Ham radio operators in Alaska: new licenses by borough
3,204 licensed amateur radio operators; 118 new in the past 12 months. Updated weekly from FCC data.
At a glance · Data as of
- New hams · last 30 days
- 2
- New hams · last 12 months
- 118
- ▲ 20% vs prior 12 mo
- Active licensed hams
- 3,204
- Upgrades · 12 mo
- 52
- Vanity callsigns · 12 mo
- 23
- Address updates · 12 mo
- 38
- Often a move into the area
- Expiring · next 6 mo
- 210
About ham radio in Alaska
118 new hams got their start in Alaska over the past 12 months, a 20% jump from the prior year. Alaska ranks #44 of 52 states and territories for new licenses. Municipality of Anchorage leads the state with 34 new hams. Technicians make up 46% of the state’s licensees, close to the U.S. average of 48%. 52 operators upgraded their license in the past year, the moment many buy their first HF rig.
New hams by month
Show data table
| Month | New hams |
|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 1 |
| Nov 2025 | 15 |
| Dec 2025 | 7 |
| Jan 2026 | 7 |
| Feb 2026 | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | 15 |
| Apr 2026 | 18 |
| May 2026 | 19 |
| Jun 2026 | 15 |
| Jul 2026 | 13 |
| Aug 2026 | 4 |
| Sep 2026 | 3 |
| Total | 119 |
License classes
| Class | Hams | Share | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technician | 1,476 | 46% | 48% |
| General | 864 | 27% | 25% |
| Amateur Extra | 685 | 21% | 21% |
| Advanced | 109 | 3% | 3% |
| Novice / Other | 70 | 2% | 2% |
Bar = Alaska share · Tick = U.S. share
In the past 12 months, 22 operators upgraded to General and 29 to Amateur Extra.
How Alaska compares
#44 of 52 states and territories for new hams in the past 12 months
| Per 1,000 active hams | Alaska | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| New hams, past 12 months | 36.8 | 32.3 |
| Upgrades, past 12 months | 16.2 | 14.7 |
| Expiring, next 6 months | 65.5 | 57.3 |
118 new hams in Alaska this past year. Get next month’s list free.
Sign Up Free →Top 6 Alaska boroughs and census areas for new hams
Scroll sideways for more columns →
| # | Borough | New hams 12 mo | Change vs prior year | Active hams | New per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Municipality of Anchorage | 34 | ▲ 26% | 920 | 37.0 |
| 2 | Fairbanks North Star Borough | 15 | ▼ 35% | 532 | 28.2 |
| 3 | Matanuska-Susitna Borough | 12 | — | 596 | 20.1 |
| 4 | Kenai Peninsula Borough | 10 | ▼ 38% | 319 | 31.3 |
| 5 | City and Borough of Juneau | 5 | — | 129 | 38.8 |
| 6 | Southeast Fairbanks Census Area | 1 | — | 125 | 8.0 |
— in Change means fewer than 10 new hams the year before.
All Alaska boroughs and census areas
6 boroughs and census areas with their own page. Numbers are new hams in the past 12 months.
- City and Borough of Juneau5 new hams in 12 months
- Fairbanks North Star Borough15 new hams in 12 months
- Kenai Peninsula Borough10 new hams in 12 months
- Matanuska-Susitna Borough12 new hams in 12 months
- Municipality of Anchorage34 new hams in 12 months
- Southeast Fairbanks Census Area1 new hams in 12 months
Smaller Alaska boroughs and census areas
These 24 boroughs and census areas have too few licensees or too little recent activity for a page of their own, so their numbers are listed here.
Show all 24 smaller boroughs and census areas
| Borough | Active hams | New hams · 12 mo |
|---|---|---|
| Aleutians East Borough | 2 | 0 |
| Aleutians West Census Area | 5 | 0 |
| Bethel Census Area | 25 | 0 |
| Bristol Bay Borough | 3 | 0 |
| Chugach Census Area | 42 | 2 |
| City and Borough of Sitka | 71 | 0 |
| City and Borough of Wrangell | 6 | 0 |
| City and Borough of Yakutat | 1 | 0 |
| Copper River Census Area | 17 | 0 |
| Denali Borough | 13 | 0 |
| Dillingham Census Area | 4 | 0 |
| Haines Borough | 11 | 1 |
| Hoonah-Angoon Census Area | 8 | 0 |
| Ketchikan Gateway Borough | 41 | 0 |
| Kodiak Island Borough | 45 | 1 |
| Kusilvak Census Area | 4 | 0 |
| Lake and Peninsula Borough | 1 | 0 |
| Municipality of Skagway | 4 | 0 |
| Nome Census Area | 88 | 0 |
| North Slope Borough | 19 | 0 |
| Northwest Arctic Borough | 1 | 0 |
| Petersburg Borough | 13 | 1 |
| Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area | 13 | 0 |
| Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area | 25 | 0 |
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Figures may be reused with credit to Ham Recruiter (CC BY 4.0).
Questions about hams in Alaska
How many ham radio operators are in Alaska?
3,204 active amateur radio licensees are on file for Alaska as of Oct 1, 2026.
How many new hams were licensed in Alaska last year?
118 people in Alaska received their first FCC amateur radio license in the 12 months ending Oct 1, 2026.
Which Alaska boroughs and census areas have the most new hams?
In the past 12 months: Municipality of Anchorage (34), Fairbanks North Star Borough (15) and Matanuska-Susitna Borough (12).
Where does this data come from?
From the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) public amateur license database, which we download every Monday. Addresses are matched to counties with the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder. This page shows totals only.
Can I see the names or call signs on this page?
No. Public pages show totals only. Verified Ham Recruiter users can search and export lists for outreach; see how licensee information is handled.
About this data
Data as of . Source: FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) weekly amateur license database; county from U.S. Census Bureau geocoding. Aggregates only, no individual licensee data is shown. Aggregate figures © Ham Recruiter, CC BY 4.0.
How we count
- New ham: an active licensee whose first license was granted in the period.
- Address updates: a change of FCC mailing address, often a move into the area.
- Counts use each licensee’s current FCC address. Someone licensed here who later moved is counted where they live now.
- Each license keeps only its most recent event of each type, so two upgrades in one year count once.
- PO-box-only addresses often can’t be matched to a county, so rural counties are slightly undercounted.
97% of Alaska licensees could be matched to a borough.