Snow Day Predictor for Maine

Browse snow day predictions for all 44 cities in Maine. Select your city to check tomorrow's school closure forecast.

Every city below links to its own live snow day forecast for Maine. Find your city in the alphabetical list and click it to check today's snowfall probability and school closure forecast.

About Maine

Maine occupies the northeastern tip of New England, bordered by New Hampshire to the west, the Atlantic Ocean along its jagged coast, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick to the north. It split from Massachusetts and entered the Union as the 23rd state on March 15, 1820. Roughly 1.4 million people live here, per the U.S. Census Bureau, making it the least densely populated state east of the Mississippi. Lobster boats, paper mills, and L.L. Bean's Freeport flagship shape the outside image, but Maine's economy runs on more than postcards. Forest covers close to 89 percent of the state, the highest share of any state, and Portland's working waterfront still lands more lobster than any port in America. Mainers treat a hard winter as routine. That routine doesn't make snow days predictable, though. Maine stretches nearly 320 miles from its mild coast to the subarctic North Woods, and a storm that shuts down schools in Aroostook County can leave Portland with wet pavement the same morning. Tracking conditions town by town matters more here than in almost any other state.

Maine Snow Day Climate and School Closures

How Maine's Climate Affects Snow Days

NOAA's 1991-2020 climate normals show how much Maine's snowfall varies by region: Portland averages 68.7 inches a year, Bangor 74.6 inches, and Caribou, in far-northern Aroostook County, a striking 118.2 inches. Western mountain towns near Rangeley top 123 inches, while the coast sees more sleet and freezing rain mixed in.

The Ice Storm of January 1998 coated Maine in up to three inches of ice, cutting power to roughly half a million residents for up to three weeks and killing at least five people statewide. (Bangor Daily News)

What Causes School Closures in Maine

Ice, not snow depth, closes Maine schools most often. Coastal nor'easters bring freezing rain that glazes roads before accumulation looks serious, while inland districts run buses over long, hilly rural routes where a single icy grade can strand a fleet. With no statewide authority, superintendents make the call district by district.

Explore Snow Day Predictions Across Maine

Maine has 44 cities covered by the Snow Day Predictor. Predictions are updated hourly using real-time weather data from Open-Meteo.

Popular Cities to Check in Maine

Portland. Maine's largest city sits on Casco Bay, where the Atlantic moderates temperatures, but nor'easters still bring wind-driven snow and icy rain. NOAA's normal puts its yearly snowfall at 68.7 inches, the state's lowest.

Augusta. Maine's capital sits inland on the Kennebec River, away from the coast's moderating influence, so it typically sees more snow than Portland. State offices watch road crews closely once storms track up the valley.

Bangor. Bangor falls under NWS Caribou's forecast area, not Portland's, a sign of how far north its winters lean. It's the last sizable city before the highway narrows into the North Woods.

Lewiston. Maine's second-largest city sits inland on the Androscoggin River, a mill town built on French-Canadian labor. Its distance from the coast means snow tends to stick rather than turn to rain.

Caribou. Caribou sits in Aroostook County near the Canadian border and averages 118.2 inches of snow a year, among the highest totals in the country. Winters here start early and hold on late.

Bethel. Bethel, home to the Sunday River ski resort in Maine's western mountains, sits at higher elevation where storms wring out extra snow. Nearby Rangeley averages over 123 inches a year, among New England's heaviest.

Frequently Asked Questions About Snow Days in Maine

How much snow does Maine get in a typical winter?

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Statewide totals span an enormous range from south to north. Coastal cities like Portland average under 70 inches a season, but ski country tells a different story: Sugarloaf, in the western mountains, averages roughly 200 inches a year thanks to its elevation. Portland's snowiest season on record, 1970-71, dumped 141.5 inches, more than double what a typical winter brings.

What actually decides whether Maine schools close on a snowy morning?

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Many Maine superintendents lean toward two-hour delays rather than outright closures, giving plow crews time to clear roads before buses run. Decisions usually come by 5 or 5:30 a.m., after transportation directors drive sample routes themselves and check pavement temperature, since a few degrees near freezing can mean the difference between wet roads and glare ice.

Does the coldest weather always bring the most snow in Maine?

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Not necessarily. Deep Arctic air masses that settle over Aroostook County in January can be too cold and dry to produce heavy snowfall, dropping powdery accumulations of just an inch or two even as temperatures fall well below zero. The heaviest single-storm totals usually come from milder nor'easters tracking up the coast.

Has Maine had a major snowstorm besides the Ice Storm of 1998?

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Yes, the February 2013 blizzard, nicknamed Nemo, buried Portland Jetport under 31.9 inches of snow in just two days, split almost evenly between February 8 and 9. It stands as Portland's biggest recorded snowstorm and shut down roads across southern Maine for a full day, proof that heavy snow alone, without any ice involved, can paralyze the state.

Do Maine's island communities handle snow days differently?

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Yes. Islands like Isle au Haut and Matinicus run their own tiny schools, sometimes with a single teacher, and their closures hinge on ferry and mail-boat schedules rather than road plowing. A storm that keeps the boat in harbor can cancel school even when the mainland stays open, since students and teachers often commute by water.

How do Maine schools handle remote learning on snow days?

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Many districts now use remote learning days instead of tacking make-up days onto the end of June. State law requires at least three hours of instruction and that lunch be served, sent home the night before or delivered, for the day to count toward the required school year, so policies still vary district by district.