Athens, Illinois climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Athens's normal year runs from 18°F January nights to 85°F July afternoons, with 38.4 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 11.1°C, January lows of −8°C, July highs of 29°C, 976 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationAthens (4 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00110306
- Location39.93°N 89.80°W
- Elevation594 ft (181 m)
- Population1,903
On October 23, the normal high in Athens is 63°F and the normal low 41°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 31%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Athens.
- Jan 35° 18°
- Feb 40° 21°
- Mar 52° 30°
- Apr 64° 40°
- May 74° 51°
- Jun 81° 61°
- Jul 85° 64°
- Aug 83° 62°
- Sep 78° 54°
- Oct 66° 43°
- Nov 53° 33°
- Dec 40° 23°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Athens each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 85°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 18°F. The most precipitation falls in May (4.52 in), the least in February (1.98 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35°F | 18°F | 26.0°F | 2.20 | 8 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 40°F | 21°F | 30.6°F | 1.98 | 9 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 52°F | 30°F | 40.9°F | 2.67 | 11 | <1 | 18 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 64°F | 40°F | 51.9°F | 3.93 | 11 | <1 | 5 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 74°F | 51°F | 62.5°F | 4.52 | 13 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 81°F | 61°F | 71.2°F | 4.20 | 11 | 3 | <1 | 15 h |
| July | 85°F | 64°F | 74.5°F | 3.71 | 9 | 5 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 83°F | 62°F | 72.5°F | 3.27 | 9 | 6 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 78°F | 54°F | 66.0°F | 3.15 | 7 | 2 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 66°F | 43°F | 54.1°F | 3.40 | 10 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 53°F | 33°F | 42.7°F | 3.05 | 8 | <1 | 15 | 10 h |
| December | 40°F | 23°F | 31.5°F | 2.33 | 10 | <1 | 26 | 9 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 63°F | 42°F | 52.0°F | 38.41 | 115 | 17 | 121 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°C | −8°C | −3.3°C | 56 mm |
| February | 4°C | −6°C | −0.8°C | 50 mm |
| March | 11°C | −1°C | 4.9°C | 68 mm |
| April | 18°C | 4°C | 11.1°C | 100 mm |
| May | 23°C | 11°C | 16.9°C | 115 mm |
| June | 27°C | 16°C | 21.8°C | 107 mm |
| July | 29°C | 18°C | 23.6°C | 94 mm |
| August | 29°C | 17°C | 22.5°C | 83 mm |
| September | 26°C | 12°C | 18.9°C | 80 mm |
| October | 19°C | 6°C | 12.3°C | 86 mm |
| November | 12°C | 0°C | 5.9°C | 77 mm |
| December | 4°C | −5°C | −0.3°C | 59 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Petersburg (6 miles away), gets 15 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00110306; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Athens?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00110306.
When is the last frost in Athens?
In Athens, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 19 in half of years and after May 4 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 19 in half of years and before October 5 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- April 191 year in 10 after May 4; 9 in 10 after April 6
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 191 year in 10 before October 5; 9 in 10 before October 31
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 181 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 204 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 8 in half of springs and before October 30 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Athens in zone 6a in ZIP code 62613, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Illinois · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00110306; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Athens?
In a normal year in Athens, 17 days a year reach 90°F, 121 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 115 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 17a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 121a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 34high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 115a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00110306.
How sunny is Athens?
Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Athens, 4.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (83%) and December the cloudiest (63%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 1.9 |
| February | 66% | 2.8 |
| March | 67% | 3.7 |
| April | 72% | 5.0 |
| May | 73% | 5.6 |
| June | 81% | 6.4 |
| July | 83% | 6.4 |
| August | 82% | 5.7 |
| September | 82% | 4.7 |
| October | 74% | 3.3 |
| November | 71% | 2.3 |
| December | 63% | 1.6 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Athens need?
A normal year in Athens brings 5,632 heating degree days, 5% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 941 cooling degree days, 4% more than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,409 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,209 | 0 |
| February | 963 | 0 |
| March | 748 | 1 |
| April | 403 | 10 |
| May | 146 | 68 |
| June | 19 | 206 |
| July | 2 | 294 |
| August | 8 | 240 |
| September | 72 | 103 |
| October | 354 | 17 |
| November | 671 | 1 |
| December | 1,037 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,632 | 941 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00110306. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Athens's climate compare?
Athens is warmer than 74 of the other 143 places with their own NOAA record in Illinois, and wetter than 41. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 52.0°F is warmer than 49%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Athens is Dfa: continental, no dry season, hot summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Athens share this climate record?
4 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Ashland, IL1,188 people · 12 mi W
- Pleasant Plains, IL813 people · 7 mi SW
- Berlin, IL142 people · 13 mi SW
- Cantrall, IL139 people · 6 mi E
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Athens's climate
What is the coldest month in Athens?
January, with a normal high of 35°F and a normal low of 18°F. The warmest is July (85°F by day, 64°F at night).
Does it snow in Athens?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Athens's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Petersburg (6 miles away), records 15 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Athens?
May, with 4.52 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 1.98 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Athens in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Athens in zone 6a in ZIP code 62613, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Athens?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 19; in one year in ten it comes after May 4. Waiting until May 4 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Illinois climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Petersburg, IL6 miles from this station, 52.3°F a year
- Springfield, IL8 miles from this station, 54.0°F a year
- Mason City, IL18 miles from this station, 51.7°F a year
- Jacksonville, IL27 miles from this station, 52.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made