January 2021 – One of the Snowiest on Record

Depending on how much snow we get on the final days of the month, January 2021 has a chance to become the snowiest on record for Waterloo.

As of Friday, 1/29, the Waterloo-area has already seen 17.2” of snow this month, which would place it tied for the 7^th snowiest January on record, according to the National Weather Service.

#1 24.2” 1996
#2 21.5” 1999
#3 19.8” 1929
#4 19.2” 2019
#5 18.9” 1906
#6 18.1” 1982
#7 17.2” 2021
#7 17.2” 1979

On average, Waterloo gets around 35" of snow per calendar year, according to the weather.gov. Seasonally, Waterloo averages 25.5" snow for the 'winter months' of December, January, and February.

So far, Waterloo has accumulated 27.4" in December and January. (as of 1/29)

The snowiest season for Waterloo was the winter of 2018-2019 when 60" of snow fell.

Des Moines has had the sixth snowiest January on record with 19.6” of snow. (as of 1/29)