THE PHOENIX LAND BRIEF
Land in the
Gila/Salt Intermediate Basins setting.
Phoenix city has 518.4 square miles of land in Maricopa County. Its Census reference point is in Gila/Salt Intermediate Basins, within Sonoran Basin and Range.
Hot desert basins are separated by low mountain ranges. Palo verde, cacti and other drought-adapted plants distinguish the Sonoran setting from the Mojave region farther north.
Regional context: Sonoran Basin and Range ↗ · Classification at the Census reference point
Phoenix and Maricopa County
Phoenix is associated with Maricopa County in the Census boundary data. Start with the parcel’s tax bill to match the property to that jurisdiction, then confirm which government handles its land use.
Phoenix by land and water
The Census records 0.99 square miles of water within Phoenix, or 0.2% of its total area. That share is close to Maricopa County’s 0.3%. This is geographic context; waterfront status and usable land must be checked at the parcel.
For scale, Phoenix city has 7.7 times the land area of nearby Glendale city (67.3 square miles). These areas describe boundaries, not comparable property prices.

