Snow Day Calculator
Enter your ZIP code and get the odds that school is closed on the next school day, using the live hourly forecast for your town.
What actually gets schools closed
Districts rarely close for snowfall alone. The decision made before dawn weighs four things: how much snow is on untreated roads when buses start rolling (typically 5 to 6 AM), whether it is still coming down during the commute, whether there is ice under the snow, and whether the wind chill is dangerous for kids waiting at bus stops. This calculator models exactly those four factors.
Regional thresholds
The same storm produces wildly different outcomes depending on where you live. Southern and West Coast districts own few plows and close around an inch. Mid-Atlantic and Midwest districts usually hold out until three or four inches overnight. Snow-belt states such as Minnesota, Michigan, upstate New York and northern New England often need six inches or more, or a wind chill below −25°F, before they call it. We set the default from your state and let you override it.
Timing matters more than totals
Four inches that stop at 8 PM get plowed by morning; two inches that fall between 5 and 8 AM shut the roads at the worst possible moment. That is why the hour-by-hour table matters: look at where the snow sits relative to the commute, not just the total.
Reading the number
Treat anything above 70% as "very likely", 40 to 70% as a genuine coin flip that will be decided by the 4 AM road check, and below 25% as "set your alarm". Check back the evening before: forecasts for the next 12 hours are far more reliable than two-day-out guesses, and the calculator refreshes every 30 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
›How does the snow day calculator work?
It pulls the hourly forecast for your ZIP code (snowfall, temperature, wind chill, freezing rain, wind gusts), adds up the snow expected between the afternoon before and 9 AM on the next school day, and compares that with how much snow typically closes schools in your state. Ice, extreme wind chill, storm timing and blowing snow adjust the odds up or down.
›How accurate is it?
As accurate as the forecast, which is good one to two days out and rough beyond that. The calculator is a probability, not a promise: superintendents decide based on road conditions at 4 AM, bus routes and local judgment.
›What's the difference between a closure and a delay?
A delay (usually two hours) is the compromise districts reach when roads are bad early but expected to improve. We show both probabilities; when snow is near the closure threshold, a delay is often the more likely outcome.
›Why does my friend in another state get a different answer for the same snow?
Because thresholds differ enormously. An inch can close schools in Georgia, while Minnesota districts routinely run buses through six inches. You can override the regional default with the "how much snow usually closes schools here" setting.
›Does it work for colleges?
Yes, choose "College / university". Colleges close far less often than K-12 schools because they have no bus routes, so the odds are scaled down.
›Does it cover Canada or the UK?
The forecast works anywhere, but the closure thresholds are calibrated for US districts. You can enter a city name outside the US and pick a tolerance manually.