What is your precipitype? Take our precipitation personality quiz to find out!

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Precipitation seems straightforward — we often think only of rain and snow. But, there are actually many other types of precipitation, and they each have their own traits.

Try our precipitation personality quiz to learn more about rain, snow, hail, sleet, and graupel, and to find out which you most closely identify with. Maybe you are versatile and dependable like rain, or sensitive and loyal like graupel, maybe a natural born leader like hail?

Take the interactive quiz below to find out your precipitype!  Or try the text-only version for a more classic magazine-style experience. You can also use the text-only version to see which answers align to which precipitype and even identify whether you might be a "wintery mix" of more than one precipitype. 

Text-only precipitypes personality quiz

Before you start

Grab a pen and paper or open a text file where you can keep track of which letters you select. As you select your answers, write down the letter you chose for each question.

1. It’s your birthday tomorrow! How are you celebrating?

  1. I’ll get together with a few friends and we’ll decide what sounds fun. My friends and I always go with the flow and end up having a great time.

  2. It’s an all day event! I’ll start out having brunch with a few friends, then we’ll play our favorite songs on repeat and dance until we drop.
  3. A couple of my closest friends and I go on a day trip together and accumulate new memories.
  4. My partner or best friend will plan out the perfect day and I won’t have to worry about a thing! They always surprise me with a great activity I would never have thought of! 
  5. Me and a friend or two will bounce around the town, maybe take a class to explore a new hobby or skill.

2. You’re in a job interview and the interviewer asks what your greatest strength is. You respond…

  1. I’m adaptable and personable. I’ll fit in well with your team whether they work at a steady pace or like to work in bursts.

  2. I strive for success. I am great at mobilizing a team and getting results you can be sure will make a mark.
  3. I’m great at finding unique solutions. If you give me a framework and the space to follow my own process, you can expect unique results every time.
  4. I’ll be your right hand and stick by your side even during stressful times. I want to see you and the company succeed.
  5. I’m good at exploring new ideas and adapting as conditions change. I bounce back easily from challenges.

3. What does your ideal living space look like?

  1. I like my living space to flow naturally and have an inviting common area in case friends drop in.

  2. I’m known for hosting fun get-togethers where people hang out until they crash for the night, so it has to be perfect for entertaining with plenty of room to gather and move around.
  3. My decor would be eclectic and unique, but cohesive. I also like to be surrounded by things that remind me of my favorite moments with friends and family.
  4. I like to have a cozy space to snuggle up with my best friend, partner, or pet. It would have decor and rooms that make both me and my companion feel at home.
  5. I would have spaces for exploring my different interests, with decor and furniture that are easy to move around or replace as my tastes change.

4. You have an unexpected day off. What do you do?

  1. It depends on how I’m feeling that day. I might take myself on a date and sprinkle in some time with friends.

  2. I check some things off of my to-do list and then get family or friends together for something fun to end the day with a bang.
  3. I like to stick to my schedule and would have preferred a planned day off, but I’ll meet up with a few friends to do something.
  4. I link up with my partner or best friend to go on a day date!
  5. So many ideas, so little time! I spend some time trying to decide and then flip a coin and hop to it.

5. You find out one of your colleagues complained about you to another coworker or classmate. How do you react?

  1. I’m surprised because people rarely take issue with me, but I let it roll off of my back. They were probably having a bad day.

  2. It upsets me and I roll it around in my head for a while, then confront them about it with the hope of driving toward a solution.
  3. It bothers me, but not enough to say anything. I might stew on it for a day or two, then rant to my friends and let it go.
  4. I feel betrayed and take it personally. I try to understand why they might be upset and speculate about it with my closest friend or colleague.
  5. I let it go. It doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things and I know these things are only temporary.

Your precipitype is...

The letter you selected most often is your precipitype. If you selected three of one type and two of another, maybe you're a "wintery mix" of both. Either way, read the full precipitype personality below!

