Fall color status today and a five‑week outlook for anywhere in the lower 48. Search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.
Planning ahead? These are the typical peak ranges across each state’s best-known color destinations.
It depends on where you are. In a typical year, color peaks in late September in far northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Colorado’s high country. Northern New England and the Adirondacks peak in early October, southern New England and the high Appalachians in mid-October, and the Mid-Atlantic, Southern Appalachian valleys, and Ohio Valley from late October into early November.
The forecast is an estimate from a model of typical years, not live observations. In most years peak lands within about a week of the estimate, but unusual heat, drought, or an early freeze can move it further.
At any one spot, near-peak color usually lasts about a week to ten days. Across a region the season runs much longer, because color moves downhill and south over several weeks.
Yes. Search any town or ZIP code in the lower 48, or tap the map, to see today’s status and a five-week outlook for that spot.
New England, the Adirondacks and Catskills, the Appalachian Mountains from Pennsylvania to the Great Smokies, the Upper Midwest’s North Woods, and the aspen groves of the Rockies all rank among the best. See foliage by state for typical peak dates.
Leaves.com estimates foliage with a phenology model built on the long‑run patterns that drive fall color. Peak arrives earlier as you go north (about four and a half days per degree of latitude across the northern states) and earlier as you go up (about four and a half days per 1,000 feet of elevation in the East). In the Rockies and Sierra, elevation matters more than latitude, which is why the aspens above 9,000 feet in Colorado turn in late September. Ocean and Great Lakes shorelines run a few days behind inland spots at the same latitude.
From each place’s expected peak date, the model tracks how much of the canopy has turned and how many leaves are still hanging, then scores the viewing on a 0–100 scale. The score also accounts for how much color a region can produce: a sugar maple ridge in Vermont can hit 100, while the Gulf Coast rarely gets past “fair.”
The map recalculates itself every day. Move the date slider to see how color sweeps south and downhill through the season.
These are estimates based on typical years, not live observations. A warm September, drought, or an early hard freeze can move peak by a week or more. For a big trip, pair this outlook with a local report the week before you go. Elevations for map taps and most towns are estimated; edit the elevation in the report for a summit or valley.