Texas lightning risk
254 counties scored 12 rated Very High
El Paso County has the highest lightning risk in Texas, scoring 99.9 out of 100 — rated "Very High" by FEMA's National Risk Index. Recorded lightning events across Texas have decreased 22% over the past five years compared to the prior five-year period.
| # | County | NRI score | Rating |
NOAA events 2016–2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El Paso County | 99.9 | Very High | 0 |
| 2 | Harris County | 99.9 | Very High | 28 |
| 3 | Jefferson County | 99.7 | Very High | 3 |
| 4 | Montgomery County | 99.7 | Very High | 10 |
| 5 | Fort Bend County | 99.4 | Very High | 5 |
| 6 | Houston County | 98.8 | Very High | 2 |
| 7 | Dallas County | 98.1 | Very High | 12 |
| 8 | Brazos County | 97.5 | Very High | 3 |
| 9 | Galveston County | 97.4 | Very High | 9 |
| 10 | Bell County | 97.2 | Very High | 3 |
| 11 | McLennan County | 96.8 | Very High | 4 |
| 12 | Liberty County | 96.6 | Very High | 0 |
| 13 | Bexar County | 96.5 | Relatively High | 3 |
| 14 | Brazoria County | 95.5 | Relatively High | 3 |
| 15 | Orange County | 95.4 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 16 | Tarrant County | 95.2 | Relatively High | 17 |
| 17 | Smith County | 94.9 | Relatively High | 7 |
| 18 | Hays County | 94.8 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 19 | Nueces County | 94.5 | Relatively High | 2 |
| 20 | Polk County | 93.4 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 21 | Angelina County | 93.3 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 22 | Travis County | 93.3 | Relatively High | 8 |
| 23 | Hidalgo County | 93.1 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 24 | Potter County | 92.7 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 25 | Bosque County | 90.7 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 26 | Guadalupe County | 89.9 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 27 | Hardin County | 89.9 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 28 | Kerr County | 89.4 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 29 | Comal County | 89.3 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 30 | Williamson County | 88.8 | Relatively High | 5 |
| 31 | Tom Green County | 88.2 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 32 | Taylor County | 87.7 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 33 | Medina County | 87.1 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 34 | Walker County | 86.3 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 35 | Ellis County | 86.2 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 36 | Ector County | 86 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 37 | Coryell County | 85.8 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 38 | Bowie County | 85.4 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 39 | Bandera County | 84.4 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 40 | Nacogdoches County | 84 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 41 | Henderson County | 83.7 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 42 | Milam County | 83.6 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 43 | Lubbock County | 83 | Relatively High | 5 |
| 44 | Trinity County | 82.6 | Relatively High | 0 |
| 45 | Cameron County | 82.3 | Relatively High | 3 |
| 46 | Kimble County | 82.2 | Relatively High | 1 |
| 47 | Jasper County | 81.5 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 48 | Gregg County | 80.7 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 49 | Denton County | 80.6 | Relatively Moderate | 22 |
| 50 | Navarro County | 80.2 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 51 | Atascosa County | 79.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 52 | Anderson County | 79.5 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 53 | Hill County | 78.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 54 | Maverick County | 78.1 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 55 | Grimes County | 77.8 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 56 | Calhoun County | 77.5 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 57 | Kendall County | 77.5 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 58 | Hale County | 77.3 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 59 | Johnson County | 76.2 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 60 | Lavaca County | 74.7 | Relatively Moderate | 3 |
| 61 | Chambers County | 74.6 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 62 | San Jacinto County | 74.2 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 63 | Gray County | 74.1 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 64 | Randall County | 73.6 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 65 | Brewster County | 73.3 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 66 | Rusk County | 72.3 | Relatively Moderate | 6 |
| 67 | Tyler County | 72.1 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 68 | Dallam County | 72 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 69 | Midland County | 71.9 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 70 | Victoria County | 71.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 71 | Van Zandt County | 71.2 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 72 | Llano County | 70.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 73 | Cherokee County | 70.4 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 74 | Hood County | 70.4 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 75 | Val Verde County | 70.3 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 76 | Bastrop County | 70.2 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 77 | Wharton County | 69.4 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 78 | Gonzales County | 69.1 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 79 | Pecos County | 68.7 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 80 | Erath County | 68.6 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 81 | Collin County | 67.7 | Relatively Moderate | 35 |
| 82 | Newton County | 67.5 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 83 | Parker County | 67.4 | Relatively Moderate | 3 |
