Oklahoma Hail Season: Where Radar and Ground Reports Agree
By StormAuditor Editorial Team · Published 2026-09-28 · Updated 2026-09-28
Based on public NOAA and National Weather Service records, published under StormAuditor's methodology and data-source standards. Radar-derived hail sizes are estimates unless attributed to a ground report.
Damage-threshold ranges in this article are general guidance synthesized from industry and federal research — IBHS building-performance research, NWS severe criteria, and product standards such as UL 2218 (hail impact resistance) and ASTM D3161/D7158 (shingle wind ratings). Actual performance depends on product rating, age, installation quality, exposure, and impact characteristics — thresholds describe when damage becomes possible, not when it occurs.
May 8, 2026 brought 118 ground hail reports to 2.75 inches and radar estimates to 3.42 inches. Here is how Oklahoma's hail days sort when radar and ground reports are read side by side, for the 12 months through September 24, 2026.
On May 8, 2026, the public record for the Oklahoma hail season filled up fast: 118 ground hail reports came in from across the state, the largest at 2.75 inches, while NOAA's MRMS radar estimated hail up to 3.42 inches the same day. It was also the busiest single day in StormAuditor's public-record tally for Oklahoma in the 12 months through September 24, 2026, with 511 storm events logged across hail, tornado, and wind.
When radar and people on the ground point the same way, a storm date is easy to work with. When radar shows a huge number and nobody reported hail, the date needs more care. This recap sorts Oklahoma's hail days by that test.
How big the Oklahoma hail season was
In the 12 months through September 24, 2026, StormAuditor's public-record tally holds 11,060 storm events across all 77 Oklahoma counties. Hail was the largest category at 5,157 events, just ahead of wind at 5,032. Flood added 511 and tornado 360.
Most of that tally comes from NWS warnings: 9,400 of the 11,060 records are warning-level entries. Another 807 are reported-level entries and 543 are observed-level entries. The mix matters. A warning says a storm threatened an area. A report says someone saw hail or wind at a place and time.
The busiest days in the same 12-month window cluster in spring and early summer:
- May 8, 2026: 511 events (hail, tornado, wind)
- July 4, 2026: 474 events (flood, hail, wind)
- June 22, 2026: 453 events (flood, hail, tornado, wind)
- March 10, 2026: 422 events (hail, tornado, wind)
- April 17, 2026: 375 events (hail, tornado, wind)
Hail days where radar and ground reports agree
StormAuditor ranks the state's top radar hail days by the largest MRMS MESH value, then lines up the ground hail reports from the same date. Among the ten biggest radar days in the 12 months through September 24, 2026, these are the ones with solid ground support:
- May 8, 2026: radar estimate up to 3.42 in; 118 ground reports, largest 2.75 in
- April 24, 2026: radar estimate up to 4.13 in; 49 ground reports, largest 2.75 in
- July 4, 2026: radar estimate up to 3.89 in; 13 ground reports, largest 1.25 in
- June 26, 2026: radar estimate up to 3.53 in; 9 ground reports, largest 2.00 in
- June 25, 2026: radar estimate up to 4.46 in; 8 ground reports, largest 2.50 in
- June 16, 2026: radar estimate up to 3.29 in; 6 ground reports, largest 2.75 in
- June 11, 2026: radar estimate up to 3.50 in; 5 ground reports, largest 2.50 in
May 8 and April 24 stand apart. Dozens of independent reports on each date, with top sizes at baseball range (2.75 inches), line up with radar values in the three- to four-inch range. On both days, ground reports sit well above the NWS severe hail criterion of 1.00 inch, and above the 2.00-inch mark the NWS uses for significant severe hail.
July 4 shows the opposite spread. Radar estimated up to 3.89 inches, but the largest of 13 ground reports was 1.25 inches. That gap is common: MESH estimates the largest hail in a storm column, while people report what falls where they stand. Both sources agree the day had hail; they differ on the top size.
