<p>The primary goals of global geopark inscription and revalidation are to preserve the planet’s geological heritage, utilize it for research and education, and contribute to the sustainable development of the region through geotourism. Despite recent studies evaluating the value of geological heritage, there is a lack of research on the impact of global geoparks on local economic development and operational efficiency. Therefore, this study aims to assess the operational efficiency of global geoparks and their impact on economic development in the surrounding regions by using data envelopment analysis (DEA) to calculate scale efficiency (SE). Additionally, the study aims to discuss the necessary additions to the criteria for inscription and revalidation of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Global Geoparks. For this study, we selected 16 out of 28 UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGps) that were inscripted or revalidated by UNESCO in the last seven years. We collected reports online that contained continuous data on inscription or revalidation. From the collected continuous data, we selected figures including geological characteristics, consumption characteristics, etc. We selected DEA inputs and outputs. We conducted correlation analysis and principal component analysis to select items that have a significant impact on the operational efficiency of global geoparks. To explore the efficient operation of the global geoparks, we calculated the SE using the Banker, Charnes, and Cooper (BBC) model and Charnes, Cooper, and Rhodes (CCR) model DEAs and compared and analyzed them among the UGGps. The SE results showed that eight UGGps were operating efficiently with no change in profitability due to scale, one UGGp was experiencing an increase in profitability due to scale, and seven UGGps were experiencing a decrease in profitability due to scale.</p>