Rain, sleet, snow, hail, wintry mix. Precipitation takes on many forms, and the degree to which climate change affects precipitation levels comes down to something almost everyone learns about in school—Earth's water cycle. A system in endless motion, the water cycle traces the process through which water exists in its three primary phases—liquid, solid, and gas—as it moves perpetually between the Earth and its atmosphere.
Increases in precipitation frequency and intensity are markers of climate change. When temperatures rise and oceans grow warmer, the amount of water that evaporates into the atmosphere—and the speed at which it does so—also increases. As atmospheric circulation carries the moisture-rich air over land or pushes it into a storm system, heavy rain or snow is often the result.
The continental U.S. on average received about 30 inches of precipitation between March 2022 and February 2023. Traditionally "wet" regions—such as Washington state and Alaska in the northwest and Georgia and Mississippi in the southeast—continue to have some of the rainiest counties in the United States. Other areas such as Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, as well as pockets of the South and of California, experience the opposite extreme: drought, also largely a product of climate change.
Stacker cited data from the National Centers for Environmental Information to identify the counties in Washington that receive the most precipitation through rain, sleet, or snow. Counties are ranked by five-year precipitation averages in inches as of February 2023 with rainfall over the past year serving as a tiebreaker. Supplementary data on how last year's precipitation compares to the 100-year average for the area is also included.
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1 / 39#39. Grant County
- Five-year precipitation average: 6.82 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 8.17 inches (#72 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.11 inches below norm
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2 / 39#38. Benton County
- Five-year precipitation average: 7.41 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 10.17 inches (#110 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.03 inches above norm
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3 / 39#37. Franklin County
- Five-year precipitation average: 8.51 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 10.74 inches (#99 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.64 inches above norm
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4 / 39#36. Adams County
- Five-year precipitation average: 9.94 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 11.91 inches (#89 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.08 inches above norm
#35. Douglas County
- Five-year precipitation average: 10.31 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 12.87 inches (#92 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.44 inches above norm
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6 / 39#34. Lincoln County
- Five-year precipitation average: 11.08 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 13.28 inches (#76 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.29 inches above norm
#33. Walla Walla County
- Five-year precipitation average: 13.90 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 17.53 inches (#109 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.82 inches above norm
#32. Whitman County
- Five-year precipitation average: 16.50 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 20.76 inches (#113 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.43 inches above norm
#31. Asotin County
- Five-year precipitation average: 16.89 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 20.94 inches (#115 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.68 inches above norm
#30. Spokane County
- Five-year precipitation average: 18.50 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 20.84 inches (#77 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.77 inches above norm
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11 / 39#29. Ferry County
- Five-year precipitation average: 18.52 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 20.09 inches (#84 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.11 inches above norm
#28. Klickitat County
- Five-year precipitation average: 19.06 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 22.08 inches (#65 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.46 inches below norm
#27. Garfield County
- Five-year precipitation average: 19.19 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 24.26 inches (#120 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.74 inches above norm
#26. Stevens County
- Five-year precipitation average: 20.80 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 22.23 inches (#57 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.44 inches below norm
#25. Okanogan County
- Five-year precipitation average: 21.59 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 23.06 inches (#69 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.35 inches above norm
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#24. Yakima County
- Five-year precipitation average: 23.36 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 25.29 inches (#60 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.86 inches below norm
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17 / 39#23. Columbia County
- Five-year precipitation average: 25.06 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 31.07 inches (#104 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.28 inches above norm
#22. Island County
- Five-year precipitation average: 26.23 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 24.53 inches (#43 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.53 inches below norm
#21. San Juan County
- Five-year precipitation average: 27.64 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 24.49 inches (#21 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.93 inches below norm
#20. Kittitas County
- Five-year precipitation average: 29.73 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 29.71 inches (#36 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.47 inches below norm
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#19. Pend Oreille County
- Five-year precipitation average: 30.28 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 30.78 inches (#39 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.22 inches below norm
#18. Chelan County
- Five-year precipitation average: 35.45 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 33.84 inches (#37 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.40 inches below norm
#17. Kitsap County
- Five-year precipitation average: 42.92 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 41.50 inches (#52 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.70 inches below norm
#16. Thurston County
- Five-year precipitation average: 46.44 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 45.12 inches (#32 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.55 inches below norm
#14. Pierce County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.03 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 58.15 inches (#38 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.52 inches below norm
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27 / 39#13. Lewis County
- Five-year precipitation average: 67.70 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 69.00 inches (#53 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.16 inches below norm
#12. Wahkiakum County
- Five-year precipitation average: 70.20 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 66.65 inches (#17 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -16.54 inches below norm
#11. Whatcom County
- Five-year precipitation average: 70.63 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 62.95 inches (#35 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.40 inches below norm
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31 / 39#9. King County
- Five-year precipitation average: 72.84 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 65.84 inches (#32 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -7.11 inches below norm
#8. Skagit County
- Five-year precipitation average: 77.27 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 70.56 inches (#38 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.91 inches below norm
#7. Pacific County
- Five-year precipitation average: 80.60 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 78.12 inches (#26 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -11.82 inches below norm
#6. Snohomish County
- Five-year precipitation average: 82.07 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 74.63 inches (#36 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -6.56 inches below norm
#5. Skamania County
- Five-year precipitation average: 83.58 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 88.64 inches (#64 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -2.22 inches below norm
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#4. Mason County
- Five-year precipitation average: 87.46 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 82.68 inches (#43 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.65 inches below norm
#3. Clallam County
- Five-year precipitation average: 87.48 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 77.75 inches (#33 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -10.44 inches below norm
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38 / 39#2. Grays Harbor County
- Five-year precipitation average: 90.81 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 86.71 inches (#36 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -8.72 inches below norm
#1. Jefferson County
- Five-year precipitation average: 105.93 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 102.03 inches (#42 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -5.68 inches below norm
