Note: This post is a bit old and includes outdated instructions. Make it snow on your site by following these up-to-date instructions.
The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of a world and wake up in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment then where is it to be found?
J. B. Priestley
December 1st makes a lot of us think of the holidays. It’s hard not to think about snow even if your climate doesn’t bring it. Once again, we’d like to spread snow around the world through WordPress.com.
To make it snow on your site:
- Go to your site’s dashboard.
- Navigate to Appearance → Extras.
- Check the box next to “Show falling snow on this blog.”
- Click the Update Extras button.
If you used snow last year it is automatically turned back on. If you want to turn it off, follow the steps above but uncheck the box.
Here’s a latin jazz version of Let it Snow to listen to while activating the feature:
Older computers may run slow or stop responding due to snow. Use the following links if you run into a problem (the options below only affect your user account):
Woo hoo! The snow returns! I love it. Why don’t we have this all year round? XD
Let is snow, let it snow, let is snow 😀
Thank you for snow! I love it!
omg this is AMAZINGGGGG
LOL … my first thought upon seeing the snow on the home page was ‘I want snow on my blog too!’ I should have known you would have thought of that and provided the option for us. You guys seem to think of everything … thanks!
Just done it there. Thanks a million. Goes nice with the theme I’m using. Keep up the good work and have a good Christmas. 🙂
I activated this feature last year and was surprised that it automatically worked this morning.
oooooo I love this! Thanks! 😀
This is so cool! Thanks!
How fun!
I don’t think I’ll use it on my blog (well, maybe right around Christmas Day perhaps) as it is a little distracting… but lots of fun nonetheless!
(the jazz music clip is cheesily good too…)
Thanks – here in Norway it is actually snowing…….. and now also on my blog. 🙂
What an incredibly cool effect!
The perfect way to add even more drama to my drama-filled blog!
🙂
Where I live it does not snow, but I love it! 😀
Like so much! Too bad there’s no love button 🙂
I would freak out if it starts snowing here but I wouldn’t mind having it on my WordPress.com blog. Thanks!
That’s a lovely idea! Thank you guys.
LOVE this!!! I noticed it earlier. It makes me a little more excited for the season. (For now) 🙂
Thanks!
That was super easy….and it looks great! Thanks!
Thank you – so funny! I love it. Of course, it is kitschy, but dosed perfectly 😀
I woke up to a lovely sight this morning. SNOW in California! How did you know that was just what I wanted for Christmas this year? Thank you.
Love it, totally makes me want to throw up some holiday decor while it’s pouring out and a bit tornado like!
YAY!
This is sooo cool, it looks like it is snowing in my snowy pic…super cool…thanks!!
Just in time! It has started to snow here in the Netherlands, too. 🙂
Just activated that feature on my blog. Surprisingly, it is snowing today. First snow fall of the year in Cincinnati, OH. What are the chances of that happening?
This is cool! Thanks!
This is delightful!
This is great! Super super love it, really suits with my xmas mood for december month period haha! XD
You are correct, an older computer really hampers this feature. I had to turn the snowfall off because my Commadore 64 froze when the snow started!!! Urggh. Now I have to put my 5 1/4″ system files floppy disks in and reconfigure…
Now I have time to sit at the window and watch the REAL snow for the next few hours.
I have to tell you – I signed up for the snow last year, and never removed the prompt. What a joy it was as I was posting my 1st Dec. post to have the snow fall unexpectedly on my blog! Thank you!! Living in Florida we don’t ever get to wake up to world that looks completely different. I’m glad my blog can!
Sounds like fun, as long as it’s “make believe.” Driving in snow is not my favorite thing. Watching it warm and snug indoors with a cup of hot tea, is more to my liking. Being an island girl, I’m all about “roasty, toasty.”…hugmamma.
Thanks, dude! You rock for this feature. I’m going to leave it on! Keep giving us good stuff. I love doing my blog!
Really neat! Thank you so much.
FABULOUSSSS!!! SUCH A WONDERFUL THING THANKS FOR YOUR CREATIVITY -B
Snow scene was saved from last year. Love it…
We have snow in the north east of england outside and now inside courtesy of WordPress.
Happy Christmas x
My snow switched on automatically today on both of my blogs. Lovely!
Amazing, that is, what I was looking for! Thank you! But I would still enjoy another christmas theme! 😉
Fricking awesome guys… it is snowing now in San Diego at the beach 🙂
I just updated my blog with a Christmas theme today so the snow is a PERFECT addiction. I full out squealed when I saw this post. This makes me ridiculously happy!
When I went to my site the other day I was delighted to see the snow falling.
Here in Hawaii we only see it on top of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa.
And your are right about the magical amazing quality it has when the first snow has fallen!
Aloha and Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to all of you at WordPress.com
Thanks for all the features you keep creating for all of us.
Great idea and will nicely with my blog about the snow in Edinburgh, Scotland. Thanks
I wish I could add snow because it is actually snowing outside today for the first time this year. However, I do not see a button for “Extras” under my Appearance settings. I’m using version 3.0.2
This is for WordPress.com blogs. Otto’s comment above for a plugin you could use.
Loved it last year (and the year before) – so pleased it’s back again!
For people who use WordPress.org on their own sites, I recommend this plugin for the same effect: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/let-it-snow/
Snow… Snow…. and …Snow
I always wait for this moment.
Ha ha, I love it. Thank you!
Yay, I love the snow! And while I hate actual snow, I agree with Anne Lessing above – we should definitely have this all year round.
