Elephant Butte Dam · Rio Grande · New Mexico — updated daily from official gauges
Latest reading
Elephant Butte Reservoir is 1.6% full as of — surface elevation 4,277.40 feet, storage 32,043 acre-feet (capacity basis 1,960,900 acre-feet).
That elevation is its lowest July reading since 1954, and 19.37 feet above its record low of 4,258.03 ft (, the lowest since the reservoir first filled), in a daily record going back to March 21, 1915 (TWDB's period of record for this reservoir).
Storage is 4% of the July 24 average across 112 years of record.
Water level change: -3.91 ft over the past week, -19.51 ft over the past month, and -15.18 ft over the past year.
Percent full
1.6%
of 1,960,900 AF
Vs date average
4%
of the Jul 24 storage average since 1915
Elevation
4,277.40 ft
full pool 4,406.3 ft
Storage
32,043 AF
-48 KAF vs 1 yr ago
1-week change
-3.91 ft
elevation
1-year change
-15.18 ft
elevation
Elephant Butte Reservoir vs its record low
In the daily record used by this site (going back to March 21, 1915 (TWDB's period of record for this reservoir)), Elephant Butte Reservoir's lowest surface elevation since it first filled (first near-full reading 1941) was 4,258.03 feet on , when storage was 2,395 acre-feet. As of , Elephant Butte Reservoir is at 4,277.40 feet — 19.37 feet above that record. The record high in the same series was 4,409.19 ft on .
Elephant Butte Reservoir storage in context
Reading
Elevation (ft)
Storage (AF)
% full
Today (July 24, 2026)
4,277.40
32,043
1.6%
One year ago
4,292.58
79,556
4.1%
Five years ago
4,302.11
126,849
6.5%
Record low (August 6, 1954)
4,258.03
2,395
0.1%
Capacity basis
4,406.30
1,960,900
100.0%
Elephant Butte Reservoir water level, past 12 months
Elephant Butte Reservoir daily surface elevation (feet above sea level), past 12 months. Source: Water Data for Texas (TWDB). Rendered at build time from the official gauge record — no JavaScript.
Elephant Butte Reservoir elevation, full record
Elephant Butte Reservoir month-end surface elevation, 1915–2026 — the full daily record fetched from Water Data for Texas (TWDB), one point per month.
Last 14 daily readings
Date
Elevation (ft)
Day change
Storage (AF)
July 24, 2026
4,277.40
-0.48 ft
32,043
July 23, 2026
4,277.88
-0.55 ft
33,208
July 22, 2026
4,278.43
-0.53 ft
34,559
July 21, 2026
4,278.96
-0.53 ft
35,875
July 20, 2026
4,279.49
-0.72 ft
37,204
July 19, 2026
4,280.21
-0.57 ft
39,032
July 18, 2026
4,280.78
-0.53 ft
40,501
July 17, 2026
4,281.31
-0.58 ft
41,886
July 16, 2026
4,281.89
-0.62 ft
43,422
July 15, 2026
4,282.51
-0.59 ft
45,093
July 14, 2026
4,283.10
-0.54 ft
46,717
July 13, 2026
4,283.64
-0.52 ft
48,233
July 12, 2026
4,284.16
-0.52 ft
49,720
July 11, 2026
4,284.68
—
51,246
Frequently asked questions
What is the water level of Elephant Butte Reservoir today?
As of July 24, 2026, Elephant Butte Reservoir's surface elevation is 4,277.40 feet, with 32,043 acre-feet in storage — 1.6% of the 1,960,900 acre-foot capacity basis. Source: Water Data for Texas (TWDB) daily data.
How full is Elephant Butte Reservoir?
Elephant Butte Reservoir is 1.6% full as of July 24, 2026. Its storage is 4% of the July 24 average across its record since 1915.
Is Elephant Butte Reservoir rising or falling?
Elephant Butte Reservoir is falling: its elevation changed -3.91 feet over the week ending July 24, 2026, -19.51 ft over the past month, and -15.18 feet over the past year. Source: Water Data for Texas (TWDB) daily data.
What was Elephant Butte Reservoir's lowest water level on record?
Elephant Butte Reservoir's lowest surface elevation since it first filled (its first near-full reading in this series is from 1941) was 4,258.03 feet on August 6, 1954, per the daily record used by this site. As of July 24, 2026 the reservoir is 19.37 feet above that record low.
About this gauge
Elephant Butte Reservoir on the Rio Grande in southern New Mexico is the largest reservoir in the state and the main storage of the Rio Grande Project, which supplies southern New Mexico, far-west Texas, and (by treaty) Mexico. TWDB tracks it because Rio Grande Project storage governs deliveries to Texas.
Data: Texas Water Development Board (Water Data for Texas), daily water level and conservation storage for Elephant Butte Reservoir. Percent full is conservation storage divided by conservation capacity (1,960,900 acre-feet at the latest reading), matching TWDB's own methodology. Updated daily.