Atmospheric aerosols influence the radiation budget, cloud amount, cloud properties, and surface albedos of sea ice and snow over the Arctic. In spite of their climatic importance, Arctic aerosol contains large uncertainties due to limited observations. This study evaluates the Arctic aerosol variability in three reanalyses, JRAero, CAMSRA, and MERRA2, in terms of the aerosol optical depth (AOD), and its relationship to the atmospheric disturbances on synoptic timescales. The AOD becomes highest in July–August over most of the Arctic regions, except for the North Atlantic and Greenland, where monthly variability is rather small. The three reanalyses show a general consistency in the horizontal distribution and temporal variability of the total AOD in summer. In contrast, the contributions of individual aerosol species to the total AOD are quite different among the reanalyses. Compared with observations, the AOD variability is represented well in all reanalyses in summer with high correlation coefficients, albeit exhibiting errors as large as the average AOD. The composite analysis shows that large aerosol emissions in Northern Eurasia and Alaska and transport by a typical atmospheric circulation pattern contribute to the high aerosol loading events in each area of the Arctic. Meanwhile, the empirical orthogonal function analysis depicts that the first- and second-largest AOD variabilities on the synoptic timescales appear over Northern Eurasia. Our results indicate that these summertime AOD variabilities mainly result from aerosol transportation and deposition due to the atmospheric disturbances on synoptic scales, suggesting an essential role played by Arctic cyclones.