Ranked from NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
Snowiest Counties in Iowa
Average annual snowfall by county, deepest first. Snow is the cost nobody budgets for: removal, roof load, the shorter life of a driveway that freezes and thaws all winter, and the heating demand in the column beside it. Figures are NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals from the weather station nearest each county seat, so they describe a thirty-year average rather than any single year. Counties with no measurable snowfall in the normals are left out rather than listed as zero.
Iowa ranked
| # | County | Annual snowfall | Heating degree days | Monthly to own |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cerro Gordo County | 44.4" | 7,647 | $1,411 |
| 2 | Dubuque County | 42.5" | 7,084 | $1,932 |
| 3 | Osceola County | 41.5" | 8,036 | $1,128 |
| 4 | Fayette County | 41.1" | 7,767 | $1,209 |
| 5 | Howard County | 40.3" | 7,839 | $1,231 |
| 6 | Worth County | 40.2" | 8,378 | $1,269 |
| 7 | Mitchell County | 39.6" | 7,746 | $1,443 |
| 8 | Black Hawk County | 39.1" | 6,714 | $1,639 |
| 9 | Webster County | 39.0" | 7,388 | $1,287 |
| 10 | Pocahontas County | 38.8" | 7,344 | $906 |
| 11 | Chickasaw County | 38.5" | 7,872 | $1,437 |
| 12 | Dickinson County | 38.0" | 7,569 | $2,068 |
| 13 | Cherokee County | 37.8" | 7,404 | $1,290 |
| 14 | Floyd County | 37.5" | 7,356 | $1,236 |
| 15 | Winneshiek County | 37.5" | 6,794 | $2,012 |
| 16 | Palo Alto County | 37.1" | 7,250 | $1,112 |
| 17 | Ida County | 36.0" | 6,860 | $1,016 |
| 18 | Woodbury County | 36.0" | 6,860 | $1,549 |
| 19 | Boone County | 35.9" | 6,921 | $1,693 |
| 20 | Clayton County | 35.6" | 7,512 | $1,409 |
| 21 | Lyon County | 34.9" | 7,624 | $1,791 |
| 22 | O'Brien County | 34.8" | 6,989 | $1,382 |
| 23 | Sioux County | 34.8" | 6,993 | $1,984 |
| 24 | Delaware County | 34.7" | 7,392 | $1,504 |
| 25 | Crawford County | 34.5" | 7,112 | $1,251 |
| 26 | Linn County | 34.3" | 6,384 | $1,834 |
| 27 | Buchanan County | 33.9" | 7,252 | $1,524 |
| 28 | Benton County | 33.6" | 7,441 | $1,731 |
| 29 | Hardin County | 33.2" | 7,269 | $1,082 |
| 30 | Hamilton County | 32.9" | 7,457 | $1,226 |
| 31 | Tama County | 32.8" | 7,115 | $1,287 |
| 32 | Grundy County | 32.3" | 7,227 | $1,554 |
| 33 | Calhoun County | 32.1" | 7,187 | $1,082 |
| 34 | Greene County | 31.7" | 7,002 | $1,269 |
| 35 | Louisa County | 31.3" | 6,661 | $1,256 |
| 36 | Wright County | 31.1" | 7,309 | $1,068 |
| 37 | Poweshiek County | 31.0" | 7,038 | $1,615 |
| 38 | Plymouth County | 30.9" | 7,312 | $1,842 |
| 39 | Sac County | 30.9" | 7,372 | $1,234 |
| 40 | Warren County | 30.8" | 6,417 | $2,188 |
| 41 | Madison County | 30.7" | 6,870 | $2,073 |
| 42 | Shelby County | 30.5" | 6,566 | $1,398 |
| 43 | Jackson County | 30.3" | 6,943 | $1,502 |
| 44 | Monroe County | 30.0" | 6,336 | $1,271 |
| 45 | Muscatine County | 29.4" | 6,284 | $1,562 |
| 46 | Harrison County | 28.7" | 6,702 | $1,478 |
| 47 | Jasper County | 28.7" | 6,803 | $1,579 |
| 48 | Monona County | 28.6" | 6,879 | $1,129 |
| 49 | Clarke County | 28.1" | 6,442 | $1,454 |
| 50 | Iowa County | 28.1" | 6,866 | $1,668 |
| 51 | Pottawattamie County | 28.0" | 6,555 | $1,661 |
| 52 | Adams County | 27.8" | 6,509 | $1,097 |
| 53 | Montgomery County | 27.4" | 6,205 | $1,091 |
| 54 | Cass County | 27.3" | 6,638 | $1,240 |
| 55 | Lee County | 26.6" | 5,910 | $1,172 |
| 56 | Adair County | 25.5" | 6,628 | $1,285 |
| 57 | Washington County | 25.2" | 6,536 | $1,744 |
| 58 | Henry County | 24.8" | 6,381 | $1,382 |
| 59 | Polk County | 24.7" | 6,547 | $2,206 |
| 60 | Davis County | 24.2" | 6,035 | $1,350 |
| 61 | Lucas County | 24.1" | 6,801 | $1,118 |
| 62 | Mills County | 23.7" | 6,188 | $1,990 |
| 63 | Wapello County | 23.6" | 6,145 | $1,101 |
| 64 | Van Buren County | 23.0" | 6,180 | $1,105 |
| 65 | Page County | 22.8" | 6,292 | $1,137 |
| 66 | Jefferson County | 21.7" | 6,377 | $1,466 |
| 67 | Appanoose County | 21.5" | 6,330 | $1,118 |
| 68 | Fremont County | 20.6" | 6,182 | $1,335 |
| 69 | Ringgold County | 20.5" | 6,422 | $1,353 |
Every figure is modelled on the county's own median home with 20% down at 7.03%. Property tax and electricity are county and state specific; homeowners insurance uses the NAIC average premium for that state, which ranges from 0.16% of home value in Hawaii to 1.16% in Oklahoma. Maintenance and water are national estimates. Full methodology.
Nationwide
Snowiest Counties across all 3,133 US counties · Every county in Iowa