New York Soil Drainage Rankings
How well does the soil drain across New York? We ranked every USDA survey area by the percentage of land classified as "well drained." Areas at the top of the list have soils where water moves through at a healthy rate — favorable for building, septic, and gardening. Areas at the bottom have more waterlogged or slowly-draining soils that may require engineered solutions.
The best-drained survey area is New York County, New York at 98% well-drained soils. The most drainage-challenged is Akwesasne Territory: St. Regis Mohawk Reservation at 2%. 72% of the land in Akwesasne Territory: St. Regis Mohawk Reservation is poorly drained, so building, septic and gardening there often call for drainage work, engineered septic designs or raised beds.
stays wet (poorly drained)in between, or not ratedwell drained
| # | Survey Area | Land by drainage | Well Drained | Poorly Drained | Most common class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York County, New York | 98% | 0% | Well drained | |
| 2 | Rockland County, New York | 81% | 8% | Well drained | |
| 3 | Bronx County, New York | 79% | 6% | Well drained | |
| 4 | Putnam County, New York | 73% | 14% | Well drained | |
| 5 | Westchester County, New York | 71% | 14% | Well drained | |
| 6 | Hamilton County, New York | 71% | 10% | Well drained | |
| 7 | Greene County, New York | 68% | 14% | Well drained | |
| 8 | Essex County, New York | 65% | 8% | Well drained | |
| 9 | Richmond County, New York | 63% | 26% | Well drained | |
| 10 | Ulster County, New York | 63% | 16% | Well drained | |
| 11 | Nassau County, New York | 62% | 15% | Well drained | |
| 12 | Warren County, New York | 61% | 6% | Well drained | |
| 13 | Queens County, New York | 59% | 11% | Well drained | |
| 14 | Otsego County, New York | 57% | 18% | Well drained | |
| 15 | Herkimer County, New York | 53% | 20% | Well drained | |
| 16 | Fulton County, New York | 53% | 23% | Well drained | |
| 17 | Saratoga County, New York | 51% | 17% | Well drained | |
| 18 | Schoharie County, New York | 51% | 26% | Well drained | |
| 19 | Suffolk County, New York | 50% | 5% | Well drained | |
| 20 | Seneca Nation of Indians, New York | 48% | 28% | Well drained | |
| 21 | Madison County, New York | 47% | 25% | Well drained | |
| 22 | Onondaga County, New York | 46% | 23% | Well drained | |
| 23 | Chemung County, New York | 45% | 35% | Well drained | |
| 24 | Cortland County, New York | 45% | 31% | Well drained | |
| 25 | Rensselaer County, New York | 45% | 16% | Well drained | |
| 26 | Dutchess County, New York | 42% | 15% | Well drained | |
| 27 | Tioga County, New York | 42% | 35% | Well drained | |
| 28 | Delaware County, New York | 42% | 8% | Well drained | |
| 29 | Franklin County, New York | 42% | 30% | Well drained | |
| 30 | Ontario County, New York | 41% | 27% | Well drained | |
| 31 | Chenango County, New York | 41% | 27% | Well drained | |
| 32 | Kings County, New York | 39% | 8% | Subaqueous | |
| 33 | Broome County, New York | 38% | 43% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 34 | St. Lawrence County, New York | 38% | 35% | Well drained | |
| 35 | Cayuga County, New York | 38% | 26% | Well drained | |
| 36 | Tompkins County, New York | 38% | 34% | Well drained | |
| 37 | Yates County, New York | 37% | 27% | Well drained | |
| 38 | Lewis County, New York | 36% | 31% | Well drained | |
| 39 | Columbia County, New York | 36% | 16% | Somewhat excessively drained | |
| 40 | Sullivan County, New York | 35% | 12% | Moderately well drained | |
| 41 | Steuben County, New York | 34% | 37% | Well drained | |
| 42 | Schuyler County, New York | 33% | 38% | Well drained | |
| 43 | Livingston County, New York | 32% | 33% | Well drained | |
| 44 | Montgomery County, New York | 31% | 54% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 45 | Wyoming County, New York | 31% | 38% | Well drained | |
| 46 | Wayne County, New York | 29% | 33% | Moderately well drained | |
| 47 | Monroe County, New York | 29% | 30% | Moderately well drained | |
| 48 | Cattaraugus County, New York | 28% | 32% | Moderately well drained | |
| 49 | Orange County, New York | 28% | 31% | Moderately well drained | |
| 50 | Clinton County, New York | 27% | 32% | Well drained | |
| 51 | Oswego County, New York | 27% | 39% | Well drained | |
| 52 | Jefferson County, New York | 25% | 38% | Well drained | |
| 53 | Genesee County, New York | 25% | 49% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 54 | Oneida County, New York | 24% | 34% | Well drained | |
| 55 | Washington County, New York | 24% | 15% | Somewhat excessively drained | |
| 56 | Schenectady County, New York | 24% | 52% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 57 | Allegany County Area, New York | 23% | 50% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 58 | Albany County, New York | 18% | 26% | Moderately well drained | |
| 59 | Seneca County, New York | 18% | 40% | Moderately well drained | |
| 60 | Chautauqua County, New York | 15% | 60% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 61 | Erie County, New York | 12% | 59% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 62 | Orleans County, New York | 9% | 52% | Moderately well drained | |
| 63 | Niagara County Area, New York | 4% | 69% | Somewhat poorly drained | |
| 64 | Akwesasne Territory: St. Regis Mohawk Reservation | 2% | 72% | Poorly drained |