California hail risk
Fresno County has the highest hail risk in California, scoring 95.5 out of 100 — rated "Relatively High" by FEMA's National Risk Index. Recorded hail events across California have decreased 69% over the past five years compared to the prior five-year period.
| # | County | NRI score | Rating |
NOAA events 2016–2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fresno County | 95.5 | Relatively High | 2 |
| 2 | Los Angeles County | 93 | Relatively Moderate | 6 |
| 3 | Tulare County | 92.5 | Relatively Moderate | 4 |
| 4 | San Bernardino County | 90.9 | Relatively Moderate | 16 |
| 5 | Riverside County | 81.4 | Relatively Moderate | 7 |
| 6 | Orange County | 79.5 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 7 | San Diego County | 77 | Relatively Moderate | 10 |
| 8 | Madera County | 76.4 | Relatively Moderate | 3 |
| 9 | Kern County | 67.7 | Relatively Low | 7 |
| 10 | Merced County | 67.1 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 11 | Kings County | 66 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 12 | San Joaquin County | 54.7 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 13 | Sacramento County | 53.9 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 14 | Stanislaus County | 52.2 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 15 | Ventura County | 52 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 16 | Nevada County | 49.3 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 17 | Santa Clara County | 37.5 | Relatively Low | 33 |
| 18 | Alameda County | 35.8 | Relatively Low | 19 |
| 19 | Butte County | 34 | Relatively Low | 3 |
| 20 | Monterey County | 33.5 | Very Low | 18 |
| 21 | Santa Cruz County | 33.2 | Very Low | 15 |
| 22 | Contra Costa County | 33 | Very Low | 12 |
| 23 | Placer County | 25.8 | Very Low | 5 |
| 24 | Santa Barbara County | 22.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 25 | Imperial County | 20.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 26 | Siskiyou County | 19.8 | Very Low | 5 |
| 27 | El Dorado County | 18.9 | Very Low | 9 |
| 28 | San Francisco County | 18.1 | Very Low | 10 |
| 29 | Solano County | 18.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 30 | Shasta County | 17 | Very Low | 8 |
| 31 | Sonoma County | 16.1 | Very Low | 20 |
| 32 | Humboldt County | 15.3 | Very Low | 20 |
| 33 | San Luis Obispo County | 14 | Very Low | 1 |
| 34 | Plumas County | 12.4 | Very Low | 3 |
| 35 | San Mateo County | 11.4 | Very Low | 9 |
| 36 | Yolo County | 11.3 | Very Low | 2 |
| 37 | Tuolumne County | 10.3 | Very Low | 3 |
| 38 | Sutter County | 9.5 | Very Low | 4 |
| 39 | Tehama County | 9.2 | Very Low | 13 |
| 40 | Napa County | 8.5 | Very Low | 1 |
| 41 | Mendocino County | 8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 42 | Calaveras County | 7.4 | Very Low | 1 |
| 43 | Yuba County | 7.4 | Very Low | 1 |
| 44 | Amador County | 7 | Very Low | 1 |
| 45 | Mariposa County | 6.6 | Very Low | 3 |
| 46 | Lassen County | 6.3 | Very Low | 2 |
| 47 | Colusa County | 6.2 | Very Low | 1 |
| 48 | Glenn County | 6 | Very Low | 3 |
| 49 | Trinity County | 5.3 | Very Low | 7 |
| 50 | Del Norte County | 4.4 | Very Low | 2 |
| 51 | San Benito County | 3.8 | Very Low | 2 |
| 52 | Marin County | 3.7 | Very Low | 11 |
| 53 | Modoc County | 3.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 54 | Lake County | 3.5 | Very Low | 1 |
| 55 | Sierra County | 3.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 56 | Mono County | 3.2 | Very Low | 2 |
| 57 | Inyo County | 1.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 58 | Alpine County | 1.3 | Very Low | 1 |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0, December 2025. Scores are 0–100 percentile rankings among all US counties. See the methodology page for definitions. Download the full CSV for all counties.
Hail risk nationally:
Other hazard risks in California:
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest hail risk county in California?
Fresno County, CA has the highest hail risk in California, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 95.5 out of 100 (rated "Relatively High").
What causes hail risk in California?
Hail risk reflects expected annual losses from damaging hailstones to structures, vehicles, and crops. High scores cluster in the central plains and Front Range — a corridor sometimes called "Hail Alley" — where large-diameter hail is most frequent. Hail causes over $10 billion in US property damage in active years, much of it to roofs, vehicles, and crops.