PlainHazard

Hail in the United States, by state

The national record since 1955 · Hail

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 424,439 hail reports in the United States from 1955 through June 30, 2026, about 11,374 a year since 2000. Texas records the most (55,544), Kansas the most per square mile. The deadliest storm in NOAA's record since 1955 is the May 17, 1991 hail in Iowa: 4 deaths.

What is hail? How the National Weather Service files it

Frozen precipitation in the form of balls or irregular lumps of ice. Although the minimum size of hail qualifying as “severe” is 1 inch diameter, all reports of hail that is 3/4 of an inch or larger in diameter will be entered.
National Weather Service Instruction 10-1605, Storm Data Preparation (July 26, 2021), Appendix A, entry 19

Source: National Weather Service Instruction 10-1605. Read the instruction (PDF).

Hail, 1955 to 2026

Records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $10 million
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • $10 billion or more, or 1,000 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
  • 1996: all 48 event types recorded from 1996
Records
424,4391955 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
11,374average
Deaths
29recorded
Damage, 2025 dollars
$52.6BStorm Events, as filed

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Which states have the most hail reports?

By count Texas (55,544), Kansas (40,229), Oklahoma (31,601) lead. Per 10,000 square miles Kansas (4920), Oklahoma (4607), Nebraska (3261) lead; large states collect more records by covering more ground.

By count since 1955

  1. Texas 55,544
  2. Kansas 40,229
  3. Oklahoma 31,601
  4. Nebraska 25,051
  5. Missouri 20,443
  6. South Dakota 17,011
  7. Iowa 15,950
  8. Minnesota 15,756
  9. Colorado 15,490
  10. Arkansas 12,515
  11. Illinois 12,331
  12. North Dakota 10,026
  13. North Carolina 9,900
  14. Wisconsin 9,265
  15. Ohio 9,155

Per 10,000 square miles

  1. Kansas 4920
  2. Oklahoma 4607
  3. Nebraska 3261
  4. Missouri 2974
  5. Iowa 2856
  6. Arkansas 2407
  7. South Dakota 2244
  8. Ohio 2241
  9. South Carolina 2226
  10. Illinois 2221
  11. Indiana 2129
  12. Texas 2126
  13. North Carolina 2036
  14. Massachusetts 1983
  15. Minnesota 1979

Source: Land area: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles are not ranked per square mile.

Alabama: 1,598 per 10,000 sq miAlaska: 0.5 per 10,000 sq miArizona: 116 per 10,000 sq miArkansas: 2,407 per 10,000 sq miCalifornia: 60 per 10,000 sq miColorado: 1,495 per 10,000 sq miConnecticut: 1,427 per 10,000 sq miDelaware: 816 per 10,000 sq miFlorida: 1,056 per 10,000 sq miGeorgia: 1,526 per 10,000 sq miHawaii: 34 per 10,000 sq miIdaho: 135 per 10,000 sq miIllinois: 2,221 per 10,000 sq miIndiana: 2,129 per 10,000 sq miIowa: 2,856 per 10,000 sq miKansas: 4,920 per 10,000 sq miKentucky: 1,677 per 10,000 sq miLouisiana: 1,484 per 10,000 sq miMaine: 396 per 10,000 sq miMaryland: 1,627 per 10,000 sq miMassachusetts: 1,983 per 10,000 sq miMichigan: 1,066 per 10,000 sq miMinnesota: 1,979 per 10,000 sq miMississippi: 1,802 per 10,000 sq miMissouri: 2,974 per 10,000 sq miMontana: 577 per 10,000 sq miNebraska: 3,261 per 10,000 sq miNevada: 30 per 10,000 sq miNew Hampshire: 1,072 per 10,000 sq miNew Jersey: 1,569 per 10,000 sq miNew Mexico: 437 per 10,000 sq miNew York: 1,075 per 10,000 sq miNorth Carolina: 2,036 per 10,000 sq miNorth Dakota: 1,453 per 10,000 sq miOhio: 2,241 per 10,000 sq miOklahoma: 4,607 per 10,000 sq miOregon: 89 per 10,000 sq miPennsylvania: 1,235 per 10,000 sq miRhode Island: 1,354 per 10,000 sq miSouth Carolina: 2,226 per 10,000 sq miSouth Dakota: 2,244 per 10,000 sq miTennessee: 1,740 per 10,000 sq miTexas: 2,126 per 10,000 sq miUtah: 77 per 10,000 sq miVermont: 907 per 10,000 sq miVirginia: 1,566 per 10,000 sq miWashington: 59 per 10,000 sq miWest Virginia: 1,308 per 10,000 sq miWisconsin: 1,710 per 10,000 sq miWyoming: 507 per 10,000 sq mi
  • 0.5-396
  • 396-1,235
  • 1,235-1,598
  • 1,598-2,129
  • 2,129+
Hail per 10,000 square miles by state since 1955. Each class holds about a fifth of the states; Alaska and Hawaii are drawn as insets, not to scale.

Every state

Hail risk by state: FEMA's model

The record above counts what happened. FEMA's National Risk Index estimates what each state can expect to lose to hail in an average year, from history, exposure and vulnerability: Texas carries the largest expected annual loss ($835M), then Colorado and Nebraska.

