Ranked from NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
Driest Counties in Alaska
The least rainfall in the country. Dry is easier on a building than wet, but it moves the cost somewhere else: irrigation, foundation movement in shrink-swell soils, and in the driest counties the price and reliability of water itself. Figures are NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals from the weather station nearest each county seat, so they describe a thirty-year average rather than any single year.
Alaska ranked
| # | County | Annual rainfall | FEMA risk rating | Median home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Slope Borough | 5.7" | Very Low | $219,600 |
| 2 | Southeast Fairbanks Census Area | 11.3" | Relatively Low | $262,800 |
| 3 | Northwest Arctic Borough | 11.4" | Relatively Low | $162,500 |
| 4 | Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area | 11.5" | Relatively Low | $87,800 |
| 5 | Copper River Census Area | 11.8" | Very Low | $246,700 |
| 6 | Fairbanks North Star Borough | 12.9" | Relatively Moderate | $282,500 |
| 7 | Nome Census Area | 17.2" | Very Low | $201,000 |
| 8 | Kenai Peninsula Borough | 18.3" | Relatively Moderate | $297,500 |
| 9 | Kusilvak Census Area | 19.7" | Relatively Low | $72,700 |
| 10 | Bristol Bay Borough | 21.4" | Very Low | $269,800 |
| 11 | Dillingham Census Area | 21.4" | Very Low | $163,800 |
| 12 | Kodiak Island Borough | 21.4" | Relatively Low | $382,700 |
| 13 | Anchorage Municipality | 22.6" | Relatively High | $375,900 |
| 14 | Juneau City and Borough | 25.2" | Very Low | $432,500 |
| 15 | Skagway Municipality | 25.2" | Very Low | $430,000 |
| 16 | Matanuska-Susitna Borough | 26.5" | Relatively Moderate | $319,200 |
| 17 | Haines Borough | 47.4" | Very Low | $318,900 |
| 18 | Hoonah-Angoon Census Area | 62.3" | Very Low | $278,300 |
| 19 | Chugach Census Area | 86.2" | Very Low | $330,900 |
| 20 | Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area | 89.2" | Very Low | $221,800 |
| 21 | Sitka City and Borough | 102.1" | Very Low | $442,100 |
| 22 | Petersburg Borough | 110.2" | Very Low | $301,300 |
| 23 | Wrangell City and Borough | 110.2" | Very Low | $289,700 |
| 24 | Yakutat City and Borough | 142.0" | Very Low | $185,000 |
| 25 | Ketchikan Gateway Borough | 149.5" | Very Low | $379,000 |
Every figure is modelled on the county's own median home with 20% down at 7.03%. Property tax and electricity are county and state specific; homeowners insurance uses the NAIC average premium for that state, which ranges from 0.16% of home value in Hawaii to 1.16% in Oklahoma. Maintenance and water are national estimates. Full methodology.
Nationwide
Driest Counties across all 3,133 US counties · Every county in Alaska