Love this feature!
This is so cool! Not only has it started snowing outside, but it is now snowing on my blog.
Thank you.
Great Idea 🙂
I love it !!!
This is pretty dang sweet. Bring on some decorations, too! I love it. Thank you!
Fan Tas tiiic 😯 i loove it !!
I noticed the snow and right away shared the news with my spouse.
“It’s snowing! It’s snowing! Yay!!!”
And he was, like, whaaat? Then looked. Oh, wow. That’s neat.
Thanks sooo much for the little thrills that mean so much!
Well, thanks, but I think we’ve already had enough snow here in SW France where we don’t normally expect it till January. So I won’t be using this feature, but thanks for thinking about adding a seasonal extra.
I love this feature!
I’m always so excited for it every year. I went to activate this feature today, but as I can tell you already activated for me. I was like, “Wow! WordPress must have really known that I like this feature so much that they activated it for me!” But now I learned it was because I had it last year. But still, just by activating it for me really brightened my day! I’m very happy for some reason right now.
I was just wondering, will WordPress ever have this feature available for different occasions or possibly as an option all the time? Or possibly have other features similar to this? For example, like, ‘falling leaves’, ‘falling mini marshmallows’, ‘raining chocolate’, or ‘raining anything we want?’ By anything we want, I mean that a WordPress user would be allowed to upload a mini image they would like to have falling on their screen. For my case, I think it would be cool if I had raining ‘mini red peppers’ falling on my site all the time!
No plans to make snow available year round. It adds to the joy to have it limited. 🙂
Thank You So Much!! I Love It!!! 🙂
Aha! Good point! No wonder I’m so happy! Thanks. Does that mean there’s no chance for raining ‘mini red peppers?’
Probably not.
How nice! Such a lovely touch. You made me write on my blog again… Thank you.
That’s so cool!
I love putting the chill back on my blog…thanks!
I had just posted a picture of the snowy Continental Divide, and overnight it started to snow! I was more than a little surprised to see falling snow in the picture when I logged on. I’d forgotten all about the WP snow. Delighted to see its return!
Good. Now I can experience snow 😀
Thank you so much!!!
This is so great. Thanks, living in the south, I do miss the snow.
Nice feature, but I’m afraid I cannot make it snow, not even virtually because I’m in London, and even one tiny virtual snowflake will make the city come to a COMPLETE standstill and you’ll hear about us in the news (again)
(…never mind other countries cope with it)
Awwwww…. I love seeing my blog snow. Gives me warm fuzzies (although I guess it’s supposed to have the opposite temperature effect). THANK YOU!
My blog is about snowdomes/snowglobes, so this is just perfect!!! You sure we can’t have this all year round? I’m willing to bribe you! LOL.
This is terrific, cleaner than most of the snow programming I’ve seen, and much easier to initiate!
Thanks WordPress, & Great Job!
Snow without shoveling = good.
I agree!
Very cool! 😀
Thanks for this again! my blog was looking for this especially the snow and terrible cold here in Brussels.
There are snow on the pavements in my blog. 🙂
So exciting! Thank you soooo, much.
Great idea, but would be nice to have something different for the southern hemisphere 😉
I love it! Thank you!
Absolutely brilliant– thank you so much!!! 😀 Happy holidays!
OMG I love it! 😀
That’s great. Can we also have the feature to add the jazz music clip as a background music for our blog? 😛
We don’t allow auto-play music but you can place the audio player in your sidebar if you want.
Now if you could just make it pile up on the bottom of my blog and provide a little guy with a snow shovel to come along and shovel a path. 🙂 Peace and Merry Christmas, Linda
It’s my second year and I still love the idea and of course, the snow. 🙂 thank you! Cheers! 🙂
How funny that a little snow in my header should be so much fun. When I saw it the other day, I immediately remembered it from last year and was happy to see it was back. WP really rocks.
Ya’ll are too stellar!!!!!!!
I actually have a snow background on my blog, so this will be PERFECT! I just love this site!!!!
Thank you! This is way cool! Totally love it.
Wow! amazing, this shall be available throughout the years in my opinion, love the effect very much!
Great snow feeling, which is pretty cool for an Aussie like me as here we get heat, heat, heat, sun, humidity, heat etc for Christmas. Beach, surf, outdoors, shade is Christmas time in Aus.
What a lovely feature! Such a nice surprise. I now have the perfect backdrop for my Advent calendar post!
Oh Golly. I’d forgotten about this from last year. Glad it’s automatic! LOVE IT, or as we Scotties say, “AarrooooOOOOO!” Like the music, too.
Will it be possible to have it forever, not just during the month of December till January?
I really love the effect! It is not just Christmas by itself! =P
The words above by J. B. Priestley are so true. Thanks for the snow. Good idea.
It’s -4 degrees here, so it fits PERFECT….Love it, Thank you!!!
I started thinking about this weeks ago when the weather turned cold. Jingle Bells!
There is no snow in Indonesia, but I have snow in my blog!! Great!!!
I LOVE the snowflakes! How perfect for my blogs about Southwest Florida!
I love it. I just made a Christmas Header and put on a red boarder. I wish I could change the inside where you write to a color too.
Now if you could show me how to add midi’s or other music then my blog would really start to be cool.
You can use the audio player with MP3s.
You give us the coolest features! Our blogs are winterized! Thank you!
Yay, I’ve been waiting for the snow! love it! I just wish we could have firecracker animations for the new year too.
How nice to open my blogs and see the snow drifting down again. Thanks!