  1. Texas $835M
  2. Colorado $341M
  3. Nebraska $272M
  4. Kansas $149M
  5. Wisconsin $134M
  6. Iowa $129M
  7. Minnesota $128M
  8. Missouri $123M
  9. Oklahoma $120M
  10. Ohio $97M
  11. Illinois $86M
  12. Kentucky $67M
  13. Georgia $66M
  14. North Dakota $62M
  15. Michigan $58M

Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), county expected annual loss summed by state; a model, not a count. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

When is hail season?

Nationally, 45% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in May and June. The busiest month is May.

The values, month by month

Jan 3,573 · Feb 6,945 · Mar 32,005 · Apr 68,217 · May 101,158 · Jun 89,553 · Jul 54,378 · Aug 36,495 · Sep 17,136 · Oct 8,650 · Nov 4,132 · Dec 2,197 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1955.

The deadliest hail reports on record

The 10 storms with the most deaths since 1955, by state
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1991-05-17 HailGreene County, IA Every hail record filed in the state that day (2, in 2 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's. 1.75 in hail 4 0 –
2014-06-18 HailLehman, Cochran County, TX While investigating a fatal plane crash near Lehman, broadcast media reported that a family nearby was caught in a hailstorm while in their car. The family estimated the hail was as large as ping pong balls which caused numerous dents to their vehicle after pulling off the road. NTSB personnel had not yet released the ... 1.50 in hail 3 0 $376K
2023-11-05 HailMacks Inn, Fremont County, ID Just before 3 pm a pickup truck crashed into a semi tractor trailer and both individuals in the pickup truck died due to the accident. One individual in the semi was airlifted to a local hospital with injuries. The accident occurred 1 mile south of Macks Inn on US Highway 20. Small hail accumulating to 3 to 4 inches ... 0.25 in hail 2 1 –
1995-04-22 HailAlba, Wood County, TX Two persons in a boat were struck and killed by lightning. (M56O, M??O) 1.75 in hail 2 0 –
2020-04-07 HailLofton, Augusta County, VA Quarter sized hail accumulated two inches deep on Interstate 81 and Interstate 64 near Spotswood, causing multiple accidents and partially closing the highway. This led to one fatalitiy and five injuries. 1.00 in hail 1 5 –
1992-06-01 HailEddy County, NM Every hail record filed in the state that day (2; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's. 1.75 in hail 1 3 –
2011-04-03 HailBeaver Dam, Dodge County, WI One storm episode: 6 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Two rounds of thunderstorms affected southern Wisconsin on April 3rd, as low pressure moved northeast from Iowa across Wisconsin. Morning elevated thunderstorms, with warm air advection on the nose of a low-level jet ahead of the approaching low, did not produce severe weather...but a shower of small hail created icy ... 0.75 in hail 1 2 $16K
2008-05-27 HailLux, Lyon County, NV The Lahontan Valley News reported that a woman lost control of her vehicle on slick pavement due to an accumulation of small hail. She was ejected from her SUV as it rolled down an embankment. The accident occurred on U.S. Highway 95 near Lyon County Road 2. According to the newspaper she was pronounced dead at the ... 0.25 in hail 1 2 $7K
2011-03-21 HailBullhead City Airport, Mohave County, AZ Graupel and small hail fell on Highway 68, contributing to five accidents involving seven vehicles. One person was killed (indirect fatality) and two were injured. 0.25 in hail 1 2 –
2022-04-14 HailEagle Creek, Clackamas County, OR Strong showers developed with small, but accumulating hail. There was a report of a head on collision with one fatality that likely occurred due to the hail storm. Oregon 211 Highway was closed for 3 hours. 0.25 in hail 1 1 $50K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed, summed over each storm in each state (one episode, or a named storm filed by several offices); names from FEMA declaration titles.

The costliest hail reports since 1993

The 8 most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2010-10-05 HailWest Chandler, Maricopa County, AZ One storm episode: 3 records; the totals are the episode's. 3.00 in hail 0 1 $3.8B
2017-05-08 HailEdgewater, Jefferson County, CO One storm episode: 9 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. 2.75 in hail 0 0 $2.8B
2016-04-12 HailGrey Forest, Bexar County, TX One storm episode: 18 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. 4.50 in hail 0 0 $1.7B
2012-06-13 HailHighland Park, Dallas County, TX One storm episode: 29 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. 2.75 in hail 0 1 $1.4B
2001-04-10 HailFlorissant, St. Louis County, MO One storm episode: 5 records; the totals are the episode's. 2.50 in hail 0 0 $1.4B
2023-05-19 HailAllen, Collin County, TX One storm episode: 8 records; the totals are the episode's. 2.50 in hail 0 0 $1.3B
1998-05-15 HailBloomington, Hennepin County, MN One storm episode: 7 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. 0.75 in hail 0 0 $1.1B
1998-04-16 HailBowling Green, Warren County, KY One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. 2.75 in hail 0 0 $923M

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

What the record files under hail

NOAA event types in this group
Event typeRecordsYearsKilledDamage
Hail424,4391955-202629$52.6B

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, event types as defined in NWS Instruction 10-1605.

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