| 84 | Harrison County | 67 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 85 | Waller County | 66.6 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 86 | Wilson County | 66.6 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 87 | Willacy County | 65.6 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 88 | Leon County | 65.3 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 89 | Burnet County | 64.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 90 | Gillespie County | 64.5 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 91 | Matagorda County | 64.2 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 92 | Limestone County | 64.1 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 93 | Uvalde County | 63.9 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 94 | Caldwell County | 63.8 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 95 | Shelby County | 63.4 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 96 | DeWitt County | 63 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 97 | Colorado County | 61.3 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 98 | Lampasas County | 60.9 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 99 | Freestone County | 60.7 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 100 | Washington County | 59.8 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 101 | Falls County | 59.5 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 102 | Hutchinson County | 58.7 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 103 | San Patricio County | 58.4 | Relatively Moderate | 1 |
| 104 | Bee County | 57.6 | Relatively Moderate | 0 |
| 105 | Madison County | 57.3 | Relatively Moderate | 2 |
| 106 | Grayson County | 56.2 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 107 | Webb County | 55.8 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 108 | Lamar County | 55.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 109 | Frio County | 55 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 110 | Cass County | 54.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 111 | Presidio County | 54.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 112 | Fayette County | 54.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 113 | Jim Wells County | 53.3 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 114 | Wood County | 52.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 115 | Jackson County | 51.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 116 | Austin County | 51.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 117 | Titus County | 50.1 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 118 | Kaufman County | 49.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 119 | Moore County | 49.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 120 | Mason County | 49.3 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 121 | Hunt County | 48.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 122 | Robertson County | 48.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 123 | Gaines County | 47.3 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 124 | Fannin County | 46.3 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 125 | San Augustine County | 46.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 126 | Palo Pinto County | 45.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 127 | Comanche County | 45.2 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 128 | Brown County | 44.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 129 | Wichita County | 44.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 130 | Panola County | 43.1 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 131 | Karnes County | 42.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 132 | McCulloch County | 42.6 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 133 | Lee County | 42.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 134 | Sabine County | 41.7 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 135 | Dimmit County | 39.4 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 136 | Cooke County | 39.2 | Relatively Low | 2 |
| 137 | Rockwall County | 38.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 138 | Sutton County | 38.1 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 139 | Upshur County | 37.8 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 140 | Zavala County | 37.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 141 | Howard County | 37.6 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 142 | Lamb County | 37.1 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 143 | Reeves County | 36.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 144 | Blanco County | 35.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 145 | Ward County | 35.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 146 | Hartley County | 35.6 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 147 | Morris County | 35.5 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 148 | Burleson County | 34.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 149 | Hamilton County | 34.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 150 | Eastland County | 34.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 151 | Red River County | 34.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 152 | Hopkins County | 34 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 153 | Runnels County | 33.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 154 | Deaf Smith County | 33.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 155 | Menard County | 33.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 156 | Real County | 32.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 157 | Camp County | 31.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 158 | Hansford County | 31.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 159 | Aransas County | 31.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 160 | Coleman County | 30.6 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 161 | Hockley County | 29.2 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 162 | Rains County | 28.8 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 163 | Ochiltree County | 27.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 164 | Sherman County | 27.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 165 | Somervell County | 27.3 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 166 | Kleberg County | 26.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 167 | Nolan County | 25.9 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 168 | Refugio County | 25.6 | Relatively Low | 1 |
| 169 | Yoakum County | 25.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 170 | Marion County | 24.7 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 171 | Terry County | 24.1 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 172 | Wise County | 23.6 | Very Low | 4 |
| 173 | San Saba County | 23.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 174 | Wheeler County | 23.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 175 | Andrews County | 22.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 176 | Mills County | 21.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 177 | Starr County | 21.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 178 | Schleicher County | 21.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 179 | Winkler County | 21 | Very Low | 0 |
