How Much Snow Closes School in Every State
An inch of snow can close every school in Atlanta, while Buffalo plows through half a foot. This map shows roughly how much overnight snow it takes to make a closure a coin flip in each state, estimated from how much snow its people normally get.
Population-weighted typical closing point for the 3,232 towns we track. Hawaii isn't covered.
Snow day threshold by state
The "typical" value is the closing point for the town at the middle of each state's population, sorted by snowfall. The range shows how much it varies inside the state.
| State | Typical normal snowfall | Typical closing point | Range in state | Largest city |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 0" | 1" | 1"–1" | Jacksonville: 1" |
| Louisiana | 0" | 1" | 1"–1" | New Orleans: 1" |
| Texas | 0" | 1" | 1"–3" | Houston: 1" |
| South Carolina | 0" | 1" | 1"–1.5" | Charleston: 1" |
| Alabama | 1" | 1" | 1"–1.5" | Huntsville: 1" |
| Mississippi | 1" | 1" | 1"–1" | Jackson: 1" |
| Georgia | 1" | 1" | 1"–1" | Atlanta: 1" |
| Tennessee | 3" | 1" | 1"–2.5" | Nashville: 1.5" |
| Arkansas | 3" | 1" | 1"–2" | Little Rock: 1" |
| California | 3" | 1" | 1"–10" | San Jose: 1" |
| North Carolina | 3" | 1" | 1"–4" | Charlotte: 1" |
| Oregon | 4" | 1.5" | 1"–8" | Portland: 1.5" |
| Washington | 4" | 1.5" | 1"–8" | Seattle: 1.5" |
| Virginia | 5" | 1.5" | 1"–4" | Virginia Beach: 1.5" |
| Oklahoma | 6" | 1.5" | 1"–4" | Oklahoma: 1.5" |
| Nevada | 6" | 1.5" | 1.5"–6" | Las Vegas: 1.5" |
| Arizona | 10" | 2" | 1"–7" | Flagstaff: 7" |
| New Mexico | 10" | 2" | 1"–7" | Albuquerque: 2" |
| District of Columbia | 11" | 2" | 2"–2" | Washington: 2" |
| Missouri | 12" | 2" | 1"–4" | Kansas: 2" |
| Kentucky | 12" | 2" | 1"–5" | Louisville/Jefferson County: 2.5" |
| Kansas | 14" | 2.5" | 1.5"–4" | Wichita: 2" |
| Delaware | 14" | 2.5" | 2"–3" | Wilmington: 2.5" |
| Idaho | 20" | 3" | 2"–9" | Boise: 3" |
| Maryland | 23" | 3" | 1.5"–9" | Baltimore: 3" |
| West Virginia | 23" | 3" | 2"–7" | Charleston: 4" |
| Indiana | 24" | 4" | 1.5"–6" | Indianapolis: 4" |
| Pennsylvania | 25" | 4" | 2.5"–9" | Philadelphia: 3" |
| New Jersey | 25" | 4" | 2"–5" | Newark: 4" |
| Ohio | 25" | 4" | 2"–9" | Columbus: 4" |
| New York | 27" | 4" | 3"–10" | New York: 4" |
| Nebraska | 28" | 4" | 3"–6" | Omaha: 4" |
| Iowa | 33" | 4" | 3"–6" | Des Moines: 5" |
| Illinois | 37" | 5" | 1.5"–5" | Chicago: 5" |
| Rhode Island | 42" | 5" | 4"–6" | Providence: 5" |
| Michigan | 43" | 5" | 4"–10" | Detroit: 5" |
| Connecticut | 45" | 5" | 4"–7" | Bridgeport: 5" |
| Wisconsin | 45" | 6" | 5"–9" | Milwaukee: 6" |
| South Dakota | 47" | 6" | 4"–8" | Sioux Falls: 6" |
| Minnesota | 47" | 6" | 5"–8" | Minneapolis: 6" |
| Montana | 48" | 6" | 2"–10" | Billings: 6" |
| North Dakota | 50" | 6" | 5"–6" | Fargo: 6" |
| Colorado | 50" | 6" | 3"–10" | Denver: 6" |
| Massachusetts | 52" | 6" | 3"–8" | Boston: 6" |
| Utah | 56" | 6" | 1"–9" | Salt Lake: 7" |
| New Hampshire | 59" | 6" | 6"–9" | Manchester: 6" |
| Wyoming | 63" | 7" | 2.5"–8" | Cheyenne: 7" |
| Maine | 70" | 7" | 6"–9" | Portland: 7" |
| Vermont | 87" | 8" | 7"–10" | Burlington: 8" |
| Alaska | 96" | 8" | 5"–9" | Anchorage: 8" |
How much snow closes school in major cities
| City | Normal snowfall | Usually closes at about |
|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville, FL | 0" a year | 1" |
| New Orleans, LA | 0" a year | 1" |
| Houston, TX | 0" a year | 1" |
| San Antonio, TX | 0" a year | 1" |
| Austin, TX | 0" a year | 1" |
| Arlington, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| Corpus Christi, TX | 0" a year | 1" |
| Laredo, TX | 0" a year | 1" |
| Garland, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| Atlanta, GA | 1" a year | 1" |
| Dallas, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| Fort Worth, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| Plano, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| Irving, TX | 1" a year | 1" |
| San Jose, CA | 3" a year | 1" |
| Charlotte, NC | 3" a year | 1" |
| Memphis, TN | 3" a year | 1" |
