Texas wildfires in 2024 are outpacing California’s worst year, 1.2 million acres burned so far

Texas wildfires have consumed over one million acres in 2024 and are on pace to rival California’s most destructive wildfire year on record, according to a recent analysis by Fire Cash Buyer.

So far this year Texas has watched 1,202,617 of its acres burned by 7,530 wildfires, the data showed, with potential in August for unprecedented destruction surpassing California’s record of 4,397,809 acres destroyed by wildfires in 2020. Compared to last year, Texas wildfire acreage has increased by 486%.

Meanwhile, California has seen 751,327 of its acres burned by 4,613 wildfires in 2024.

Fire Cash Buyer said wildfire numbers in 2024 have remained stable, suggesting larger more intense blazes. At the same time, area burned by wildfires is expected to rise significantly in the near future, reaching 10 million acres in 2025 before stabilizing at around nine million acres in 2026.

Other key insights from the Fire Cash Buyer analysis include:

• Despite the growing swath of burned acreage, wildfire totals could experience a slight decrease from roughly 72,000 in 2025 to around 71,000 in 2026.
• The number of structures destroyed by wildfires is anticipated to increase to about 3,000 in 2025, followed by a slight decrease to around 2,500 in 2026.
• The spending on wildfire suppression is expected to continue its upward trend, reaching approximately $2.75 billion in 2025 and surpassing $3 billion in 2026.
• Approximately 85-90% of U.S. wildfires are caused by human activities including unattended campfires, discarded cigarette butts, malfunctioning equipment, and other preventable actions.
• The U.S. experienced 55,571 wildfires in 2023.

“Climate change, including increased heat, extended drought, and a thirsty atmosphere, has been a key driver in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in the western United States during the last two decades,” the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says.

Outside the U.S., countries like Brazil, Mediterranean nations, Australia and Canada also battle significant wildland fire activity.

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