New Hampshire county geography overview
New Hampshire has 10 counties, which places it 46th among the 50 state and District of Columbia maps in this atlas when ordered by number of county-level units. Their combined 8,954.1 square miles of land place the state 44th by mapped land area.
The average county-level area is 895 square miles, while the median is 792 square miles. The median is often the better description of a typical unit because one or two very large areas can pull the average upward. The five largest units together account for about 70% of the state’s mapped land area.
Largest and smallest New Hampshire counties
Coos County is the largest county-level unit by land area at 1,794.6 square miles. It represents about 20% of all mapped land in New Hampshire. At the other end of the range, Strafford County has 367.5 square miles of land.
Largest by land area
- Coos County1,794.6 sq mi
- Grafton County1,708.6 sq mi
- Merrimack County932.9 sq mi
- Carroll County931.9 sq mi
- Hillsborough County876.5 sq mi
Smallest by land area
- Strafford County367.5 sq mi
- Belknap County401.9 sq mi
- Sullivan County537.9 sq mi
- Rockingham County695.6 sq mi
- Cheshire County706.7 sq mi
Rankings use land area rather than total area. This avoids making coastal or lake counties appear larger solely because their boundaries include extensive water.
Alphabetical list of New Hampshire counties
The table is alphabetical, so it works as a name and FIPS-code reference rather than an area ranking. Every identifier begins with the New Hampshire state FIPS prefix 33. Land and water figures are rounded to one decimal place.
10 county-level areas
Download county data / numbered map key (CSV)| No. | Name | FIPS code | Land area | Water area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belknap County | 33001 | 401.9 sq mi | 68.1 sq mi |
| 2 | Carroll County | 33003 | 931.9 sq mi | 61.6 sq mi |
| 3 | Cheshire County | 33005 | 706.7 sq mi | 22.2 sq mi |
| 4 | Coos County | 33007 | 1,794.6 sq mi | 35.7 sq mi |
| 5 | Grafton County | 33009 | 1,708.6 sq mi | 41.1 sq mi |
| 6 | Hillsborough County | 33011 | 876.5 sq mi | 15.9 sq mi |
| 7 | Merrimack County | 33013 | 932.9 sq mi | 22.1 sq mi |
| 8 | Rockingham County | 33015 | 695.6 sq mi | 99.7 sq mi |
| 9 | Strafford County | 33017 | 367.5 sq mi | 15.1 sq mi |
| 10 | Sullivan County | 33019 | 537.9 sq mi | 14.3 sq mi |
How to read and use this map
County lines are administrative boundaries, not postal routes. A mailing address can use a city name associated with a neighboring area, and ZIP codes can cross county lines. When you need to identify a county for an address, confirm it with an official geocoder or local government source.
For classroom or planning use, download a PDF from the controls above. Labelled exports use numbered callouts for crowded areas; numbered quiz maps match the alphabetical county list. SVG files keep the boundary lines sharp at larger paper sizes.
Frequently asked questions
How many counties are in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire has 10 counties in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2025 cartographic boundary file.
Can I print this New Hampshire county map?
Yes. Choose Download / print and select PDF for a landscape Letter page, PNG for an image, or SVG for editable vector artwork. Because the map is SVG, its boundary lines stay sharp when scaled.
What is the largest county in New Hampshire?
Coos County is the largest by land area in this dataset at 1,794.6 square miles. This is an area ranking, not a population ranking.
What is the smallest county in New Hampshire?
Strafford County is the smallest by land area in this dataset at 367.5 square miles.
Are these legal survey boundaries?
No. This is a generalized reference map. Property, parcel, election, and legal boundary questions should be checked with the relevant state or local agency.
Map source
U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Cartographic Boundary File, Counties, 1:5,000,000. Land and water area fields are supplied in the same file and converted from square meters to square miles. Accessed September 27, 2026.