The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of rural community capital in economic development by utilizing the capabilities of creative rural tourism. The statistical population of the study is families living in tourist villages with creative tourism indicators in the central part of Abhar County (Zanjan Province), which, according to the data of the General Population and Housing Census (2016), amounted to 1850 households. Using the Cochran formula, 272 cases were selected as a sample and a researcher-made questionnaire was distributed in the sample villages by simple random method. The present study is a user research type and is descriptive-analytical in terms of method. The validity of the questionnaire items was examined using the views and opinions of experts, and the reliability of the research items was calculated using the Cronbach's alpha test at 0.895 in the dimensions of rural capital and 0.864 in the local economy index. To analyze the questionnaire data, one-sample t-tests, Spearman correlation and multivariate regression were used. The results showed that among the rural community capitals, natural (3.7723), social (3.7582) and financial (3.6332) capitals of the sample villages played the greatest role in the development of creative tourism in the study area. Also, the results of the regression test, considering the value of the coefficient of determination of 0.66, indicate the positive effect of the dimensions of rural community capitals on the effects of tourism on the local economy in the study villages, and natural (0.507), financial (0.368) and physical (0.329) capitals, respectively, have had the greatest impact on the development of the rural economy through tourism.