Counties in Virginia by annual precipitation

Norfolk city had the highest annual precipitation of 132 counties in 2016, at 64.86 inches. Fairfax city had the lowest, at 33.96 inches. The median was 45.12 inches and the figure for Virginia was 45.41 inches. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest64.86Norfolk city
Lowest33.96Fairfax city
Median45.12132 counties
Virginia45.41History

Map of counties, 2016

Accomack County: 56.11 inchesAlbemarle County: 37.29 inchesAlleghany County: 48.3 inchesAmelia County: 45.85 inchesAmherst County: 47.75 inchesAppomattox County: 44.76 inchesArlington County: 34.6 inchesAugusta County: 41.72 inchesBath County: 47.34 inchesBedford County: 47.16 inchesBland County: 39.32 inchesBotetourt County: 46.43 inchesBrunswick County: 47.04 inchesBuchanan County: 47.44 inchesBuckingham County: 42.34 inchesCampbell County: 46.11 inchesCaroline County: 46.48 inchesCarroll County: 44.13 inchesCharles City County: 51.56 inchesCharlotte County: 48.08 inchesChesterfield County: 49.74 inchesClarke County: 38.9 inchesCraig County: 46.78 inchesCulpeper County: 37.75 inchesCumberland County: 42.77 inchesDickenson County: 43.7 inchesDinwiddie County: 47.33 inchesEssex County: 46.56 inchesFairfax County: 34.56 inchesFauquier County: 40.55 inchesFloyd County: 45.29 inchesFluvanna County: 40.36 inchesFranklin County: 45.78 inchesFrederick County: 38.52 inchesGiles County: 42.7 inchesGloucester County: 51.99 inchesGoochland County: 45.11 inchesGrayson County: 42.33 inchesGreene County: 37.85 inchesGreensville County: 50.65 inchesHalifax County: 47.75 inchesHanover County: 49.44 inchesHenrico County: 51.37 inchesHenry County: 43.53 inchesHighland County: 44.91 inchesIsle of Wight County: 57.35 inchesJames City County: 50.97 inchesKing and Queen County: 49.82 inchesKing George County: 43.14 inchesKing William County: 51.07 inchesLancaster County: 48.11 inchesLee County: 46.76 inchesLoudoun County: 37.77 inchesLouisa County: 39.78 inchesLunenburg County: 46.66 inchesMadison County: 38.81 inchesMathews County: 53.11 inchesMecklenburg County: 48.99 inchesMiddlesex County: 49.71 inchesMontgomery County: 42.46 inchesNelson County: 43.55 inchesNew Kent County: 51.95 inchesNorthampton County: 56.64 inchesNorthumberland County: 43.25 inchesNottoway County: 44.31 inchesOrange County: 35.75 inchesPage County: 41.88 inchesPatrick County: 46.61 inchesPittsylvania County: 49.15 inchesPowhatan County: 46.57 inchesPrince Edward County: 44.07 inchesPrince George County: 50.75 inchesPrince William County: 36.62 inchesPulaski County: 39.78 inchesRappahannock County: 40.8 inchesRichmond County: 44.6 inchesRoanoke County: 45.9 inchesRockbridge County: 44.86 inchesRockingham County: 39.88 inchesRussell County: 41.85 inchesScott County: 42.5 inchesShenandoah County: 39.05 inchesSmyth County: 41.56 inchesSouthampton County: 55.3 inchesSpotsylvania County: 41.85 inchesStafford County: 41.71 inchesSurry County: 50.75 inchesSussex County: 49.72 inchesTazewell County: 43.76 inchesWarren County: 41.63 inchesWashington County: 41.2 inchesWestmoreland County: 42.06 inchesWise County: 45.13 inchesWythe County: 38.32 inchesYork County: 54.55 inchesAlexandria city: 34.32 inchesBristol city: 39.91 inchesBuena Vista city: 43.73 inchesCharlottesville city: 37.83 inchesChesapeake city: 62.74 inchesColonial Heights city: 51.06 inchesCovington city: 47.26 inchesDanville city: 50.81 inchesEmporia city: 49.42 inchesFairfax city: 33.96 inchesFalls Church city: 34.46 inchesFranklin city: 56.94 inchesFredericksburg city: 42.83 inchesGalax city: 43.41 inchesHampton city: 62.07 inchesHarrisonburg city: 39.45 inchesHopewell city: 52.18 inchesLynchburg city: 46.28 inchesManassas city: 34.23 inchesManassas Park city: 34.08 inchesMartinsville city: 41.53 inchesNewport News city: 59.03 inchesNorfolk city: 64.86 inchesNorton city: 44.16 inchesPetersburg city: 50.62 inchesPoquoson city: 60.23 inchesPortsmouth city: 64.5 inchesRadford city: 40.64 inchesRichmond city: 51.04 inchesRoanoke city: 45.86 inchesSalem city: 45.31 inchesStaunton city: 39.23 inchesSuffolk city: 61.83 inchesVirginia Beach city: 60.67 inchesWaynesboro city: 37.64 inchesWilliamsburg city: 50.88 inchesWinchester city: 39.81 inches
  • Under 39
  • 39 to 42
  • 42 to 45
  • 45 to 47
  • 47 to 51
  • 51 and over
  • No data
inches, 2016. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: NOAA NCEI, NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2016

