Counties in Colorado by annual precipitation

San Juan County had the highest annual precipitation of 64 counties in 2017, at 33.13 inches. Mesa County had the lowest, at 11.54 inches. The median was 19.03 inches and the figure for Colorado was 18.91 inches. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest33.13San Juan County
Lowest11.54Mesa County
Median19.0364 counties
Colorado18.91History

Map of counties, 2017

Adams County: 13.89 inchesAlamosa County: 13.29 inchesArapahoe County: 14.36 inchesArchuleta County: 21.62 inchesBaca County: 24.4 inchesBent County: 21.39 inchesBoulder County: 21.97 inchesBroomfield County: 15.72 inchesChaffee County: 17.76 inchesCheyenne County: 20.3 inchesClear Creek County: 28.48 inchesConejos County: 20.15 inchesCostilla County: 21 inchesCrowley County: 19.12 inchesCuster County: 22.06 inchesDelta County: 13.25 inchesDenver County: 14.07 inchesDolores County: 17.94 inchesDouglas County: 17.46 inchesEagle County: 21.8 inchesElbert County: 17.33 inchesEl Paso County: 18.88 inchesFremont County: 15.69 inchesGarfield County: 16.52 inchesGilpin County: 23.8 inchesGrand County: 23.43 inchesGunnison County: 22.06 inchesHinsdale County: 25.58 inchesHuerfano County: 23.64 inchesJackson County: 25.01 inchesJefferson County: 18.2 inchesKiowa County: 20.88 inchesKit Carson County: 21.89 inchesLake County: 26.07 inchesLa Plata County: 17.59 inchesLarimer County: 23.21 inchesLas Animas County: 24.07 inchesLincoln County: 17.58 inchesLogan County: 15.29 inchesMesa County: 11.54 inchesMineral County: 24.26 inchesMoffat County: 14.44 inchesMontezuma County: 13.89 inchesMontrose County: 11.59 inchesMorgan County: 13.74 inchesOtero County: 22.29 inchesOuray County: 19.89 inchesPark County: 18.1 inchesPhillips County: 18.61 inchesPitkin County: 26.47 inchesProwers County: 22.62 inchesPueblo County: 18.93 inchesRio Blanco County: 16.07 inchesRio Grande County: 15.03 inchesRoutt County: 23.32 inchesSaguache County: 16.71 inchesSan Juan County: 33.13 inchesSan Miguel County: 14.15 inchesSedgwick County: 17.92 inchesSummit County: 27.46 inchesTeller County: 19.74 inchesWashington County: 16.36 inchesWeld County: 14.95 inchesYuma County: 19.6 inches
  • Under 15
  • 15 to 17
  • 17 to 19
  • 19 to 22
  • 22 to 24
  • 24 and over
inches, 2017. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2017

