Data / Rankings / Annual precipitation / Counties in California

Counties in California by annual precipitation

Del Norte County had the highest annual precipitation of 58 counties in 2016, at 97.59 inches. Imperial County had the lowest, at 3.06 inches. The median was 24.78 inches and the figure for California was 25.73 inches. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

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Highest97.59Del Norte County
Lowest3.06Imperial County
Median24.7858 counties
California25.73History

Map of counties, 2016

Alameda County: 22.55 inchesAlpine County: 39.63 inchesAmador County: 41.01 inchesButte County: 55.96 inchesCalaveras County: 40.49 inchesColusa County: 25.49 inchesContra Costa County: 22.55 inchesDel Norte County: 97.59 inchesEl Dorado County: 53.14 inchesFresno County: 19.6 inchesGlenn County: 29.61 inchesHumboldt County: 79.86 inchesImperial County: 3.06 inchesInyo County: 4.91 inchesKern County: 9.21 inchesKings County: 7.61 inchesLake County: 55.34 inchesLassen County: 23.63 inchesLos Angeles County: 12.59 inchesMadera County: 24.08 inchesMarin County: 40.81 inchesMariposa County: 34.7 inchesMendocino County: 65.92 inchesMerced County: 14.46 inchesModoc County: 19.17 inchesMono County: 15.22 inchesMonterey County: 20.86 inchesNapa County: 36.01 inchesNevada County: 65.78 inchesOrange County: 10.92 inchesPlacer County: 57.28 inchesPlumas County: 52.75 inchesRiverside County: 8.04 inchesSacramento County: 22.67 inchesSan Benito County: 17.65 inchesSan Bernardino County: 6.6 inchesSan Diego County: 13.17 inchesSan Francisco County: 28.85 inchesSan Joaquin County: 18.33 inchesSan Luis Obispo County: 16.06 inchesSan Mateo County: 33.08 inchesSanta Barbara County: 15.99 inchesSanta Clara County: 29.64 inchesSanta Cruz County: 40.44 inchesShasta County: 57.21 inchesSierra County: 60.57 inchesSiskiyou County: 48.93 inchesSolano County: 22.86 inchesSonoma County: 49.56 inchesStanislaus County: 18.04 inchesSutter County: 21.39 inchesTehama County: 47.99 inchesTrinity County: 74.92 inchesTulare County: 19.73 inchesTuolumne County: 45.14 inchesVentura County: 16.14 inchesYolo County: 22.92 inchesYuba County: 46.73 inches
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inches, 2016. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All counties, 2016

