Winter 2020-2021 Review




Winter 2020-2021 Review Columbus, Ohio

The NOAA temperature outlook for winter 2020-2021.

The Winter 2020-2021 Review is the latest edition in the series. Overall, December and February brought some of the worst winter weather Columbus had seen in several years. Meanwhile, January and March were unusually quiet. Temperatures through January were fairly to slightly above average, while February was well below normal. March and April provided little winter weather, and March had no snowfall whatsoever.

Let’s break the winter down.

December-February Only
Average High: 37.8 42nd Coldest
Average Low: 25.1 34th Warmest
Mean: 31.4 42nd Warmest
Precipitation: 6.72″ 38th Driest
Snowfall: 24.7″ 31st Snowiest
Average Daily Snow Depth: 1.0″ 15th Highest
Largest Snowstorm: 5″ on 1/30-2/1/2021. This was a long-duration storm that moved only very slowly through the region.
# of 32 or Below Highs: 28 22nd Most
# of 32 or Below Lows: 79 10th Most
# of Measurable Precipitation Days: 38 14th Fewest
# of Measurable Snowfall Days: 23 14th Most

Overall, winter 2020-21 was somewhat average- not too cold, not too warm, not too wet, not too dry, not too snowy, but not snowless.

Entire Cold Season: October-April
Average High: 51.2 15th Warmest
Average Low: 33.6 22nd Warmest
Mean: 42.4 15th Warmest
Precipitation: 20.39″ 56th Wettest
Snowfall: 27.8″ 43rd Snowiest
Average Snow Depth: 0.4″ 5th Lowest
Largest Snowstorm: 5″ on 1/30-2/1/2021
# of 32 or Below Highs: 28 18th Fewest
# of 32 or Below Lows: 107 27th Most
# of Measurable Precipitation Days: 76 11th Fewest
# of Measurable Snowfall Days: 25 16th Fewest

The overall cold season was generally warm, but still managed to provide near normal to slight above normal snowfall for the region.

Average High By Month
October 2020: 63.3 31st Coldest
November 2020: 57.6 8th Warmest
December 2020: 41.5 38th Warmest
January 2021: 37.5 49th Warmest
February 2021: 33.9 20th Coldest
March 2021: 59.0 7th Warmest
April 2021: 64.4 29th Warmest

Average Low By Month
October 2020: 45.6 35th Warmest
November 2020: 37.3 18th Warmest
December 2020: 27.7 36th Warmest
January 2021: 26.6 22nd Warmest
February 2021: 20.4 35th Coldest
March 2021: 34.7 27th Warmest
April 2021: 42.0 35th Warmest

Mean By Month
October 2020: 54.5 38th Coldest
November 2020: 47.4 10th Warmest
December 2020: 34.6 36th Warmest
January 2021: 32.1 39th Warmest
February 2021: 27.2 30th Coldest
March 2021: 46.9 12th Warmest
April 2021: 53.2 28th Warmest

Precipitation By Month
October 2020: 4.19″ 16th Wettest
November 2020: 3.35″ 45th Wettest
December 2020: 2.24″ 44th Driest
January 2021: 2.25″ 50th Driest
February 2021: 2.23″ 64th Wettest
March 2021: 2.85″ 54th Driest
April 2021: 3.28″ 60th Wettest

Snowfall By Month
October 2020: 0.0″ Tied for Least Snowy
November 2020: 1.9″ 21st Least Snowy
December 2020: 8.5″ 22nd Snowy
January 2021: 4.1″ 29th Least Snowy
February 2021: 12.1″ 15th Snowiest
March 2021: 0.0″ Tied for Least Snowy
April 2021: 1.2″ 14th Least Snowy

March’s lack of snowfall tied the record for the only time in history the month did not even have a trace of snowfall.

Average Snow Depth By Month
October 2020: 0.0″
November 2020: 0.0″
December 2020: 0.7″
January 2021: 0.1″
February 2021: 2.4″
March 2021: 0.0″
April 2021: 0.0″



Maximum High By Month
October 2020: 80 on the 22nd
November 2020: 78 on the 8th and 10th
December 2020: 63 on the 11th
January 2021: 51 on the 1st
February 2021: 60 on the 28th
March 2021: 75 on March 24th
April 2021: 83 on April 27th

Maximum High Records
-78 on November 8th was a record high for the date, beating the old record of 74 set in 1945.
-76 on November 9th tied the daily record high with 1975.
-78 on November 10th was a record high for the date, beating the old record of 72 set in 1949.

