5 FEMA areas

Winter Weather Risk by City in Minnesota

Compare 7 cities using FEMA's relative winter weather scores and annualized frequency for the county-equivalent areas shown.

Highest relative score

96.6/100

Olmsted County

Covered cities: Rochester

Lowest relative score in this set

51.3/100

St. Louis County

Covered cities: Duluth

These are relative FEMA scores for county-equivalent areas. They are not annual probabilities or property-level findings.

Minnesota winter weather rankings

Cities sharing a FEMA area are grouped together and receive the same score.

RankFEMA area and citiesRatingScoreAnnualized frequency
#1

Olmsted County

Rochester
Relatively High96.6/1006.811 per year
#2

Stearns County

St. Cloud
Relatively High95.2/1005.820 per year
#3

Hennepin County

BloomingtonBrooklyn ParkMinneapolis
Relatively High94.2/1005.882 per year
#4

Ramsey County

St. Paul
Relatively Moderate81.7/1005.573 per year
#5

St. Louis County

Duluth
Relatively Low51.3/1005.153 per year

Occurrence thresholds vary by hazard. The FEMA methodology defines the value for each hazard.

Preparing for winter weather

Ready.gov Be Informed ↗

For a home or move

  • ✓Confirm the exact hazard using official local maps before making property or insurance decisions.
  • ✓Review policy exclusions, deductibles, and temporary-living coverage with a licensed professional.
  • ✓Keep inspections, inventories, and critical documents in a secure location you can access after an emergency.

For a household plan

  • ✓Know how local officials issue warnings and evacuation instructions.
  • ✓Maintain water, food, lighting, medications, and communications for several days.
  • ✓Create a household communication plan and practice it before an emergency.

Questions about winter weather risk in Minnesota

Which covered Minnesota cities have the highest relative winter weather risk?

Rochester use FEMA data for Olmsted County, which has the highest relative winter weather score in this covered set at 96.6/100. Cities sharing the same FEMA area share the same score.

Which covered Minnesota area has the lowest relative winter weather score?

St. Louis County has the lowest score in this covered set at 51.3/100. This is a relative FEMA comparison, not a declaration that every property there is safe.

Are these winter weather figures city-level?

No. The city links provide geographic navigation, while the scores and frequencies cover the FEMA county-equivalent areas shown in the table. Address-level conditions require local maps and property details.

Is the FEMA relative score an annual probability?

No. The relative score compares FEMA areas on a 0–100 scale. Annualized frequency appears separately with hazard-specific units.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.19.0, released March 2023. Hazard data covers FEMA county-equivalent areas.

FEMA source ↗Our methodology →