Cloudiest American Cities in Winter

Days of Heavy Cloud

The cloudiest cities in the United States — Portland, Seattle, Buffalo and Cleveland — are blanketed with heavy cloud during three out of four winter days. Overcast skies particularly dominate during winter in the Pacific Northwest and near the Great Lakes.

A total of 18 major US cities get 50 or more days of dense cloud during the months of December, January and February. These are grey winter days when more than three-quarters of the sky is covered in cloud.

The major cities included in the weather rankings represent the 56 metropolitan areas in the United States with over one million people in 2020. Cloud cover information is not available from the National Climatic Data Center for San Jose and Riverside California, so they were left out of the cloudiest city ratings.

Major US Cities averaging 50 or more days during winter when cloud covers over three-quarters of the sky.

City	Winter Days of Heavy Cloud	% of Days
Portland, Oregon	71	79
Seattle, Washington	70	78
Buffalo, New York	68	76
Cleveland, Ohio	68	76
Grand Rapids, Michigan	67	74
Rochester, New York	64	71
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	64	71
Columbus, Ohio	60	67
Detroit, Michigan	59	66
Cincinnati, Ohio	57	63
Indianapolis, Indiana	55	61
Louisville, Kentucky	55	61
Chicago, Illinois	53	59
Salt Lake City, Utah	53	59
Houston, Texas	52	58
Milwaukee, Wisconsin	52	58
Fresno, California	50	56
Nashville, Tennessee	50	56

All Cloudy Days

When the count of cloudy days includes partial cloud as well as heavy overcast, the cloudiest cities in winter typically have some overcast on nine out of ten winter days.

Major US cities with at least three out of four winter days, on average, when over one-quarter of the sky is covered with cloud.

City	Cloudy Days in Winter	% of Days
Buffalo, New York	86	96
Rochester, New York	84	93
Cleveland, Ohio	84	93
Grand Rapids, Michigan	82	91
Portland, Oregon	82	91
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	82	91
Seattle, Washington	82	91
Detroit, Michigan	79	88
Columbus, Ohio	78	87
Cincinnati, Ohio	75	83
Indianapolis, Indiana	73	81
Louisville, Kentucky	73	81
Salt Lake City, Utah	72	80
Chicago, Illinois	71	79
Fresno, California	71	79
Milwaukee, Wisconsin	70	78

Partial Cloudy Weather

The major US cities that most often get partially cloudy days during winter are not among the country's cloudiest cities overall. These cities have relatively few winter days when cloud obscures over three-quarters of the sky.

Partially cloudy days are those when cloud covers between one-quarter and three-quarters of the sky.

California's coastal cities dominate the list of major American cities that most often have partially cloudy days in winter. The heavy cloud that blankets western Oregon and Washington during much of winter breaks up along the Californian coast. Scattered cloud also frequents Florida in winter.

Major US cities that average over one in four days during winter when cloud covers between one-quarter and three-quarters of the sky.

City	Partially Cloudy Days	% of Days
Honolulu, Hawaii	39	43
Miami, Florida	38	42
Tampa, Florida	29	32
Denver, Colorado	28	31
Orlando, Florida	28	31
New York, New York	27	30
San Diego, California	23	26
San Francisco, California	23	26
Hartford, Connecticut	23	26
Jacksonville, Florida	23	26
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	23	26