Thanksgiving Forecast: Old Farmer's Almanac Releases Illinois Weather Predictions

The Old Farmer's Almanac has released its Thanksgiving forecast, which will bring "a patchwork of weather" across the country. Here in Illinois, the long-range forecast suggests a mild holiday with lots of sunshine, The Old Farmer's Almanac reported.

Thanksgiving falls on Nov. 27 this year. One of the biggest questions travelers usually have is: will it snow?

In Illinois, it doesn't seem likely. Snow will be "limited to a few northern spots—northern New England, the Upper Midwest, the higher elevations in the Intermountain West, and Alaska—where flurries could affect travel," the Old Farmer's Almanac said.

For Illinois, which is part of the lower lakes region, the forecast calls for "plenty of sunshine and no rain or snow to slow you down."

That's a continuation of an overall fall forecast that calls for weather that's cooler and drier than normal overall. The Old Farmer's Almanac predicted an average October temperature of 51 degrees, which is 2 degrees below normal, as well as below-normal rainfall. For November and December, the almanac also predicts below-average precipitation, with seasonable temperatures for November and below-average temperatures for December.

As for winter, The Old Farmer's Almanac has also suggested that winter 2025-26 will be mostly mild across much of the country, but some pockets could see bitterly cold temperatures and lots of snow.

However, AccuWeather predicts it could be a snowy winter for Illinois, with 32 to 38 inches of snow during the 2025-26 winter season. That's double the amount of snow we saw last year, when 17.6 inches fell in Chicago.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac, which has been making weather predictions for more than 200 years, claims an 80 percent accuracy rating. Last year, the overall accuracy rating was nearly 90 percent.

However, the overall accuracy rating for the winter of 2023-2024 was only 64 percent, which the publication attributed to “how abnormal recent weather patterns have been.”

Related: When Fall Foliage Will Peak In Illinois: Map