Counties in North Carolina by annual precipitation

Transylvania County had the highest annual precipitation of 100 counties in 2022, at 68.78 inches. Robeson County had the lowest, at 36.5 inches. The median was 47.08 inches and the figure for North Carolina was 46.63 inches. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Lowest36.5Robeson County
Median47.08100 counties
North Carolina46.63History

Map of counties, 2022

Alamance County: 46.81 inchesAlexander County: 49.41 inchesAlleghany County: 56.41 inchesAnson County: 45.36 inchesAshe County: 54.58 inchesAvery County: 54.59 inchesBeaufort County: 47.04 inchesBertie County: 44.33 inchesBladen County: 37.25 inchesBrunswick County: 46.18 inchesBuncombe County: 48.26 inchesBurke County: 53.19 inchesCabarrus County: 44.41 inchesCaldwell County: 54.49 inchesCamden County: 48.33 inchesCarteret County: 48.73 inchesCaswell County: 45.43 inchesCatawba County: 49.34 inchesChatham County: 47.03 inchesCherokee County: 55.8 inchesChowan County: 48.78 inchesClay County: 59.3 inchesCleveland County: 44.13 inchesColumbus County: 44.25 inchesCraven County: 46.18 inchesCumberland County: 37.66 inchesCurrituck County: 47.36 inchesDare County: 47.05 inchesDavidson County: 44.03 inchesDavie County: 45.5 inchesDuplin County: 37.19 inchesDurham County: 47.69 inchesEdgecombe County: 38.41 inchesForsyth County: 48.63 inchesFranklin County: 47.88 inchesGaston County: 45.68 inchesGates County: 47.21 inchesGraham County: 57.43 inchesGranville County: 46.4 inchesGreene County: 39.06 inchesGuilford County: 48.91 inchesHalifax County: 42.59 inchesHarnett County: 43.59 inchesHaywood County: 53.31 inchesHenderson County: 55.11 inchesHertford County: 45.18 inchesHoke County: 39.19 inchesHyde County: 48.6 inchesIredell County: 47.18 inchesJackson County: 62.61 inchesJohnston County: 43.18 inchesJones County: 43.84 inchesLee County: 45.05 inchesLenoir County: 37.94 inchesLincoln County: 47.17 inchesMcDowell County: 57.5 inchesMacon County: 62.36 inchesMadison County: 44.18 inchesMartin County: 42.8 inchesMecklenburg County: 42.93 inchesMitchell County: 50.66 inchesMontgomery County: 46.96 inchesMoore County: 43.38 inchesNash County: 42.42 inchesNew Hanover County: 41.75 inchesNorthampton County: 42.84 inchesOnslow County: 44.23 inchesOrange County: 48.52 inchesPamlico County: 48.44 inchesPasquotank County: 49.08 inchesPender County: 42.12 inchesPerquimans County: 49.3 inchesPerson County: 47.25 inchesPitt County: 40.82 inchesPolk County: 55.9 inchesRandolph County: 46.03 inchesRichmond County: 47.22 inchesRobeson County: 36.5 inchesRockingham County: 47.72 inchesRowan County: 41.95 inchesRutherford County: 48.66 inchesSampson County: 36.52 inchesScotland County: 40.92 inchesStanly County: 46.87 inchesStokes County: 53.98 inchesSurry County: 54.85 inchesSwain County: 60.84 inchesTransylvania County: 68.78 inchesTyrrell County: 49.37 inchesUnion County: 40.2 inchesVance County: 48.24 inchesWake County: 47.12 inchesWarren County: 46.77 inchesWashington County: 48.76 inchesWatauga County: 55.74 inchesWayne County: 38.39 inchesWilkes County: 55.06 inchesWilson County: 40.89 inchesYadkin County: 52.03 inchesYancey County: 52.24 inches
  • Under 42
  • 42 to 45
  • 45 to 47
  • 47 to 49
  • 49 to 54
  • 54 and over
inches, 2022. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2022

