The 2023-2024 Top 25 Snowiest Cities in The United States With Most Snow
Top 25 Snowiest US Cities Were Updated 6/30/2024 8:00 PM
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The Top 25 snowiest US cities over 100,000 and we will add them as we find them and as the new 2020 census becomes available..
The first number is the current spot the city is on the snow mountain last updated. The second number is where the city was at the end of the last season. We will be switching it to how the city started this season and then the current updated place as the cities receive snowfall totals.
This is where the Top Twenty Five Snowiest US Cities leading so far in the Golden Snow Globe Contest will be updated. Does your city have what it takes to stay in the top 25? All of the cities will be on a rolling system with only the top 25 snowiest cities here on the main page. That means that if your city is number 25 and another city passes yours, poof, your city is gone from this section. Can your city stay in the top twenty-five is the question? Our guess is that there will be some bouncing around especially at the beginning.
| Standings on 6/30 |
and Cities |
2010 City |
2023 – 2024 |
Average Snow |
| 1 | Anchorage, Alaska **** |
291,826 |
133.3 |
77.9 |
| 2 | Boulder, Colorado ** |
108,250 |
93.7 |
91.8 |
| 3 |
Lakewood, Colorado ** |
142,980 |
75.2 |
57.7 |
| 4 | Buffalo, New York |
261,310 |
71.3 |
95.4 |
| 5 | Syracuse, New York |
145,170 |
60.8 |
127.8 |
| 6 | Rochester, New York |
210,565 |
52.5 |
102.0 |
| 7 | Colorado Springs, Colorado ** |
416,427 |
50.6 |
32.5 |
| 8 | Grand Rapids, Michigan |
188,040 |
47.5 |
77.6 |
| 9 | Green Bay, Wisconsin * |
104,057 |
47.1 |
55.6 |
| 10 | Denver, Colorado ** |
600,158 |
44.6 |
??? |
| 11 | Madison, Wisconsin * |
233,209 |
43.3 |
51.8 |
| 12 | Worcester, Mass |
181,045 |
42.5 |
72.9 |
| 13 | Manchester, New Hampshire |
109,565 |
37.8 |
??? |
| 14 | Ann Arbor, Michigan |
113,934 |
37.2 |
61.4 |
| 15 | Boise, Idaho ** |
205,671 |
36.9 |
17.6 |
| 16 | Fort Collins, Colorado ** |
143,986 |
36.9 |
50.7 |
| 17 | Des Moines, Iowa * |
203,433 |
35.0 |
36.5 |
| 18 | Billings, Montana ** |
104,170 |
35.0 |
57.4 |
| 19 | Spokane, Washington *** |
208,916 |
32.6 |
45.4 |
| 20 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin * |
594,833 |
32.6 |
48.7 |
| 21 | Flint, Michigan |
102,434 |
32.0 |
52.1 |
| 22 | Lansing, Michigan |
114,297 |
30.7 |
50.2 |
| 23 | South Bend, Indiana |
101.168 |
30.3 |
64.5 |
| 24 | Minneapolis, Minnesota * |
382,578 |
29.5 |
51.2 |
| 25 | Reno, Nevada *** |
225,221 |
28.4 |
20.9 |
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You forgot to check Muskegon , MI. We were well over 100 inches several weeks ago.
That might be true, but Muskegon doesn’t have 100,000+ people.
the title says 10 snowiest cities, nothing about population. just north of muskegon in twin lake we have had 122 in.
It clearly states that this list was compiled based on cities with a population OVER 100,000. Muskegon’s population is not that high.
If you consider Muskegon MSA there is more than 100,000. Just the city of Muskegon you are correct only about half that.
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Born and raise in Erie, PA. Not missing home so much right now. Stay safe Erie-ites!
Just for kicks and giggles, South Bend, Indiana has 85.8″ this year.
And isnt South Bend over 100,000 just barely?
I think (because I haven’t got a chance to be there) Erie, PA is the most stunning place in the world when it snows and writing “I love you” on snow could be the most romantic thing. EHAB, I love you, I love you alot!
Beautiful, I love you too
Ah, is this great? I live in Erie where we just got another fresh 9 to 10 inches within the last 2 days…Hopefully Syracuse catches up, I love the competition.
I’m thinking we need to make the move or some kind of a move in the next couple of weeks to have a chance. I agree about the competition and last season was fun.
