Lied Center for Real Estate · UNLV Volume 3, Issue 3 May 2026
May 2026
Authors:
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Shawn J. McCoy, Ph.D.
Director, Lied Center for Real Estate
and Associate Professor, Department of Economics
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Nicholas B. Irwin, Ph.D.
Research Director, Lied Center for Real Estate
and Associate Professor, Department of Economics
Executive Summary
“Urban sprawl is increasingly cited as a defining characteristic of Las Vegas, yet the empirical basis for that characterization is rarely directly examined. To provide both the public and private sectors with a data-driven perspective, this brief summarizes the findings of Hamidi et al. (2026), Who Sprawls the Most? Mapping Urban Sprawl and Assessing Its Impact on Everyday Life, a national study from Johns Hopkins University that ranks 233 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), representing 85% of the U.S. population, on a composite compactness-sprawl index.
In terms of density, the Las Vegas-Henderson- Paradise, NV MSA ranks as the 16th most dense MSA out of 233, placing it in the top 7% nationally, ahead of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA MSA, the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX MSA, and the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ MSA. Similarly, on street connectivity, the Las Vegas MSA ranks 13th out of 233, placing it in the top 6% of the most connected metropolitan areas in the country. On the overall compactness index, the Las Vegas MSA ranks 69th out of 233, placing it in the top 30% of least sprawling metropolitan areas in the United States.
Contributing to these findings is the fact that roughly 88% of Clark County is managed by the federal government, which constrains outward expansion and concentrates development within a bounded footprint commonly referred to as the SNPLMA Disposal Boundary. This structural factor contributes to the metro’s comparatively high-density profile. The Las Vegas MSA ranks 125th out of 233 on land use mix, reflecting a degree of separation between residential areas and employment and commercial corridors that characterizes much of the valley’s development pattern. This is the one dimension on which the index places Las Vegas below the national average.
Turning to Northern Nevada, the Reno, NV MSA ranks 46th out of 233 on the overall compactness sprawl index, placing it in the top 20% of least sprawling metros and 32nd on urban centering (top 14%).
This data brief presents index scores and rankings for both Nevada MSAs, contextualizes those findings relative to peer metropolitan areas, and provides the full 233-MSA dataset in the Appendix.
About the Data
The Hamidi et al. (2026) study (hereafter “The study”) led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health covers 233 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) representing a comprehensive update to a previous sprawl measurement study1. The study assigns each MSA a composite compactness-sprawl index score built from four equally weighted dimensions:
• Density: Measures the intensity of residential and employment development. Indicators include population density, the share of population living at low versus high urban densities, gross employment density, and net population density2 within urban places.
• Land Use Mix: Captures the degree to which homes, jobs, and services are integrated rather than separated. Measured through job-population balance, degree of job mixing, and average Walk Score.”
Click here to read the full report
