Amazon river level at Manaus, live
The Rio Negro at Manaus rises and falls about twelve metres every year, from roughly 17 metres in early November to roughly 29 metres in early June. Below is today's reading from the gauge, updated through the day, against twelve years of normal and the record drought of 2024.
Last checked:
Today's level
The number is the reading on the gauge at Manaus, where the Rio Negro meets the Amazon proper a few kilometres downstream. It is the figure every Brazilian newspaper means when it says the river stands at so many metres, and it has been read since 1902.
Rio Negro at Manaus, now
17.54 m
Reading from Manaus time
The gauge feed is not answering, this is the last reading we received.
What the level means for a trip
The Amazon's seasons are named after the water, not the weather, and the river follows the rain on a delay of two to three months. That is why Manaus is hot all year but the forest around it is two different places depending on the month.
High water, roughly January to June, floods the forest so a canoe can glide in among the crowns of the trees. Low water, roughly July to December, uncovers river beaches, opens forest trails and concentrates wildlife around the channels that are left. Neither is the wrong time to go. They are different trips, and the line on the chart shows you which one you are booking.
The records
Both records fell within the last few years, which is the part of this chart that ends up in the news.
- Record low, 12.11 metres. Reached on 9 October 2024, the lowest reading since records began in 1902, after the drought of 2023 had already set a record the year before.
- Record high, 30.02 metres. Reached on 16 June 2021, when the river flooded the historic centre of Manaus, including the square around the old customs house.
Where the numbers come from
The live value and the chart come from the automatic telemetry station 14990000 of Brazil's national water agency, ANA, which reports every fifteen minutes. The chart shows daily averages. The normal band is the lowest, median and highest daily average for each date from 2014 to 2025, the years with a complete telemetry record.
The two records are the official readings at the port of Manaus, as reported by Brazil's geological service. The automatic station and the port gauge can differ by a few centimetres on the same day, so the records are quoted as published rather than taken from the chart.
Common questions
When is the Rio Negro highest and lowest at Manaus?
In a median year it peaks in early June at about 29 metres and bottoms out in early November at about 17 metres, a swing of roughly twelve metres. Dry years can push the low far below that: in 2024 it fell to a record 12.11 metres.
What is the lowest the Rio Negro has ever been?
12.11 metres at the port of Manaus on 9 October 2024, the lowest reading since measurements began in 1902.
Is high water or low water better for an Amazon trip?
Low water, roughly July to December, is better for wildlife, river beaches and walking. High water, roughly January to June, is the season for canoeing through the flooded forest. Pick the experience first and the month follows.
Where this matters on a trip
Sources
- ANA, Rede Hidrometeorológica Nacional, telemetry station 14990000 Manaus
- Portal Amazônia, Rio Negro record low of 12.11 metres, October 2024
- Portal Amazônia, the ten highest floods of the Rio Negro since 1902
- Portal Amazônia, the 2023 drought, Rio Negro at 12.70 metres
- Serviço Geológico do Brasil, Amazon hydrological alert bulletins (SACE)
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