GTA 6 Vice City Is Twice the Size of Los Santos

Rockstar Games is preparing to deliver an enormous open world with GTA 6, and new comments from Rockstar North co-head Rob Nelson give players a better idea of just how big it will be. According to Nelson, the GTA 6 Vice City size is twice that of Los Santos, the sprawling city featured in GTA 5.

That comparison is already impressive, but it only tells part of the story. Once the suburbs, smaller towns, rural locations, islands, and hidden areas of Leonida are included, the scale becomes considerably more ambitious.

For players who enjoy exploring massive open worlds, GTA 6 could offer a playground that makes previous Rockstar maps feel surprisingly small.

GTA 6 Vice City Is Twice the Size of Los Santos

Speaking with French magazine Trois Couleurs, Rob Nelson directly compared the two cities, saying that Vice City is “twice the size of Los Santos.”

That is a remarkable statement when you consider how large Los Santos felt when GTA 5 launched in 2013. The city provided an enormous amount of space for missions, random encounters, businesses, races, collectibles, and simply driving around.

Now imagine that same urban experience expanded to twice the size.

The important detail is that this comparison refers specifically to Vice City. It does not include the entire GTA 6 map.

Leonida Makes the Map Even Bigger

Vice City is only one part of Leonida. Rockstar's new setting also includes surrounding suburban areas, smaller communities, rural locations, and various other places to discover.

Nelson reportedly explained that when cities and suburbanized areas are considered together, there is the equivalent of eleven times the amount found in GTA 5, including the smaller locations players can discover.

That figure provides a very different perspective on the game's scale.

So while “Vice City is twice the size of Los Santos” makes for an eye-catching headline, the broader 11-times urban and suburban comparison could be the more interesting statistic for exploration-focused players.

The full Leonida experience appears to be designed around variety rather than simply making one huge city.

How GTA 6 Compares With GTA 5 and RDR2

Rockstar has already positioned GTA 6 as a significant expansion in scale compared with its previous open-world games.

Following the GTA 6 Extended Look released on Netflix in August, Rockstar confirmed that the full GTA 6 map is twice the size of GTA 5's map and three times the size of Red Dead Redemption 2's map.

That comparison is particularly interesting because RDR2 already felt enormous.

However, bigger does not necessarily mean that Rockstar is simply filling the world with empty terrain. The studio's open-world games traditionally focus heavily on environmental details, random encounters, activities, interiors, characters, and locations that encourage players to explore away from the main story.

For fans of blockchain games and expansive virtual worlds, this approach is particularly familiar: the value of a large map comes from what players can actually do inside it.

Jason's Journey Starts in the Keys

Another interesting detail concerns where players begin their adventure.

Nelson confirmed that Jason starts at a safehouse in the Leonida Keys, located toward the bottom of the map. From there, the world eventually opens up, with Nelson saying players can “go anywhere anytime” once they move beyond the opening section.

This sounds similar to how Rockstar structured the beginning of Red Dead Redemption 2.

Rather than immediately throwing players into the entire world, the opening can introduce characters, mechanics, and the setting before giving players much greater freedom.

For GTA 6, starting in the Keys could also make Vice City feel like a destination that players gradually reach rather than simply the first area they see.

An 80-Hour Playthrough Makes More Sense

Nelson has previously said that it took him around 80 hours to complete GTA 6.

With the new information about the map, that figure becomes easier to understand.

GTA 5's Los Santos was already capable of keeping players occupied for dozens of hours. GTA 6 offers a Vice City that is twice as large, alongside numerous additional locations throughout Leonida.

Of course, completion time will vary dramatically depending on how someone plays. A player rushing through the main storyline will have a very different experience from someone who explores every road, searches for secrets, completes side activities, and investigates unusual locations.

For an exploration-heavy playthrough, the size of Leonida could make 80 hours feel like just the beginning.

Rockstar Is Rebuilding Vice City

Fans of the original GTA Vice City, released in 2002, will recognize the general inspiration behind the new setting.

The neon lights, beaches, art deco architecture, colorful characters, and Florida-inspired atmosphere are returning. But Rockstar is rebuilding the location for a completely different generation of hardware and open-world design.

The result is not simply a larger version of the 2002 map.

Instead, GTA 6's Vice City is being presented as a modern living city with considerably more detail, density, and surrounding environments. Doubling the size of Los Santos gives Rockstar far more room to create different neighborhoods and experiences within the city itself.

And once players leave the city, Leonida continues to expand.

What the Huge Map Means for Players

The biggest question is not simply how many square miles GTA 6 contains. It is what Rockstar does with all that space.

A massive map becomes memorable when players have reasons to explore it. Hidden locations, unusual encounters, side missions, businesses, collectibles, environmental storytelling, and unexpected events can turn a long drive into part of the actual experience.

GTA 6 appears to be aiming for exactly that kind of world.

With Vice City alone reaching twice the size of Los Santos and the broader urban and suburban environment reportedly reaching an equivalent of 11 GTA 5 cities and suburbs, there should be plenty of room for discovery.

GTA 6 Is Building Rockstar's Biggest Playground Yet

The latest details paint a fascinating picture of Leonida. Vice City is twice the size of Los Santos, the broader urban and suburban footprint reaches an enormous scale, and the complete GTA 6 map is reportedly twice the size of GTA 5's world.

Starting as Jason in the Leonida Keys before gaining access to the wider map also gives the adventure a natural sense of progression.

Rockstar's goal appears to be more than creating the biggest map in the studio's history. The real challenge will be making all that space feel alive.

If the developer succeeds, GTA 6 could turn Leonida into one of the most detailed and expansive open worlds ever created — with Vice City at its center and an enormous amount of territory waiting beyond its streets.