Farmland Atlas · county record

Yakima County, Washington

Yakima County, WA: non-irrigated cash rent $150 an acre (2021); land and buildings $2,782 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 209.5 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 53077. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Irrigated cash rent in Yakima County stands at $231 per acre for 2026. Non-irrigated rent averaged $150 per acre in 2021, up 170.3 percent from 2011. Census land and buildings value was $2,782 per acre in 2022, up 1 percent from 2017, or 0.2 percent a year. July nights have warmed, averaging 53.2 F for 2017-2026 against a 1991-2020 normal of 51.7 F, part of a warming trend of 0.86 F per decade since 1976. Heat and drought accounted for 33 percent of crop insurance indemnities in 2020-2025, up from 12 percent in 2010-2019, 3 percent in 2000-2009, and 13 percent in 1989-1999. Freeze and frost remains the largest cause of indemnities overall, at 46 percent of $577.0 million paid across closed crop years 1989-2025.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$150/ac
2021 county average
too few 2021 county surveys in the state to compare
Cash rent, irrigated
$231/ac
2026 county average
WA median $350 · 4th lowest of 14
Land and buildings
$2,782/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
WA median $5,067 · 10th lowest of 34
Corn yield, 2008–2023 median
209.5 bu/ac
recent level 2019–2023: 217.1
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$6.30
2016–2025, closed crop years
WA median $8.03 · 6th lowest of 21
Farmland rented
14%
2022 census, rented from others
WA median 34% · 6th lowest of 34

Cash rent

$0$50$100$150$200$2502010201520202025$56$150 dry$125$231 irrigated

Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.

Non-irrigated, 2021$150/ac
Change 2011 to 2021+170.3%nominal, $56 to $150
Irrigated, 2026$231/ac
Pasture, 2026$15/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$2,782/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$1,803/ac
Census 2017$2,755/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+1.0%+0.2% a year, nominal
Dry rent ÷ census value— NASS published no non-irrigated cash rent for this county in 2022

Corn yield

20082010201220142016201820202022194.0195.7208.8209.5202.1215.6215.9218.3232.9median 209.5

Bushels per acre, USDA NASS county yields, all practices. The dashed line is the median of the published years.

Median, 2008–2023209.5 bu/ac9 published years
Recent level, 2019–2023217.1 bu/ac4 published years, high and low dropped
Lowest published year2008: 194.0 bu/ac93% of median

Crop insurance record

198919941999200420092014201920240.382.570.631.00: claims equal premium

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Claims paid per $100 of coverage, 2016–2025$6.30
Loss ratio, 2016–20251.24claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20251.07$577.0 million paid
Years claims exceeded premium9 of 35
Worst year2023ratio 2.57
Largest causes of loss, 1989–2025freeze 46% · heat and drought 23% · price decline (revenue policies) 17%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

20002005201020152020202503916

Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.

D2 or worse for half the county, 2000–2025147 of 1,357 weeks11% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks200539 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202546 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202653.2 °F1991–2020 normal 51.7 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.86 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September6.0 in1991–2020 normal
Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.1 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 2022— NASS published no harvested cropland for this county
Drained by tile, 20221% of cropland2,136 ac
Farmed no-till, 202211% of cropland37,516 ac
Cover crops, 20226% of cropland19,057 ac
198619911996200120062011201620212,68458,72832,122

Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.

CRP enrolled, 202532,122 ac
CRP expiring FY2026–20283,095 ac10% of enrolled acres
CRP average rental payment, FY2025$107/acall contracts in force, old ones included; not today's offer
Solar and wind operating, 202580 MW solar · 0 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 2022236,986−1.1% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202214%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueClaims per $100
Yakima County—$231$2,782$6.30
Benton County$45 2024$700 2025$4,153$5.97
Grant County$52$449 2025$5,216$5.67
Kittitas County—$202$4,287$7.26
Klickitat County$42$383 2024$2,482$8.03
Lewis County$77$103 2025$9,421$0.16
Pierce County$70 2023$466$28,343—
Skamania County——$15,564—
Median next door$52$334 2 co.$5,216$5.97

Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.

Cite this page

AGSIST Farmland Atlas. Yakima County, Washington. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/washington/yakima-county
Every figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.
Sources, dates and arithmetic

"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.

Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.