Now that 2021 has come to a close, let's take a look at the windiest cities for the year. This list may surprise you. 


What You Need To Know

  • Most of the windiest states are in the Plains

  • Measurements were not at sea level

  • The top ten may not be what you think

What is wind?

Chicago may be known as the "Windy City," but was Illinois the windiest of all states in 2021? 

The wind is the movement of air, and in meteorology, our day-to-day concern is the horizontal wind. The horizontal wind tells us the direction where the air is moving FROM. A report of northwest winds would mean the winds are coming from the northwest at a certain speed. 

The speed is the sustained speed or speed averaged over a two-minute period, measured by an anemometer. If you want more information on sustained wind speeds, click here.

Vertical wind comes into play during bigger weather events such as thunderstorms. You might even hear the term wind shear. Wind shear is the change of speed and direction with height regarding wind.

Other localized winds can occur during differential heating, such as a sea breeze event. This happens at the beach when the land is warmer than the ocean water. 

The cooler air from the ocean will flow onto land and rise, sometimes creating a quick shower or storm. You might even notice the increase in the wind during the afternoon along the beach when the land has had time to warm up the area.

Top winners

When discussing the windiest states of 2021, instruments measured the horizontal wind at a sustained speed.

Data analysis website Stacker used The Technical University of Denmark’s Global Wind Atlas 3.0 application to measure wind speeds at 328 feet above sea level for the top 10% windiest areas of each state.

Their findings are in miles per hour below. The big winners may surprise you, as they are mainly in the West and the Great Plains. The Southeast states are generally calmer in regards to wind. 

Top 10 winners:

  1. Alaska (21.9)
  2. Wyoming (21.5)
  3. Michigan (20.9)
  4. Montana (20.5)
  5. Nebraska (20.5)
  6. South Dakota (20.3)
  7. Oklahoma (20.2)
  8. Wisconsin (20.2)
  9. Colorado (20)
  10. Hawaii (19.9)

Least windy places:

  • Florida
  • Arizona
  • Georgia
  • South Carolina
  • Mississippi
  • Alabama
  • Louisiana
  • Utah
  • Nevada
  • Connecticut

Location of wind measurement

One might think, don’t all coastal areas experience some sea breeze? They do, but the location of a coastal area is at sea level.

This study used locations at 328 feet above sea level. Had they used stations at sea level, the findings would be quite different. 

Most of the top ten are in the Plains of the United States. This makes sense as wind speeds increase when descending mountains, and with flatter and less forested regions, there is nothing to slow down the wind as it moves across the land. 

What about the "Windy City?"

In case you are wondering, Illinois came in at number 22 for the windiest states in 2021.

Meanwhile, meteorology research has shown that Chicago is not the windiest city in the United States. New York, San Francisco and Boston have recorded higher average wind speeds. 

Historians believe that the phrase "windiest city" links to the late nineteenth century. Political tensions were running high, and it was a common term to say people were "full of hot air" or call them "windbags."

Another theory is from an 1890 New York Sun newspaper article written by Charles Dana. The competition was fierce for the 1893 World’s Fair Host City, and Dana told his readers not to listen to the "nonsensical claims of that windy city."

However, according to famed myth debunker David Wilton, there is no research to support this article, and the origins of this term remain just a myth.