what states have moose

There are 19 U.S. states that have wild, resident moose populations , plus a few others where moose only wander through occasionally.

🦌 What states have moose?

Core states with established moose populations

These states have regular, established wild moose populations (not just rare visitors).

Alaska 🧊
Maine
Idaho
Washington
Minnesota
Wyoming
New Hampshire
Colorado
Vermont
Utah
Montana
Massachusetts
New York
Michigan
North Dakota
Connecticut
Oregon
Nevada
Wisconsin

Alaska and Maine are the real heavyweights: Alaska has around 175,000 moose, and Maine has about 60,000–70,000, the most in the Lower 48.

Handy overview table (resident moose states)

Below is a simplified look at which states have moose and how often people see them.

State	Moose presence	Notes
Alaska	Frequent	Largest moose population in the U.S. (≈175,000).
Maine	Frequent	Biggest population in the Lower 48.
Idaho	Common	Up to about 10–12k animals, mostly forested areas.
Washington	Common	Often in the Selkirk Mountains and northeastern ranges.
Minnesota	Common	Especially in the Arrowhead region in the northeast.
Wyoming	Common	Concentrated in mountainous and river‑valley habitats.
New Hampshire	Common	Well‑known for roadside and backcountry sightings.
Colorado	Common	Reintroduced; good numbers in the central/north mountains.
Vermont	Common	Moose found across the state, especially in the Northeast Kingdom.
Utah	Common	Often along the Wasatch Front and northern mountains.
Montana	Occasional	Mainly western forests and mountain valleys.
Massachusetts	Occasional	Central and western parts of the state have the most sightings.
New York	Occasional	Mostly Adirondacks and the far north.
Michigan	Occasional	Mostly in the Upper Peninsula.
North Dakota	Occasional	Scattered in the northern and wooded regions.
Connecticut	Occasional	Small, growing presence; sightings mostly in the north.
Oregon	Occasional	Small population in northeastern mountains.
Nevada	Occasional	Limited numbers, mainly near high, cooler ranges.
Wisconsin	Occasional	Border/forest areas near Minnesota and Michigan UP.

Data above is based on recent population compilations and wildlife summaries.

States with very rare or wandering moose

Some states do not have a stable moose population but get occasional wanderers from neighboring states.

Arizona (rare reports near Grand Canyon)
Pennsylvania (very rare, often in the north or border areas)
Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New Jersey, Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Rhode Island (uncommon, usually single dispersing animals)

These sightings are interesting outliers, not signs of a resident herd.

Mini “story” snapshot

Imagine driving at dusk through the spruce forests of northern Maine: fog in the low spots, your headlights catching something huge and dark off the roadside. That towering shape with a long nose and broad antlers is exactly why locals slow down on those back roads—here, seeing a moose is almost a seasonal ritual rather than a once‑in‑a‑lifetime event.