The coldest city in every state
With the arrival of the solstice on Dec. 21, the winter of 2025-26 is finally underway. While there's no way to pinpoint exactly what the season may bring, early predictions point to colder and wetter conditions across much of the upper Midwest and Northeast, while southern states will likely experience warmer, drier weather. This winter has already lived up to expectations thus far, with an early-season storm dropping ice and snow across much of the Great Lakes region in November 2025. As for the temperature, not every state in the country has seen particularly cold temps yet—especially places with notoriously mild winters like Florida—but each has a city that is typically colder than the rest.
Citing data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Stacker identified the coldest city in every state. The list below is based on five-year average temperatures from January 2018 to December 2022 and also includes the average daily minimum and maximum temperatures for each ranked city. Cities are ranked relative to the entire national dataset of 214 cities.
Some of these locations experience a full range of temperatures annually—from very high temperatures in the summer to nail-bitingly cold temperatures in the winter. Others simply experience cooler versions of their typically warm (or cold) weather. But whether you're looking to hike glaciers and ski down snow-packed mountains or just to enjoy a pleasant reprieve from the heat, there is likely a city here that meets your winter needs.
