Jersey weather is a mood. Honestly, if you've lived here long enough, you know the drill: one minute you’re looking for a light jacket, and the next, the National Weather Service is blowing up your phone with a New Jersey weather advisory.
That’s exactly where we are this Saturday, January 17, 2026.
But here’s the thing—people see "snow" on the news and immediately sprint to the store for milk and bread like it’s the apocalypse. This weekend isn't that. It’s actually a weird, "two-act" winter play that's going to hit everyone differently depending on which exit you live off.
The Saturday Slush Fest
Right now, the northern part of the state is carrying the heavy lifting. A Winter Weather Advisory is officially in play until 4 p.m. today. We’re talking about Sussex, Warren, Morris, and Western Passaic counties. If you’re up there, you’re looking at 2 to 4 inches of snow.
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It’s not a blizzard. It’s a "clipper."
Basically, these fast-moving systems don't have a ton of moisture, but they’re cold enough to make the roads incredibly greasy. By midday—roughly 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.—things are going to get messy. If you're driving on I-80 or up near Morristown, expect that annoying slush that makes your tires hunt for grip.
South Jersey? You’re mostly off the hook for Act One. With temps hovering in the low 40s near Atlantic City, Saturday is looking more like a cold, depressing rain or maybe some "dippin' dots" graupel that melts the second it hits the pavement.
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Why Sunday Is the "Sneaky" One
Most people focus on the first advisory and then tune out. That’s a mistake.
While Saturday's system moves out by sunset, a second coastal low is timing its arrival for Sunday morning. The National Weather Service in Mount Holly is watching a "jog" in the models. If that storm nudges just a few miles west, the I-95 corridor—Philadelphia to New Brunswick—could see a quick 1 to 3 inches of snow.
It’s a classic Jersey Shore battle. The ocean is still relatively warm, which usually keeps the beaches brown while the inland suburbs turn white. But this Sunday, even the Shore might see a coating to an inch before it wraps up.
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The Polar Vortex is Looming
The snow is just the appetizer. The real story is the Arctic air mass sitting behind these storms.
Honestly, Monday and Tuesday are going to be brutal. We're talking about a legitimate polar plunge. Lows will dip into the teens, and with the wind kicking up to 30 mph on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the wind chills are going to feel like single digits or even sub-zero.
Survival Steps for the Next 48 Hours
If you’re in the advisory zone, don't overthink it, but don't ignore it either.
- Salt now, not later. If you’re in North Jersey, getting a layer of salt down before the Saturday midday burst helps prevent that bottom layer of ice from bonding to your driveway.
- Watch the Sunday "Shift." Keep an eye on the radar Sunday morning around 5 a.m. If you see the snow line creeping toward the Parkway, your morning commute to the bagel shop is going to be a lot slower than usual.
- Pipe Protection. By Monday night, the temps drop off a cliff. If you have an older house with exposed pipes in the crawlspace, now is the time to make sure they’re wrapped or the heat is high enough to keep things moving.
New Jersey weather advisories aren't always about the "Big One." Usually, they're about the "Annoying One"—the storm that's just enough to ruin your Saturday errands and make the Monday commute a freezing nightmare. Stay warm, stay off the tailpipes of the plow trucks, and keep an eye on those updated totals.
Practical Next Steps: Check your local county's Office of Emergency Management (OEM) social media pages for specific road closures, and ensure your car's anti-freeze and wiper fluid levels are topped off before the sub-zero wind chills arrive Tuesday.