Hail in California — where it hits, county by county
Hail is a fact of life on California ground — 417 National Weather Service hail reports in the last 5 years, led by HUMBOLDT County, peaking around February. The table below ranks the counties; the interactive national map shows exactly where, year by year. Checking a specific address? The map’s search box pulls every dated report within 25 miles.
Open the interactive map on California →Top hail counties in California (2022–2026)
| County | Reports | Avg/yr | Peak month | % damaging (≥1.5″) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HUMBOLDT | 114 | 22.8 | Feb | 0% |
| Humboldt | 101 | 20.2 | Mar | 0% |
| SAN DIEGO | 37 | 7.4 | Feb | 0% |
| San Diego | 21 | 4.2 | Mar | 0% |
| MENDOCINO | 20 | 4.0 | Feb | 0% |
| ORANGE | 19 | 3.8 | Feb | 0% |
| TULARE | 19 | 3.8 | Mar | 0% |
| DEL NORTE | 19 | 3.8 | Feb | 0% |
| RIVERSIDE | 18 | 3.6 | Feb | 0% |
| Del Norte | 17 | 3.4 | Mar | 0% |
| Mendocino | 16 | 3.2 | Feb | 0% |
| Riverside | 16 | 3.2 | Mar | 0% |
California hail — the questions people ask
Where does it hail the most in California?
By reported hail over the last 5 years, the most active counties in California are HUMBOLDT, Humboldt, SAN DIEGO. Reports track population and spotter coverage as well as storms, so rural corridors can be under-counted; the persistent leaders on this table are real hail geography.
When is hail season in California?
Reported hail in California peaks around February, with most activity in the spring-through-midsummer window. Any single year can break the pattern.
How much of California's hail is damaging?
On this page, damaging means reported stones of 1.5″ or larger — the size that reliably dents roofs and vehicles and strips crops. The per-county damaging share is in the table; statewide, hail of any size totaled 417 reports over 5 years.