Key takeaways
- Snow falls through cold air all the way down. Plow it.
- Sleet is ice pellets that bounce. Plow it and treat it, because it packs hard.
- Freezing rain freezes on contact into a glaze. Treat it; there is nothing for a plow to push.
- The difference comes down to how thick the freezing layer of air near the ground is.
On this page
What is the difference?
The National Weather Service explains it through the layers of air a snowflake falls through:
- Snow: the air stays at or below 32°F from the cloud to the ground, so the flake arrives as snow.
- Sleet: the flake falls into a warm layer and partly melts, then falls through a deep layer of freezing air near the surface and refreezes into an ice pellet before it lands. Sleet bounces.
- Freezing rain: the flake melts completely in a warm layer, then falls through only a thin layer of freezing air near the ground. There is not enough time to refreeze, so the drop lands as supercooled liquid and freezes on contact with anything at or below 32°F, coating it in a glaze of ice.
The deciding factor between sleet and freezing rain is the thickness of that freezing layer near the ground.
| Type | How it forms | What it looks like | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snow | Cold air all the way down | Flakes that pile up | Plow past the trigger, treat what remains |
| Sleet | Partial melt, refreezes before landing | Pellets that bounce and pack | Plow like snow, then treat the packed layer |
| Freezing rain | Full melt, freezes on contact | Clear glaze on everything | Treat; there is little or nothing to plow |
Snow: plow first
Snow is a depth problem. Once it passes the trigger, the job is to push it off the pavement, then treat whatever thin layer is left if temperatures and traffic call for it.
Sleet: plow and treat
Sleet piles up like snow but packs much harder. Under tires and feet it becomes a gritty, icy crust. It should be plowed like snow once it accumulates, and it usually needs treatment afterward because the layer the blade leaves behind is ice, not snow.
Freezing rain: treat, not plow
Freezing rain is a thin glaze, often only fractions of an inch, and a plow blade has nothing to push. It is a treatment job: de-icer to break the bond between ice and pavement, and traction material where people walk. Applying treatment before a forecast icing event, called anti-icing, makes a big difference. See anti-icing vs de-icing.
Freezing rain also brings down tree limbs and power lines. Stay out from under ice-coated trees, and treat downed lines as live.
Mixed storms
Many Southeast Michigan storms change type as warm air moves in above cold air near the ground. A storm can start as snow, turn to sleet and freezing rain, and end as snow again. The right sequence follows the storm: plow the snow and sleet, treat the ice, and plow again if snow returns on top of it.
What it means for your service
Plowing is triggered by depth, so an ice storm with no accumulation does not usually trigger a plow visit. Ice is handled with treatment. For homes, salting is usually a separate service from plowing. For businesses, ice management is part of the core job, because a glazed parking lot at opening time is a liability whether or not an inch of snow fell. Ask your contractor how each type is handled and billed before the season.
Sources
Written by the Macomb Lawn & Snow Solutions team in Macomb Township, Michigan. We plow and salt homes and businesses across all 26 Macomb County communities, November 15 to April 15. Published September 28, 2026. About us · How we research these guides · How our dispatch works