Minimum High By Month
October 2020: 48 on the 30th
November 2020: 43 on the 18th
December 2020: 18 on the 25th
January 2021: 25 on the 28th
February 2021: 23 on the 7th and 16th
March 2021: 40 on the 15th
April 2021: 37 o the 1st

Maximum Low By Month
October 2020: 62 on the 11th
November 2020: 55 on the 10th
December 2020: 43 on the 12th
January 2021: 37 on the 2nd
February 2021: 43 on the 28th
March 2021: 56 on the 11th
April 2021: 65 on the 28th

Maximum Low Records
-The 65 on April 28th tied the record set in 1914.

Minimum Low By Month
October 2020: 30 on the 31st
November 2020: 25 on the 18th
December 2020: 13 on the 26th and 27th
January 2021: 16 on the 23rd
February 2021: 5 on the 17th
March 2021: 19 on the 5th
April 2021: 21 on the 2nd

Highest Daily Precipitation By Month
October 2020: 1.25″ on the 29th
November 2020: 0.89″ on the 25th
December 2020: 0.74″ on the 30th
January 2021: 1.04″ on the 1st
February 2021: 0.76″ on the 28th
March 2021: 1.12″ on the 18th
April 2021: 1.88″ on the 29th

Precipitation Records
-0.76″ on February 28th was the record for the date, beating the old record of 0.56″ set in 1954.
-The 1.88″ on April 29th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 1.82″ set in 1996.

Highest Daily Snowfall By Month
October 2020: 0.0″
November 2020: 1.9″ on the 30th
December 2020: 3.4″ on the 24th
January 2021: 2.3″ on the 31st
February 2021: 2.3″ on the 1st
March 2021: 0.0″
April 2021: 1.2″ on the 21st

Snowfall Records
-2.8″ on December 16th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 1.8″ set in 1953.
-3.4″ on December 24th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 2.7″ set in 1980.

Deepest Snow Depth By Month
October 2020: 0″
November 2020: 0″
December2020: 4″ on the 26th
January 2021: 3″ on the 31st
February 2021: 5″ on the 18th-21st
March 2021: 0.0″
April 2021: 1″ on the 21st

Winter 2020-2021 Daily Graphs


For more winter records and local weather information, visit the following links.
Winter Season Records
Wilmington National Weather Service

Other Recent Winter Season Reviews
Winter 2019-2020
Winter 2018-2019
Winter 2017-2018



Winter 2019-2020 Review



Winter 2019-2020 Review Columbus, Ohio

The Winter 2019-2020 Review has arrived! Aside some a few instances, winter was largely absent in Ohio for the 2019-2020 season. The season was bookended by periods of cold while the heart of winter was one of the warmest on record. Along with the warmth, precipitation was high throughout the season, but that didn’t translate into much snow.

Temperature and snowfall ranking data goes back to the winter of 1878-1879. Snow depth ranking data goes back to 1940.

December-February Only
Average High: 43.5 11th Warmest
Average Low: 28.3 9th Warmest
Mean: 35.9 10th Warmest
Precipitation: 9.69″ 29th Wettest
Snowfall: 8.3″ 16th Least Snowiest
Average Daily Snow Depth: 0.1″ 2nd Lowest
Largest Snowstorm: 2.2″ December 15th-16th
32 or Below Highs: 12 6th Fewest
32 or Below Lows: 65 13th Fewest
Measurable Precipitation Days: 34 10th Fewest
Measurable Snowfall Days: 13 9th Fewest
Deepest Snow Depth: 2″ on February 9th
Days with 1″+ Snow Depth: 5 3rd Fewest

Entire Cold Season- October-April
Average High: 51.9 10th Warmest
Average Low: 34.1 17th Warmest
Mean: 43.0 11th Warmest
Precipitation: 27.60″ 6th Wettest
Snowfall: 11.7″ 18th Least Snowiest
Average Snow Depth: 0.1″ 2nd Lowest
Largest Snowstorm: 2.8″ November 11th-12th
32 or Below Highs: 14 4th Fewest
32 or Below Lows: 98 17th Fewest
Measurable Precipitation Days: 87 18th Most
Measurable Snowfall Days: 16 7th Fewest
Deepest Snow Depth: 2″ on February 9th
Days with 1″+ Snow Depth: 8 5th Fewest

Average High By Month
October 2019: 69.8 13th Warmest
November 2019: 47.3 21st Coldest
December 2019: 45.9 12th Warmest
January 2020: 43.3 16th Warmest
February 2020: 41.2 35th Warmest
March 2020: 55.4 18th Warmest
April 2020: 59.6 21st Coldest

Average Low By Month
October 2019: 47.0 26th Warmest
November 2019: 30.3 9th Coldest
December 2019: 28.8 28th Warmest
January 2020: 30.1 8th Warmest
February 2020: 25.9 35th Warmest
March 2020: 37.6 13th Warmest
April 2020: 38.7 16th Coldest

Mean By Month
October 2019: 58.4 18th Warmest
November 2019: 38.8 12th Coldest
December 2019: 37.4 18th Warmest
January 2020: 36.7 13th Warmest
February 2020: 33.6 38th Warmest
March 2020: 46.5 13th Warmest
April 2020: 49.2 23rd Coldest

The 2019-2020 winter months were full of extremes, and most months ended up in either the top 20 coldest or warmest ever recorded.



