Where Do Moose Actually Live in the US?
Moose live in 17 US states and are confirmed absent from 24 more, based on 21,623 verified iNaturalist and GBIF records. This page covers every state at once instead of one near-identical page per state.
By Tim, founder of Easy Street Markets. I maintain the wildlife database and verify every animal and source myself.
The states with the strongest confirmed populations are Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Maine and Massachusetts, and 11 more. These are real, verified iNaturalist and GBIF occurrence records, not modeled range estimates.
Moose have zero confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois and Kansas, or 14 other states, despite tens of thousands of nationwide observation records for the species. That is a real, checked absence, not a missing page.
A small number of states (8) have only a handful of unverified or vagrant records, too few to confirm moose as an established population there.
Confirmed states (17)
Not found (24)
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- New Jersey
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- West Virginia
Unconfirmed (8)
Only a handful of unverified or vagrant records exist for moose in Indiana, Iowa, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia, Wisconsin, too few to confirm an established population.
Frequently asked questions
What states do moose live in?+
Moose have confirmed wild populations in 17 US states: Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming.
Where are moose not found in the US?+
Moose have no confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.
Full moose guides by state