Vehicle · Studded tires

Studded Tire Laws by State: Legal Dates and Bans

Whether studded snow tires are legal in each state, the months they are allowed where the rule is seasonal, who is exempt, and the penalty for running them out of season. Each cited to the statute.

11 of 50 states so far, starting with the largest. The rule tracks climate: warmer states tend to ban studs outright, while colder states allow them inside a set winter window.Of these, 5 allow studs only for part of the year and 3 ban them. The date is the trap, not the tire. Every page links to the statute.

Read this first: check the season, not just the yes or no

Most states that allow studded tires allow them only inside a winter window, and running them a day early or late is the usual way drivers get a ticket. The window differs by state, so the date matters as much as the answer. A few states ban studs entirely, and a metal-stud ban does not cover the newer rubber or fabric traction products, which are often allowed.

Watch two things. First, many bans carry exemptions, for example a person with a disability or a rural mail carrier, so a flat "no" can still have a door open. Second, an out-of-state car passing through is generally held to the law of the state it is driving in, not its home state. Every figure links to the statute, and pages still pending verification say so.

Every state in one table

The verdict, the season window, and the statute in each row.

Seasonal (5)

State	Season	Statute
California	Nov 1 to Apr 30	Cal. Veh. Code § 27454
Michigan	Nov 15 to Apr 1	Mich. Comp. Laws § 257.710
New York	Oct 16 to Apr 30	N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 375(35)
Ohio	Nov 1 to Apr 15	Ohio Rev. Code § 5589.081
Pennsylvania	Nov 1 to Apr 15	75 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4525

Banned (3)

State	Season	Statute
Florida		Fla. Stat. § 316.299
Illinois		625 ILCS 5/12‑401
Texas		Tex. Transp. Code § 547.612

Allowed (2)

State	Season	Statute
Colorado		Colo. Rev. Stat. § 42‑4‑228
North Carolina		N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20‑122

Conditional (1)

State	Season	Statute
Georgia		O.C.G.A. § 40‑8‑74

What these pages are, and what they aren't

Each state page is a reference for the studded tire rule and the neutral steps around it. They are deliberately not advice for your trip: the season dates, exemptions, and chain rules can all matter, so each page links to the statute. This is legal information, not legal advice.