(WO) – Helmerich & Payne (H&P) and ExxonMobil led U.S. land drilling activity among contractors and operators, respectively, according to new rankings released by Enverus based on first-quarter 2026 data.
Image: Helmerich & Payne
H&P ranked as the most active U.S. land drilling contractor, recording 15.85 million ft of total drilled measured depth across 776 wells. Patterson-UTI Drilling ranked second with 9.51 million ft across 442 wells, followed by Nabors Industries with 6.55 million ft and Ensign Energy Services with 4.21 million ft.
Among drilling operators, ExxonMobil led with 5.44 million ft drilled across 229 wells. EOG Resources moved up two positions from the previous quarter to rank second with 3.39 million ft.
Devon Energy followed with 3.30 million ft, while Occidental Petroleum and ConocoPhillips rounded out the top five at 3.28 million ft and 2.60 million ft, respectively.
The Enverus rankings evaluate drilling activity using total measured depth, well count, average drilling rate, average measured depth, average lateral length and average rig count. The company noted that the results represent a point-in-time view because drilling activity data can lag field operations and public reporting.
“These rankings continue to offer a practical benchmark for understanding how leading drilling contractors and operators are performing across activity, execution and well design,” said Mark Chapman, principal analyst for oilfield services at Enverus Intelligence Research.
Chapman noted that drilled footage alone does not necessarily indicate drilling performance. The contractor with the greatest total footage, for example, was not the fastest driller among the five highest-ranked companies.
The rankings come amid higher overall U.S. drilling activity compared with a year earlier. Active U.S. rigs averaged 637.6 during the week ended July 31, 2026, up 13% year-over-year, according to Enverus.
The data also highlight the scale of drilling programs being executed by the largest U.S. operators as companies continue to emphasize longer laterals, drilling efficiency and capital discipline across major shale basins.
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