Among the longest rivers of Mexico are 26 streams of at least 250km (160miles). In the case of rivers such as the Colorado, the length listed in the table below is solely that of the main stem.[1] In the case of the Grijalva and Usumacinta, it is the combined lengths of two river systems that share a delta. In the case of the Nazas and Aguanaval, it is the combined lengths of separate rivers that flow into the same closed basin.
Three rivers in this list cross international boundaries or form them. The Colorado and the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte or Río Bravo) begin in the United States and flow into Mexico, while the Usumacinta begins in Guatemala and flows into Mexico.[2]
The primary source for the length, watershed, and surface runoff data in the table below is the 10th edition of Statistics on Water in Mexico, published by the National Water Commission in Mexico (CONAGUA); exceptions are as noted. U.S. states and departments of Guatemala appear in italics in the "States" column.
Key | |
---|---|
River is not entirely within Mexico. | |
Watershed is not entirely within Mexico. |
Name | Mouth[3] | Length | Watershed area | Annual surface runoff | States[4] | Image | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte or Río Bravo) | Gulf of Mexico 25.9561°N -97.1453°W | km 1,931 mi | km2 180,286 mi2 | x 106 m3 2.15 x 1011 ft3 | |||
2 | Colorado River | Gulf of California 31.8158°N -114.8061°W | km 1,452 mi | km2 243,547 mi2 | x 106 m3 6.321 x 1011 ft3 | |||
3 | Grijalva - Usumacinta Rivers | Bay of Campeche 18.5889°N -92.6889°W | km 1,187 mi | km2 49,570 mi2 | x 106 m3 4.0801 x 1012 ft3 | Petén, Chiapas, Tabasco | ||
4 | Nazas - Aguanaval Rivers | Bolsón de Mapimí 25.2°N -104.2°W | km 672 mi | km2 34,455 mi2 | x 106 m3 6.75 x 1010 ft3 | |||
5 | Culiacán River | Pacific Ocean 24.4922°N -107.7319°W | km 544 mi | km2 6,074 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.116 x 1011 ft3 | |||
6 | Balsas River | Pacific Ocean 17.9394°N -102.1372°W | km 478 mi | km2 45,331 mi2 | x 106 m3 5.858 x 1011 ft3 | Puebla, Morelos, Michoacán, Guerrero | ||
7 | Lerma River | Lake Chapala 20.25°N -103°W | km 440 mi | km2 18,192 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.675 x 1011 ft3 | State of Mexico, Querétaro, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Jalisco | ||
8 | Rio Grande de Santiago | Pacific Ocean 21.6333°N -105.4453°W | km 349 mi | km2 29,504 mi2 | x 106 m3 2.772 x 1011 ft3 | |||
9 | Fuerte River | Gulf of California 25.8°N -109.4167°W | km 336 mi | km2 12,970 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.828 x 1011 ft3 | Sinaloa | ||
10 | Pánuco River | Gulf of Mexico 22.2667°N -97.7833°W | km 317 mi | km2 32,802 mi2 | x 106 m3 7.18 x 1011 ft3 | |||
11 | Rio Conchos | Rio Grande 25.1167°N -98.5333°W | km 301 mi[5] | km2 26,404 mi2[6] | x 106 m3 9.58 x 1010 ft3[7] | |||
12 | Sonora River | Gulf of California 28.785°N -111.9197°W | km 262 mi | km2 10,710 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.44 x 1010 ft3 | Sonora | ||
13 | Soto La Marina River | Gulf of Mexico 23.7656°N -97.7369°W | km 258 mi | km2 8,179 mi2 | x 106 m3 7.37 x 1010 ft3 | |||
14 | Yaqui River | Gulf of California 27.6547°N -110.6239°W | km 255 mi | km2 28,010 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.117 x 1011 ft3 | Sonora | ||
15 | Sinaloa River | Gulf of California 25.2808°N -108.4953°W | km 249 mi | km2 4,730 mi2 | x 106 m3 7.51 x 1010 ft3 | Sinaloa | ||
16 | San Fernando River | Gulf of Mexico 24.9167°N -97.6667°W | km 249 mi | km2 6,851 mi2 | x 106 m3 5.46 x 1010 ft3 | |||
17 | Mayo River | Gulf of California 26.75°N -109.7833°W | km 240 mi | km2 5,835 mi2 | x 106 m3 4.35 x 1010 ft3 | Chihuahua, Sonora | ||
18 | Tecolutla River | Gulf of Mexico 20.4833°N -97°W | km 233 mi | km2 3,051 mi2 | x 106 m3 2.152 x 1011 ft3 | |||
19 | Jamapa River | Gulf of Mexico 19.0333°N -96.1333°W | km 229 mi | km2 1,568 mi2 | x 106 m3 9.05 x 1010 ft3 | |||
20 | Papaloapan River | Gulf of Mexico 18.7°N -95.6333°W | km 220 mi | km2 17,960 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.5772 x 1012 ft3 | |||
21 | Verde River | Pacific Ocean 16.4231°N -94.8822°W | km 213 mi | km2 2,292 mi2 | x 106 m3 2.097 x 1011 ft3 | Oaxaca | ||
22 | Concepción River | Gulf of California 30.5333°N -113.0333°W | km 208 mi | km2 9,965 2 | x 106 m3 4.3 x 109 ft3 | Sonora | ||
23 | Coatzacoalcos River | Gulf of Mexico 18.15°N -94.4°W | km 202 mi | km2 6,706 mi2 | x 106 m3 9.921 x 1011 ft3 | |||
24 | San Lorenzo River | Gulf of California 28.4°N -110.3167°W | km 196 mi | km2 3,444 mi2 | x 106 m3 5.9 x 1010 ft3 | Durango, Sinaloa | ||
25 | Sonoyta River | Gulf of California 31.2667°N -113.3167°W | km 193 mi | km2 2,955 mi2 | x 106 m3 570 x 106 ft3 | Sonora | ||
26 | San Pedro River | Pacific Ocean 21.7281°N -105.4917°W | km 158 mi | km2 10,220 mi2 | x 106 m3 1.207 x 1011 ft3 |