Ranked from NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
Driest Counties in Colorado
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.
Colorado ranked
| # | County | Annual rainfall | FEMA risk rating | Median home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alamosa County | 7.4" | Very Low | $218,800 |
| 2 | Conejos County | 7.4" | Very Low | $162,100 |
| 3 | Montrose County | 8.3" | Relatively Low | $357,900 |
| 4 | Saguache County | 8.4" | Very Low | $200,000 |
| 5 | Mesa County | 8.9" | Relatively Low | $349,400 |
| 6 | Costilla County | 9.0" | Very Low | $171,300 |
| 7 | Rio Grande County | 9.2" | Relatively Low | $215,400 |
| 8 | Chaffee County | 9.9" | Relatively Low | $598,500 |
| 9 | Park County | 10.6" | Very Low | $489,300 |
| 10 | Gunnison County | 10.6" | Relatively Low | $597,200 |
| 11 | Garfield County | 10.7" | Relatively Low | $490,600 |
| 12 | Crowley County | 11.2" | Very Low | $106,700 |
| 13 | Dolores County | 11.8" | Very Low | $231,900 |
| 14 | Montezuma County | 11.8" | Relatively Low | $308,100 |
| 15 | Pueblo County | 12.0" | Relatively Moderate | $271,800 |
| 16 | Jackson County | 12.1" | Very Low | $250,000 |
| 17 | Delta County | 12.5" | Relatively Low | $318,000 |
| 18 | Moffat County | 12.6" | Very Low | $262,500 |
| 19 | Las Animas County | 12.7" | Very Low | $214,500 |
| 20 | Mineral County | 12.9" | Very Low | $413,000 |
| 21 | Bent County | 13.3" | Very Low | $137,900 |
| 22 | Prowers County | 13.3" | Relatively Low | $150,900 |
| 23 | Otero County | 13.4" | Relatively Low | $160,700 |
| 24 | Weld County | 13.4" | Relatively Moderate | $444,500 |
| 25 | Lake County | 13.5" | Very Low | $401,300 |
| 26 | Custer County | 13.6" | Very Low | $358,800 |
| 27 | Fremont County | 13.7" | Relatively Low | $282,100 |
| 28 | Grand County | 14.3" | Relatively Low | $507,200 |
| 29 | Morgan County | 14.3" | Relatively Low | $299,300 |
| 30 | Adams County | 14.5" | Relatively Moderate | $458,400 |
| 31 | Arapahoe County | 14.5" | Relatively Moderate | $526,000 |
| 32 | Broomfield County | 14.5" | Very Low | $631,600 |
| 33 | Summit County | 14.9" | Relatively Low | $850,700 |
| 34 | Eagle County | 14.9" | Relatively Low | $814,700 |
| 35 | Pitkin County | 14.9" | Relatively Low | $1,131,200 |
| 36 | Elbert County | 15.0" | Very Low | $664,600 |
| 37 | Lincoln County | 15.0" | Very Low | $232,100 |
| 38 | Baca County | 15.2" | Very Low | $122,000 |
| 39 | Logan County | 15.2" | Relatively Low | $228,100 |
| 40 | Rio Blanco County | 15.3" | Very Low | $243,400 |
| 41 | Denver County | 15.4" | Relatively High | $586,700 |
| 42 | Washington County | 15.4" | Very Low | $218,300 |
| 43 | Kiowa County | 15.7" | Very Low | $148,600 |
| 44 | San Miguel County | 15.8" | Very Low | $613,100 |
| 45 | El Paso County | 15.9" | Relatively Moderate | $431,000 |
| 46 | Cheyenne County | 15.9" | Very Low | $187,100 |
| 47 | Ouray County | 16.1" | Very Low | $670,100 |
| 48 | Huerfano County | 17.3" | Very Low | $256,700 |
| 49 | Archuleta County | 17.4" | Very Low | $451,400 |
| 50 | Douglas County | 17.6" | Relatively Moderate | $674,000 |
| 51 | Sedgwick County | 17.6" | Very Low | $142,700 |
| 52 | Phillips County | 17.9" | Very Low | $255,300 |
| 53 | Teller County | 18.0" | Very Low | $445,000 |
| 54 | Clear Creek County | 18.3" | Relatively Low | $572,800 |
| 55 | Yuma County | 18.4" | Very Low | $215,600 |
| 56 | Jefferson County | 18.6" | Relatively High | $604,400 |
| 57 | Kit Carson County | 18.8" | Very Low | $221,400 |
| 58 | Hinsdale County | 19.6" | Very Low | $438,800 |
| 59 | La Plata County | 19.6" | Relatively Low | $549,100 |
| 60 | Larimer County | 20.6" | Relatively Moderate | $532,200 |
| 61 | San Juan County | 23.9" | Very Low | $406,900 |
| 62 | Routt County | 24.7" | Very Low | $756,200 |
| 63 | Boulder County | 33.9" | Relatively Moderate | $713,900 |
| 64 | Gilpin County | 33.9" | Very Low | $512,600 |
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 Colorado