NOAA data · 1996 to 2026
Winter storm history by county
Thirty winters of blizzards, ice storms and heavy snow from NOAA's Storm Events Database: how often winter storms reach each county, the busiest winters and the most recent storms.
The National Weather Service reports about 1,003 winter storms a winter across the U.S., counted once per forecast office. The busiest winter since records of all storm types began in 1996 was 2000-01 (1,476); the quietest was 2011-12 (591).
U.S. winter storms per winter, 1996-97 to 2025-26.
Counties with the most winter storms
Mountain counties lead because they hold the snowiest forecast zones. Each county page has its own winter storm section below the tornado record.
| # | County | Storms, 30 winters | A winter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moffat County, Colorado | 444 | 15 |
| 2 | Routt County, Colorado | 442 | 15 |
| 3 | Grand County, Colorado | 433 | 14 |
| 4 | Montrose County, Colorado | 425 | 14 |
| 5 | Gunnison County, Colorado | 409 | 14 |
| 6 | Missoula County, Montana | 370 | 12 |
| 7 | Delta County, Colorado | 360 | 12 |
| 8 | Fremont County, Wyoming | 347 | 12 |
| 9 | Archuleta County, Colorado | 341 | 11 |
| 10 | Carbon County, Montana | 340 | 11 |
| 11 | La Plata County, Colorado | 339 | 11 |
| 12 | Montezuma County, Colorado | 337 | 11 |
| 13 | Granite County, Montana | 322 | 11 |
| 14 | Eagle County, Colorado | 321 | 11 |
| 15 | Pitkin County, Colorado | 321 | 11 |
| 16 | Stillwater County, Montana | 310 | 10 |
| 17 | Lake County, Montana | 308 | 10 |
| 18 | Somerset County, Maine | 306 | 10 |
| 19 | Carbon County, Wyoming | 297 | 10 |
| 20 | Oswego County, New York | 297 | 10 |
| 21 | Sweet Grass County, Montana | 297 | 10 |
| 22 | Flathead County, Montana | 296 | 10 |
| 23 | Park County, Montana | 296 | 10 |
| 24 | Sublette County, Wyoming | 292 | 10 |
| 25 | El Dorado County, California | 287 | 10 |
Winter storms by state
Average storms a winter reported by the National Weather Service offices covering each state.
| State | Storms a winter |
|---|---|
| Montana | 65.8 |
| Colorado | 58.9 |
| New York | 51.1 |
| Michigan | 50.9 |
| California | 46.4 |
| Minnesota | 40.9 |
| Wisconsin | 35.9 |
| Wyoming | 34.8 |
| Pennsylvania | 33.6 |
| Idaho | 32 |
| West Virginia | 25.3 |
| Nevada | 25.1 |
| Nebraska | 24.7 |
| South Dakota | 24.2 |
| Iowa | 24.1 |
| Kansas | 22.9 |
| Maine | 21.2 |
| Washington | 21.1 |
| North Carolina | 20 |
| Utah | 20 |
| Virginia | 19.2 |
| Oregon | 19.1 |
| Illinois | 18.8 |
| Ohio | 18.5 |
| North Dakota | 17.9 |
| Missouri | 17.2 |
| Texas | 16.7 |
| Vermont | 16.6 |
| Indiana | 16.4 |
| Maryland | 15.6 |
| Kentucky | 13.4 |
| New Hampshire | 13 |
| Arizona | 11.8 |
| Massachusetts | 11.4 |
| Oklahoma | 10 |
| Tennessee | 9.8 |
| Connecticut | 9.8 |
| New Jersey | 9.6 |
| New Mexico | 9.2 |
| Arkansas | 8.5 |
| Georgia | 5.6 |
| South Carolina | 4.6 |
| Rhode Island | 3.4 |
| Mississippi | 3.4 |
| Alabama | 3.3 |
| Delaware | 2.7 |
| Louisiana | 2.2 |
| District of Columbia | 1.1 |
| Hawaii | 1.1 |
| Florida | 0.3 |
Good to know
What counts as a winter storm here?
Any winter storm, blizzard, ice storm, heavy snow or lake-effect snow the National Weather Service entered in NOAA's Storm Events Database. Lighter "winter weather" advisories are not counted. One storm counts once per county however many days it lasted.
Where does the data come from?
NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information publish the Storm Events Database. It has every type of storm from 1996 on; we matched each report to counties with the National Weather Service's zone and county list.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, built November 7, 2026. Counts in the mountain West can run low for older winters, where forecast zones were redrawn.