Hail in Michigan — where it hits, county by county
Hail is a fact of life on Michigan ground — 438 National Weather Service hail reports in the last 5 years, led by Marquette County, peaking around June. The table below ranks the counties; the interactive national map shows exactly where, year by year. Checking a specific address? The map’s search box pulls every dated report within 25 miles.
Open the interactive map on Michigan →Top hail counties in Michigan (2022–2026)
| County | Reports | Avg/yr | Peak month | % damaging (≥1.5″) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marquette | 132 | 26.4 | Jul | 1% |
| Kent | 71 | 14.2 | Jun | 1% |
| Ottawa | 42 | 8.4 | Mar | 21% |
| Ingham | 38 | 7.6 | Jun | 5% |
| Grand Traverse | 25 | 5.0 | Jun | 4% |
| Berrien | 24 | 4.8 | May | 0% |
| Van Buren | 22 | 4.4 | Jun | 5% |
| St. Joseph | 22 | 4.4 | May | 27% |
| Washtenaw | 21 | 4.2 | Jun | 19% |
| Alger | 21 | 4.2 | Jun | 19% |
| Kalamazoo | 20 | 4.0 | Feb | 5% |
Michigan hail — the questions people ask
Where does it hail the most in Michigan?
By reported hail over the last 5 years, the most active counties in Michigan are Marquette, Kent, Ottawa. Reports track population and spotter coverage as well as storms, so rural corridors can be under-counted; the persistent leaders on this table are real hail geography.
When is hail season in Michigan?
Reported hail in Michigan peaks around June, with most activity in the spring-through-midsummer window. Any single year can break the pattern.
How much of Michigan's hail is damaging?
On this page, damaging means reported stones of 1.5″ or larger — the size that reliably dents roofs and vehicles and strips crops. The per-county damaging share is in the table; statewide, hail of any size totaled 438 reports over 5 years.