  1. You are rain
  2. You are hail
  3. You are snow
  4. You are graupel
  5. You are sleet

 

Precipitypes: Read more about your precipitation personality type

Close up of rain falling on a tiled roof. The rain looks to be falling hard.

Rain

You are versatile and dependable, and the type of person who fits well into several social circles. Rain can fall as a result of multiple different conditions, including condensing in a below freezing cloud and remaining liquid as it falls or frozen precipitation that melts on its fall. Unlike most frozen precipitation, by the time it reaches the ground as a droplet, we can’t look at it and learn about its journey. Like rain, you are private despite being gregarious and very few people know what really makes you tick. Because rain is a liquid, it behaves differently based on the surface it encounters — it will run along or pool on impermeable surfaces like concrete, but soak into soil. Similarly, you let things roll off of your back, and either adapt to the situation or find one that better suits you.

A pile of irregular, semi-translucent ice spheres that appear larger than five millimeters. Some are smooth, others have a rough texture.

Hail

You are a natural born leader who sees every challenge as a chance to grow. Hail forms by circulating in thunderstorm clouds — water droplets freeze when updrafts toss them higher up, and those frozen seeds accumulate more water and grow in size as they move up and down in the cloud. Like hail, you thrive in a high-paced environment and you are good at gathering people together to reach a common goal, from work to sports or planning get-togethers with friends and family. Just as hail grows as it circulates in the cloud before falling and develops a lumpy, bumpy, or spiky shape based on the conditions in the cloud, you are forthright and don’t hide your experiences or feelings — you are true to yourself to your core. People may be intimidated by you at first, but when they get to know you, they can’t help but be in awe. 

A zoomed in close-up of a cluster of snow crystals. The crystals are each unique and look perfectly formed except where smaller fragments have loosely connected the flakes together.

Snow

You are unique and not afraid to march to the beat of your own drum. Like snow, which may look uniform from afar, but is truly made of unique crystals, people may miss your individual spirit until they get to know you. Your individuality thrives when your routines are in place and your daily life is consistent, just as snow forms when conditions remain below freezing — from where it forms in the cloud to where it falls on the ground. Though individual snowflakes are delicate, once snow has fallen, it forms a snowpack as it accumulates that can persist for a long time. Similarly, you value the friendships of those closest to you and you all hold each other up during times of need. Looking closely at snow crystals and snowpacks can tell the story of change over time — through melt and refreeze, compression from new snowfalls, and changing weather conditions. In the same way, you stay alongside your closest friends and family as you grow and change, and your personality holds onto both your individual and shared history and experiences.

Appears to be irregular spheres of snow, each smaller than about five millimeters. The pellets look soft to the touch and below the top layer, they look to be melting into an icy slush.

Graupel

You are sensitive and loyal, and those few lucky enough to earn your trust couldn’t ask for a better friend. In fact you tend to be inseparable from your partner or closest friend, like graupel, which forms when supercooled water droplets (liquid below freezing point) freeze onto a snow crystal before falling. Together, you easily weather difficult times just as graupel can form in thunderstorm clouds or winter ones. Graupel disintegrates easily when handled. Similarly, you are highly sensitive and can be upset by critical or careless comments. However, your sensitivity is also your strength and you use it to connect with the world and others. 

A close up of sleet on concrete. The sleet is made up of irregular translucent ice spheres that are of varying sizes, but all smaller than a few millimeters in diameter.

Sleet

You are independent and enjoy exploring new things. Unlike precipitypes that fall to the ground mostly unchanged, sleet starts off as snow, then melts when it encounters warm air as it falls, and refreezes before hitting the ground. During this transition, sleet refreezes into a spheroid shape, different from its original crystalline form. Similarly, you embrace change and strive for self-discovery, no matter where it leads you. You love to try new things and trust that you’ll remain true to yourself even through all the new experiences. Your independence and comfort with change make you resilient — you bounce back easily after encountering difficult situations, similarly to how sleet bounces when it lands.