Is Virginia in a drought?
This week's U.S. Drought Monitor for Virginia, and the category in each of its 133 counties, from the National Drought Mitigation Center.
Yes, in part: 23.2% of Virginia is in drought (D1 to D4).
54.47% is at least abnormally dry (D0 to D4), 11.36% in severe drought or worse (D2 to D4), 2.32% 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, 43 of 133 counties had some drought (D1 or worse); 52 more were abnormally dry (D0) only. D3 Extreme Drought somewhere in 8. D2 Severe Drought somewhere in 10.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accomack County | D1 Moderate Drought | 13.75% | 13.75% | 6 weeks |
| Albemarle County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 77.44% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Alexandria City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Alleghany County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 24.96% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Amelia County | None | 0% | 8 weeks | |
| Amherst County | D2 Severe Drought | 0.18% | 61.56% | 41 weeks |
| Appomattox County | D2 Severe Drought | 39.81% | 80.22% | 41 weeks |
| Arlington County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Augusta County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 97.48% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Bath County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 20.9% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Bedford County | D2 Severe Drought | 7.56% | 100% | 41 weeks |
| Bland County | None | 0% | 2 weeks | |
| Botetourt County | D1 Moderate Drought | 36.34% | 36.34% | at least 54 weeks |
| Bristol City | None | 0% | 12 weeks | |
| Brunswick County | D3 Extreme Drought | 1.69% | 71.5% | 8 weeks |
| Buchanan County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Buckingham County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 78.19% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Buena Vista City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Campbell County | D3 Extreme Drought | 19.65% | 100% | 7 weeks |
| Caroline County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 1.14% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Carroll County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 35.71% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Charles City County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 12.48% | 0% | 52 weeks |
| Charlotte County | D3 Extreme Drought | 15.05% | 92.26% | 7 weeks |
| Charlottesville City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Chesapeake City | D1 Moderate Drought | 98.49% | 98.49% | 4 weeks |
| Chesterfield County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Clarke County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Colonial Heights City | None | 0% | 10 weeks | |
| Covington City | None | 0% | 4 weeks | |
| Craig County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 98.79% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Culpeper County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Cumberland County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Danville City | D3 Extreme Drought | 80.51% | 100% | 25 weeks |
| Dickenson County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Dinwiddie County | D1 Moderate Drought | 0.89% | 0.89% | 2 weeks |
| Emporia City | D2 Severe Drought | 100% | 100% | 8 weeks |
| Essex County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 78.2% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Fairfax City | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Fairfax County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 44.52% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Falls Church City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Fauquier County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 16.05% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Floyd County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 25.14% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Fluvanna County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 34.27% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Franklin City | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 41 weeks |
| Franklin County | D1 Moderate Drought | 36.5% | 36.5% | 49 weeks |
| Frederick County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 71.39% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Fredericksburg City | None | 0% | 5 weeks | |
| Galax City | None | 0% | 1 week | |
| Giles County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 1.31% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Gloucester County | D1 Moderate Drought | 0.71% | 0.71% | 4 weeks |
| Goochland County | None | 0% | 5 weeks | |
| Grayson County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 6.21% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Greene County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 16.3% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Greensville County | D3 Extreme Drought | 3.79% | 97.23% | 8 weeks |
| Halifax County | D3 Extreme Drought | 63.09% | 100% | 26 weeks |
| Hampton City | D1 Moderate Drought | 79.87% | 79.87% | 4 weeks |
| Hanover County | None | 0% | 5 weeks | |
| Harrisonburg City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Henrico County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Henry County | D2 Severe Drought | 23.71% | 58.33% | 41 weeks |
| Highland County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 5.33% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Hopewell City | None | 0% | 10 weeks | |
| Isle of Wight County | D1 Moderate Drought | 33.78% | 33.78% | 41 weeks |
| James City County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 70.28% | 0% | 52 weeks |
| King and Queen County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 2.94% | 0% | 52 weeks |