Del Norte County: 97.59 inchesDel Norte County97.59Humboldt County: 79.86 inchesHumboldt County79.86Trinity County: 74.92 inchesTrinity County74.92Mendocino County: 65.92 inchesMendocino County65.92Nevada County: 65.78 inchesNevada County65.78Sierra County: 60.57 inchesSierra County60.57Placer County: 57.28 inchesPlacer County57.28Shasta County: 57.21 inchesShasta County57.21Butte County: 55.96 inchesButte County55.96Lake County: 55.34 inchesLake County55.34El Dorado County: 53.14 inchesEl Dorado County53.14Plumas County: 52.75 inchesPlumas County52.75Sonoma County: 49.56 inchesSonoma County49.56Siskiyou County: 48.93 inchesSiskiyou County48.93Tehama County: 47.99 inchesTehama County47.99Yuba County: 46.73 inchesYuba County46.73Tuolumne County: 45.14 inchesTuolumne County45.14Amador County: 41.01 inchesAmador County41.01Marin County: 40.81 inchesMarin County40.81Calaveras County: 40.49 inchesCalaveras County40.49Santa Cruz County: 40.44 inchesSanta Cruz County40.44Alpine County: 39.63 inchesAlpine County39.63Napa County: 36.01 inchesNapa County36.01Mariposa County: 34.7 inchesMariposa County34.7San Mateo County: 33.08 inchesSan Mateo County33.08Santa Clara County: 29.64 inchesSanta Clara County29.64Glenn County: 29.61 inchesGlenn County29.61San Francisco County: 28.85 inchesSan Francisco County28.85Colusa County: 25.49 inchesColusa County25.49Madera County: 24.08 inchesMadera County24.08Lassen County: 23.63 inchesLassen County23.63Yolo County: 22.92 inchesYolo County22.92Solano County: 22.86 inchesSolano County22.86Sacramento County: 22.67 inchesSacramento County22.67Alameda County: 22.55 inchesAlameda County22.55Contra Costa County: 22.55 inchesContra Costa County22.55Sutter County: 21.39 inchesSutter County21.39Monterey County: 20.86 inchesMonterey County20.86Tulare County: 19.73 inchesTulare County19.73Fresno County: 19.6 inchesFresno County19.6Modoc County: 19.17 inchesModoc County19.17San Joaquin County: 18.33 inchesSan Joaquin County18.33Stanislaus County: 18.04 inchesStanislaus County18.04San Benito County: 17.65 inchesSan Benito County17.65Ventura County: 16.14 inchesVentura County16.14San Luis Obispo County: 16.06 inchesSan Luis Obispo County16.06Santa Barbara County: 15.99 inchesSanta Barbara County15.99Mono County: 15.22 inchesMono County15.22Merced County: 14.46 inchesMerced County14.46San Diego County: 13.17 inchesSan Diego County13.17Los Angeles County: 12.59 inchesLos Angeles County12.59Orange County: 10.92 inchesOrange County10.92Kern County: 9.21 inchesKern County9.21Riverside County: 8.04 inchesRiverside County8.04Kings County: 7.61 inchesKings County7.61San Bernardino County: 6.6 inchesSan Bernardino County6.6Inyo County: 4.91 inchesInyo County4.91Imperial County: 3.06 inchesImperial County3.06Del Norte County: 97.59 inchesDel Norte County97.59Humboldt County: 79.86 inchesHumboldt County79.86Trinity County: 74.92 inchesTrinity County74.92Mendocino County: 65.92 inchesMendocino County65.92Nevada County: 65.78 inchesNevada County65.78Sierra County: 60.57 inchesSierra County60.57Placer County: 57.28 inchesPlacer County57.28Shasta County: 57.21 inchesShasta County57.21Butte County: 55.96 inchesButte County55.96Lake County: 55.34 inchesLake County55.34El Dorado County: 53.14 inchesEl Dorado County53.14Plumas County: 52.75 inchesPlumas County52.75Sonoma County: 49.56 inchesSonoma County49.56Siskiyou County: 48.93 inchesSiskiyou County48.93Tehama County: 47.99 inchesTehama County47.99Yuba County: 46.73 inchesYuba County46.73Tuolumne County: 45.14 inchesTuolumne County45.14Amador County: 41.01 inchesAmador County41.01Marin County: 40.81 inchesMarin County40.81Calaveras County: 40.49 inchesCalaveras County40.49Santa Cruz County: 40.44 inchesSanta Cruz County40.44Alpine County: 39.63 inchesAlpine County39.63Napa County: 36.01 inchesNapa County36.01Mariposa County: 34.7 inchesMariposa County34.7San Mateo County: 33.08 inchesSan Mateo County33.08Santa Clara County: 29.64 inchesSanta Clara County29.64Glenn County: 29.61 inchesGlenn County29.61San Francisco County: 28.85 inchesSan Francisco County28.85Colusa County: 25.49 inchesColusa County25.49Madera County: 24.08 inchesMadera County24.08Lassen County: 23.63 inchesLassen County23.63Yolo County: 22.92 inchesYolo County22.92Solano County: 22.86 inchesSolano County22.86Sacramento County: 22.67 inchesSacramento County22.67Alameda County: 22.55 inchesAlameda County22.55Contra Costa County: 22.55 inchesContra Costa County22.55Sutter County: 21.39 inchesSutter County21.39Monterey County: 20.86 inchesMonterey County20.86Tulare County: 19.73 inchesTulare County19.73Fresno County: 19.6 inchesFresno County19.6Modoc