page_title: Climate of Florida
section_title: Snowfall
hierarchical_section_title: Climate of Florida / Precipitation / Snowfall
caption_attribution_description: English: Rare snowfall in Jacksonville, Florida, 1989.
context_page_description: The climate of the north and central parts of the US state of Florida is humid subtropical. Most of South Florida has a tropical climate. There is a defined rainy season from May through October, when air mass thundershowers that build in the heat of the day drop heavy but brief summer rainfall.
  In October, the dry season sets in across much of Florida and lasts until late April in most years. Fronts from mid-latitude storms north of Florida occasionally pass through northern and central parts of the state which bring light and brief winter rainfall. Mid and late winter can become severely dry in Florida. In some years the dry season becomes quite severe and water restrictions are imposed to conserve water. While most areas of Florida do not experience any type of frozen precipitation, northern Florida can see fleeting snow or sleet a few times each decade.
  The Gulf Stream running through the Florida Straits and then north off the Florida East Coast keeps temperatures moderate a few miles inland from around Stuart on the east coast to Ft. Myers on the west side of the state year round, with few extremes in temperature.
context_section_description: Snowfall is rare in Florida. The earliest recorded occurrence of snow or sleet occurred in 1774 in the far northern portion of the state. The latest occurrence of snow or sleet fell on January 3, 2018, as a winter storm brought snow flurries in Tallahassee and northern  portions of the state.
  The state record for snowfall is 5 inches (13 cm), set in northern Florida during January 1800, though some debate exists about the accuracy.  The earliest in the season that frozen precipitation has fallen was during the Late November 2006 Nor'easter on November 21 across central Florida.  The latest in the season that snow or sleet has fallen was on April 8, 2007. Snow flurries have been reported in the air (not on the ground) as far south as Homestead, during a January 19, 1977 event.
caption: Snow in Jacksonville on December 23, 1989
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