upslope
Every New England mountain ranked by how much snow it actually averages.
Jay Peak is the snowiest ski resort in New England, averaging about 359″ of natural snow a year — more than any other resort in eastern North America. Northern Vermont dominates the top of this list because northwest flow behind departing storms is forced up the Green Mountain spine, wringing out snow for days after the storm itself has left. That's upslope snow, and it's the single biggest reason the northern Vermont mountains out-snow everywhere else in the region.
Average annual snowfall, ranked
| Resort | Avg snow/yr | Vertical | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jay PeakVT | 359″ | 2,153 ft | The snowiest resort in eastern North America, sitting where northwest flow slams into the Green Mountain spine. |
| Smugglers' NotchVT | 319″ | 2,610 ft | Stowe's wild sibling on the other side of the notch — the biggest vertical in the East, three peaks, and Black Hole, one of only a handful of triple-black trails in the country. |
| StoweVT | 314″ | 2,360 ft | The ski capital of the East — Mount Mansfield is Vermont's highest peak, the Front Four are the region's benchmark steeps, and the village is the most complete resort town in New England. |
| Bolton ValleyVT | 312″ | 1,704 ft | The closest real snow to Burlington, sitting high on the Green Mountain spine where upslope flow dumps. |
| SugarbushVT | 269″ | 2,600 ft | Two connected mountains in the Mad River Valley — Lincoln Peak's classic New England trails and Mount Ellen's high, quiet, snowy summit. |
| KillingtonVT | 250″ | 3,050 ft | The Beast of the East — the largest ski area in the eastern US, six peaks, and famously the first to open and last to close. |
| Mad River GlenVT | 250″ | 2,037 ft | Ski it if you can. |
| PicoVT | 250″ | 1,967 ft | Killington's quieter neighbor and sibling — real vertical, real steeps, a fraction of the crowds. |
| SaddlebackME | 225″ | 2,000 ft | Reborn in 2020 after five dark years, deep in western Maine's Rangeley wilderness. |
| BurkeVT | 217″ | 2,011 ft | Vermont's Northeast Kingdom hideaway — big vertical, tiny crowds, and a legendary racing academy. |
| Bretton WoodsNH | 200″ | 1,500 ft | New Hampshire's largest ski area by acreage, sprawling below Mount Washington with wide cruisers and famously good grooming. |
| OkemoVT | 200″ | 2,200 ft | Grooming-obsessed and family-oriented, with immaculate wide-open cruisers. |
| SugarloafME | 200″ | 2,820 ft | The only lift-served above-treeline skiing in the East — the Snowfields open in a good year and it feels like nowhere else in the region. |
| WildcatNH | 200″ | 2,112 ft | Staring straight across Pinkham Notch at Mount Washington's ravines — the best view from any chairlift in the East. |
| StrattonVT | 180″ | 2,003 ft | Southern Vermont's biggest mountain, with a gondola to a true summit and a purpose-built village. |
| Magic MountainVT | 175″ | 1,700 ft | A cult mountain in southern Vermont — steep, twisty, old-school New England trail design with wild glades. |
| Sunday RiverME | 167″ | 2,340 ft | Eight interconnected peaks across three miles of ridgeline in western Maine, with the most aggressive snowmaking system in the East. |
| CannonNH | 160″ | 2,180 ft | State-owned, unapologetically rugged, and often the iciest and windiest mountain in New England — Mount Washington's little brother in attitude. |
| LoonNH | 160″ | 2,100 ft | The White Mountains' most polished resort experience — immaculate grooming, a gondola, and the easiest big-mountain access off I-93. |
| Mount SnowVT | 156″ | 1,700 ft | The closest major resort to New York City, which defines its weekend energy. |
| BromleyVT | 145″ | 1,334 ft | The 'Sun Mountain' — the only major New England peak facing south, so it skis warmer and softer on bluebird days. |
| AttitashNH | 143″ | 1,750 ft | Two peaks above Bartlett — Attitash and Bear Peak — with the longest sustained fall line in the Mount Washington Valley. |
| Waterville ValleyNH | 140″ | 2,020 ft | A White Mountains classic in a national forest valley, with a long history of World Cup racing and one of the better learning setups in New Hampshire. |
| RaggedNH | 130″ | 1,250 ft | Quiet central New Hampshire mountain with a high-speed quad and a reputation for empty midweek trails. |
| Mount SunapeeNH | 130″ | 1,510 ft | State-owned land run by Vail, overlooking Lake Sunapee. |
| Black MountainNH | 125″ | 1,100 ft | A throwback family hill in Jackson with a summit T-bar and no pretensions. |
| Berkshire EastMA | 120″ | 1,180 ft | Massachusetts' steepest lift-served terrain, and the first ski area in the country to run entirely on its own wind and solar power. |
| GunstockNH | 120″ | 1,400 ft | County-owned, overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee — the views off the summit are the best in New Hampshire. |
| Pats PeakNH | 90″ | 770 ft | A small, fiercely well-run family hill near Concord with outsized snowmaking and a great learn-to-ski program. |
| CrotchedNH | 85″ | 1,000 ft | Southern New Hampshire's night-skiing hub — the 'Midnight Madness' sessions run until 3am on weekends. |
| WachusettMA | 85″ | 1,000 ft | Central Massachusetts' mountain and the closest real skiing to Boston — an hour out, lit for night skiing, and packed after work all winter. |
| CranmoreNH | 80″ | 1,200 ft | North Conway's in-town mountain, family-focused with night skiing and a big tubing operation. |
Averages are the resorts' own published figures and vary by source and season. What actually falls each week is on the forecast board, and how well we predict it is on the scoreboard.