Which state has the most national parks? Get to know the 63 national parks in the US
More than 325 million people visited a national park last year, a steady increase since visitors dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic. Great Smoky Mountains is the most visited national park by far, drawing three times as many visitors as the Grand Canyon, according to National Park Service data.
National parks are an American legacy of their own. In 1916, the National Parks Service was founded to protect and maintain the national parks and monuments in the U.S. From Zion to Yosemite, each park has a rich, unique history.
But how many national parks are there and which state has the most? Here is what you need to know.
How many national parks are there?
There are 63 national parks in the U.S., according to the National Park Service.
Which state has the most national parks?
California has the most national parks with nine total in the state. The next state with the most parks is Alaska, which has eight national parks.
Utah comes in third place with a total of five national parks, while Colorado is in fourth with four national parks.
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What was the first national park?
Yellowstone National Park is the world's first national park, according to the National Park Service.
"The Yellowstone National Park Protection Act" was signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. The act protected the land from private development and declared it "a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people."
On Aug. 25, 1916, the National Parks Service was founded after "The National Park Service Organic Act" was passed by Congress and approved by President Woodrow Wilson.
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National parks by state
Here are the national parks by state and U.S. territory:
Alaska
- Denali National Park
- Gates of the Arctic National Park
- Glacier Bay National Park
- Katmai National Park
- Kenai Fjords National Park
- Kobuk Valley National Park
- Lake Clark National Park
- Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
American Samoa
- National Park of American Samoa
Arizona
- Grand Canyon National Park
- Petrified Forest National Park
- Saguaro National Park
Arkansas
- Hot Springs National Park
California
- Channel Islands National Park
- Death Valley National Park (California and Nevada)
- Joshua Tree National Park
- Kings Canyon National Park
- Lassen Volcanic National Park
- Pinnacles National Park
- Redwood National Park
- Sequoia National Park
- Yosemite National Park
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Colorado
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
- Great Sand Dunes National Park
- Mesa Verde National Park
- Rocky Mountain National Park
Florida
- Biscayne National Park
- Dry Tortugas National Park
- Everglades National Park
Hawaii
- Haleakala National Park
- Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
Idaho
- Yellowstone National Park (Idaho, Montana and Wyoming)
Kentucky
- Mammoth Cave National Park
Indiana
- Indiana Dunes National Park
Maine
- Acadia National Park
Michigan
- Isle Royale National Park
Minnesota
- Voyageurs National Park
Missouri
- Gateway Arch National Park
Montana
- Glacier National Park
- Yellowstone National Park (Idaho, Montana and Wyoming)
Nevada
- Death Valley National Park (California and Nevada)
- Great Basin National Park
New Mexico
- Carlsbad Caverns National Park
- White Sands National Park
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North Carolina
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina and Tennessee)
North Dakota
- Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Ohio
- Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Oregon
- Crater Lake National Park
South Carolina
- Congaree National Park
South Dakota
- Badlands National Park
- Wind Cave National Park
Tennessee
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina and Tennessee)
Texas
- Big Bend National Park
- Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Utah
- Arches National Park
- Bryce Canyon National Park
- Canyonlands National Park
- Capitol Reef National Park
- Zion National Park
Virgin Islands
- Virgin Islands National Park
Virginia
- Shenandoah National Park
Washington
- Mount Rainier National Park
- North Cascades National Park
- Olympic National Park
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West Virginia
- New River Gorge National Park
Wyoming
- Grand Teton National Park
- Yellowstone National Park (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming)