The current study used satellite data and a geographic information system (GIS) to detect changes in land use and land cover (LULC) in Al-Hillah city, central Iraq from 1990 to 2022. The study aimed to calculate the NDVI, NDWI and LULC of Al-Hillah using Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 8 OLI images. The results showed that there was an apparent expansion in the urban area from 20.5 km2 in 1990 to about 57 km2 in 2022. On the other hand, there is a slight increase in agricultural areas and water, while the barren area decreased from 168.7 km2 to 122 km2 in 2022. Long-term urban planning, which is based on LULC analysis, is an effective tool for decision-makers to study future patterns in urban expansion in parallel with the expected rise of the population in Iraq in the coming years. While there was a slight increase in water and agricultural areas. The continuous urban expansion led to a reduction in barren areas in favor of urban areas. Urban planning for a long period, which is based on LULC analysis, where demographic changes greatly affected land use in the city of Al-Hillah, and the increase appears significantly in the urban and residential areas.