What does this protected land ranking show?

It orders states by Share of the county in protected land. It is a comparison of this one published measure, not an overall ranking of where to live.

Where do these figures come from?

USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States supplies this measure. States without a comparable published value are shown as not ranked rather than estimated.

How should I use this ranking?

Use it to narrow a search, then open a state or county profile for the underlying figures, source dates and caveats. A statewide number may not describe every neighbourhood.

Rankings · Geography

Lowest protected land by state

Share of the county in protected land.

This measure has no better end. The order describes the states, it does not rank them — see the other direction.

Public and conserved land as a share of the county's whole area. Counts land carrying a conservation or recreation mandate — national forests, parks, wildlife refuges, state land, local preserves — and excludes military holdings and tribal areas, which are neither. Neutral rather than good: it is open country to walk in, and it is also land that cannot be bought or built on, which is why a high figure often sits beside a tight housing market. The denominator is the county's full extent including water, from the same source, so a lake-heavy county is not flattered. Local and city parks are recorded unevenly by state, so the measure is most reliable where federal and state land dominates. PAD-US 4.1, land as of 31 December 2023.

How to read this ranking

Kansas has the lowest published protected land in this comparison, at 1.1%. The next states shown are Nebraska (1.9%) and Iowa (2.0%).

The table orders 51 states by share of the county in protected land. It describes one published measure, not an overall judgment about where to live.

Use the result as a starting point, then compare the underlying source, dates, and local county figures before making a decision. Public and conserved land as a share of the county's whole area. Counts land carrying a conservation or recreation mandate — national forests, parks, wildlife refuges, state land, local preserves — and excludes military holdings and tribal areas, which are neither. Neutral rather than good: it is open country to walk in, and it is also land that cannot be bought or built on, which is why a high figure often sits beside a tight housing market. The denominator is the county's full extent including water, from the same source, so a lake-heavy county is not flattered. Local and city parks are recorded unevenly by state, so the measure is most reliable where federal and state land dominates. PAD-US 4.1, land as of 31 December 2023.

1Kansas1.1%
2Nebraska1.9%
3Iowa2.0%
4Indiana2.9%
5Texas2.9%
6Ohio3.0%
7Oklahoma3.3%
8Illinois3.4%
9Alabama4.8%
10Kentucky6.3%
11Missouri6.5%
12Georgia6.8%
13South Carolina6.8%
14Mississippi8.7%
15Tennessee9.0%
16Louisiana9.1%
17Michigan10.5%
18Arkansas11.5%
19West Virginia11.6%
20District of Columbia11.7%
21North Carolina11.8%
22Maryland12.8%
23Rhode Island13.4%
24Wisconsin14.2%
25Delaware14.7%
26Connecticut14.8%
27Virginia15.5%
28South Dakota16.1%
29New York16.5%
30Pennsylvania17.6%
31Minnesota17.7%
32Massachusetts17.9%
33Maine18.8%
34North Dakota20.7%
35New Jersey21.4%
36Vermont21.7%
37Florida25.1%
38New Mexico31.6%
39Hawaii31.9%
40New Hampshire32.4%
41Washington37.2%
42Montana37.3%
43Arizona40.1%
44Colorado42.5%
45California46.7%
46Wyoming54.7%
47Alaska56.0%
48Oregon56.7%
49Idaho67.6%
50Utah68.2%
51Nevada79.9%

Related geography rankings

Frequently asked questions

What does this ranking show?: It orders states by Share of the county in protected land. It is one measure, not an overall verdict on where to live.
Where do the figures come from?: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States. States without a comparable published figure are listed as not ranked rather than estimated.
How should I use it?: Use it to narrow your search, then open a state or county profile for the source date, caveats and local context.

Put this map on your own site

Free to use. The chart names its source and links back, so it stays honest wherever it ends up.

<iframe src="https://movermath.com/embed/protected-land" width="100%" height="420" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Share of the county in protected land by state"></iframe>

Source: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States. · How this is built

Loading MoverMath…