Norfolk city: 64.86 inchesNorfolk city64.86Portsmouth city: 64.5 inchesPortsmouth city64.5Chesapeake city: 62.74 inchesChesapeake city62.74Hampton city: 62.07 inchesHampton city62.07Suffolk city: 61.83 inchesSuffolk city61.83Virginia Beach city: 60.67 inchesVirginia Beach city60.67Poquoson city: 60.23 inchesPoquoson city60.23Newport News city: 59.03 inchesNewport News city59.03Isle of Wight County: 57.35 inchesIsle of Wight County57.35Franklin city: 56.94 inchesFranklin city56.94Northampton County: 56.64 inchesNorthampton County56.64Accomack County: 56.11 inchesAccomack County56.11Southampton County: 55.3 inchesSouthampton County55.3York County: 54.55 inchesYork County54.55Mathews County: 53.11 inchesMathews County53.11Hopewell city: 52.18 inchesHopewell city52.18Gloucester County: 51.99 inchesGloucester County51.99New Kent County: 51.95 inchesNew Kent County51.95Charles City County: 51.56 inchesCharles City County51.56Henrico County: 51.37 inchesHenrico County51.37King William County: 51.07 inchesKing William County51.07Colonial Heights city: 51.06 inchesColonial Heights city51.06Richmond city: 51.04 inchesRichmond city51.04James City County: 50.97 inchesJames City County50.97Williamsburg city: 50.88 inchesWilliamsburg city50.88Danville city: 50.81 inchesDanville city50.81Prince George County: 50.75 inchesPrince George County50.75Surry County: 50.75 inchesSurry County50.75Greensville County: 50.65 inchesGreensville County50.65Petersburg city: 50.62 inchesPetersburg city50.62King and Queen County: 49.82 inchesKing and Queen County49.82Chesterfield County: 49.74 inchesChesterfield County49.74Sussex County: 49.72 inchesSussex County49.72Middlesex County: 49.71 inchesMiddlesex County49.71Hanover County: 49.44 inchesHanover County49.44Emporia city: 49.42 inchesEmporia city49.42Pittsylvania County: 49.15 inchesPittsylvania County49.15Mecklenburg County: 48.99 inchesMecklenburg County48.99Alleghany County: 48.3 inchesAlleghany County48.3Lancaster County: 48.11 inchesLancaster County48.11Norfolk city: 64.86 inchesNorfolk city64.86Portsmouth city: 64.5 inchesPortsmouth city64.5Chesapeake city: 62.74 inchesChesapeake city62.74Hampton city: 62.07 inchesHampton city62.07Suffolk city: 61.83 inchesSuffolk city61.83Virginia Beach city: 60.67 inchesVirginia Beach city60.67Poquoson city: 60.23 inchesPoquoson city60.23Newport News city: 59.03 inchesNewport News city59.03Isle of Wight County: 57.35 inchesIsle of Wight County57.35Franklin city: 56.94 inchesFranklin city56.94Northampton County: 56.64 inchesNorthampton County56.64Accomack County: 56.11 inchesAccomack County56.11Southampton County: 55.3 inchesSouthampton County55.3York County: 54.55 inchesYork County54.55Mathews County: 53.11 inchesMathews County53.11Hopewell city: 52.18 inchesHopewell city52.18Gloucester County: 51.99 inchesGloucester County51.99New Kent County: 51.95 inchesNew Kent County51.95Charles City County: 51.56 inchesCharles City County51.56Henrico County: 51.37 inchesHenrico County51.37King William County: 51.07 inchesKing William County51.07Colonial Heights city: 51.06 inchesColonial Heights city51.06Richmond city: 