Chicago Snowfall Totals & Accumulation Averages

How Often it Snows in Chicago

The next two tables list monthly and yearly totals for amount of snow and how many days it snows at least 0.1 inches (0.25 centimetres) at O'Hare.

10-year snowfall averages at Chicago, 2010 to 2019

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
3.1	January	11.2	28.4
4.0	February	15.5	39.3
1.1	March	4.6	11.8
0.4	April	1.4	3.6
0.2	October	0.5	1.2
0.9	November	3.1	8.0
1.9	December	6.4	16.3
11.6	Year	42.8	108.6

30-year snowfall averages at Chicago, 1991 to 2020

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
8.5	January	11.3	28.7
6.4	February	10.7	27.2
4.0	March	5.5	14.0
1.0	April	1.3	3.3
0.2	October	0.2	0.5
1.6	November	1.8	4.6
6.1	December	7.6	19.3
27.8	Year	38.4	97.5

These averages don't show how much Chicago's snowfall varies from year to year.

In December, for instance, one in four years totals over 10.3 inches of snow. Another 25 percent of years receive less than 1.6 inches for the month.

Similarly in January, fresh snowfall in the heaviest years amounts to 14.6 inches or more, while the lightest years get 5.5 inches or less.

Snow in February ranges from over 20 inches in heavy snowfall years to under 2.6 inches in light years.

When Chicago Has Its First & Last Snowfalls

Over the long-term Chicago has averaged a dusting of 0.2 inches of snow during October. But in most years October has no snow. Typically, just one in five years see snow that early.

Chicago's first snowfall of winter usually arrives in November. Less commonly, snow doesn't arrive here until December.

While the season's last snowfall most often happens in April, the month can also be free of snow.

Chicago is normally free of snow every year from May to September.

How Many Snowstorms Chicago Has

Chicago gets snow more often than many places in Illinois. But most days with snowfall in Chicago result in just a skiff of less than an inch left on the ground. Normally on 11 days a year at least an inch of snow lands in one day.

Snowstorms of over five inches a day occur just once or twice a year on average. Major blizzards that dump ten inches or more in one day are rare events, happening about once a decade.

Number of days per month and year on average in Chicago with a total snowfall of at least 1, 3, 5 or 10 inches

1 inch 2.5 cm	3 inches 7.6 cm		5 inches 12.7 cm	10 inches 25.4 cm
3.6	1.3	January	0.4	0.0
3.1	0.9	February	0.4	0.1
1.5	0.6	March	0.2	0.0
0.4	0.2	April	0.0	0.0
0.1	0.0	October	0.0	0.0
0.5	0.2	November	0.1	0.0
2.2	0.7	December	0.3	0.0
11.4	3.9	Year	1.4	0.1

How Much Snow Normally Accumulates in Chicago

For less than half of winter days, Chicago has at least an inch of snow on the ground.

Typically on 15 days in a winter, the snow covering Chicago gets to five or more inches deep. On three of four of those, the snow builds up to over ten inches.

Average total days per month and year in Chicago with snow depth of at least 1, 3, 5 or 10 inches on the ground

1 inch 2.5 cm	3 inches 7.6 cm		5 inches 12.7 cm	10 inches 25.4 cm
16.1	9.4	January	5.4	1.1
11.9	8.1	February	5.7	1.7
4.6	2.5	March	1.5	0.2
0.5	0.1	April	0.0	0.0
1.3	0.5	November	0.3	0.0
9.2	5.1	December	2.2	0.7
43.6	25.7	Year	15.1	3.7