| King George County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 58.66% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| King William County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Lancaster County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 88.12% | 0% | 52 weeks |
| Lee County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Lexington City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Loudoun County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 86.42% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Louisa County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Lunenburg County | D2 Severe Drought | 9.74% | 47.66% | 41 weeks |
| Lynchburg City | D2 Severe Drought | 4.14% | 100% | 41 weeks |
| Madison County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Manassas City | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Manassas Park City | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Martinsville City | D1 Moderate Drought | 79.17% | 79.17% | 48 weeks |
| Mathews County | D1 Moderate Drought | 78.4% | 78.4% | 4 weeks |
| Mecklenburg County | D3 Extreme Drought | 1.17% | 100% | 28 weeks |
| Middlesex County | D1 Moderate Drought | 0.29% | 0.29% | 3 weeks |
| Montgomery County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 66.98% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Nelson County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| New Kent County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Newport News City | D1 Moderate Drought | 1.13% | 1.13% | 4 weeks |
| Norfolk City | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 4 weeks |
| Northampton County | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 6 weeks |
| Northumberland County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | 52 weeks |
| Norton City | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Nottoway County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 4.41% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Orange County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Page County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 81.28% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Patrick County | D1 Moderate Drought | 8.59% | 8.59% | 47 weeks |
| Petersburg City | None | 0% | 10 weeks | |
| Pittsylvania County | D3 Extreme Drought | 17.52% | 100% | 25 weeks |
| Poquoson City | D1 Moderate Drought | 97.32% | 97.32% | 4 weeks |
| Portsmouth City | D1 Moderate Drought | 96.28% | 96.28% | 4 weeks |
| Powhatan County | None | 0% | 8 weeks | |
| Prince Edward County | D2 Severe Drought | 0.02% | 7.53% | 7 weeks |
| Prince George County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 57.46% | 0% | 28 weeks |
| Prince William County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 4.75% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Pulaski County | None | 0% | 2 weeks | |
| Radford City | None | 0% | 2 weeks | |
| Rappahannock County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 5.1% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Richmond City | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Richmond County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Roanoke City | D1 Moderate Drought | 43.21% | 43.21% | at least 54 weeks |
| Roanoke County | D1 Moderate Drought | 13.39% | 13.39% | at least 54 weeks |
| Rockbridge County | D1 Moderate Drought | 7.98% | 7.98% | at least 54 weeks |
| Rockingham County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 73.03% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Russell County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Salem City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Scott County | None | 0% | 3 weeks | |
| Shenandoah County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 78.43% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Smyth County | None | 0% | 2 weeks | |
| Southampton County | D2 Severe Drought | 76.61% | 100% | 8 weeks |
| Spotsylvania County | None | 0% | 5 weeks | |
| Stafford County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 0.2% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Staunton City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Suffolk City | D1 Moderate Drought | 63.92% | 63.92% | 4 weeks |
| Surry County | D1 Moderate Drought | 39.51% | 39.51% | 27 weeks |
| Sussex County | D2 Severe Drought | 3.44% | 87.18% | 8 weeks |
| Tazewell County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Virginia Beach City | D1 Moderate Drought | 100% | 100% | 4 weeks |
| Warren County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 98.85% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Washington County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 0.45% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Waynesboro City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Westmoreland County | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Williamsburg City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | 28 weeks |
| Winchester City | D0 Abnormally Dry | 100% | 0% | at least 54 weeks |
| Wise County | None | 0% | 9 weeks | |
| Wythe County | None | 0% | 2 weeks | |
| York County | D1 Moderate Drought | 2.67% | 2.67% | 4 weeks |
Natural disaster risk in Virginia 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 Virginia · Drought Monitor data tables · drought.gov current conditions · NOAA seasonal drought outlook
Questions
Is Virginia in a drought right now?
On the U.S. Drought Monitor valid 13 October 2026, 23.2% of Virginia is in drought (D1 to D4) and 54.47% is at least abnormally dry (D0 to D4). 11.36% is in D2 Severe Drought or worse.
Which counties in Virginia are in the worst drought?
This week the most severe category in Virginia is D3 Extreme Drought, in Brunswick County, Campbell County, Charlotte County, Danville City, Greensville County, Halifax County, Mecklenburg County, Pittsylvania County.
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.