Here Are The Winter Storm Names For 2025-26

These Names On Deck For Winter Storms This Season

The 2025-26 season is the 14th season that The Weather Channel is naming winter storms.

The names you see below will be used in alphabetical order to identify this season's winter storms, starting with Alston.

Here's what these winter storms typically look like:

The Weather Channel will name a high-impact winter storm with significant snow and/or ice affecting at least one, if not multiple, regions of the country.

This is done to raise awareness of the hazards of winter storms, including treacherous, challenging driving conditions, potential power outages and tree damage. It is similar to the original rationale for naming tropical storms and hurricanes beginning in the mid-20th century.

We anticipate many of these winter storms will be named well ahead of time, if forecasts of such widespread impacts are consistent, such as February 2021's Winter Storm Uri in the West, South and Northeast.

The 2012-13 list for winter storms was the first of its kind to be developed by The Weather Channel.

Here's what we do not name: Lake-effect snowstorms and pure arctic cold outbreaks are not named.

Winter storm names exclude any current Atlantic and eastern Pacific hurricane names on the National Hurricane Center lists for the next six years, and any retired hurricane names (those particularly deadly, destructive and historic).

The first storm has been named as early as October, but November is the most common time. Over the past 12 seasons, the first winter storm has been named as early as the first few days of October to as late as early December 2021. On average, you can expect the first named storm by the second week of November.

Most recently, two named storms formed in October in 2019, 2020 and 2023.

That nation had its most widespread snow cover in at least 20 years of records on Halloween last year because of back-to-back winter storms.

The season's final winter storm has been named anywhere from mid-March through mid-May. The 2020-21 season's final storm was the earliest on record after Winter Storm Xylia pummeled the High Plains with feet of snow in mid-March 2021.

February is the peak month. Named winter storms are most frequent from late January through February.

The steepest ramp-up of storms occurs from November through December, as cold air becomes more abundant and widespread.

The number of storms falls sharply as the calendar flips from February to March as warmer air begins to infiltrate northward, shrinking the area susceptible to heavy snow and ice.