County: 19.17 inchesModoc County19.17San Joaquin County: 18.33 inchesSan Joaquin County18.33Stanislaus County: 18.04 inchesStanislaus County18.04San Benito County: 17.65 inchesSan Benito County17.65Ventura County: 16.14 inchesVentura County16.14San Luis Obispo County: 16.06 inchesSan Luis Obispo County16.06Santa Barbara County: 15.99 inchesSanta Barbara County15.99Mono County: 15.22 inchesMono County15.22Merced County: 14.46 inchesMerced County14.46San Diego County: 13.17 inchesSan Diego County13.17Los Angeles County: 12.59 inchesLos Angeles County12.59Orange County: 10.92 inchesOrange County10.92Kern County: 9.21 inchesKern County9.21Riverside County: 8.04 inchesRiverside County8.04Kings County: 7.61 inchesKings County7.61San Bernardino County: 6.6 inchesSan Bernardino County6.6Inyo County: 4.91 inchesInyo County4.91Imperial County: 3.06 inchesImperial County3.06
inches. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2016
inches		Change on 2015
1Del Norte County97.59+40.7%
2Humboldt County79.86+58%
3Trinity County74.92+73.4%
4Mendocino County65.92+86.1%
5Nevada County65.78+105%
6Sierra County60.57+94.8%
7Placer County57.28+84.8%
8Shasta County57.21+106.9%
9Butte County55.96+169.8%
10Lake County55.34+118.2%
11El Dorado County53.14+63.6%
12Plumas County52.75+101.1%
13Sonoma County49.56+131.3%
14Siskiyou County48.93+51.3%
15Tehama County47.99+145.3%
16Yuba County46.73+139.4%
17Tuolumne County45.14+50.4%
18Amador County41.01+53.8%
19Marin County40.81+156.2%
20Calaveras County40.49+60.3%
21Santa Cruz County40.44+137.6%
22Alpine County39.63+30.5%
23Napa County36.01+159.4%
24Mariposa County34.7+73.5%
25San Mateo County33.08+135.1%
26Santa Clara County29.64+115.9%
27Glenn County29.61+139.6%
28San Francisco County28.85+158.7%
29Colusa County25.49+113.8%
30Madera County24.08+67%
31Lassen County23.63+37.1%
32Yolo County22.92+149.4%
33Solano County22.86+161.6%
34Sacramento County22.67+137.1%
35Alameda County22.55+117%
35Contra Costa County22.55+143%
37Sutter County21.39+141.1%
38Monterey County20.86+85.6%
39Tulare County19.73+29.2%
40Fresno County19.6+60.3%
41Modoc County19.17+13.8%
42San Joaquin County18.33+138.4%
43Stanislaus County18.04+109%
44San Benito County17.65+74.4%
45Ventura County16.14+136.7%
46San Luis Obispo County16.06+141.5%
47Santa Barbara County15.99+216.6%
48Mono County15.22+8.1%
49Merced County14.46+107.2%
50San Diego County13.17+45%
51Los Angeles County12.59+77.1%
52Orange County10.92+84.8%
53Kern County9.21+65.6%
54Riverside County8.04+48.1%
55Kings County7.61+66.2%
56San Bernardino County6.6+19.1%
57Inyo County4.91-5%
58Imperial County3.06+38.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Total precipitation from January to December, in inches: rain plus the water content of snow and other frozen precipitation. NOAA computes it from its climate divisional dataset (nClimDiv): station readings interpolated onto a 5 km grid and averaged over the area.

Values are area averages, not the reading at one weather station. NOAA revises the last two years every month.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. (2026). NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties (Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping

MLA 9

NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties, Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 6 Oct. 2026, https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. 2026. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties, Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_california_by_2016,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties: Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016. Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
TI  - NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties: Counties in California by annual precipitation, 2016
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/06
PB  - NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/california-counties?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance. NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. From the NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (nClimDiv), doi:10.7289/V5M32STR. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Counties in California by annual precipitation using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest annual precipitation?

Del Norte County, with 97.59 inches in 2016, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest annual precipitation?

Imperial County, with 3.06 inches in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Annual precipitation: other rankings

Counties in California: more rankings