River Levels Today

Rivers respond to rain, snowmelt, dams, groundwater and withdrawals on very different timescales. This page shows the latest USGS gauge height and discharge at eight representative sites on major U.S. rivers. It is a national sampler, not a list of every river and not a flood-warning service.

Gauge height is not water depth

Gauge height, also called stage, is the water-surface elevation above a reference point chosen for that station. The reference zero may be below the riverbed, above sea level or tied to another local datum. A gauge height of 10 feet does not mean the river is 10 feet deep.

Because each station has its own reference, gauge heights should not be compared directly between rivers. Change through time at one station is usually more meaningful. Flood categories, where available, are established separately for individual locations and impacts.

What discharge means

Discharge is the estimated volume of water moving past the station per unit time, shown here in cubic feet per second. At many sites, USGS develops a rating relationship between measured stage and discharge. Hydrologists make direct flow measurements over time to maintain that relationship.

A large river naturally carries far more water than a small one, so the largest listed discharge is not automatically the most unusual or dangerous condition. Context requires the normal range and flood thresholds for that particular gauge and season.

Gauges represented

The fixed selection covers the Mississippi at St. Louis and Vicksburg, the Colorado at Lees Ferry, the Columbia at The Dalles, the Hudson at Green Island, the Potomac near Washington, the Missouri at Kansas City and the Rio Grande at Albuquerque. The station links open USGS Water Data for the Nation for local graphs, statistics and metadata.

Provisional data

Real-time USGS measurements are commonly marked provisional. They are released quickly and can later be revised after instrument checks, field measurements and hydrologic review. The table preserves the status supplied by the API instead of implying that every live value is final.

Flood safety

Do not use this summary to decide whether a road, property or river reach is safe. Flood impacts depend on local thresholds and forecasts, not simply on the raw stage. Follow the National Weather Service, emergency managers and the full USGS station page. Never enter floodwater or drive through a flooded roadway.

Methodology and source

The observations come from the USGS Water Data APIs, specifically the latest-continuous collection. ARGO.net requests parameter code 00065 for gauge height and 00060 for discharge at the fixed list of monitoring locations.

Before replacing the cached snapshot, the importer verifies the station identifier, parameter code, observation time, coordinates and broad physical ranges. A station may appear with only one measurement if height or discharge is not currently available. At least six gauges must pass validation.

Limitations

• The selection represents eight U.S. gauges, not national or global river conditions.
• Provisional observations can be corrected later.
• Gauge height uses a local reference and is not directly comparable between sites.
• Discharge may be estimated from a rating curve rather than measured directly at that instant.
• Ice, debris, backwater and rapidly changing channels can complicate measurements.

Update log

• August 2026: Page launched with eight representative USGS gauges, status flags and explanations of stage and discharge.