| El Paso, TX | 3" a year | 1" |
| Durham, NC | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Portland, OR | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Nashville, TN | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Virginia Beach, VA | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Chesapeake, VA | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Seattle, WA | 4" a year | 1.5" |
| Raleigh, NC | 5" a year | 1.5" |
| Greensboro, NC | 6" a year | 1.5" |
| Winston-Salem, NC | 5" a year | 1.5" |
| Oklahoma, OK | 6" a year | 1.5" |
| Las Vegas, NV | 6" a year | 1.5" |
| Lubbock, TX | 7" a year | 1.5" |
| Tulsa, OK | 8" a year | 2" |
| Albuquerque, NM | 10" a year | 2" |
| Washington, DC | 11" a year | 2" |
| Wichita, KS | 12" a year | 2" |
| Lexington, KY | 12" a year | 2" |
| Kansas, MO | 12" a year | 2" |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | 13" a year | 2.5" |
| St. Louis, MO | 13" a year | 2.5" |
| Cincinnati, OH | 16" a year | 2.5" |
| Philadelphia, PA | 17" a year | 3" |
| Boise, ID | 20" a year | 3" |
| Baltimore, MD | 23" a year | 3" |
| Oyster Bay, NY | 23" a year | 3" |
| Indianapolis, IN | 24" a year | 4" |
| Hempstead, NY | 25" a year | 4" |
| Columbus, OH | 25" a year | 4" |
| Lincoln, NE | 27" a year | 4" |
| Reno, NV | 28" a year | 4" |
| New York, NY | 27" a year | 4" |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 28" a year | 4" |
| Newark, NJ | 29" a year | 4" |
| Jersey, NJ | 29" a year | 4" |
| Fort Wayne, IN | 31" a year | 4" |
| Islip, NY | 30" a year | 4" |
| Omaha, NE | 31" a year | 4" |
| Brookhaven, NY | 32" a year | 4" |
| Toledo, OH | 34" a year | 5" |
| Des Moines, IA | 35" a year | 5" |
| Detroit, MI | 36" a year | 5" |
| Chicago, IL | 37" a year | 5" |
| Madison, WI | 42" a year | 5" |
| St. Paul, MN | 44" a year | 5" |
| Spokane, WA | 46" a year | 6" |
| Milwaukee, WI | 45" a year | 6" |
| Aurora, CO | 47" a year | 6" |
| Minneapolis, MN | 47" a year | 6" |
| Denver, CO | 49" a year | 6" |
| Boston, MA | 52" a year | 6" |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 58" a year | 6" |
| Ann Arbor, MI | 59" a year | 6" |
| Cleveland, OH | 66" a year | 7" |
| Portland, ME | 70" a year | 7" |
| Duluth, MN | 69" a year | 7" |
| Grand Rapids, MI | 74" a year | 7" |
| Burlington, VT | 87" a year | 8" |
| Anchorage, AK | 96" a year | 8" |
| Buffalo, NY | 95" a year | 8" |
| Rochester, NY | 96" a year | 8" |
| Erie, PA | 112" a year | 9" |
| Marquette, MI | 117" a year | 9" |
| Syracuse, NY | 120" a year | 9" |
Method and sources
Normal snowfall is the NOAA 1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals annual snowfall, averaged from up to three NOAA stations within 40 km of each town (closer stations count more). The closing point comes from a smooth curve fitted to how districts behave in snowy and snowless places; it is our model's estimate, not any district's policy, and will be tuned with closure reports after this winter's storms. Full details are on how the snow day calculator works.
Journalists and teachers are welcome to use this map with a link to this page. For the underlying numbers, email contact@snowdayestimator.com.
Questions about snow day thresholds
How many inches of snow does it take to close school?
It depends on the state and the town. Weighted by population, the typical closing point ranges from about 1" in Florida to about 8" in Alaska, based on NOAA normal snowfall. Ice can close schools with far less.
Why do Southern schools close for so little snow?
Places that rarely get snow have few plows and salt trucks, and drivers have little practice on snow and ice, so even an inch or two can make roads dangerous for school buses.
How were these numbers calculated?
Each town gets a closing point from its NOAA 1991–2020 normal annual snowfall using a smooth curve: about 1 inch where snow is rare, 2 to 3 inches at 5 to 20 inches a year, 4 to 6 inches at 20 to 50 inches a year, and 8 inches or more above 80 inches a year. These are model estimates, not district policies.