The theoretical predictions of ground movements induced by tunnelling are usually based on the assumptions that the subsoil has the same soil densities. The theoretical prediction does not consider the impact of different sand soil types on the surface settlement due to tunnelling. The finite elements analysis (FEA) considers stress and strength parameters of the different sand soil densities. The tunnel construction requires the solution of large soil-structure interaction problem. In the present study, the FEA is used to model soil-tunnel system performance based on a case study to discuss surface displacement due to tunnelling. The Greater Cairo metro tunnel (Line 3) is considered in the present study as case study. The surface displacements obtained by surface displacement equation (SDE) proposed by Peck and Schmidt (1969) are presented and discussed. The main objective of this study is to capture the limitations of the parameters used in the SDE based on the FEA at different sand soil densities. The study focuses on the parameters used in the SDE based on different sand soil densities. The surface displacements obtained by the FEA are compared with those obtained by the SDE. The results discussed in this paper show that the different sand soil densities neglected in the SDE have a significant influence on the surface displacement due to tunnelling.