Zirconia (ZrO2) nanoparticles with nonstabilized monoclinic and sodium-stabilized cubic phase were produced from zircon sand using the ball mill-aided precipitation route. Characterization and a comprehensive study of nanocrystalline ZrO2 particles were expressed by X-ray diffraction, particle size distribution (PSD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermal analysis, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area and pore size analysis, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. In this article, the influence of the processing parameters on the crystalline phase, particle size, PSD, aggregation, and morphology are reported. The experimental results prove that the precipitation leads to aggregated particles, which are disaggregated by the ball-milling process. The ball-milling process strongly influences the formation of uniform-sized spherical particles with a high surface area. Fully crystalline monoclinic ZrO2 nanoparticles with an average particle size of 64 nm (d(50)) and the specific surface area of 126 m(2)/g were obtained. In addition, the sodium-stabilized cubic ZrO2 nanoparticles with an average particle size of 39 nm (d(50)) and the specific surface area of 227 m(2)/g were obtained with the help of the ball-milling process. In the present process, a simple reaction scheme is developed for the large-scale production of stabilized and nonstabilized ZrO2 nanoparticles using inexpensive precursor obtained from zircon sand.