From the sprawling ranches of Australia to the dense woodlands of North America, land remains a fundamental measure of wealth and influence. While governments and corporations hold the majority, a remarkably small number of individuals—royalty, business moguls, and industrialists—control immense portions of the globe. Astonishingly, over 20% of the world’s inhabitable land is legally claimed or overseen by just a few people.
Some of these landowners inherit their dominion through lineage, while others have strategically acquired their vast estates through business acumen. Certain rulers legally own their nations’ entire landmass, while others have methodically accumulated large tracts of ranchland, forests, or farmland for economic advantage. Their properties stretch across diverse regions, ecosystems, and industries, yet they share one defining trait: they each command extensive private domains.
Below is a ranking of the ten largest individual landowners worldwide, based on the total acreage under their control.
10. King Letsie III – Lesotho (~7.5 million acres)
As the ceremonial sovereign of Lesotho, King Letsie III holds formal ownership over the entire country, which spans approximately 7.5 million acres (11,720 square miles). Though his authority is largely symbolic, traditional land laws designate him as the legal proprietor of all land within the borders of this mountainous African nation.
9. King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck – Bhutan (~9.6 million acres)
Often called the “Dragon King,” Jigme Khesar presides over Bhutan’s 9.6 million acres (15,000 square miles) of pristine Himalayan landscapes. Despite Bhutan’s transition to democracy, the monarch retains legal ownership of the nation’s land, a holdover from centuries of dynastic rule.
8. King Abdullah II – Jordan (~22 million acres)
Under Jordanian law, the king maintains ultimate authority over the nation’s 22 million acres (35,000 square miles). King Abdullah II, who has led the Hashemite Kingdom since 1999, officially possesses all Jordanian land, despite his primarily constitutional role.
7. Gina Rinehart – Australia & U.S. (~24 million acres)
Mining magnate Gina Rinehart, Australia’s wealthiest woman, is the most extensive private landowner outside of royalty. Through major acquisitions, including the legendary S. Kidman & Co., she controls approximately 24 million acres—primarily in the Australian Outback, with additional holdings in the U.S. Her estate is nearly the size of South Korea.
6. Sultan Haitham bin Tariq – Oman (~76 million acres)
Ascending to the throne in 2020, Sultan Haitham inherited Oman’s 76 million acres of deserts, mountains, and coastal regions. As an absolute ruler, he possesses full legal ownership of the nation’s land, following a long-standing tradition of monarchs in the Arabian Peninsula.
5. King Maha Vajiralongkorn – Thailand (~128 million acres)
King Vajiralongkorn, also known as Rama X, is the legal proprietor of all land in Thailand, an expanse covering 128 million acres (513,000 square kilometers). Despite constitutional adjustments, Thai law continues to uphold the monarchy’s historical land ownership rights.
4. King Mohammed VI – Morocco (~175 million acres)
Presiding over both Morocco and the contested Western Sahara, King Mohammed VI holds dominion over approximately 175 million acres. His rule extends from bustling urban centers to vast desert territories, with his family’s royal lineage tracing back nearly a thousand years.
3. Pope Francis – Worldwide (~177 million acres)
As the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis oversees an estimated 177 million acres of land, including churches, schools, monasteries, and agricultural properties worldwide. These holdings are managed in trust for the Church’s 1.3 billion followers, making the Pope one of the most significant land controllers on Earth.
2. King Salman – Saudi Arabia (~531 million acres)
King Salman rules over Saudi Arabia’s 531 million acres (830,000 square miles), encompassing its vast deserts, urban developments, religious sites, and oil reserves. As the absolute monarch of one of the wealthiest oil-producing nations, he holds complete authority over the country’s land.
1. King Charles III – U.K. & Commonwealth (~6.6 billion acres)
King Charles III is the largest landowner globally, with a legal claim to approximately one-sixth of the Earth’s surface. His dominion includes the entirety of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth nations such as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—amounting to a staggering 6.6 billion acres. While much of this land is held in trust or symbolic, the structure of the British monarchy ensures that no individual on the planet has a more extensive legal claim to land.
