Riyadh
1,798 km²
San Francisco
121 km²
Saudi Arabia
USA
Area Comparison
Riyadh is 14.9x larger than San Francisco
Population Comparison
Riyadh has 8.1x more people than San Francisco
Yes — Riyadh is 14.9x larger than San Francisco by area. Riyadh spans 1,798 km² (694 mi²) while San Francisco covers 121 km² (47 mi²) — a difference of 1,677 km². You could fit San Francisco inside Riyadh approximately 14 times.
To put Riyadh's size in perspective, its area of 1,798 km² is about 1.1x the size of London. Meanwhile, San Francisco at 121 km² is about 1.2x the size of Paris (city proper).
Riyadh's footprint is roughly about 252,000 American football fields, 30 times the area of Manhattan, or 17 times the area of Paris — pick whichever unit feels intuitive. San Francisco, by comparison, equals about 17,000 American football fields, 60 times the area of Monaco, or 35 times the area of Central Park.
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in the 1950s as an expansion of the 18th-century walled town, following the dismantling of its defensive fortifications.
Riyadh covers 1,798 km² with a population of 7.0 million. The city was established in 1746. Riyadh is known for Kingdom Centre Tower, Masmak Fortress, Al Faisaliah Tower, among other attractions.
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia, sitting on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa.
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 826,079 in 2025. Among U.S. cities with a population of 300,000 or more, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income, second by population density, and sixth by aggregate income as of 2023.
Also known as "The City by the Bay", San Francisco has an area of 121 km² and is home to 0.9 million people. The city dates back to 1776. Visitors come for Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, Cable cars, and much more. Getting around is easy with the BART & Muni.
San Francisco ranks first by per capita income among all US cities with 300,000+ residents as of 2023.
Riyadh has a population density of 3,899 people per km² — a moderately dense city. San Francisco, with 7,190 people per km², is a densely populated city. San Francisco is noticeably denser, packing 1.8 times more people per square kilometer.
Size Ratio
San Francisco fits inside Riyadh ~14 times
Density Gap
San Francisco is 1.8x more densely populated
Riyadh covers 1,798 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Houston (1,725 km²), Johannesburg (1,644 km²), Shenzhen (1,997 km²), Bogotá (1,578 km²), or London (1,572 km²).
San Francisco covers 121 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Vancouver (115 km²), Paris (105 km²), Miami (143 km²), Barcelona (101 km²), or Lisbon (100 km²).
The straight-line distance from Riyadh to San Francisco is 12,983 km (8,067 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~15h 46m.
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