State rankings
Elk Population by State
Colorado has the highest Elk Population (290,000), followed by Montana (135,000) and Oregon (133,000). West Virginia has the lowest (100).
Elk PopulationBetter directionWhether a higher or a lower value is better. A green arrow means higher is better, a red arrow means lower is better, and no arrow means neither.More in the glossary →
29 of 51 statesElk Population
Darker means higher. Click a place to highlight it.
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All 29 ranked
Highest first.
Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →
Each dot is one state; the lines mark the median and the middle half.
Median
2,750
Middle half 450 – 60K
Average
38,369
29 states
Highest
290,000
Colorado
Lowest
100
West Virginia
Data
Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.
49 states · # = rank by Elk Population
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Colorado | 290,000 | — |
| 2 |  Montana | 135,000 | — |
| 3 |  Oregon | 133,000 | — |
| 4 |  Idaho | 120,000 | — |
| 5 |  Wyoming | 112,900 | — |
| 6 |  New Mexico | 80,000 | — |
| 7 |  Utah | 74,000 | — |
| 8 |  Washington | 60,000 | — |
| 9 |  Arizona | 40,000 | — |
| 10 |  Nevada | 17,750 | — |
| 11 |  Kentucky | 13,100 | — |
| 12 |  California | 13,000 | — |
| 13 |  South Dakota | 7,500 | — |
| 14 |  Oklahoma | 5,000 | — |
| 15 |  Nebraska | 2,750 | — |
| 16 |  Texas | 1,600 | — |
| 17 |  Pennsylvania | 1,350 | — |
| 18 |  Alaska | 1,300 | — |
| 19 |  Michigan | 1,000 | — |
| 20 |  North Dakota | 850 | — |
| 21 |  Tennessee | 450 | — |
| 21 |  Arkansas | 450 | — |
| 23 |  Wisconsin | 400 | — |
| 24 |  Kansas | 350 | — |
| 25 |  Virginia | 250 | — |
| 26 |  Minnesota | 240 | — |
| 27 |  Missouri | 200 | — |
| 28 |  North Carolina | 175 | — |
| 29 |  West Virginia | 100 | — |
| — |  Florida | — | No evidence of natural elk habitation in Florida exists. |
| — |  New York | — | Extirpated, last elk was recorded in 1847. |
| — |  Illinois | — | Extirpated between 1800 and 1850. |
| — |  Ohio | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  Georgia | — | It is debated whether wild elk ever lived in Georgia. |
| — |  New Jersey | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  Massachusetts | — | It is unclear whether wild elk ever lived in Massachusetts |
| — |  Indiana | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  Maryland | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  South Carolina | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  Alabama | — | Extirpated since the early 1800s. |
| — |  Louisiana | — | Extirpated. |
| — |  Connecticut | — | Extirpated by mid-1700s to early 1800s. |
| — |  Mississippi | — | Extirpated by 1900. |
| — |  Hawaii | — | No evidence of natural elk habitation in Hawaii exists. |
| — |  New Hampshire | — | It is unclear whether wild elk ever lived in New Hampshire. |
| — |  Maine | — | It is unclear whether wild elk ever lived in Maine. |
| — |  Rhode Island | — | It is unlikely there was ever an elk population in this state. |
| — |  Delaware | — | The only evidence of elk in this state is prehistoric. |
| — |  Vermont | — | It is unclear whether wild elk ever lived in Vermont. |
What correlates with Elk Population?
Pearson r against 2,122 other state metrics sharing at least 18 states. Correlation is not causation.
Higher together
Places that have a higher Elk Population tend to score higher on these
Opposite directions
Places that have a higher Elk Population tend to score lower on these
Quick answers
- Which state has the highest Elk Population?
- Colorado has the highest Elk Population, at 290,000, followed by Montana (135,000) and Oregon (133,000).
- Which state has the lowest Elk Population?
- West Virginia has the lowest Elk Population, at 100.
- What is the median Elk Population across US states?
- The median is 2,750 across the 29 US states with data.
- Where does this elk population by state data come from?
- Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Elk Population by State - Wildlife Informer; 2024 Estimated Elk Herd Populations by State - RGD.