Where Do Grizzly Bears Actually Live in the US?
Grizzly Bears live in 6 US states and are confirmed absent from 31 more, based on 10,043 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, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. These are real, verified iNaturalist and GBIF occurrence records, not modeled range estimates.
Grizzly Bears have zero confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Louisiana, or 21 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 (12) have only a handful of unverified or vagrant records, too few to confirm grizzly bears as an established population there.
Confirmed states (6)
Not found (31)
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Vermont
- Virginia
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Unconfirmed (12)
Only a handful of unverified or vagrant records exist for grizzly bears in Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, too few to confirm an established population.
Frequently asked questions
What states do grizzly bears live in?+
Grizzly Bears have confirmed wild populations in 6 US states: Alaska, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.
Where are grizzly bears not found in the US?+
Grizzly Bears have no confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Full grizzly bears guides by state