51.04 inchesRichmond city51.04James City County: 50.97 inchesJames City County50.97Williamsburg city: 50.88 inchesWilliamsburg city50.88Danville city: 50.81 inchesDanville city50.81Prince George County: 50.75 inchesPrince George County50.75Surry County: 50.75 inchesSurry County50.75Greensville County: 50.65 inchesGreensville County50.65Petersburg city: 50.62 inchesPetersburg city50.62King and Queen County: 49.82 inchesKing and Queen County49.82Chesterfield County: 49.74 inchesChesterfield County49.74Sussex County: 49.72 inchesSussex County49.72Middlesex County: 49.71 inchesMiddlesex County49.71Hanover County: 49.44 inchesHanover County49.44Emporia city: 49.42 inchesEmporia city49.42Pittsylvania County: 49.15 inchesPittsylvania County49.15Mecklenburg County: 48.99 inchesMecklenburg County48.99Alleghany County: 48.3 inchesAlleghany County48.3Lancaster County: 48.11 inchesLancaster County48.11
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
1Norfolk city64.86+32%
2Portsmouth city64.5+29.6%
3Chesapeake city62.74+22.8%
4Hampton city62.07+24.8%
5Suffolk city61.83+23.2%
6Virginia Beach city60.67+23.3%
7Poquoson city60.23+20.4%
8Newport News city59.03+15.3%
9Isle of Wight County57.35+12.6%
10Franklin city56.94+15.6%
11Northampton County56.64+25.7%
12Accomack County56.11+20.1%
13Southampton County55.3+5.4%
14York County54.55+3.1%
15Mathews County53.11+2.7%
16Hopewell city52.18+1%
17Gloucester County51.99-3%
18New Kent County51.95-2%
19Charles City County51.56-1.7%
20Henrico County51.37-1.6%
21King William County51.07-3.2%
22Colonial Heights city51.06-1.6%
23Richmond city51.04-2.1%
24James City County50.97-5.5%
25Williamsburg city50.88-6.5%
26Danville city50.81-7.7%
27Prince George County50.75-4%
27Surry County50.75-4.8%
29Greensville County50.65-6.8%
30Petersburg city50.62-3.9%
31King and Queen County49.82-6.1%
32Chesterfield County49.74-4.9%
33Sussex County49.72-8.4%
34Middlesex County49.71-6.7%
35Hanover County49.44-4.1%
36Emporia city49.42-9.2%
37Pittsylvania County49.15-6.9%
38Mecklenburg County48.99-1.9%
39Alleghany County48.3-1%
40Lancaster County48.11-8.5%
41Charlotte County48.08+4.3%
42Amherst County47.75-10.5%
42Halifax County47.75-1.9%
44Buchanan County47.44-9%
45Bath County47.34-4.6%
46Dinwiddie County47.33-10%
47Covington city47.26-0.3%
48Bedford County47.16-12.1%
49Brunswick County47.04-7.9%
50Craig County46.78-9.4%
51Lee County46.76-16.2%
52Lunenburg County46.66+1.3%
53Patrick County46.61-21.8%
54Powhatan County46.57-12.4%
55Essex County46.56-9.1%
56Caroline County46.48-2%
57Botetourt County46.43-7.7%
58Lynchburg city46.28-6.9%
59Campbell County46.11-2.6%
60Roanoke County45.9-14.1%
61Roanoke city45.86-13.7%
62Amelia County45.85-10.6%
63Franklin County45.78-11.8%
64Salem city45.31-14.3%
65Floyd County45.29-20.3%
66Wise County45.13-13.3%
67Goochland County45.11-11.6%
68Highland County44.91-15.7%
69Rockbridge County44.86-5.2%
70Appomattox County44.76-7%
71Richmond County44.6-13.9%
72Nottoway County44.31-7.8%
73Norton city44.16-13.4%
74Carroll County44.13-23.9%
75Prince Edward County44.07-5.4%
76Tazewell County43.76-14.3%
77Buena Vista city43.73-8.2%
