You’re probably thinking of Seattle. Most people do. You picture those moody, grey skies, a constant drizzle, and everyone in North Face jackets holding expensive coffee. It’s the classic American rain trope.
But if we’re talking about which state has most rain, Washington isn't even in the top ten. Seriously. It’s not even close.
While the Pacific Northwest is definitely cloudy, the actual "rain crown" belongs to a place that feels a lot more like a vacation and a lot less like a grunge music video. If you want the real data on where the heavens actually open up, you have to look toward the tropics and the humid South.
Hawaii: The Undisputed Heavyweight Champion
Hawaii is the wettest state in the country, and honestly, it’s by a landslide. We’re talking about an annual average of over 63 inches of precipitation across the islands.
But averages are boring. The real story is in the extremes. On the island of Kauai, there’s a spot called Mount Waialeale. It’s essentially a vertical wall of green that catches every moisture-heavy cloud drifting across the Pacific. This single mountain gets about 450 inches of rain a year.
To put that in perspective, if you stood there with a giant bucket for twelve months, the water would be nearly 40 feet deep.
Why does this happen? It’s a mix of trade winds and "orographic lift." Basically, the wind pushes moist ocean air up the steep volcanic cliffs. As the air rises, it cools, and the water has nowhere to go but down.
Hilo vs. Seattle
If you want to win a bar bet, ask someone which city is rainier: Seattle or Hilo.
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People will bet their mortgage on Seattle. They’ll lose. Seattle gets roughly 38 inches of rain a year. Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii, gets around 130 inches. Hilo is effectively four Seattles stacked on top of each other.
The Humid Contenders: Why the South is So Soaked
If Hawaii takes the gold, the silver and bronze usually go to Louisiana and Mississippi.
Louisiana consistently ranks as the second wettest state, often hovering around 60 inches annually. It’s a different kind of rain than Hawaii’s mountain showers. In the South, it’s all about the Gulf of Mexico.
You’ve got two main culprits here:
- Afternoon Thunderstorms: In the summer, the humidity gets so thick you can practically chew the air. That heat eventually breaks into massive, violent downpours that dump inches of water in an hour.
- Tropical Systems: Hurricanes and tropical storms are the "wild cards" that can ruin a state's average in a single weekend. One slow-moving storm can drop 20 inches of rain in two days.
Mississippi and Alabama follow closely behind, usually landing in the 58 to 59-inch range. These states are basically sponges for Gulf moisture.
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The Pacific Northwest "Rain" Myth
So, why does everyone think Washington is the rainiest?
It’s about frequency, not volume. Places like Seattle and Portland have a lot of "rainy days"—days where it technically rains, but it’s mostly just a fine mist or a light sprinkle. You can walk the dog in it without getting truly soaked.
In a place like Mobile, Alabama (which is often cited as the rainiest city in the lower 48), it might rain less often, but when it does, it’s a literal wall of water.
States by Average Annual Precipitation (The Top 5):
- Hawaii: ~63.7 inches
- Louisiana: ~60.1 inches
- Mississippi: ~59.2 inches
- Alabama: ~58.3 inches
- Florida: ~54.6 inches
Surprising Records in 2024 and 2025
Climate patterns are shifting, and the last couple of years have seen some bizarre outliers. In 2024, Asheville, North Carolina, jumped up the rankings significantly because of the catastrophic rainfall from Hurricane Helene.
Even though North Carolina usually sits around the 50-inch mark, certain mountainous areas saw "thousand-year" rain events. It’s a reminder that "average" doesn't mean much when the climate starts throwing curveballs.
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Then you have Alaska. Most people think of it as a frozen desert, and in the north, it is. But the "panhandle" (the Southeast part near Juneau) is a temperate rainforest. A place called Little Port Walter can easily see over 200 inches of precipitation. Because Alaska is so massive and mostly dry in the interior, its state-wide average stays low, but its wettest spots are world-class.
What This Means for Your Next Move
If you’re looking to move or travel and you genuinely hate the rain, looking at "average rainfall" is a trap. You have to look at days with measurable precipitation.
- If you hate grey skies: Avoid the Great Lakes (like Syracuse or Buffalo) and the Pacific Northwest. They might not get the most water, but they have the most gloomy days.
- If you hate floods: Avoid the Gulf Coast. The rain there is intense, sudden, and can overwhelm drainage systems in minutes.
- If you want to see a rainforest: Head to the windward side of any Hawaiian island. It’s some of the most beautiful, lush terrain on the planet, and you’ll finally understand what "wet" really means.
Actionable Next Steps:
Check the "Climate at a Glance" tool from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) before planning long-term travel. It allows you to filter by "Precipitation" and "Rank" to see how a specific state performed in the last 12 months versus its 100-year average. If you're moving to the South, always check the local flood plain maps—average rainfall doesn't account for the localized "bowl effect" many coastal towns have.