Is Illinois in a drought?
This week's U.S. Drought Monitor for Illinois, and the category in each of its 102 counties, from the National Drought Mitigation Center.
Yes, in part: 20.9% of Illinois is in drought (D1 to D4).
36.87% is at least abnormally dry (D0 to D4), 0% in severe drought or worse (D2 to D4), 0% extreme or worse (D3 to D4) and 0% in D4 Exceptional Drought.
Next map: released Thursday 22 October 2026.
On the map valid 13 October 2026, 38 of 102 counties had some drought (D1 or worse); 11 more were abnormally dry (D0) only.
Every county, map valid 13 October 2026
The category is the most severe one covering any part of the county; the share says how much of it. "Weeks" counts the weekly maps in a row with that category or worse somewhere in it.
| County | Category this week | Share in it | In drought (D1–D4) | Weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adams County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Alexander County | D1 Moderate Drought | 24.1% | 24.1% | 3 weeks |
| Bond County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 3 weeks |
| Boone County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Brown County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Bureau County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Calhoun County | D1 Moderate Drought | 86.79% | 86.79% | 3 weeks |
| Carroll County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Cass County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Champaign County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Christian County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 55.83% | 0% | 6 weeks |
| Clark County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 46.86% | 0% | 4 weeks |
| Clay County | D1 Moderate Drought | 99.14% | 99.14% | 3 weeks |
| Clinton County | D1 Moderate Drought | 91.62% | 91.62% | 3 weeks |
| Coles County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 26.86% | 0% | 1 week |
| Cook County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Crawford County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | 7 weeks |
| Cumberland County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 99.77% | 0% | 4 weeks |
| De Witt County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| DeKalb County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Douglas County | None | 0% | 18 weeks | |
| DuPage County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Edgar County | None | 0% | 25 weeks | |
| Edwards County | D1 Moderate Drought | 65.85% | 65.85% | 3 weeks |
| Effingham County | D1 Moderate Drought | 6.43% | 6.43% | 3 weeks |
| Fayette County | D1 Moderate Drought | 54.19% | 54.19% | 3 weeks |
| Ford County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Franklin County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Fulton County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Gallatin County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 99.97% | 0% | 6 weeks |
| Greene County | D1 Moderate Drought | 77.26% | 77.26% | 3 weeks |
| Grundy County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Hamilton County | D1 Moderate Drought | 97.2% | 97.2% | 1 week |
| Hancock County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Hardin County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 63.72% | 0% | 6 weeks |
| Henderson County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Henry County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Iroquois County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Jackson County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Jasper County | D1 Moderate Drought | 4.58% | 4.58% | 3 weeks |
| Jefferson County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Jersey County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 3 weeks |
| Jo Daviess County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Johnson County | D1 Moderate Drought | 85.08% | 85.08% | 3 weeks |
| Kane County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Kankakee County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Kendall County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Knox County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Lake County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| LaSalle County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Lawrence County | D1 Moderate Drought | 68.02% | 68.02% | 3 weeks |
| Lee County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Livingston County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Logan County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Macon County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Macoupin County | D1 Moderate Drought | 42.18% | 42.18% | 3 weeks |
| Madison County | D1 Moderate Drought | 85.18% | 85.18% | 3 weeks |
| Marion County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 3 weeks |
| Marshall County | None | 0% | 18 weeks | |
| Mason County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Massac County | D1 Moderate Drought | 0.02% | 0.02% | 3 weeks |
| McDonough County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| McHenry County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| McLean County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Menard County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Mercer County | None | 0% | 18 weeks | |
| Monroe County | D1 Moderate Drought | 26.4% | 26.4% | 1 week |
| Montgomery County | D1 Moderate Drought | 21.13% | 21.13% | 3 weeks |
| Morgan County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 30.08% | 0% | 6 weeks |
| Moultrie County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 21.77% | 0% | 1 week |
| Ogle County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Peoria County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Perry County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Piatt County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Pike County | D1 Moderate Drought | 37.37% | 37.37% | 3 weeks |
| Pope County | D1 Moderate Drought | 9.1% | 9.1% | 1 week |
| Pulaski County | D1 Moderate Drought | 5.16% | 5.16% | 3 weeks |
| Putnam County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Randolph County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Richland County | D1 Moderate Drought | 98.47% | 98.47% | 3 weeks |
| Rock Island County | None | 0% | 11 weeks | |
| Saline County | D1 Moderate Drought | 58.68% | 58.68% | 1 week |
| Sangamon County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 10.02% | 0% | 4 weeks |
| Schuyler County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Scott County | D1 Moderate Drought | 3.56% | 3.56% | 3 weeks |
| Shelby County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 92.21% | 0% | 6 weeks |
| St. Clair County | D1 Moderate Drought | 9.18% | 9.18% | 1 week |
| Stark County | None | 0% | 18 weeks | |
| Stephenson County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Tazewell County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Union County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 3 weeks |
| Vermilion County | None | 0% | 11 weeks | |
| Wabash County | D1 Moderate Drought | 32.12% | 32.12% | 3 weeks |
| Warren County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Washington County | D1 Moderate Drought | 99.82% | 99.82% | 1 week |
| Wayne County | D1 Moderate Drought | 99.9% | 99.9% | 3 weeks |
| White County | D1 Moderate Drought | 17.37% | 17.37% | 1 week |
| Whiteside County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Will County | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Williamson County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 1 week |
| Winnebago County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Woodford County | None | 0% | 9 weeks |
Natural disaster risk in Illinois by county · Drought in every state
The categories
| Category | Name |
|---|---|
| D0 | Abnormally Dry (not drought: going into or coming out of drought) |
| D1 | Moderate Drought |
| D2 | Severe Drought |
| D3 | Extreme Drought |
| D4 | Exceptional Drought |
What each category means on the ground is described on the Drought Monitor's classification page.
How this page reads the Drought Monitor
- The figures are the U.S. Drought Monitor's own statistics (share of area in each category), read from its data service. The categories are theirs, unchanged. This site does not make its own drought assessment.
- The Drought Monitor gives each county a share in each category. A county's category here is the most severe one covering any part of it, with the share it covers. "Weeks" counts the weekly maps in a row, newest first, on which some of the county was at that category or worse.
- A new map is released every Thursday, valid for the Tuesday before. Every figure here carries that valid date. This site reads the new week once, after the Thursday release, and keeps it.
- Counties are matched to the Drought Monitor by their five-digit FIPS code. Connecticut is shown by its nine planning regions, which replaced its eight counties in 2022; the Drought Monitor's county statistics use the same planning regions.
The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.
Source: U.S. Drought Monitor, droughtmonitor.unl.edu · The official map for Illinois · Drought Monitor data tables · drought.gov current conditions · NOAA seasonal drought outlook
Questions
Is Illinois in a drought right now?
On the U.S. Drought Monitor valid 13 October 2026, 20.9% of Illinois is in drought (D1 to D4) and 36.87% is at least abnormally dry (D0 to D4).
Which counties in Illinois are in the worst drought?
This week the most severe category in Illinois is D1 Moderate Drought, in Alexander County, Bond County, Calhoun County, Clay County, Clinton County, Edwards County, Effingham County, Fayette County and 30 more.
How is a county's category chosen on this page?
The U.S. Drought Monitor gives the share of each county in each category. This page names the most severe category covering any part of the county, and always says how much of the county it covers.