| 180 | Swisher County | 20.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 181 | Mitchell County | 20.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 182 | Hudspeth County | 19.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 183 | Castro County | 19 | Very Low | 0 |
| 184 | Bailey County | 17.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 185 | Goliad County | 17.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 186 | Floyd County | 17.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 187 | Montague County | 17.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 188 | Concho County | 17.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 189 | Edwards County | 16.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 190 | Callahan County | 16 | Very Low | 0 |
| 191 | Live Oak County | 15.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 192 | Kinney County | 15.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 193 | Franklin County | 15.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 194 | Jones County | 14.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 195 | Crane County | 14.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 196 | Dawson County | 14.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 197 | La Salle County | 14.1 | Very Low | 1 |
| 198 | Culberson County | 13.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 199 | Carson County | 12.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 200 | Donley County | 12.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 201 | Scurry County | 12.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 202 | Parmer County | 11.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 203 | Coke County | 11.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 204 | Reagan County | 11.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 205 | Upton County | 11 | Very Low | 0 |
| 206 | Jeff Davis County | 10.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 207 | Young County | 10.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 208 | Childress County | 10.1 | Very Low | 1 |
| 209 | Lipscomb County | 10.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 210 | Crockett County | 9.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 211 | Brooks County | 8.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 212 | Hemphill County | 8.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 213 | Collingsworth County | 8.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 214 | Hall County | 7.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 215 | Crosby County | 7.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 216 | Garza County | 7.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 217 | Terrell County | 7.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 218 | Lynn County | 6.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 219 | Martin County | 6.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 220 | Delta County | 6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 221 | Stephens County | 5.9 | Very Low | 2 |
| 222 | Wilbarger County | 5.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 223 | Oldham County | 5.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 224 | Duval County | 5.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 225 | Zapata County | 5.3 | Very Low | 1 |
| 226 | Irion County | 4.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 227 | Dickens County | 4.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 228 | Clay County | 4.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 229 | Jack County | 4.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 230 | Cottle County | 4.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 231 | Cochran County | 3.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 232 | Hardeman County | 3.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 233 | Archer County | 3.7 | Very Low | 2 |
| 234 | Sterling County | 3.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 235 | Haskell County | 3.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 236 | Roberts County | 2.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 237 | Glasscock County | 2.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 238 | Jim Hogg County | 2.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 239 | Motley County | 2.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 240 | Armstrong County | 2.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 241 | Fisher County | 2.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 242 | Briscoe County | 2.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 243 | Knox County | 1.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 244 | Baylor County | 1.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 245 | Stonewall County | 1.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 246 | Kenedy County | 1.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 247 | McMullen County | 0.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 248 | Borden County | 0.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 249 | Foard County | 0.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 250 | Kent County | 0.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 251 | Shackelford County | 0.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 252 | King County | 0.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 253 | Throckmorton County | 0.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 254 | Loving County | 0.1 | Very Low | 0 |
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.
Lightning risk nationally:
Other hazard risks in Texas:
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest lightning risk county in Texas?
El Paso County, TX has the highest lightning risk in Texas, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 99.9 out of 100 (rated "Very High").
How many counties in Texas are rated Very High for lightning risk?
12 of 254 scored Texas counties are rated "Very High" for lightning risk by FEMA's National Risk Index.
What causes lightning risk in Texas?
Lightning risk reflects expected annual losses from cloud-to-ground strikes, which ignite building fires, damage electrical systems, and cause fatalities. Florida consistently leads the US in lightning density. High scores also appear across the Gulf Coast, Southeast, and central Plains, where afternoon convective storms are most frequent in summer months.