The 2026 U.S. tornado count is running above average as we reach the end of April, with much of the peak severe weather season still ahead. With today expected to be relatively quiet on the severe weather front, it’s a good time to check in on tornado totals by state so far this year.
Illinois leads the way with 108 tornadoes, already locking the Land of Lincoln into a third straight year of above-average tornado activity. Mississippi ranks second with 36, while Missouri and Oklahoma are tied for third with 33 each.
This isn’t a race anyone is trying to win, but these numbers may not change much in the near term, as a quieter pattern is expected over the next week or so with respect to organized severe storms. The Southern Plains into the Midwest has been the favored corridor so far this spring, but it remains to be seen where the focus will shift as we head deeper into the peak months of May and June.