Transylvania County: 68.78 inchesTransylvania County68.78Jackson County: 62.61 inchesJackson County62.61Macon County: 62.36 inchesMacon County62.36Swain County: 60.84 inchesSwain County60.84Clay County: 59.3 inchesClay County59.3McDowell County: 57.5 inchesMcDowell County57.5Graham County: 57.43 inchesGraham County57.43Alleghany County: 56.41 inchesAlleghany County56.41Polk County: 55.9 inchesPolk County55.9Cherokee County: 55.8 inchesCherokee County55.8Watauga County: 55.74 inchesWatauga County55.74Henderson County: 55.11 inchesHenderson County55.11Wilkes County: 55.06 inchesWilkes County55.06Surry County: 54.85 inchesSurry County54.85Avery County: 54.59 inchesAvery County54.59Ashe County: 54.58 inchesAshe County54.58Caldwell County: 54.49 inchesCaldwell County54.49Stokes County: 53.98 inchesStokes County53.98Haywood County: 53.31 inchesHaywood County53.31Burke County: 53.19 inchesBurke County53.19Yancey County: 52.24 inchesYancey County52.24Yadkin County: 52.03 inchesYadkin County52.03Mitchell County: 50.66 inchesMitchell County50.66Alexander County: 49.41 inchesAlexander County49.41Tyrrell County: 49.37 inchesTyrrell County49.37Catawba County: 49.34 inchesCatawba County49.34Perquimans County: 49.3 inchesPerquimans County49.3Pasquotank County: 49.08 inchesPasquotank County49.08Guilford County: 48.91 inchesGuilford County48.91Chowan County: 48.78 inchesChowan County48.78Washington County: 48.76 inchesWashington County48.76Carteret County: 48.73 inchesCarteret County48.73Rutherford County: 48.66 inchesRutherford County48.66Forsyth County: 48.63 inchesForsyth County48.63Hyde County: 48.6 inchesHyde County48.6Orange County: 48.52 inchesOrange County48.52Pamlico County: 48.44 inchesPamlico County48.44Camden County: 48.33 inchesCamden County48.33Buncombe County: 48.26 inchesBuncombe County48.26Vance County: 48.24 inchesVance County48.24Transylvania County: 68.78 inchesTransylvania County68.78Jackson County: 62.61 inchesJackson County62.61Macon County: 62.36 inchesMacon County62.36Swain County: 60.84 inchesSwain County60.84Clay County: 59.3 inchesClay County59.3McDowell County: 57.5 inchesMcDowell County57.5Graham County: 57.43 inchesGraham County57.43Alleghany County: 56.41 inchesAlleghany County56.41Polk County: 55.9 inchesPolk County55.9Cherokee County: 55.8 inchesCherokee County55.8Watauga County: 55.74 inchesWatauga County55.74Henderson County: 55.11 inchesHenderson County55.11Wilkes County: 55.06 inchesWilkes County55.06Surry County: 54.85 inchesSurry County54.85Avery County: 54.59 inchesAvery County54.59Ashe County: 54.58 inchesAshe County54.58Caldwell County: 54.49 inchesCaldwell County54.49Stokes County: 53.98 inchesStokes County53.98Haywood County: 53.31 inchesHaywood County53.31Burke County: 53.19 inchesBurke County53.19Yancey County: 52.24 inchesYancey County52.24Yadkin County: 52.03 inchesYadkin County52.03Mitchell County: 50.66 inchesMitchell County50.66Alexander County: 49.41 inchesAlexander County49.41Tyrrell County: 49.37 inchesTyrrell County49.37Catawba County: 49.34 inchesCatawba County49.34Perquimans County: 49.3 inchesPerquimans County49.3Pasquotank County: 49.08 inchesPasquotank County49.08Guilford County: 48.91 inchesGuilford County48.91Chowan County: 48.78 inchesChowan County48.78Washington County: 48.76 inchesWashington County48.76Carteret County: 48.73 inchesCarteret County48.73Rutherford County: 48.66 inchesRutherford County48.66Forsyth County: 48.63 inchesForsyth County48.63Hyde County: 48.6 inchesHyde County48.6Orange County: 48.52 inchesOrange County48.52Pamlico County: 48.44 inchesPamlico County48.44Camden County: 48.33 inchesCamden County48.33Buncombe County: 48.26 inchesBuncombe County48.26Vance County: 48.24 inchesVance County48.24
inches. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2022
inches
Change on 2021
1Transylvania County68.78+3.2%
2Jackson County62.61-5.8%
3Macon County62.36-5.2%
4Swain County60.84-7.4%
5Clay County59.3-12.6%
6McDowell County57.5+9.5%
7Graham County57.43-17.8%
8Alleghany County56.41+18.4%
9Polk County55.9+16.6%
10Cherokee County55.8-21%
11Watauga County55.74+11.1%
12Henderson County55.11+1.4%