78Dickenson County43.7-11.1%
79Nelson County43.55-16.4%
80Henry County43.53-17.1%
81Galax city43.41-24.4%
82Northumberland County43.25-13.7%
83King George County43.14-2.8%
84Fredericksburg city42.83+1.1%
85Cumberland County42.77-12.3%
86Giles County42.7-15.6%
87Scott County42.5-18.6%
88Montgomery County42.46-15.8%
89Buckingham County42.34-11.6%
90Grayson County42.33-24.3%
91Westmoreland County42.06-15.7%
92Page County41.88-6.6%
93Russell County41.85-20.2%
93Spotsylvania County41.85-3.5%
95Augusta County41.72-12.8%
96Stafford County41.71-2.2%
97Warren County41.63-5%
98Smyth County41.56-21.1%
99Martinsville city41.53-19.3%
100Washington County41.2-21.5%
101Rappahannock County40.8-12.8%
102Radford city40.64-17.4%
103Fauquier County40.55-7.4%
104Fluvanna County40.36-14.3%
105Bristol city39.91-20.8%
106Rockingham County39.88-12.3%
107Winchester city39.81+4.9%
108Louisa County39.78-12.5%
108Pulaski County39.78-19.9%
110Harrisonburg city39.45-9.7%
111Bland County39.32-16.5%
112Staunton city39.23-12.7%
113Shenandoah County39.05-8.2%
114Clarke County38.9-2.1%
115Madison County38.81-19.5%
116Frederick County38.52+0.5%
117Wythe County38.32-21.7%
118Greene County37.85-23.3%
119Charlottesville city37.83-22.3%
120Loudoun County37.77-6.7%
121Culpeper County37.75-19.2%
122Waynesboro city37.64-18.5%
123Albemarle County37.29-22.7%
124Prince William County36.62-12.3%
125Orange County35.75-21.2%
126Arlington County34.6-21.1%
127Fairfax County34.56-17.6%
128Falls Church city34.46-19.2%
129Alexandria city34.32-22.2%
130Manassas city34.23-16.2%
131Manassas Park city34.08-15.3%
132Fairfax city33.96-18.2%

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 Virginia 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 Virginia 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/virginia-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 Virginia 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/virginia-counties?period=2016.

Harvard

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (2026) NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties, Counties in Virginia 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/virginia-counties?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{noaa_counties_in_virginia_by_2016,
  author = {{NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information}},
  title = {{NOAA Climate at a Glance, January to December precipitation, counties: Counties in Virginia 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/virginia-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 Virginia 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/virginia-counties?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/annual-precipitation/virginia-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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Questions

Which county has the highest annual precipitation?

Norfolk city, with 64.86 inches in 2016, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Which county has the lowest annual precipitation?

Fairfax city, with 33.96 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 Virginia: more rankings