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Maybe you will be visiting Atlanta in the winter or perhaps you are considering making Atlanta or one of the Atlanta suburbs your new home. If so, you may wonder, does it snow in Atlanta?
Yes, snow does factor into the pro’s and con’s of living in Atlanta.
The answer is, it does snow in Atlanta, but not regularly. The snow in Atlanta is usually nothing to worry about.
Although, when you look at the shelves in the grocery store, you’d think we were all told to lock down again. The news anchor usually make snow in Atlanta, a very big deal, and therefore everyone panics.
The truth is, very infrequently, Atlanta will get a Snowmageddon and the city will shut down.
More typically snowfall in Atlanta will start falling over night and melt away by the afternoon. Once every few years, the snow in Atlanta stays long enough that the kids can go sledding, make and snowman and just enjoy it in the backyard for a couple days.
How Many Inches of Snow Does Atlanta Get?
Depending on your internet source, Atlanta averages somewhere between 1 and 3 inches of snow per year.
Based on extreme weather watch, the highest recorded annual snow amount in Atlanta occurred in 1936 with 10.5 inches. The only other year on record with double digit inches of snow was in 1983 with 10.4 inches.
When Does In Usually Snow in Atlanta?
As expected, the winter months bring the best chances for snow. Atlanta usually sees 48 days where temperatures plummet below freezing. December is usually the driest, while March gets slightly warmer yet is the wettest month.
Your best chance to see snow in Atlanta is in January, with an average on 1 inch falling during the coldest month of the year.
Atlanta Average Temperatures by Month in Winter
All data here was obtained from the NOAA and is supplied in degrees Fahrenheit.
Usual Weather in Atlanta in December
- Average High Temperature: 55 degrees
- Average Low Temperature: 37 degrees
- Average Rainfall: 4.4 inches
- Average Snowfall: 0.3 inches
Usual Weather in Atlanta in January
- Average High Temperature: 53 degrees
- Average Low Temperature: 34 degrees
- Average Precipitation: 4.7 inches
- Average Snowfall: 1 inch
Usual Weather in Atlanta in February
- Average High Temperature: 57 degrees
- Average Low Temperature: 37 degrees
- Average Precipitation: 4.5 inches
- Average Snowfall: 0.5 inches
Usual Weather in Atlanta in March
- Average High Temperature: 65 degrees
- Average Low Temperature: 44 degrees
- Average Precipitation: 5.1 inches
- Average Snowfall: 0.5 inches
Recent Noteworthy Snowstorms in Atlanta
Having lived in the Atlanta area for over 15 years, only a couple snowfalls in Atlanta come to mind that were noteworthy. Of the two, just only one caused major disruption and it was dubbed Snowmageddon Atlanta or the snowpocalypse.
I remember it vividly.
Prior to the Snowmageddon, Atlanta and the surrounding suburbs usually never treated the roads with salt. Occasionally after snowfalls, they would spread sand on hills and sharp turns. After this gruesome day, when people were abandoning their cars, walking 8 miles home or worse, sleeping on the floor at the Home Depot, the city finally decided to invest in salt reserves.
Luckily for me, I was working from home. I only had to drive 1 mile to pick up my child from day care. That 1 mile drive took 2 hours. Dreadful, but could have been far worse.
Enough about me, what was the snowmageddon of Atlanta?
Snowmageddon Atlanta in 2014
In January of 2014, Atlanta was blanketed in 3 inches of snow and then was followed with an icy crust. The ice lasted for ever a week and schools and businesses were closed during that time.
From what I remember, it wasn’t just the snow in Atlanta that caused the problem, it was that the snow came faster and earlier than expected.
The entire city of Atlanta took notice too late and started dismissing schools and businesses. Everyone in the city was on the road at the same time causing massive congestion.
While everyone was idling in traffic trying to get home, the ice started. With all the hills and ramps from the highway sheets of ice, most cars in Atlanta could not escape leaving people to abandon their cars.
You see, it is usual in hot weather climates to sell more rear wheel drive vehicles than 4×4’s.
On that day, there were over 800 accidents.
Now the the government has allotted a substantial budget to salt brine for the roads. The amount increased from 70,500 gallons of brine on reserve in 2014 to over 1,100,000 gallons of brine.
Atlanta’s White Christmas in 2010
If you are from a cold weather region and transplanted to Atlanta, you may find yourself longing for a white Chistmas. One when you wake up and find snow accumulation in yard and dusting he pine trees white.
In 2010, Atlanta recorded 6.8 inches of snow that year, placing it as the 6th highest amount of annual snow.
This was Atlanta’s first White Christmas since the 1880’s.
Snow Activities in Atlanta
Even though Atlanta is in a warm climate zone, does not mean you cannot have fun in the snow.
If you are willing to drive a few hours, you can find some nice ski resorts near Atlanta. They aren’t like Colorado resorts, but they are a great place to take the family for a weekend away on the slopes.
These ski resorts include:
- Beech Mountain
- Appalachian Ski Mountain
- Wolf Ridge Ski Resort
- Cataloochee Ski Area
- Sugar Mountain Resort
- Ober Gatlintburg
- Ski Sapphire Valley
Snow tubing is another great winter activity in Atlanta. You can find snow tubing at Stone Mountain during the winter or at Lake Lanier Islands Resort.