First time in 25 years.....

California is officially free of drought conditions for the first time in 25 years

By Olivia Hebert

California’s rainy start to 2026 has led to wet conditions pushing the state to break a 25-year record, according to the latest federal and state data. 

The U.S. Drought Monitor map released Thursday, based on data valid as of Jan. 6, shows 100% of California classified as free of drought conditions, with no areas listed as abnormally dry or experiencing moderate, severe, extreme or exceptional drought.

The last time the state reached that threshold was about 25 years ago on Dec. 26, 2000, according to meteorologist Dalton Behringer from the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office. 

Currently California is the only state in the U.S. without any drought or abnormally dry conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. 

“It’s the first time I’ve seen it where there’s no drought anywhere,” Behringer told SFGATE. 

Behringer said the California drought monitor reflects both short- and long-term conditions, and the current status is not the result of a single storm or even a single season. 

“It’s just different parts of the state have had more good years than bad years,” he said. In the Bay Area, he said, recent wet years helped erase lingering long-term deficits, while Southern California’s improved conditions came later after receiving more precipitation this year. 

There was above-average precipitation across the state in recent months, with California receiving 14.39 inches of precipitation as of Jan. 7, or 155% of the average for that point in the water year, which started on Oct. 1. 

The  average for the same period is 9.26 inches, based on records dating back to 1981, according to the California Department of Water Resources. 

While the early-season rainfall ranks among the wettest starts on record, it remains below the historical maximum of 18.43 inches measured by that date.

Historically, the majority of the state’s annual precipitation falls between November and March. The precipitation recorded so far accounts for about 60% of the rainfall California typically receives over a full water year, which runs through Sept. 30. 

For Californians who remember the deep drought years of the 2010s, Behringer noted that the recent data shows how much conditions have changed.