13Wilkes County55.06+31.3%
14Surry County54.85+29.2%
15Avery County54.59+2.6%
16Ashe County54.58+14.4%
17Caldwell County54.49+22.8%
18Stokes County53.98+31.9%
19Haywood County53.31-10%
20Burke County53.19+25.3%
21Yancey County52.24+1.1%
22Yadkin County52.03+28.1%
23Mitchell County50.66-0%
24Alexander County49.41+31.5%
25Tyrrell County49.37-5.3%
26Catawba County49.34+34.6%
27Perquimans County49.3-5.3%
28Pasquotank County49.08-4.2%
29Guilford County48.91+18.3%
30Chowan County48.78-6.7%
31Washington County48.76-9.2%
32Carteret County48.73-11.3%
33Rutherford County48.66+13.7%
34Forsyth County48.63+22.1%
35Hyde County48.6-11.2%
36Orange County48.52+16%
37Pamlico County48.44-9%
38Camden County48.33-4.6%
39Buncombe County48.26-1.9%
40Vance County48.24+6.1%
41Franklin County47.88+10.6%
42Rockingham County47.72+24.2%
43Durham County47.69+9.4%
44Currituck County47.36-2.5%
45Person County47.25+24%
46Richmond County47.22+7.1%
47Gates County47.21-8.7%
48Iredell County47.18+22.5%
49Lincoln County47.17+28.9%
50Wake County47.12+3%
51Dare County47.05-5.9%
52Beaufort County47.04-11.5%
53Chatham County47.03+11.9%
54Montgomery County46.96-5%
55Stanly County46.87+1.7%
56Alamance County46.81+13.9%
57Warren County46.77+5.3%
58Granville County46.4+6.5%
59Brunswick County46.18-12.2%
59Craven County46.18-13.1%
61Randolph County46.03+0.7%
62Gaston County45.68+20%
63Davie County45.5+18.1%
64Caswell County45.43+27.3%
65Anson County45.36+12.2%
66Hertford County45.18-6.9%
67Lee County45.05+3.6%
68Cabarrus County44.41+14%
69Bertie County44.33-13.2%
70Columbus County44.25-8.3%
71Onslow County44.23-10%
72Madison County44.18-7.3%
73Cleveland County44.13+17.2%
74Davidson County44.03+9.5%
75Jones County43.84-15.3%
76Harnett County43.59-2.6%
77Moore County43.38-6.3%
78Johnston County43.18-12.2%
79Mecklenburg County42.93+17.5%
80Northampton County42.84-7.6%
81Martin County42.8-18.4%
82Halifax County42.59-7.5%
83Nash County42.42-8.3%
84Pender County42.12-20%
85Rowan County41.95+16%
86New Hanover County41.75-26%
87Scotland County40.92+0.4%
88Wilson County40.89-22.9%
89Pitt County40.82-25.8%
90Union County40.2+18.1%
91Hoke County39.19-9.1%
92Greene County39.06-29.2%
93Edgecombe County38.41-20.9%
94Wayne County38.39-27.2%
95Lenoir County37.94-29.9%
96Cumberland County37.66-13.2%
97Bladen County37.25-18.1%
98Duplin County37.19-26.5%
99Sampson County36.52-24.2%
100Robeson County36.5-11.2%

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 North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022) [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 North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022. 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/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. 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 North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022. 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/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties, Counties in North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/county/mapping, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/north-carolina-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_north_carolina_2022,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties: Counties in North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022}},
  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/north-carolina-counties?period=2022. 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 North Carolina by annual precipitation, 2022
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/north-carolina-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/north-carolina-counties?period=2022.
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 North Carolina by annual precipitation using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest annual precipitation?

Transylvania County, with 68.78 inches in 2022, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest annual precipitation?

Robeson County, with 36.5 inches in 2022.

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 North Carolina: more rankings