Precipitation By Month
October 2019: 4.05″ 19th Wettest
November 2019: 1.48″ 24th Driest
December 2019: 2.76″ 62nd Wettest
January 2020: 4.37″ 25th Wettest
February 2020: 2.56″ 54th Wettest
March 2020: 8.16″ 2nd Wettest
April 2020: 4.22″ 32nd Wettest

Snowfall By Month
October 2019: Trace 2nd Least Snowiest
November 2019: 2.8″ 22nd Snowiest
December 2019: 2.3″ 23rd Least Snowiest
January 2020: 0.3″ 3rd Least Snowiest
February 2020: 5.7″ 47th Snowiest
March 2020: 0.6″ 5th Least Snowiest
April 2020: Trace 2nd Least Snowiest

As with temperature, precipitation and snowfall varied wildly as well, but generally most months were wetter than normal and less snowy than normal.

Average Snow Depth By Month
October 2019: 0.0″
November 2019: 0.2″
December 2019: 0.1″
January 2020: Trace
February 2020: 0.2″
March 2020: Trace
April 2020: 0.0″

Maximum High By Month
October: 94 on the 1st and 2nd
November: 59 on the 27th
December: 62 on the 27th
January: 71 on the 11th
February: 63 on the 3rd
March: 76 on the 28th
April: 77 on the 7th

Maximum High Records
-The 94 on October 1st was a record for the date, beating the old record of 89 set in 1952. This is also the warmest October temperature ever recorded, beating the old October record of 91 set in 2007.
-The 94 on October 2nd was a record for the date, beating the old record of 88 set in 1919. This also ties for the warmest October temperature ever, set on October 1st, 2019, the previous day.
-The 93 on October 3rd was a record for the date, beating the old record of 89 set in 1898 and 1953.
-The 71 on January 11th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 66 set in 1886 and 1890.
-The 63 on February 3rd tied the old record set in 1890.

Minimum High By Month
October: 55 on the 12th
November: 28 on the 12th and 13th
December: 29 on the 18th
January: 28 on the 20th
February: 24 on the 14th
March: 38 on the 21st
April: 45 on the 10th

Minimum High Records
-The 28 on the 12th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 30 set in 1920.

Maximum Low By Month
October: 68 on the 2nd
November: 39 on the 21st and 27th
December: 47 on the 9th and 29th
January: 53 on the 11th
February: 39 on the 25th
March: 55 on the 29th
April: 53 on the 8th

Maximum Low Records
-The 45 on January 10th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 43 set in 1960.

Minimum Low By Month
October: 35 on the 31st
November: 11 on the 13th
December: 13 on the 19th
January: 12 on the 20th
February: 13 on the 15th and 21st
March: 19 on the 1st
April: 26 on the 16th

Minimum Low Records
-The 15 on November 12th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 16 set in 1911.
-The 11 on November 13th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 14 set in 1911.

Highest Daily Precipitation By Month
October: 1.51″ on the 31st
November: 0.33″ on the 27th
December: 1.20″ on the 29th
January: 1.13″ on the 18th
February: 0.57″ on the 12th
March: 2.89″ on the 20th
April: 0.66″ on the 7th

Precipitation Records
-The 1.51″ on October 31st was a record for the date, beating the old record of 1.44″ set in 1932.
-The 1.20″ on December 29th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 1.13″ set in 1915.
-The 1.13″ on January 18th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 0.79″ set in 1927.
-The 1.31″ on March 4th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 0.74″ set in 1951.
-The 2.89″ that fell on March 20th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 1.60″ set in 1984.

Highest Daily Snowfall By Month
October: Trace on the 31st
November: 2.1″ on the 12th
December: 1.5″ on the 15th
January: 0.2″ on the 25th
February: 1.8″ on the 8th
March: 0.6″ on the 14th
April: Trace on the 15th and 17th

Snowfall Records
-The 2.1″ on November 11th was a record for the date, beating the old record of 0.5″ set in 1983.

Deepest Snow Depth By Month
October: 0″
November: 3″ on the 12th
December: 2″ on the 16th
January: Trace on the 19th and 20th
February: 2″ on the 29th
March: Trace on the 15th
April: 0″

For more winter records and local weather information, visit the following links.
Winter Season Records
Wilmington National Weather Service

Other Recent Winter Season Reviews
Winter 2018-2019
Winter 2017-2018
Winter 2016-2017