South Bend Snowfall Totals & Accumulation Averages

How Often it Snows in South Bend

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).

10-year snowfall averages at South Bend, 2010 to 2019

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
7.5	January	27.1	68.8
6.4	February	20.3	51.5
1.3	March	4.9	12.5
0.2	April	0.8	2.1
0.0	October	0.1	0.1
1.4	November	6.0	15.3
3.9	December	11.2	28.5
19.3	Year	67.4	171.1

30-year snowfall averages at South Bend, 1991 to 2020

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
13.1	January	21.6	54.9
9.7	February	16.1	40.9
5.1	March	6.8	17.3
1.5	April	1.0	2.5
0.1	September	0.0	0.0
0.3	October	0.2	0.5
3.4	November	5.1	13.0
9.0	December	13.7	34.8
42.2	Year	64.5	163.8

These averages don't show how much the snowfall in South Bend varies from year to year.

In December, for instance, one in four years totals over 19.4 inches of snow. Another 25 percent of years receive less than 6.6 inches for the month.

Similarly in January, fresh snowfall in the heaviest years amounts to over 27.6 inches, while the lightest years get less than 11.9 inches.

New snow for February ranges from 25 inches or more in heavy snowfall years to under eight inches in light years.

When South Bend Has Its First & Last Snowfalls

The first snowfall of winter for South Bend usually arrives in November. In exceptional years, October and even September can see a little snow.

The season's last snowfall typically happens in April. In about one out of four years, April has no snow, so March brings the last of new snow.

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

How Many Snowstorms South Bend Gets

About half the days with snowfall in South Bend leave only a skiff, amounting to less than an inch, of fresh snow on the ground. For 20 days a year on average, the amount of new snow totals at least an inch.

Snowstorms of over five inches a day normally occur two or three times a year. But major blizzards that dump ten inches or more in one day are rare events that on average happen twice a decade.

Number of days per month and year on average in South Bend 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
6.6	2.3	January	0.9	0.1
5.2	1.5	February	0.7	0.1
2.0	0.7	March	0.2	0.0
0.3	0.1	April	0.0	0.0
0.0	0.0	October	0.0	0.0
1.7	0.4	November	0.3	0.0
4.5	1.5	December	0.5	0.0
20.3	6.5	Year	2.6	0.2

How Much Snow Normally Accumulates in South Bend

For about half of winter days, South Bend has at least an inch of snow on the ground.

Snow mostly accumulates during January. Typically, on two days in each of January and February, the snow covering South Bend gets to ten or more inches deep.

Average total days per month and year in South Bend 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
19.6	11.8	January	7.2	1.9
13.8	8.5	February	5.3	1.7
4.9	2.4	March	1.1	0.2
0.3	0.0	April	0.0	0.0
0.1	0.0	October	0.0	0.0
2.8	1.1	November	0.4	0.0
10.4	5.2	December	2.5	0.3
51.9	29.0	Year	16.5	4.1