New 2025 Hurricane Forecast: Up To 5 Major Storms Expected

FLORIDA — Forecasters are predicting “a dynamic and potentially volatile” 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which starts June 1 and runs through Nov. 30, with 13 to 18 named storms, according to a new report from AccuWeather.

Of these storms, seven to 10 are expected to become hurricanes and three to five are predicted to strengthen into major hurricanes that are Category 3 or higher, forecasters said.

Major hurricanes are storms that grow to a Category 3 hurricane or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Category 3 hurricanes have maximum sustained winds of 111 to 129 mph.

AccuWeather hurricane experts predict that three to six storms can directly impact the U.S. this year.

“Everyone needs to start planning and preparing for hurricane season. Climatology, weather patterns, water temperatures and many other factors all point to yet another active Atlantic hurricane season with more tropical storms and hurricanes forming, compared to the historical average,” Jonathan Porter, AccuWeather chief meteorologist, said. “We expect fewer named storms this year compared to last year. The total number of storms is not truly what defines a hurricane season; it is the impacts to land and populated areas. It only takes one landfall to create a devastating season.”

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Texas, Louisiana, western Florida, North Carolina and Atlantic Canada face a higher-than-average risk of direct impacts this year, meteorologists said.

During last season, five hurricanes and an unnamed subtropical storm made landfall in the contiguous United States, including Debby, Helene and Milton in Florida.

The upcoming hurricane season will be driven by “exceptionally warm waters” across the Atlantic basin, which are “well above historical average levels right now,” forecasters said. These water temperatures could lead to the rapid intensification within 100 miles of the coastline.

"The threat of storms rapidly intensifying before they make landfall is a major concern again this year," Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather lead hurricane expert, said. "Water temperatures at the surface and hundreds of feet deep are forecast to be well above the historical average throughout this hurricane season, providing extra fuel for storms to explode in intensity."