The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are places of importance to cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972. Cultural heritage consists of monuments (such as architectural works, monumental sculptures, or inscriptions), groups of buildings, and sites (including archaeological sites). Natural features (consisting of physical and biological formations), geological and physiographical formations (including habitats of threatened species of animals and plants), and natural sites which are important from the point of view of science, conservation or natural beauty, are defined as natural heritage. Iran accepted the convention on 26 February 1975, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on the list. , Iran has 30 World Heritage Sites.
The first three sites in Iran, Meidan Naghshe Jahan, Isfahan, Persepolis and Tchogha Zanbil, were inscribed on the list at the Third Session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Cairo and Luxor, Egypt in 1979. They remained the Islamic Republic's only listed properties until 2003, when Takht-e Soleyman was added to the list. The latest addition was Alamūt Castle and Related Fortifications, inscribed in 2026. In addition to its inscribed sites, Iran also has 57 sites on its tentative list as of July 2026.
World Heritage Sites UNESCO lists sites under ten criteria; each entry must meet at least one of the criteria. Criteria i through vi are cultural, and vii through x are natural.
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