Radar-only days and the largest ground reports
Two top-ten radar days had no ground hail reports at all. The largest radar value of the 12 months through September 24, 2026, 6.79 inches on June 19, 2026, is a radar estimate with no ground reports that day. July 23, 2026 is similar: a radar estimate up to 3.43 inches, with zero ground reports. Treat both as leads to check at the address level.
August 25, 2026 falls in between. Radar estimated up to 5.52 inches, and a single ground report came in, 3.00 inches at Gould. One report confirms hail fell under that storm, not how large it was a few miles away.
The biggest ground reports of the 12 months through September 24, 2026 came from two very different parts of the calendar:
- April 23, 2026: 3.75 in, 4 W Braman (public report)
- November 19, 2025: 3.75 in, 2 N Morrison (public report), with 3.50-inch reports at Morrison and 6 SW Morrison the same day
- April 1, 2026: 3.50 in, 5 E Watonga (trained spotter)
- April 17, 2026: 3.25 in and 3.00 in at Lamont, plus 3.00 in at 4 W Jet
The November 19, 2025 cluster near Morrison shows that large Oklahoma hail is not limited to spring.
Where the counties stack up
County counts in StormAuditor's tally cover all hazards, not hail alone. In the 12 months through September 24, 2026, Oklahoma County led with 277 events, followed by Grant (261), Osage (249), Kay (241), and Canadian (231).
The NCEI Storm Events Database tells a similar story at a slower pace. In NCEI records available through June 2026, Oklahoma County again leads with 70 events, then Tulsa (45), with Canadian and Kay at 42 each. NCEI monthly counts in those records climb from 130 in March 2026 to 345 in April, then 192 in May and 324 in June. December 2025 and February 2026 have no NCEI entries in those records yet, and that absence says nothing about how stormy those months were.
Where StormAuditor fits
A statewide recap narrows the calendar; the address comes next. Start with the Oklahoma storm data page for statewide and city context, then open the Storm Map Dashboard to see each day's ground storm reports and NWS warning shading. Pro+ subscribers can compare those reports against radar swaths in the Hail Explorer.
For a specific property, StormAuditor's SAHE-2 hail estimate uses MRMS MESH at the address, or within one mile, as the primary size. Ground reports confirm that hail occurred and can raise the estimate when radar also supports the event, but a report's size is not carried beyond radar support, and radar values are not suppressed. The hail methodology spells out each step. An address lookup returns NWS warnings, storm reports, and station observations for the property.
Limitations
Everything here is an estimate built from public NOAA and NWS records. None of it is an on-site measurement, a damage finding, or evidence of what caused damage at any roof. MRMS MESH can under-estimate wet hail and over-estimate in very high reflectivity cores, which is one reason radar-only days deserve extra care. Ground reports depend on who was outside and where, so rural storms often go unreported. A property inside a warning polygon was under a warning, not necessarily under the storm's peak. Storms that run past midnight can land on two dates in different datasets. The full list of caveats lives on the limitations page.
FAQ
What was the biggest hail in Oklahoma in 2026?
In the 12 months through September 24, 2026, the largest ground reports were 3.75 inches, at 4 W Braman on April 23, 2026 and 2 N Morrison on November 19, 2025. Radar estimated larger values on some days, including 6.79 inches on June 19, 2026, but that is a radar estimate with no ground reports that day.
When is hail season in Oklahoma?
In StormAuditor's tally for the 12 months through September 24, 2026, the busiest days ran from March through early July. Large ground reports also appeared on November 19, 2025 and August 25, 2026, so dates outside spring deserve a look.
Was there hail in Oklahoma on May 8, 2026?
Yes, by the public record. May 8, 2026 had 118 ground hail reports, the largest at 2.75 inches, with radar estimates up to 3.42 inches. Whether hail reached a given address is a separate, property-level question.
Which Oklahoma county had the most storm events?
Oklahoma County led StormAuditor's all-hazard tally with 277 events in the 12 months through September 24, 2026. It also leads NCEI records available through June 2026, with 70 events.
Why does radar show bigger hail than ground reports?
MESH estimates the largest hail within a storm column, while a report reflects one person's view at one spot. Radar can also over-estimate in very intense cores, so reading both sources together gives a fuller picture.