Mississippi River Basin Facts
- Size: Largest river basin in the U.S.
- Basin Extent: 1,245,000 mi2
-
Total Length, including tributaries:300,370
miles
Length based on an upstream trace from the USGS Streamer application. Length may vary depending on the scale of the dataset used.
- The Mississippi River runs through or along 10 states.
- 92% of U.S. agricultural exports are shipped down the Mississippi River.
- In May 2023, flows from the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers carried 76,700 metric tons of nitrate and 16,300 metric tons of phosphorus into the Gulf of Mexico.
