List of 50 U.S. States By Elevation

By
Editorial Staff

Last updated on September 30th, 2024

The elevation of a point is its distance above sea level. Elevations are generally measured in meters or feet.

Did you know that sea level is a base level which is used for measuring elevation and depth on Earth?

The ocean is one continuous body of water and hence its surface tends to seek the same level throughout the world. However, certain factors such as winds, river discharges, currents, and variations in temperature and gravity prevent the surface from being truly level.

The concept of local mean sea level was developed so that the surface of the ocean can be used as a base for measuring elevations.

List of 50 states ranked according to their mean elevation (the height above the level of the sea). 

Rank (as per mean elevation)StateMean elevation (above sea level)Lowest elevation/Lowest point in each stateHighest elevation/Highest point in each state
1.Colorado
(has the highest low point)		6,800 feet3,317 ft (1011 m)

Arikaree River at the Kansas border		14,440 ft (4,401 m)

Mount Elbert in Lake County
2.Wyoming6,700 feet3,101 ft (945 m)

Belle Fourche River at South Dakota border
13,809 ft (4209.1 m)

Gannett Peak
3.Utah6,100 feet2,180 ft (664.4 m)

Beaver Dam Wash at Arizona border		13,534 ft (4,120.3 m)

Kings Peak
4.New Mexico5,700 feet2,844 ft (867 m)

Red Bluff Reservoir on Texas border		13,167 ft (4013.3 m)

Wheeler Peak
5.Nevada5,500 feet481 ft (147 m)

Colorado River at California border
13,147 ft (4007.1 m)

Boundary Peak
6.Idaho5,000 feet713 ft (217 m)

Confluence of Snake and Clearwater River; Lewiston		12,662 ft (3,859 m)

Borah Peak
7.Arizona4,100 feet72 ft (22 m)

Colorado River at the Sonora border		12,637 ft (3852 m)

Humphreys Peak
8.Montana3,400 feet1,804 ft (557 m)

Kootenai River at Idaho border		12,807 feet (3,903 m)

Granite Peak
9.Oregon3,300 feetSea level

Pacific Ocean		11,249 ft (3,428.8 m)

Mount Hood
10.Hawaii3,030 feetSea level

Pacific Ocean		13,796 ft (4205.0 m)

Mauna Kea (from base to summit instead of from sea level, Mauna Kea volcano becomes the tallest mountain in the world)
11.California
(has both the highest point and the lowest low point in the lower 48)		2,900 feet−282 ft (−86.0 m)
(Minus sign (–)
indicates below sea level)

Badwater Basin
14,505 ft (4,421.0 m)

Mount Whitney
12.Nebraska2,600 feet840 ft (256 m)

Missouri River at Kansas border 		5,424 ft (1654 m)

Panorama Point
13.South Dakota2,200 feet968 ft (295 m)

Big Stone Lake on Minnesota border
7,244 ft (2208 m)

Black Elk Peak
14.Kansas2,000 feet679 ft (207 m)

Verdigris River at Oklahoma border		4,041 ft (1231 m)

Mount Sunflower
15.Alaska1,900 feet(Sea level)

Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Arctic Ocean
20,310 ft (6190.5 m)

Denali (the highest peak/point in the United States)
16.North Dakota1,900 feet751 ft (229 m)

Red River of the North at Manitoba border		3,508 ft (1069 m)

White Butte
17.Washington1,700 feetSea level

Pacific Ocean		14,411 ft (4,392 m)

Mount Rainier
18.Texas1,700 feetSea level

Gulf of Mexico		8,751 ft (2667.4 m)

Guadalupe Peak
19.West Virginia1,500 feet240 ft (73 m)

Potomac River at Virginia border		4863 ft (1482 m)

Spruce Knob
20.Oklahoma1,300 feet289 ft (88 m)

Little River at Arkansas border		4,975 ft (1516 m)

Black Mesa
21.Minnesota1200 feet602 ft (183 m)

Lake Superior		2,301 ft (701 m)

Eagle Mountain
22.Pennsylvania1,100 feetSea level

Delaware River at Delaware border		3,213 ft (979 m)

Mount Davis
23.Iowa1,100 feet480 ft (146 m)

Confluence of Mississippi River and Des Moines River		1,671 ft (509 m)

Hawkeye Point
24.Wisconsin1,050 feet579 ft (176 m)

Lake Michigan		1,951 ft (595 m)

Timms Hill
25.New Hampshire1,000 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean
6,288 ft (1916.66 m)

Mount Washington
26.New York1,000 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		5,343 ft (1,629 m)

Mount Marcy
27.Vermont1,000 feet95 to 100 ft (29 to 30 m)

Lake Champlain		4,395 ft (1340 m)

Mount Mansfield
28.Virginia950 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		5,729 ft (1746 m)

Mount Rogers
29.Tennessee900 feet178 ft (54 m)

Mississippi River at Mississippi border		6,643 ft (2025 m)

Clingmans Dome
30.Michigan900 feet571 ft (174 m)

Lake Erie		1,979 ft (603 m)

Mount Arvon
31.Ohio850 feet455 ft (139 m)

Ohio River at Indiana border		1,549 ft (472 m)

Campbell Hill
32.Missouri800 feet230 ft (70 m)

St. Francis River at Arkansas border		1,772 ft (540 m)

Taum Sauk Mountain
33.Kentucky750 feet257 ft (78 m)

Mississippi River at Kentucky Bend		4,145 ft (1263 m)

Black Mountain
34.North Carolina700 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		6,684 ft (2037 m)

Mount Mitchell
35.Indiana700 feet320 ft (97 m)

Confluence of Ohio River and Wabash River
1,257 ft (383 m)

Hoosier Hill
36.Arkansas650 feet55 ft (17 m)

Ouachita River at Louisiana border		2,753 ft (839 m)

Mount Magazine
37.Maine600 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		5,270 ft (1606.4 m)

Mount Katahdin
38.Georgia600 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		4,784 ft (1,458 m)

Brasstown Bald
39.Illinois600 feet280 ft (85 m)

Confluence of Mississippi River and Ohio River		1,235 ft (376.4 m)

Charles Mound
40.Massachusetts500 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		3,489 ft (1063.4 m)

Mount Greylock
41.Alabama500 feetSea level

Gulf of Mexico		2,413 ft (735.5 m)

Mount Cheaha
42.Connecticut500 feetSea level

Long Island Sound		 (2,380 feet)

Massachusetts border on south slope of Mount Frissell
43.South Carolina350 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean
3,560 ft (1,085 m)

Sassafras Mountain
44.Maryland350 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean
3,360 ft (1024 m)

Hoye-Crest
45.Mississippi300 feetSea level

Gulf of Mexico
807 ft (246.0 m)

Woodall Mountain
46.New Jersey250 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		1,803 ft (549.6 m)

High Point
47.Rhode Island200 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		812 ft (247 m)

Jerimoth Hill
48.Louisiana100 feet−8 ft (−2.5 m)

New Orleans
535 ft (163 m)

Driskill Mountain
49.Florida
(has the lowest natural high point)		100 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		345 ft (105 m)

Britton Hill
50.Delaware60 feetSea level

Atlantic Ocean		447.85 ft (136.50468 m)

Near the
Ebright Azimuth
Last updatedDecember 22, 2021