20 Cities Where It's Okay To Whine About The Cold

Yes, it is cold enough out there for us. It doesn't even matter where there is — if you live in the United States right now, it's probably Polar-vortex-level freezing. But thanks to the Weather Channel's list of the 20 coldest big cities in America, you know exactly where you stand as far as wind chill-induced misery goes. Is it colder in your city than where your friends live? Colder than Boston? Colder than — gasp — Chicago?

TWC used average 30-year temperatures for December, January, and February to determine not which city has the most extreme cold or snow but the most persistent chill during core winter months. The results — based on data from the National Climatic Data Center — may surprise you (for instance, I don't generally tend to think Colorado or Missouri when I think of frostbite). Of the 100 most populous U.S. cities, the most consistently cold locales are:

1. Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota

2. Anchorage, Alaska

3. Madison, Wisconsin

4. Milwaukee, Wisconsin

5. Omaha, Nebraska

6. Chicago, Illinois

7. Lincoln, Nebraska

8. Rochester, New York

9. Buffalo, New York

10. Ft. Wayne, Indiana

11. Toledo, Ohio

12. Detroit, Michigan

13. Akron, Ohio

14. Cleveland, Ohio

15. Indianapolis, Indiana

16. Colorado Springs, Colorado

17. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

18. Denver, Colorado

19. Kansas City, Missouri

20. Boston, Massachusetts

Find out more about the average and record lows for each city at weather.com.

Image: Getty