Chicago weather: How 2025-26 seasonal snowfall compares

In Chicago, snow seasons are tracked from July through the following June. The area normally can expect 38.4 inches, according to the National Weather Service. During the 2024-25 season, the area accumulated just 17.6 inches.

The most snow Chicago has ever received in one season was 89.7 inches during 1978-79. The least — 9.8 inches — occurred in 1920-21.

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Here’s a look back at how our current snowfall compares with previous seasons.

• Chicago weather: What’s normal for fall’s first freeze and first snow? And when does it happen?
• Chicago’s 10 largest snowfalls since 1886 — and how the Tribune covered them
• Chicago’s winter parking ban goes into effect Dec 1. Here’s what to know — snow or no snow.
• Thanksgiving weather in Chicago: The most extreme conditions since 1872
• Chicago’s Christmas weather: The warmest and coldest since 1872
• New Year’s Day in Chicago: The warmest, coldest, snowiest and wettest weather since 1872
• Valentine’s Day in Chicago: The warmest, coldest, snowiest and wettest weather since 1871
• Chicago’s craziest St. Patrick’s Day weather — and how the Tribune covered it
• Easter weather in Chicago: The warmest, coldest, wettest and snowiest days on record since 1871