Home Alert types Lake Effect Snow Advisory National Weather Service Lake Effect Snow Advisory VTEC LE.Y Archive to October 1, 2026
Lake Effect Snow Advisory: what it means and how often it is issued The National Weather Service issued 1,155 lake effect snow advisories from 2008 to 2017, 116 a year on average, and has not issued the product since 2017; New York, Michigan and Pennsylvania had the most.
What is a lake effect snow advisory? A lake effect snow advisory covered bands of lake effect snow below warning amounts. Since October 2017 the NWS issues a winter weather advisory for it. An advisory is issued for a hazard less serious than a warning that can still cause inconvenience or danger if people are not careful.
Warning, watch or advisory: the three levels compared
Source: National Weather Service directives and glossary .
How many lake effect snow advisories a year? 0 lake effect snow advisories in 2025 100 200 300 2008: 176 2008 2009: 133 2009 2010: 125 2010 2011: 106 2011 2012: 73 2012 2013: 207 2013 2014: 116 2014 2015: 60 2015 2016: 105 2016 2017: 54 2017 2008-2025 average 116 100 200 300 2008: 176 2008 2009: 133 2009 2010: 125 2010 2011: 106 2011 2012: 73 2012 2013: 207 2013 2014: 116 2014 2015: 60 2015 2016: 105 2016 2017: 54 2017 2008-2025 average 116 100 200 300 2008: 176 2008 2009: 133 2009 2010: 125 2010 2011: 106 2011 2012: 73 2012 2013: 207 2013 2014: 116 2014 2015: 60 2015 2016: 105 2016 2017: 54 2017 2008-2025 average 116 100 200 300 2008: 176 2008 2009: 133 2010: 125 2010 2011: 106 2012: 73 2012 2013: 207 2014: 116 2014 2015: 60 2016: 105 2017: 54 2017 2008-2025 average 116
National count: each lake effect snow advisory counted once, whatever the number of states it covers. 2026 is an outline: the year is not over.
The numbers Year Count 2017 54 2016 105 2015 60 2014 116 2013 207 2012 73 2011 106 2010 125 2009 133 2008 176
Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet archive of National Weather Service watches, warnings and advisories (VTEC) ; National Weather Service . Data as of October 1, 2026.
When in the year? Lake Effect Snow Advisories by month, 2008-2025 200 400 Jan: 392 Jan Feb: 217 Feb Mar: 50 Mar Apr: 12 Apr May: 0 May Jun: 0 Jun Jul: 0 Jul Aug: 0 Aug Sep: 0 Sep Oct: 23 Oct Nov: 186 Nov Dec: 275 Dec 392 200 400 Jan: 392 Jan Feb: 217 Feb Mar: 50 Mar Apr: 12 Apr May: 0 May Jun: 0 Jun Jul: 0 Jul Aug: 0 Aug Sep: 0 Sep Oct: 23 Oct Nov: 186 Nov Dec: 275 Dec 392 200 400 Jan: 392 Jan Feb: 217 Feb Mar: 50 Mar Apr: 12 Apr May: 0 May Jun: 0 Jun Jul: 0 Jul Aug: 0 Aug Sep: 0 Sep Oct: 23 Oct Nov: 186 Nov Dec: 275 Dec 392 200 400 Jan: 392 J Feb: 217 F Mar: 50 M Apr: 12 A May: 0 M Jun: 0 J Jul: 0 J Aug: 0 A Sep: 0 S Oct: 23 O Nov: 186 N Dec: 275 D 392
Sum of 2008-2025; the busiest month is labelled.
Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet archive of National Weather Service watches, warnings and advisories (VTEC) ; National Weather Service . Data as of October 1, 2026.
Which states get the most lake effect snow advisories? New York gets the most: 0 a year in 2021-2025 New York New York: 0 0 Michigan Michigan: 0 0 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania: 0 0 Wisconsin Wisconsin: 0 0 Ohio Ohio: 0 0 Indiana Indiana: 0 0 Illinois Illinois: 0 0 Minnesota Minnesota: 0 0 Nevada Nevada: 0 0 Utah Utah: 0 0 New York New York: 0 0 Michigan Michigan: 0 0 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania: 0 0 Wisconsin Wisconsin: 0 0 Ohio Ohio: 0 0 Indiana Indiana: 0 0 Illinois Illinois: 0 0 Minnesota Minnesota: 0 0 Nevada Nevada: 0 0 Utah Utah: 0 0 New York New York: 0 0 Michigan Michigan: 0 0 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania: 0 0 Wisconsin Wisconsin: 0 0 Ohio Ohio: 0 0 Indiana Indiana: 0 0 Illinois Illinois: 0 0 Minnesota Minnesota: 0 0 Nevada Nevada: 0 0 Utah Utah: 0 0 New York New York: 0 0 Michigan Michigan: 0 0 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania: 0 0 Wisconsin Wisconsin: 0 0 Ohio Ohio: 0 0 Indiana Indiana: 0 0 Illinois Illinois: 0 0 Minnesota Minnesota: 0 0 Nevada Nevada: 0 0 Utah Utah: 0 0
Yearly average per state, 2021-2025. A lake effect snow advisory covering two states counts in both.
Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet archive of National Weather Service watches, warnings and advisories (VTEC) ; National Weather Service . Data as of October 1, 2026.