The first snow of the season typically happens later in fall for most in the U.S. However, the record earliest snowfalls have happened much earlier, including in recent years.

The national view

The map below shows the month in which the earliest measurable snow has fallen in each of the U.S. cities where snowfall is considered typical each year.

By measurable snow, we mean at least 0.1 inch of snow is recorded. That's usually just enough to at least dust your lawn, roof, or top of your vehicle.

Weather in your inbox

Forecast Location

Sign Up

By signing up you agree to the Terms & Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe at any time.

There are some general takeaways:

• September is when parts of the West and northern tier have seen their record earliest snow.
• October is when many Midwest and Northeast cities have seen their record early snow.
• November is when parts of the South from the Carolinas and Tennessee Valley to parts of northern Texas have had their record early snow.
• The farther north and higher in elevation, the earlier in fall it can snow.

Northeast

While far northern New England can see snow as early as September, for most of the Northeast, it has snowed as early as October.

While Buffalo's snowbelt location has seen at least a dusting during the first week of October, a lake-effect snowstorm in mid-October 2006 caused $200 million damage to trees and power lines.

Get More of Our News on Google

Set The Weather Company as a 'Preferred Source' to get quicker access to the news you value.

As you can see below, many of the Interstate 95 corridor's early records were set in mid-October 1979. More recently, a late October 2011 snowstorm dumped over 10 inches of snow from northeast Pennsylvania to southern Maine.

Midwest

From the Northern Plains to the northern Great Lakes, it has snowed before in September. As you can see below, Marquette, Michigan, once picked up a dusting of snow before summer officially ended.

In the rest of the Midwest, October is as early as it has snowed.

The same snowstorm in mid-October 2006 that clobbered Buffalo also brought a dusting of record early snow to both Chicago and Detroit.

But sometimes this record early snow is heavier.

In October 1989, heavy, wet snow fell over parts of Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. Indianapolis picked up 9.3 inches of snow, while Cincinnati picked up almost 6 inches. Trees and power lines were downed and half of the city of Cincinnati was without power for a time.

West

Given the higher elevation, it's no surprise many western locations have seen measurable snow as early as September.

Among 2020's weirdest weather, Colorado's Front Range went from triple-digit heat, to dense wildfire smoke on Labor Day, then one of their earliest snowfalls on record in early September 2020.

Not weird enough for you?

There have been many instances of August snow not just in the highest elevations of the West, but also some lower elevations of Montana.

From Aug. 22-23, 1992, what the National Weather Service called "an unprecedented weather event" dumped 8.3 inches of snow in Great Falls, Montana. That was the first and only time measurable snow was recorded in Great Falls in August since 1886. The weight of this heavy snow downed tree limbs in the city.

South

The High Plains of the Texas Panhandle has seen snow as early as late September, due to its higher elevation and tendency for fast-plunging "blue norther" cold fronts.

But for most of the rest of the South where at least a little snowfall is typical every year, that largely hasn't happened outside of higher elevations until November.

Birmingham, Alabama's record early snow was from one of the most historic storms in U.S. history.

The Great Appalachian Storm of 1950 hammered the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, Appalachians and Northeast with feet of snow, high winds and blistering cold.

It also dumped an inch of snow in Birmingham the day after Thanksgiving.

Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at weather.com and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.