Erie’s laying down the law this year, they seem untouchable! Ruff Buff is no joke either this year. Grand Rapids beat us up in the AHL Calder Cup finals last season and I watched them hold the cup up high on our Syracuse War Memorial home ice, so I ain’t got nothin’ nice to say about that city! And Syracuse is hanging on in 4th. place with below avg. snowfall. still a lot of winter left, but Erie’s looking like a monster this season!
Per this article from the Chicago Tribune, Chicago is ahead of Billings by an inch.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-02-05/news/chi-chicago-weather-20140205_1_snowiest-winter-latest-snow-measurable-snow
Sarah, Chicago did just go past Billings and the new stats show it now. As a matter of fact Chicago is now in the top 10 again which for whatever reason always surprises me.
I live in Erie Pa, If anyone wants the title of the snowiest city in America they can HAVE IT !!!.. We are over 103 inches as of 2/6/14 and we still have 6 weeks of winter to go. My back aches from shoveling !!!!!
Hopefully only 6 weeks Patrick
My back is pretty shot too right now 
The snow has definitely made work challenging.
I own a roofing company in Erie,PA.
Erie Roofers Owner – Kyle Brink. So, believe me….I am not a big fan of our snow.
The temperatures lately have hurt production more than the snowfall though.
Even with all of the snowfall Erie,PA is a great place to live.
Erie,PA does not have problems with the following………
Tornadoes
Hurricanes
Earthquakes
Hail Storms
Wildfires
Droughts
Floods
Monsoons
Heat Waves
So, Erie is a pretty safe place to live when it comes to weather.
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Lake Erie is frozen which is a reason why Syarcuse will yet again surpass Erie and Buffalo (Ontario basiclaly never freezes). I was happy to leave snowy Buffalo 20 eyars ago – had no idea Syarcuse is even worse!
Yup, Ontario growls all winter, and crucial connection parts of Superior, Huron, and Michigan are unfrozen, and feed into Ontario’s lake effect. Saw stats yesterday with Redfield NY @ 269 inches for the season. Valdez AL has 179 by comparison.
Perrysburg in ski country south of Buffalo has 219 inches so far, but normally the lake snows off Ontario are heavier and last into February and March, where ours usually ends by mid January due to the lake freezing and since Erie is a shallower lake, it doesn’t put down quite as much as Ontario…
Not true Eric. What happens now with Lake Erie frozen, is that the snow falls directly on the City of Erie instead of falling south or east of Erie, which happens during lake effect storms. The snow is drier and falls more frequently with the lake covered with ice.
Syracuse will need a couple big snow storms without Erie getting any to catch that 25 inch deficit up. Erie just keeps adding to the totals. NWS officially has us around 105, that includes what was not added from last nights 2 + inches.
Lake Erie might be frozen but we (in Erie) just got about 10″ of snow yesterday!
Grand Rapids MI, From Dec 1, 2013 to Jan 27,2014 has had 71.3 inch. Average is around 47.5 inches. Although a week-n-half before Thanksgiving it started snowing and has not stopped. So, I would guess we have had more like 80 or so inches.
I live about 45 minutes from Erie near Canadohta Lake and we have had more snow then them, wondering where they get the facts from
Hi Jessica, all info comes from The National Weather Service and the cities listed have a population of 100,000 or more.
must get tired having to repeat that same old answer over and over again. (All info comes from The National Weather Service and the cities listed have a population of 100,000 or more) Patrick, you must say that line in your sleep bro. People just think that all these stats just appear out of thin air, don’t think that their’s some guy gathering all this info to post. What about my little rinky dink town, it gets more snow than so and so, this competition should include city’s with a pop. of 50,000 or more, yea right with only one guy gathering all the stats to post up every week for everybody to see and enjoy, there will still be people complaining that this competition is bunk even if you did include city’s at 50,000 . You do a great job Patrick! been following you at the GSB for years bro, Now I’m ready for a 33 inch dumping, lets go Cuse’!
not only do they get the info from the national weather service, but also, they get the info from the measurements out at the airport here.. I live in erie, pa. The farther south you go, the worse the snow is, and the airport is pretty close to the lake, so if you take the measurements closer to I-90, then the number will be higher.
