Rochester MN Snowfall Totals & Accumulation Averages

How Often it Snows in Rochester

The next two tables list monthly and yearly totals for amount of snow and how many days it snows at least 0.1 inches (0.25 centimetres).

10-year snowfall averages at Rochester, Minnesota, 2010 to 2019

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
8.6	January	12.0	30.5
3.3	January	10.3	26.0
4.2	February	14.3	36.3
2.2	March	8.0	20.4
1.5	April	4.2	10.7
0.1	May	1.5	3.7
0.2	October	0.5	1.2
0.8	November	3.3	8.5
4.2	December	14.2	36.1
16.5	Year	56.3	143.1

30-year snowfall averages at Rochester, Minnesota, 1991 to 2020

Days		Inches	Centi­metres
8.8	January	12.2	31.0
7.3	February	10.7	27.2
5.6	March	8.6	21.8
2.6	April	3.3	8.4
0.1	May	0.5	1.3
0.8	October	0.9	2.3
4.5	November	4.5	11.4
8.7	December	12.4	31.5
38.4	Year	53.1	134.9

These averages don't show how much the snowfall in Rochester varies from year to year.

In December, for instance, one in four years totals 13.2 inches or more of snow. Another 25 percent of years receive less than 7.1 inches for the month.

Similarly in January, fresh snowfall in the heaviest years amounts to over 15.5 inches, while the lightest years get less than 8.4 inches.

New snow for February ranges from over 13.4 inches in heavy snowfall years to under 6.6 inches in light years.

When Rochester Has Its First & Last Snowfalls

Rochester's first snowfall of winter usually arrives in November. But at least once every four years, snow comes as early as October.

The season's last snowfall typically happens in April, although at least one in four Aprils receive no fresh snow. Very rarely a few snowflakes land in May.

Rochester is normally free of snow every year from June to September.

How Many Snowstorms Rochester Gets

Most days of snowfall in Rochester leave just a skiff, amounting to less than an inch, of fresh snow on the ground. For 16 days a year on average, the amount of new snow totals at least an inch.

Snowstorms of over five inches a day usually happen a couple times a year. But major blizzards that dump ten inches or more in one day are rare events. Snowstorms this severe have normally occurred just in March.

Number of days per month and year on average in Rochester with a total snowfall of at least 1, 3, 5 or 10 inches

1 inch 2.5 cm	3 inches 7.6 cm		5 inches 12.7 cm	10 inches 25.4 cm
3.8	1.3	January	0.6	0.0
3.3	1.1	February	0.5	0.0
2.3	0.9	March	0.4	0.1
1.0	0.4	April	0.1	0.0
0.3	0.1	October	0.0	0.0
1.2	0.4	November	0.1	0.0
3.7	1.2	December	0.4	0.0
15.6	5.4	Year	2.1	0.1

How Much Snow Normally Accumulates in Rochester

For nearly all of winter, along with some of early spring and late fall, Rochester has at least an inch of snow on the ground.

A snowpack that gets to ten or more inches deep can cover the city anytime from November to March. For an average of two days a year, the snow blanketing Rochester builds up to over twenty inches.

Average total days per month and year in Rochester with snow depth of at least 1, 3, 5 or 10 inches on the ground

1 inch 2.5 cm	3 inches 7.6 cm		5 inches 12.7 cm	10 inches 25.4 cm
25.4	20.3	January	16.3	7.0
23.3	20.1	February	16.1	7.8
13.6	9.7	March	7.9	3.7
1.9	0.6	April	0.3	0.0
0.1	0.1	May	0.1	0.1
0.3	0.0	October	0.0	0.0
4.5	2.2	November	1.0	0.1
19.8	12.8	December	7.9	2.7
88.9	65.8	Year	49.6	21.4