Average wind chill in Chicago (living, statistics, suburbs)

[space115]

I'm new to the city.

Is this -20 to -25F wind chill the average temperature in Chicago during the winter?

Thanks.

[HarmanFox]

Originally Posted by space115

I'm new to the city.

Is this -20 to -25F wind chill the average temperature in Chicago during the winter?

Thanks.

Actually it's normally a bit lower than that. Usually around -35 to -50.

[space115]

Can someone pull up the statistics? Can't seem to find one.

[andrew61]

Originally Posted by space115

I'm new to the city.

Is this -20 to -25F wind chill the average temperature in Chicago during the winter?

Thanks.

I don't have any formal stats, but based on nearly 18 years' experience living here, I would say No.

That level of wind chill is typically at or near the worst it gets during the winter, and it's usually that bad only on a handful of winter days. Some years it never gets this bad at all.

[Drover]

Average, no. Fairly common, yes.

[HarmanFox]

Originally Posted by Drover

Average, no. Fairly common, yes.

There's also the chance of lake effect wind gust as well.

[marothisu]

It depends on where you are in the city. Some areas are definitely colder than others. The average January temperature is around 30 degrees F. If you halve that and have some days of 30 MPH winds, then the wind chill would be around -5 degrees F in those situations. In my experience in the city within a few miles of the lake, the wind chill usually stays above -10 at the coldest, but it can definitely go below that on colder days. There have been a few days where it's dipped below -20 or -25 F, but those are few and far in between. The wind chill IMO here is usually above 0. At night on a colder day like today, of course it might be common for -5 to -10 F.

[HarmanFox]

Originally Posted by marothisu

It depends on where you are in the city. Some areas are definitely colder than others. The average January temperature is around 30 degrees F. If you halve that and have some days of 30 MPH winds, then the wind chill would be around -5 degrees F in those situations. In my experience in the city within a few miles of the lake, the wind chill usually stays above -10 at the coldest, but it can definitely go below that on colder days. There have been a few days where it's dipped below -20 or -25 F, but those are few and far in between. The wind chill IMO here is usually above 0. At night on a colder day like today, of course it might be common for -5 to -10 F.

This is true because the further west suburbs have a much lower temp than areas closer to the lake.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by HarmanFox

This is true because the further west suburbs have a much lower temp than areas closer to the lake.

Yep. My coworker in the western suburbs had it about 10 degrees colder this morning than in the city within a mile of the lake. It can be windier near the lake, but sometimes it can provide for slightly higher temperatures in the winter than the far out suburbs for sure.

[HarmanFox]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Yep. My coworker in the western suburbs had it about 10 degrees colder this morning than in the city within a mile of the lake. It can be windier near the lake, but sometimes it can provide for slightly higher temperatures in the winter than the far out suburbs for sure.

That's actually very ironic that being closer to the water would make the area's temperature higher.