Charleston Snowfall Totals & Accumulation Averages

How Often it Snows in Charleston

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 Charleston, 2010 to 2019

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
3.2	January	9.9	25.1
2.5	February	7.7	19.4
1.4	March	4.5	11.5
0.2	April	0.4	1.0
0.1	October	1.0	2.6
0.4	November	0.8	2.1
1.0	December	3.0	7.6
8.8	Year	27.3	69.4

30-year snowfall averages at Charleston, 1991 to 2020

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
7.6	January	10.3	26.2
6.2	February	7.7	19.6
3.9	March	5.9	15.0
0.5	April	0.5	1.3
0.1	October	0.6	1.5
1.5	November	1.5	3.8
4.1	December	5.0	12.7
23.9	Year	31.5	80.0

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

In December, for instance, one in four years totals over 4.7 inches of snow. Another 25 percent of years receive less than 0.4 inches for the month.

Similarly in January, fresh snowfall in the heaviest years amounts to over 14.3 inches, while the lightest years get less than 3.8 inches.

New snow for February ranges from 9.2 inches or more in heavy snowfall years to under 3.5 inches in light years.

When Charleston Has Its First & Last Snowfalls

The first snowfall of winter for Charleston usually arrives in November. Less commonly, it can snow as early as October or hold off until December.

The season's last snowfall most often happens in March, although sometimes April also gets snow.

Charleston is normally free of snow every year from May to October.

How Many Snowstorms Charleston Gets

Most days of snowfall in Charleston leave just a skiff, amounting to less than an inch, of fresh snow on the ground. For ten days a year on average, the amount of new snow totals at least an inch.

Snowstorms of over five inches occur less than one day a year on average. But major blizzards that dump ten inches or more in one day are rare events, showing up only once or twice a decade.

Number of days per month and year on average in Charleston 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
2.7	0.9	January	0.3	0.2
2.6	0.7	February	0.1	0.0
1.8	0.6	March	0.2	0.0
0.1	0.0	April	0.0	0.0
0.1	0.0	October	0.0	0.0
0.5	0.1	November	0.0	0.0
1.8	0.4	December	0.1	0.0
9.6	2.7	Year	0.7	0.2

How Much Snow Normally Accumulates in Charleston

For only a small fraction of winter days does Charleston have over an inch of snow on the ground.

Typically on two or three days a year the snow covering Charleston gets to five or more inches deep.

Average total days per month and year in Charleston 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
7.0	2.9	January	1.4	0.9
5.4	2.2	February	0.7	0.0
2.5	1.1	March	0.4	0.1
0.2	0.0	April	0.0	0.0
0.1	0.1	October	0.0	0.0
0.6	0.2	November	0.0	0.0
3.4	1.3	December	0.4	0.0
19.2	7.8	Year	2.9	1.0