The topography of the United States is among the most varied of any country.
- **Highest point:** Denali, Alaska — 6,190 m (20,310 ft) - **Lowest point:** Badwater Basin, Death Valley, California — about 86 m (282 ft) below sea level - **Major mountain systems:** Alaska Range, Brooks Range, Appalachian Mountains, Rocky Mountains, Sierra Nevada, Cascade Range - **Major plateaus and uplands:** Colorado Plateau, Columbia Plateau, Ozark Plateau, Appalachian Plateau - **Major plains:** Great Plains, Interior Plains, Atlantic Coastal Plain, Gulf Coastal Plain, Central Valley of California - **Canyons and basins:** Grand Canyon, Great Basin, Death Valley, Snake River Canyon, canyonlands of the Colorado Plateau - **Coastal areas:** Long Atlantic, Gulf, Pacific, Arctic, and island coastlines with beaches, estuaries, deltas, cliffs, barrier islands, and wetlands - **Flood plains:** Extensive flood plains along the Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and lower coastal river systems
Relief varies from broad, flat agricultural landscapes in the Midwest to steep alpine terrain in the West and Alaska. Eastern mountain ranges are older and generally lower than western ones, while the Great Plains rise gradually in elevation from east to west. In Hawaii, volcanic cones and lava landscapes dominate many islands.
Topographic diversity has shaped settlement, transport routes, agriculture, water supply, flood risk, and regional culture across the country.