Same here, you go north of Syracuse and there you have the biggest snowfall east of the Rocky’s. Northern Oswego, Southern Jefferson county’s are in the cross hairs of lake Ontario, they push 325-400+ inches a season. Redfield New York had a storm last month that dumped 96 inches in 4 straight days. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4gdnrISZjc
Yeah we get a lot of snow from the lakes off Ontario and Erie, but in comparison to the totals in the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, where they can get 10-15 feet of snow in a single storm, and a place in Japan where they AVERAGE between 100-125 FEET of snow per year, what we get is child’s play. Then again, what 95% of the rest of the US gets is child’s play to us…
They take the reading at the Erie Airport
@Matt, I know about the snowfall in the mountain ranges, I used to live in Washington State, when we would go to Eastern Washington we would have to go over the pass either at Stampede Pass or at Paradise Ranger Station, they always had a deep snowpack well into July, they would receive 1000+ inches a season, thing of it is, they don’t have people living up there at those elevations , going to school and work and shopping and watching the Seahawks on the giant flat screen down at the local watering hole. The people that work up there don’t live up there, when they punch the clock they come down off that mountain and go home to a town that see’s less than 40 inches a season, Very few animals don’t even live up at that elevation, they take snowpack measurements from helocopters. So just because Paradise gets over 1000 inches a season doesn’t mean that I actually experienced it because I drove over the pass a couple of times, I didn’t have to shovel it or anything, just point my camera and click at it, I never touched a snow shovel in Washington State,and I’m sure the same goes for the Sierra Mountains in Cali and Crater Lake in Oregon, Now I live in the Cuse’ with a camp on the Tug and let me tell ya, this place is the real deal, and the same goes for all of the other snowbelt towns downwind of the the great lake snowbelt area’s, these people are some hardcore mofo’s that have to deal with this stuff from halloween into mothers day! In my opinion I would have to say that the rustbelt is way more bad ass than them unpopulated mountain passes! http://www.wunderground.com/blog/weatherhistorian/where-does-the-deepest-snow-on-earth-accumulate
Live in Findley Lake NY….(20 miles from Erie).at last check we have more than Erie and Buffalo combined…… not happy about that….just sayin.
Nothing but respect Flash to those of you who live in the towns that get pounded by that much snow every season
I am sure that Peek ‘n Peek is happy about having more snow than Erie and Buffalo. Maybe people will be skiing in June?
Yeah, the places south of Buffalo in ski country and the southtowns get upwards of 200+ inches a year…but most of these places are relatively small towns without many people in them…however, Hamburg, NY which is about 30 miles south of Buffalo averages 150 inches of snow a year and they have a population of 57,000…possibly might be the snowiest city with a population over 50,000 in the US…although there are probably others that get a lot of snow as well…
Not that anybody cares, but South Bend has a snowfall of 72.5″ this year. This is the “unofficial” snowfall amount, as it is not NWS certified. However, the source is WNDU.
http://www.wndu.com/weather
I care Cory, really and I do check that link every now and then. I hate that South Bend doesn’t have the official stats anymore, especially because of how good you are doing
I live 3 minutes from South Bend Regional… WNDU’s numbers are very accurate. Up to 85.8″ as of 2/6/14.
Ronnie, I keep checking that site and believe me it kills me not having the National Weather service use them as official snow stats. You and the others from South Bend should try and get a rally going to get WNDU to get qualified by NOAA to keep the stats for them so that they can be official. I talked to them and they are still looking for someone or group to take the measurements for them.
Where is South Bend, IN?? We were on the list in last years archives. Unless we lost 5,000 people on our population to drop under 100,000. But we have totaled 69.9 in to date.
Sam, here is what I posted awhile back that explains South Bend. http://goldensnowglobe.com/michigan-and-illinois-moving-up-the-snow-mountain/
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Lake Erie frozen over pretty good but can still produce some lake effect from the following ways: moisture flux through the ice itself, moisture from cracks in the ice (often the wind can shift ice fields), and moisture through holes in the ice. Even brief thaws can open up the lake a bit. Also, friction and convergence from moisture going over the frozen surface can enhance snow somewhat. Finally, central Lake Huron is still open so Erie can still get lake effect off Huron in a NW flow, but even this is greatly diminished as Huron is freezing over pretty good this year. Having said that, Syracuse has plenty of time to catch up with Erie as they can get good snows off Ontario (they have lake effect snow warnings as I type this) and any good Nor’easter that sends heavy snow just a bit more inland than the past couple storms could easily put Syracuse in the lead.
Bryan, thanks for taking the time to post his great information. I learn something new every season
I think he took that verbatim from WIVB channel 4 chief meteorologist Don Paul’s facebook post
We are in fifth, frankly if we here in Rochacha climb back into the “Frosty Four” , I’m not looking forward to it.
