	Walter Long Park	3,695	Austin, Tex.
31.	Bidwell Park	3,670	Chico, Calif.
32.	Mountain Creek Lake Park	3,643	Dallas, Tex.
33.	Fort Worth Nature Center/Wildlife Refuge	3,621	Fort Worth, Tex.
34.	False Cape State Park and Natural Area Preserve¹	3,573	Virginia Beach, Va.
35.	Bonita Lakes Park	3,462	Meridian, Miss.
36.	North Landing River State Natural Area Preserve¹	3,441	Virginia Beach, Va.
37.	Mill Stream Run Reservation^1,3	3,181	Strongsville, Ohio
38.	Percy Warner Park	3,135	Nashville, Tenn.
39.	Mohawk Park and Golf Course	3,100	Tulsa, Okla.
40.	Brecksville Reservation^1,3	3,026	Brecksville, Ohio
41.	Cave Creek Regional Park¹	2,922	Phoenix, Ariz.
42.	First Landing State Park¹	2,888	Virginia Beach, Va.
43.	Greenbelt Park	2,800	New York, N.Y.
44.	Pelham Bay Park	2,765	New York, N.Y.
45.	Cheyenne Mountain State Park¹	2,701	Colorado Springs, Colo.
46.	Otter Creek Park	2,600	Louisville, Ky.
47.	Little Talbot Island State Park¹	2,500	Jacksonville, Fla.
48.	Big Talbot Island State Park¹	2,500	Jacksonville, Fla.
49.	Black Mountain Park	2,352	San Diego, Calif.
50.	Steele Creek Park	2,224	Bristol, Tenn.
51.	Bedford Reservation^1,3	2,200	Bedford, Ohio
52.	Bear Creek Pioneers Park¹	2,168	Houston, Tex.
53.	North Chagrin Reservation^1,3	2,100	Willoughby Hills, Ohio
54.	Tilden Park	2,079	Berkeley, Calif.
55.	Floyd Lamb State Park¹	2,040	Las Vegas, Nev.
56.	Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area	2,031	Los Angeles, Calif.
57.	Galveston Island State Park¹	2,013	Galveston, Tex.
58.	Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area¹	1,973	Portland, Ore.
59.	White Rock Lake Park	1,952	Dallas, Tex.
60.	Barton Creek Greenway	1,937	Austin, Tex.
61.	Swope Park	1,805	Kansas City, Mo.
62.	Tijuana River Valley Regional Park¹	1,800	San Diego, Calif.
63.	Rock Creek Park^2,3	1,754	Washington, D.C.
64.	Torrey Pines State Reserve¹	1,750	San Diego, Calif.
65.	Fort Harrison State Park¹	1,744	Lawrence, Ind.
66.	Burns Park	1,705	North Little Rock, Ark.
67.	Beaman Park	1,678	Nashville, Tenn.
68.	Claremont Hills Wilderness Park	1,620	Claremont, Calif.
69.	Pennypack Park	1,618	Philadelphia, Pa.
70.	Lake Leatherwood Park	1,610	Eureka Springs, Ark.
71.	North Cheyenne Canyon Park	1,600	Colorado Springs, Colo.
72.	Kincaid Park	1,517	Anchorage, Alaska
73.	Adobe Dam Recreation Area¹	1,514	Phoenix, Ariz.
74.	Memorial Park	1,500	Houston, Tex.
75.	The Presidio²	1,491	San Francisco, Calif.
76.	Mt. Airy Forest	1,471	Cincinnati, Ohio
77.	Hansen Dam Recreation Center	1,461	Los Angeles, Calif.
78.	Latta Plantation Nature Preserve¹	1,460	Huntersville, N.C.
79.	Garden of the Gods Park	1,367	Colorado Springs, Colo.
80	Forest Park	1,326	St. Louis, Mo.
81.	City Park	1,300	New Orleans, La
82.	Flushing Meadows/Corona Park	1,255	New York, N.Y.
83.	Martin Luther King, Jr. Shoreline Park¹	1,220	Oakland, Calif.
84.	Koko Head Regional Park¹	1,218	Honolulu, Hawaii
85.	Gwynn Falls/Leakin Park	1,216	Baltimore, Md.
86.	Anacostia Park²	1,210	Washington, D.C.
87.	Lincoln Park	1,208	Chicago, Ill.
88.	Balboa Park	1,200	San Diego, Calif.
89.	River Rouge Park	1,184	Detroit, Mich.
90.	McClay Gardens State Park¹	1,176	Tallahassee, Fla.
91.	Van Cortlandt Park	1,146	New York, N.Y.
92.	Red Mountain Park	1,146	Mesa, Ariz.
93.	Emma Long Park	1,142	Austin, Tex.
94.	T.O. Fuller State Park¹	1,138	Memphis, Tenn.
95.	McDowell Nature Preserve	1,116	Charlotte, N.C.
96.	Golden Gate Park	1,013	San Francisco, Calif.
97.	Olmos Basin Park	1,010	San Antonio, Tex.
98.	Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge	1,000	Oklahoma City, Okla.
99.	Richmond Parkway	984	New York, N.Y.
100.	William Blair Jr. Park (formerly Rochester Park)	983	Dallas, Tex.