Farmers’ Almanac dubs upcoming winter: ‘Chill, snow, repeat’
Farmers' Almanac has been in publication since 1818 and provides long-range weather predictions for both the U.S. and Canada.
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LEWISTON, Maine - The Farmers’ Almanac is predicting a winter filled with dramatic temperature swings and widespread precipitation, which, if accurate, would be the opposite of the previous winter.
The long-running publication recently released its winter outlook, dubbing the 2025-2026 season "chill, snow, repeat."
While the start of meteorological winter doesn’t arrive until December 1, the almanac says chilly temperatures and snow could make an early appearance as soon as the fall in some parts of the country.
According to the outlook, Old Man Winter will tend to target the Northern Plains through New England, with the Pacific Northwest also in store for an unusually cold season, along with bountiful snow from the Ohio Valley to New England.
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Farmers' Almanac 2025-2026 outlook
(FOX Weather)
Staff with the almanac said a significant cold snap in mid-January will impact most of the country, with a similar pronounced cold spell expected for mid-February before the arrival of spring.
These cold snaps are expected to set the stage for scenes of a "classic winter wonderland" across the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and North Central states.
In the Southeast, temperatures are projected to be closer to average, but it may not feel like it with wetter-than-typical conditions.
Since temperatures will be close to average, most of the precipitation should fall in the form of rain rather than snow.
Conditions in Texas and the Southern Plains could be a bit colder than average, which could set the region up for occasions of ice and snow.
Nowhere across the Lower 48 does the Farmers’ Almanac expect warmer-than-typical weather, which goes against recent climatology, when winters have all ranked among the warmest on record.
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Types of precipitation explainer. How snow, sleet and freezing rain form.
(FOX Weather)
Are the outlooks accurate?
The Farmers’ Almanac says its predictions are based on a secret formula, which takes into account solar activity, the Moon and other environmental factors.
"Today this formula uses the original rules set forth back in 1818, but also accounts for fluctuations in the environment on Earth, as well as solar activity (sunspots), the motion of the Moon, and other proprietary factors. Yes, nature throws us a curveball from time to time, but it doesn’t stop us from going out on a limb to not only predict weather patterns up to a year in advance, but to also put it in print," staff with the Farmers’ Almanac stated.
Last winter, the group says it accurately anticipated a late-January cold snap but noted that a La Niña pattern altered climate patterns, leading to fewer wet weather events than expected.
The lack of storm systems allowed the winter to finish as one of the warmest on record, which was different from what experts were expecting.
A previous study conducted by staff at the University of Illinois found predictions to be only around half accurate, but the Farmers’ Almanac maintains that its forecasts have kept them in publication for more than 200 years.
Typical wintertime impacts of La Nina across the United States.
(NOAA)