Lake Erie almost totally frozen over. No lake effect from a frozen lake. Erie PA and Buffalo may not hold that lead too long as Lake Ontario has 3/4 open water. Lake effecting pretty good right now in the Cuse…
http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/glcfs/glcfs.php?hr=00&ext=ice&type=N&lake=l
No no, please, take 2nd place from Buffalo. We’re getting buried alive. Help. Bring shovels.
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Top of snow mountain! Whoo hooo! Not sure it is really something to be proud of…. It is dangerously cold outside!!!!
numbers 2-10 may be just as miserable but at least (Erie) we have bragging rights
Not for long, Lake Erie is almost frozen. No lake effect from a frozen body of water. Ontario has little to no ice. The Cuse will pull ahead..
That is why Syracuse puts a late season surge on every year. Erie and Buffalo get their lake effect from Erie. Syracuse and Rochester get theirs from Ontario. All the Great Lakes freeze over completely… Historically, Ontario has only done it once. Those poor bastards on tug hill!
I don’t think so mike, getting it good again today. tomorrow morning will be the 3rd time in a 24 hour period i’ve plowed the driveway. this is my first winter as a retired mailman, glad i went when i did.
Here is part of what Bryan posted which I didn’t know and should keep Erie in the snowball fight for awhile. “Lake Erie frozen over pretty good but can still produce some lake effect from the following ways: moisture flux through the ice itself, moisture from cracks in the ice (often the wind can shift ice fields), and moisture through holes in the ice. Even brief thaws can open up the lake a bit. Also, friction and convergence from moisture going over the frozen surface can enhance snow somewhat. Finally, central Lake Huron is still open so Erie can still get lake effect off Huron in a NW flow, but even this is greatly diminished as Huron is freezing over pretty good this year”.
I’m just outside of Syracuse and our mail people deliver on foot here. I’m sure they dress for the job but no doubt with the way the temps have been this season they probably all wish they could have retired. Have to say I feel for them this season…
By 2015 you may not have to worry about us over here in Erie anymore because our population is about to dip under 100,000. Here are quick census numbers that I pulled off of Wikipedia:
1960 138,440
1970 129,231
1980 119,123
1990 108,718
2000 103,717
2010 101,786
Est. 2012 101,047
I often mutter that no one lives in a place like this unless you are born here or else hiding. But the summers are nice.
Also, we drink a lot of coffee and we drink a lot of beer. One of the top consumers per capita on both of those products.
I don’t want to see Erie dip under 100,000, I live in Syracuse and I like the competition. Been through Erie a few times and I like that city. Erie is my kind of city!
the list is kinda bunk in the fact that it should have city’s 50k plus anyway…… to many left out of this list that are heavy snow city’s….
Chappy, try listing all of the cities that get snow with a population of 50,000 or more. Then try finding OFFICIAL snow stats for all of those cities. IMO it isn’t doable.
I suggest using the metro area population (i.e. metro statistical area (MSA) that census bureau uses), instead of city population. Metro Erie is over 280,000, but city geographic boundaries (set many many decades ago) do not include the suburbs where most people live.
Count my family as one of the dropouts from recent years. Love Erie, just can’t stand to live in the city anymore. We live south of I-90 in snow country and are loving it.
C’mon…where is Cleveland on this list…trust me, we are about an hour away from Erie, PA and were on the same lake, and get hit by lake effect snow every freekin’ day. And another thing, we get way more snow than Detroit does…just saying…
Hey Don, Cleveland is in the snow contest. They just aren’t listed on that page which are just the cities in the top 10 as of the last update. Check out all of the cities that we have in the snowiest big city contest at http://goldensnowglobe.com/all-snowiest-us-cities/ and you will see them. They are getting close to the top 10
Cleveland may be in the same lake as Erie and only an hour and half away. .. but you all seriously don’t get the same weather we get here. Lake Effect snow (which contributes to most of our snow) occurs in really acute areas. .. One county can get a foot while the next only gets an inch.
Yes, Cleveland-area snows mostly fall on the smaller communities to the east…
Erie rocks!!!! #1!
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Good site for intracity fun. Thanks for keeping it up. Quick comment to check the editing of your vs you’re! It’s probably too cold in many of these cities for our brains to work properly all the time!
