Total number of cattle and calves in the U.S. 2001-2024

How many cows are in the U.S.?

The United States is home to approximately 87.1 million cattle and calves as of 2024, dropping slightly from the 2023 value. 

Cattle farming in the United States

There are over three times more beef cows than milk cows living in the United States. Raising cattle is notoriously expensive, not only in terms of land, feed, and equipment, but also in terms of the environmental impact of consuming beef. Beef and milk have the highest carbon footprints of any type of food in the United States.

U.S. milk market

The volume of milk produced in the United States has been steadily increasing over the last several years. In 2023, total milk production in the U.S. was about 228.3 billion pounds, up from 192.9 billion pounds in 2010. California is the leading producer of milk of any U.S. state, generating approximately 42 billion pounds of milk in 2022. Wisconsin came in second, producing about 31.9 billion pounds of milk in that year.