Austin freeze statistics: how hard Austin winters have become

Austin freezing nights, winter by winter

Austin’s official climate station at Camp Mabry averaged 13.1 nights at or below 32°F per winter from 1995–96 to 2025–26, and that count has barely moved (12.9 per winter before 2020–21, 13.7 since). What changed is depth: nights at or below 28°F rose from 4.5 to 7.0 per winter, and nights at or below 20°F jumped as shown below. Six winters is a short run, so treat this as a pattern worth preparing for, not a forecast.

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, in open ground southeast of downtown, runs much colder at night: it averaged 34.3 freezing nights per winter over the 28 complete winters since 1998-99. Homes outside the urban core may see nights closer to the airport’s numbers than to Camp Mabry’s.

Camp Mabry (USW00013958) unless marked “Airport” (USW00013904). “n/a” = airport winter with more than five days of missing data. Freeze = daily low ≤32°F. Swipe the table sideways on a phone. Download every column for both stations: austin-winters-1995-2026.csv (62 rows).

Austin’s big freeze events since 2021

Austin’s worst freeze in this record, Winter Storm Uri, held Camp Mabry at or below freezing for 5 straight days and bottomed out at 7°F on Feb. 16, 2021. The City of Round Rock, relaying the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio office, called it “the coldest air since 1989.” Every winter since has brought at least one cold snap into the teens or low 20s.

When Austin’s first freeze usually arrives

Austin’s first freeze arrives on a median date of Dec. 3 at Camp Mabry and Nov. 16 at the airport, according to NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals. Plan pipe insulation and hose-bib covers before mid-November.

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, annual/seasonal freeze probabilities for USW00013958 and USW00013904. The 2025–26 winter’s last Camp Mabry freeze came late, on Mar. 17, 2026.

What frozen pipes cost: insurance claims

Texas frozen-pipe losses led the country in State Farm’s 2022 count: $64 million of the $181 million the insurer paid that year on nearly 9,000 frozen-pipe claims, with the average claim just over $20,000. From August 2022 to August 2023, Texas ranked fourth at $58.1 million. For 2024 through June 2025, State Farm reported more than 20,000 claims and over $628 million paid nationwide, an average above $30,000, with Texas again among the five most costly states.

State Farm also explains why the 20°F column above matters: when temperatures in southern climates dip below 20°F, pipes in uninsulated attics, crawl spaces and exterior walls can freeze and burst, and a one-eighth-inch crack can release more than 250 gallons of water a day. These figures cover one insurer’s paid claims, not all Texas losses.

Find your shutoff valve before the first freeze

Austin Water tells customers to first try the property owner’s shutoff valve, typically on your side of the water meter in the meter box. If you cannot find it or it is damaged, use the City shutoff valve in the meter box; you may need a water meter key, sold at most hardware stores. Renters should ask their property manager where the valve is now, not during an emergency.

• During a 1–2 day freeze: drip faucets at a trickle, open cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls and disconnect garden hoses (Austin Water).
• Leaving town: turn off the water at the meter and set the thermostat to 65°F or higher (Austin Water).
• Smart meter lids: the newer My ATX Water box lids open with a standard meter key; press the spring down before turning, and avoid the wires inside.
• Thawing: shut the water off first, open a faucet near the frozen section and use a hair dryer, heating pad or warm towels — never an open flame. Check for cracks once water flows.

Read the full Austin Water cold weather tips and download its winter weather tip sheet (available in 15 languages). For City help, call 3-1-1.

Not on Austin Water? Check whose shutoff rules apply

Austin’s suburbs are often served by their own city utilities or water districts, and during Uri several of them failed separately from Austin’s system. The name on your water bill tells you which guidance and emergency line to use.

Printable Austin freeze checklist

The Austin freeze checklist turns the data above into dated steps: insulate and cover by Nov. 1, drip and open cabinets when a freeze is forecast, and add extra protection when the forecast low is 20°F or colder.

Download the one-page Austin freeze checklist (PDF) — free, no sign-up, printable.

How we counted

Our Austin freeze counts come from daily maximum and minimum air temperatures for Camp Mabry (USW00013958) and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (USW00013904), downloaded from NOAA NCEI’s GHCN-Daily service on 2026-10-05. A winter runs July 1 to June 30. A freeze night is a daily low of 32°F or below; we also count 28°F, 25°F and 20°F nights, days whose high stayed at or below 32°F, and the longest run of such days. Airport winters with more than five missing days (1995–96 and 1996–97) are shown as n/a. Air temperature is not pipe temperature: insulation, wind and exposure decide whether a given pipe freezes.

Cite or reuse this data

Journalists, property managers, schools and neighborhood groups may reuse the tables, chart and CSV under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Please credit and link this page.

Sources

Sources checked October 5, 2026. General homeowner information, not a diagnosis or a substitute for a licensed plumber’s assessment. Plumbing Service Austin is a referral service, not a plumbing contractor, and is not affiliated with NOAA, the City of Austin, Austin Water, State Farm or any utility named here.