Thanks Lori,
I wish I could blame it on the cold rather than being honest and blame it on me not paying attention in English class
It took me awhile to find the mistake but I did and Thanks for pointing it out. I can promise you one thing and that is that you will find many more mistakes here I’m sure 
Just a heads up. I love seeing and reading all of the comments that are posted here. My only request is that we all keep the comments in line with the snow, weather and the contest. A few are getting off subject about how good or bad certain cities are to live in and so on. I normally let pretty much everything get posted but from here on I’m going to hold off on those posts, let’s keep them friendly
That said don’t get me wrong. Feel free to bring on the trash talking about how your city is going to beat my city (Syracuse) or whatever as long as it is all in fun and light hearted. Thanks everyone
Thanks for posting this, Patrick. There is no need for that sort of banter on a site like this. Thanks for all your hard work!
Patrick,
If you are the moderator, good for you, I agree with your comment to keep it to the weather. That said, those of us that come here would appreciate consistency in the application of the “heads up” you provided us in this post regarding topic matter. My comment to the 2 posts regarding my wonderful community of Erie was deleted by you, which makes sense based on the application of your rules. So unless you are an Erie Hater, Ed’s original post on Jan 4th and the 3 responses, including mine should come down. Thanks for keeping the peace and for this fun website, for those of us that love 4 seasons – the more snow the better!!
Hi ERIEsistable,
I actually saved that post that you made in response to the others and went back and forth about publishing it or not. I also edited this one just a little and I do agree with you about the other posts and being fair about it. I’ll also take care of those. FWIW I admire your passion for Erie and I feel the same way about the Syracuse area. As for being an Erie hater not even close. I love all of the posts and emails I get from the people from Erie and it is a lot of them. Am I rooting for Erie to win? Hell No but I love the competition Erie and some of the other cities are giving Syracuse
Take Care!
So how sure are we that 101k people still live in Erie, PA?
Lol Eric
we all love it that’s why we live here!!!
Who “remembers” when a “Catholic Disoese’s (sic)” churches CANCELLED “masses” because of Winter Weather Conditions (e.g., chill factor, cold, snow, wind, etc.)???? Far too many Catholic Churches DID cancel mass, this morning, along with many “two-hour-start-delays” for most, out-lying school districts, scheduled events, etc.! Right now, despite the “glory of it NOT snowing” for that past 12 hours, Erie, PA, weather is, as follows:
11:56 AM Sunny “9°F” )Feels like: ” -15°F” )
Winds: N 3mph Gusts: 3mph
Today: Very cold with variable cloudiness; snow showers this afternoon with little or no accumulation – - – “High Temperature” = 12°F
//Guess that is why I “moved” back to Erie! Since I moved back in December 1998, “…seven-of-the-past-15-Winter Seasons…” set Snow Accumulation RECORDs!! So much for the changing seasons!!
so much for global warming.lol bring on the cold
Love my city and all the snow. I work in a nursing home and we watch for the snow global postings. Bring it on Erie.
Looks like a record breaking year for snow here in Erie Pa. Guess what its doing now? Snow Snow Snowing. Time to Get the snow thrower out again ugh.
Yup Still snowing in Erie lol let it snow let it snow let it snow
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All the snow in Erie melted! It is suppose to snow again in a few days. Oh how I love you bi-polar Erie weather.
Where is Minnesota?!
Hi Lillie, Minnesota is in the contest, you can find them at http://goldensnowglobe.com/all-snowiest-us-cities/
Pulaski, NY has hit 60+ inches now. It has not stopped snowing for 9 days straight. Word is Redfield, NY and Orwell are both well over 100 inches. Where do we find daily NY snowfall totals?
Out of curiosity, shouldn’t Binghamton be in the top 10? I thought they had 21.9 inches. Just going off of the Snowball Competition.
Oops, never mind, I just realized that Binghamton is slightly smaller than 100,000 people, haha. I guess I forgot that Binghamton is just a tad smaller than Syracuse.
Of course Erie is the snowiest city! And of course I have to live there.
It’s coming down pretty hard in Liverpool right now.
I Love The Snow And The Most Snowiest City
i want more , more , more snow as it is in the beginning during the ice age … Nick Scott and Santa Clause is liking it too
drive slower and safer so everyone can be here to enjoy what God has given us …
I wonder how this compares with the Canadian cities.
Yep, Erie, PA is really getting dumped on this weekend! No biggie. Visibility is pretty bad now. Stay safe out there drivers.
Well don’t get too big of a lead on the rest of us Denise. Just a flurry around the Syracuse area right now. Like you already said, Stay safe all of you in Erie, heard from a lot of people that it’s crazy outside tonight.
Erie is CRAZY right now! No school today, close to three feet piled in my yard. Still snowing too! goerie.com put us at 41.9 inches today
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