The U.S. National Park Service manages over 85 million acres of protected land, and of that, over 52 million acres are set aside as official national parks. Isn’t that amazing?!
List of the U.S. National Parks by Size (Biggest to Smallest):
Here is a list of the U.S. National Parks by size (from biggest to smallest):
1. Wrangell-St. Elias (Alaska): 8,323,146.5 acres for the national park + 4,852,644 acres for the national preserve = 13,175,790.5 total acres
2. Gates of the Arctic (Alaska): 7,523,897.5 acres for the national park + 948,608 acres for the national preserve = 8,472,505.5 total acres
3. Denali (Alaska): 4,740,911.2 acres for the national park + 1,334,117 acres for the national preserve = 6,075,028.2 total acres
4. Katmai (Alaska): 3,674,529.3 acres for the national park + 418,698 acres for the national preserve = 4,093,227.3 total acres
5. Lake Clark (Alaska): 2,619,816.5 acres for the national park + 1,410,293 acres for the national preserve = 4,030,109.5 total acres
6. Death Valley (California): 3,408,395.6 acres
7. Glacier Bay (Alaska): 3,223,383.4 acres for the national park + 58,406 acres for the national preserve = 3,281,789.4 total acres
8. Yellowstone (Wyoming): 2,219,790.7 acres
9. Kobuk Valley (Alaska): 1,750,716.2 acres
10. Everglades (Florida): 1,508,938.6 acres
11. Grand Canyon (Arizona): 1,201,647 acres
12. Glacier (Montana): 1,013,126.4 acres
13. Olympic (Washington): 922,649.4 acres
14. Big Bend (Texas): 801,163.2 acres
15. Joshua Tree (California): 795,155.9 acres
16. Yosemite (California): 761,747.5 acres
17. Kenai Fjords (Alaska): 669,650.1 acres
18. Isle Royale (Michigan): 571,790.3 acres
19. Great Smoky Mountains (Tennessee/North Carolina): 522,426.9 acres
20. North Cascades (Washington): 504,780.9 acres
21. Kings Canyon (California): 461,901.2 acres
22. Sequoia (California): 404,062.6 acres
23. Hawai’i Volcanoes (Hawai’i): 344,812.2 acres
24. Canyonlands (Utah): 337,597.8 acres
25. Grand Teton (Wyoming): 310,044.4 acres
26. Rocky Mountain (Colorado): 265,847.7 acres
27. Channel Islands (California): 249,561 acres
28. Badlands (South Dakota): 242,755.9 acres
29. Capitol Reef (Utah): 241,904.5 acres
30. Mount Rainier (Washington): 236,381.6 acres
31. Petrified Forest (Arizona): 221,390.2 acres
32. Voyageurs (Minnesota): 218,222.4 acres
33. Shenandoah (Virginia): 200,445.9 acres
34. Crater Lake (Oregon): 183,224.1 acres
35. Biscayne (Florida): 172,971.1 acres
36. Great Sand Dunes (Colorado): 107,345.7 acres for the national park + 41,686 acres for the national preserve = 149,031.7 total acres
37. Zion (Utah): 147,242.7 acres
38. White Sands (New Mexico): 146,344.3 acres
39. Redwood (California): 138,999.4 acres
40. Lassen Volcanic (California): 106,589 acres
41. Saguaro (Arizona): 92,876.8 acres
42. Guadalupe Mountains (Texas): 86,367.1 acres
43. Great Basin (Nevada): 77,180 acres
44. Arches (Utah): 76,679 acres
45. Mammoth Cave (Kentucky): 72,472.9 acres
46. New River Gorge (West Virginia): 7,021 acres for the national park + 65,165 acres for the national preserve = 72,186 total acres
47. Theodore Roosevelt (North Dakota): 70,446.9 acres
48. Dry Tortugas (Florida): 64,701.2 acres
49. Mesa Verde (Colorado): 52,485.2 acres
50. Acadia (Maine): 49,071.4 acres
51. Carlsbad Caverns (New Mexico): 46,766.5 acres
52. Bryce Canyon (Utah): 35,835.1 acres
53. Wind Cave (South Dakota): 33,970.8 acres
54. Haleakala (Hawai’i): 33,489 acres
55. Cuyahoga Valley (Ohio): 32,571.9 acres
56. Black Canyon of the Gunnison (Colorado): 30,779.8 acres
57. Congaree (South Carolina): 26,692.6 acres
58. Pinnacles (California): 26,685.7 acres
59. Indiana Dunes (Indiana): 15,349.1 acres
60. Virgin Islands (U.S. Virgin Islands): 15,052.3 acres
61. American Samoa: 8,256.7 acres
62. Hot Springs (Arkansas): 5,554.2 acres
63. Gateway Arch (Missouri): 192.8 acres
Free Printable Map of the U.S. National Parks
What is the Largest National Park in the USA?
Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is the largest national park in America. It is a whopping 13,175,790 total acres, which is the size of Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the entire country of Switzerland combined!
What is a National Preserve?
You might notice that some national parks also include the acreage of a national preserve in the list above. National preserves are established to protect a specific resource, and many of them are managed in conjunction with a national park.
Even though many national preserves are managed by their nearby national park (and everything is lumped together!), the land use policies in national preserves typically aren’t as strict as they are in national parks.
For example, in Alaska’s national preserves, sport hunting and trapping are permitted. Those activities are typically not allowed in the national parks. Creating a national preserve opens up the land to more traditional uses while still preserving it under the protection of a national park!
What is the Smallest National Park in the USA?
Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis, Missouri, is the smallest national park in America. It is only 192.8 acres!
What are the Largest National Parks in the Contiguous U.S.?
Most of the largest national parks in America are located in Alaska. So what happens when you take out those huge national parks in Alaska and then rank the U.S. national parks by size?
Here is a list of the top 5 largest national parks in the contiguous United States:
1. Death Valley (California): 3,408,395.6 acres
2. Yellowstone (Wyoming): 2,219,790.7 acres
3. Everglades (Florida): 1,508,938.6 acres
4. Grand Canyon (Arizona): 1,201,647 acres
5. Glacier (Montana): 1,013,126.4 acres
Free Printable U.S. National Parks Checklist
Easily keep track of where you’ve been and where you still need to go with this free printable checklist of all of the national parks in the U.S.A.!
Which State has the Most Acreage Set Aside for National Parks?
The state of Alaska, by far, has the most acreage set aside for national parks! The total acreage of Alaska’s national parks is about 41.5 million acres.
Hey there, I’m Ash!
I worked as a park ranger in Alaska, Utah, and Wyoming, and I am so excited to help you plan your next national park trip. I think that every national park is unique and beautiful, and you never know which one will speak to your soul the most (which is why the parks should never be ranked from best to worst)!
I would love to hear from you, so please leave a comment on this post if you have any questions as you turn your dream trip into a reality!
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