San Juan County: 33.13 inchesSan Juan County33.13Clear Creek County: 28.48 inchesClear Creek County28.48Summit County: 27.46 inchesSummit County27.46Pitkin County: 26.47 inchesPitkin County26.47Lake County: 26.07 inchesLake County26.07Hinsdale County: 25.58 inchesHinsdale County25.58Jackson County: 25.01 inchesJackson County25.01Baca County: 24.4 inchesBaca County24.4Mineral County: 24.26 inchesMineral County24.26Las Animas County: 24.07 inchesLas Animas County24.07Gilpin County: 23.8 inchesGilpin County23.8Huerfano County: 23.64 inchesHuerfano County23.64Grand County: 23.43 inchesGrand County23.43Routt County: 23.32 inchesRoutt County23.32Larimer County: 23.21 inchesLarimer County23.21Prowers County: 22.62 inchesProwers County22.62Otero County: 22.29 inchesOtero County22.29Custer County: 22.06 inchesCuster County22.06Gunnison County: 22.06 inchesGunnison County22.06Boulder County: 21.97 inchesBoulder County21.97Kit Carson County: 21.89 inchesKit Carson County21.89Eagle County: 21.8 inchesEagle County21.8Archuleta County: 21.62 inchesArchuleta County21.62Bent County: 21.39 inchesBent County21.39Costilla County: 21 inchesCostilla County21Kiowa County: 20.88 inchesKiowa County20.88Cheyenne County: 20.3 inchesCheyenne County20.3Conejos County: 20.15 inchesConejos County20.15Ouray County: 19.89 inchesOuray County19.89Teller County: 19.74 inchesTeller County19.74Yuma County: 19.6 inchesYuma County19.6Crowley County: 19.12 inchesCrowley County19.12Pueblo County: 18.93 inchesPueblo County18.93El Paso County: 18.88 inchesEl Paso County18.88Phillips County: 18.61 inchesPhillips County18.61Jefferson County: 18.2 inchesJefferson County18.2Park County: 18.1 inchesPark County18.1Dolores County: 17.94 inchesDolores County17.94Sedgwick County: 17.92 inchesSedgwick County17.92Chaffee County: 17.76 inchesChaffee County17.76San Juan County: 33.13 inchesSan Juan County33.13Clear Creek County: 28.48 inchesClear Creek County28.48Summit County: 27.46 inchesSummit County27.46Pitkin County: 26.47 inchesPitkin County26.47Lake County: 26.07 inchesLake County26.07Hinsdale County: 25.58 inchesHinsdale County25.58Jackson County: 25.01 inchesJackson County25.01Baca County: 24.4 inchesBaca County24.4Mineral County: 24.26 inchesMineral County24.26Las Animas County: 24.07 inchesLas Animas County24.07Gilpin County: 23.8 inchesGilpin County23.8Huerfano County: 23.64 inchesHuerfano County23.64Grand County: 23.43 inchesGrand County23.43Routt County: 23.32 inchesRoutt County23.32Larimer County: 23.21 inchesLarimer County23.21Prowers County: 22.62 inchesProwers County22.62Otero County: 22.29 inchesOtero County22.29Custer County: 22.06 inchesCuster County22.06Gunnison County: 22.06 inchesGunnison County22.06Boulder County: 21.97 inchesBoulder County21.97Kit Carson County: 21.89 inchesKit Carson County21.89Eagle County: 21.8 inchesEagle County21.8Archuleta County: 21.62 inchesArchuleta County21.62Bent County: 21.39 inchesBent County21.39Costilla County: 21 inchesCostilla County21Kiowa County: 20.88 inchesKiowa County20.88Cheyenne County: 20.3 inchesCheyenne County20.3Conejos County: 20.15 inchesConejos County20.15Ouray County: 19.89 inchesOuray County19.89Teller County: 19.74 inchesTeller County19.74Yuma County: 19.6 inchesYuma County19.6Crowley County: 19.12 inchesCrowley County19.12Pueblo County: 18.93 inchesPueblo County18.93El Paso County: 18.88 inchesEl Paso County18.88Phillips County: 18.61 inchesPhillips County18.61Jefferson County: 18.2 inchesJefferson County18.2Park County: 18.1 inchesPark County18.1Dolores County: 17.94 inchesDolores County17.94Sedgwick County: 17.92 inchesSedgwick County17.92Chaffee County: 17.76 inchesChaffee County17.76
inches. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017
inches
Change on 2016
1San Juan County33.13-7.7%
2Clear Creek County28.48+17%
3Summit County27.46+10.5%
4Pitkin County26.47-4.1%
5Lake County26.07+11.6%
6Hinsdale County25.58-3.6%
7Jackson County25.01+8.6%
8Baca County24.4+68%
9Mineral County24.26-0.2%
10Las Animas County24.07+65.7%
11Gilpin County23.8+13.3%
12Huerfano County23.64+51.3%
13Grand County23.43+10.7%
14Routt County23.32-4.2%
15Larimer County23.21+28.9%
16Prowers County22.62+52%
17Otero County22.29+55.5%
18Custer County22.06+22.8%
18Gunnison County22.06+6.8%
20Boulder County21.97+23.6%
21Kit Carson County21.89+32.2%
22Eagle County21.8-0.5%
23Archuleta County21.62+3.3%
24Bent County21.39+56.9%
25Costilla County21+23.8%
26Kiowa County20.88+48.4%
27Cheyenne County20.3+47.3%
28Conejos County20.15+22.6%
29Ouray County19.89-1.2%
30Teller County19.74+7.1%
31Yuma County19.6+12%
32Crowley County19.12+46%
33Pueblo County18.93+45.6%
34El Paso County18.88+25%
35Phillips County18.61+3.2%
36Jefferson County18.2+15.6%
37Park County18.1+12.8%
38Dolores County17.94-16.1%
39Sedgwick County17.92+2%
40Chaffee County17.76+17.6%
41La Plata County17.59-17.5%
42Lincoln County17.58+45.7%
43Douglas County17.46+12.2%
44Elbert County17.33+12.4%
45Saguache County16.71+10.5%
46Garfield County16.52-20.3%
47Washington County16.36-3%
48Rio Blanco County16.07-12.6%
49Broomfield County15.72+28.6%
50Fremont County15.69+21.8%
51Logan County15.29+0.1%
52Rio Grande County15.03+10.3%
53Weld County14.95+7.9%
54Moffat County14.44-10.4%
55Arapahoe County14.36-7.6%
56San Miguel County14.15-19%
57Denver County14.07+14.8%
58Adams County13.89-6.7%
58Montezuma County13.89-17.1%
60Morgan County13.74-24.9%
61Alamosa County13.29+19.2%
62Delta County13.25-19.9%
63Montrose County11.59-11.4%
64Mesa County11.54-31.1%

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 Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017) [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 Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017. 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/colorado-counties?period=2017. 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 Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017. 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/colorado-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties, Counties in Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/colorado-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_colorado_by_2017,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties: Counties in Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017}},
  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/colorado-counties?period=2017. 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 Colorado by annual precipitation, 2017
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/colorado-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/colorado-counties?period=2017.
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  - 
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Colorado by annual precipitation using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"precipitation_annual","level":"province","within":"Colorado","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=precipitation_annual&level=province&within=Colorado&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest annual precipitation?

San Juan County, with 33.13 inches in 2017, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest annual precipitation?

Mesa County, with 11.54 inches in 2017.

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 Colorado: more rankings