Ham radio operators in Washington: new licenses by county
32,732 licensed amateur radio operators; 931 new in the past 12 months. Updated weekly from FCC data.
At a glance · Data as of
- New hams · last 30 days
- 47
- New hams · last 12 months
- 931
- ▼ 11% vs prior 12 mo
- Active licensed hams
- 32,732
- Upgrades · 12 mo
- 374
- Vanity callsigns · 12 mo
- 259
- Address updates · 12 mo
- 279
- Often a move into the area
- Expiring · next 6 mo
- 2,093
About ham radio in Washington
931 people earned a first license in Washington over the past 12 months, a 11% drop from the prior year. Washington ranks #5 of 52 states and territories for new licenses. King County leads the state with 302 new hams. Among larger counties, Clark County is growing fastest. Technicians make up 54% of the state’s licensees, above the U.S. average of 48%, a lot of newer operators who could use a mentor and a club to call home.
New hams by month
Show data table
| Month | New hams |
|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | 88 |
| Dec 2025 | 110 |
| Jan 2026 | 90 |
| Feb 2026 | 50 |
| Mar 2026 | 99 |
| Apr 2026 | 118 |
| May 2026 | 86 |
| Jun 2026 | 122 |
| Jul 2026 | 53 |
| Aug 2026 | 61 |
| Sep 2026 | 54 |
| Total | 933 |
License classes
| Class | Hams | Share | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technician | 17,666 | 54% | 48% |
| General | 7,880 | 24% | 25% |
| Amateur Extra | 5,724 | 18% | 21% |
| Advanced | 857 | 3% | 3% |
| Novice / Other | 605 | 2% | 2% |
Bar = Washington share · Tick = U.S. share
In the past 12 months, 158 operators upgraded to General and 192 to Amateur Extra.
How Washington compares
#5 of 52 states and territories for new hams in the past 12 months
| Per 1,000 active hams | Washington | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| New hams, past 12 months | 28.4 | 32.3 |
| Upgrades, past 12 months | 11.4 | 14.7 |
| Expiring, next 6 months | 63.9 | 57.3 |
931 new hams in Washington this past year. Get next month’s list free.
Sign Up Free →Top 10 Washington counties for new hams
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| # | County | New hams 12 mo | Change vs prior year | Active hams | New per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | King County | 302 | ▼ 5% | 9,030 | 33.4 |
| 2 | Snohomish County | 83 | ▼ 19% | 3,199 | 25.9 |
| 3 | Pierce County | 72 | ▼ 30% | 3,211 | 22.4 |
| 4 | Kitsap County | 67 | ▼ 12% | 1,743 | 38.4 |
| 5 | Clark County | 65 | ▲ 27% | 2,188 | 29.7 |
| 6 | Whatcom County | 44 | ▲ 22% | 1,123 | 39.2 |
| 7 | Spokane County | 37 | ▼ 23% | 1,774 | 20.9 |
| 8 | Jefferson County | 28 | — | 554 | 50.5 |
| 9 | Cowlitz County | 20 | ▲ 100% | 466 | 42.9 |
| 10 | Island County | 18 | ▼ 49% | 697 | 25.8 |
— in Change means fewer than 10 new hams the year before.
All Washington counties
31 counties with their own page. Numbers are new hams in the past 12 months.
- Benton County15 new hams in 12 months
- Chelan County6 new hams in 12 months
- Clallam County5 new hams in 12 months
- Clark County65 new hams in 12 months
- Cowlitz County20 new hams in 12 months
- Douglas County9 new hams in 12 months
- Franklin County3 new hams in 12 months
- Grant County2 new hams in 12 months
- Grays Harbor County6 new hams in 12 months
- Island County18 new hams in 12 months
- Jefferson County28 new hams in 12 months
- King County302 new hams in 12 months
- Kitsap County67 new hams in 12 months
- Kittitas County5 new hams in 12 months
- Klickitat County1 new hams in 12 months
- Lewis County1 new hams in 12 months
- Mason County5 new hams in 12 months
- Okanogan County2 new hams in 12 months
- Pacific County2 new hams in 12 months
- Pend Oreille County2 new hams in 12 months
- Pierce County72 new hams in 12 months
- San Juan County8 new hams in 12 months
- Skagit County12 new hams in 12 months
- Snohomish County83 new hams in 12 months
- Spokane County37 new hams in 12 months
- Stevens County2 new hams in 12 months
- Thurston County18 new hams in 12 months
- Walla Walla County3 new hams in 12 months
- Whatcom County44 new hams in 12 months
- Whitman County3 new hams in 12 months
- Yakima County15 new hams in 12 months
Smaller Washington counties
These 8 counties have too few licensees or too little recent activity for a page of their own, so their numbers are listed here.
| County | Active hams | New hams · 12 mo |
|---|---|---|
| Adams County | 27 | 0 |
| Asotin County | 72 | 3 |
| Columbia County | 11 | 0 |
| Ferry County | 150 | 0 |
| Garfield County | 8 | 0 |
| Lincoln County | 40 | 1 |
| Skamania County | 104 | 1 |
| Wahkiakum County | 67 | 0 |
Neighboring states
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Figures may be reused with credit to Ham Recruiter (CC BY 4.0).
Questions about hams in Washington
How many ham radio operators are in Washington?
32,732 active amateur radio licensees are on file for Washington as of Oct 1, 2026.
How many new hams were licensed in Washington last year?
931 people in Washington received their first FCC amateur radio license in the 12 months ending Oct 1, 2026.
Which Washington counties have the most new hams?
In the past 12 months: King County (302), Snohomish County (83) and Pierce County (72).
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.
100% of Washington licensees could be matched to a county.