Barbourville, Kentucky climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Barbourville's normal year runs from 25°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 53.8 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 13.3°C, January lows of −4°C, July highs of 31°C, 1,366 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationBarbourville
- Station IDUSC00150381
- Location36.88°N 83.88°W
- Elevation990 ft (302 m)
- From the center1 miles
- Population3,081
On October 23, the normal high in Barbourville is 68°F and the normal low 40°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 33%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Barbourville.
- Jan 45° 25°
- Feb 50° 28°
- Mar 59° 33°
- Apr 69° 41°
- May 77° 51°
- Jun 84° 60°
- Jul 87° 65°
- Aug 86° 64°
- Sep 81° 56°
- Oct 71° 44°
- Nov 58° 33°
- Dec 49° 28°
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 Barbourville each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 25°F. The most precipitation falls in July (5.77 in), the least in October (3.13 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45°F | 25°F | 34.9°F | 4.37 | 13 | <1 | 23 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 50°F | 28°F | 38.9°F | 4.35 | 13 | <1 | 21 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 59°F | 33°F | 45.8°F | 4.91 | 13 | <1 | 16 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 69°F | 41°F | 55.3°F | 5.08 | 13 | <1 | 6 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 77°F | 51°F | 64.4°F | 4.54 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 84°F | 60°F | 72.3°F | 5.11 | 12 | 6 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 87°F | 65°F | 75.9°F | 5.77 | 13 | 10 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| August | 86°F | 64°F | 74.9°F | 3.98 | 9 | 8 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 81°F | 56°F | 68.7°F | 3.45 | 9 | 4 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 71°F | 44°F | 57.1°F | 3.13 | 10 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 58°F | 33°F | 45.5°F | 3.82 | 11 | <1 | 18 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 49°F | 28°F | 38.4°F | 5.26 | 14 | <1 | 22 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 68°F | 44°F | 56.0°F | 53.77 | 143 | 29 | 110 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7°C | −4°C | 1.6°C | 111 mm |
| February | 10°C | −2°C | 3.8°C | 110 mm |
| March | 15°C | 0°C | 7.7°C | 125 mm |
| April | 21°C | 5°C | 12.9°C | 129 mm |
| May | 25°C | 11°C | 18.0°C | 115 mm |
| June | 29°C | 16°C | 22.4°C | 130 mm |
| July | 31°C | 18°C | 24.4°C | 147 mm |
| August | 30°C | 18°C | 23.8°C | 101 mm |
| September | 27°C | 13°C | 20.4°C | 88 mm |
| October | 21°C | 6°C | 13.9°C | 80 mm |
| November | 15°C | 0°C | 7.5°C | 97 mm |
| December | 9°C | −2°C | 3.6°C | 134 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Williamsburg (18 miles away), gets 11 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00150381; 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 Barbourville?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, June, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (9).
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 USC00150381.
When is the last frost in Barbourville?
In Barbourville, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 19 in half of years and after May 6 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 24 in half of years and before October 11 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 6; 9 in 10 after April 4
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 241 year in 10 before October 11; 9 in 10 before November 3
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 187 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 210 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 6 in half of springs and before November 1 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Barbourville in zone 7a in ZIP code 40906, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Kentucky · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00150381; 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 Barbourville?
In a normal year in Barbourville, 29 days a year reach 90°F, 110 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 143 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 29a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 110a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 10high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 143a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00150381.
How sunny is Barbourville?
Over a year 73% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Barbourville, 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (79%) and February the cloudiest (62%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 2.2 |
| February | 62% | 2.8 |
| March | 67% | 4.0 |
| April | 73% | 5.2 |
| May | 74% | 5.8 |
| June | 78% | 6.3 |
| July | 76% | 5.9 |
| August | 79% | 5.5 |
| September | 78% | 4.7 |
| October | 75% | 3.6 |
| November | 74% | 2.7 |
| December | 64% | 1.9 |
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 Barbourville need?
A normal year in Barbourville brings 4,407 heating degree days, 18% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,156 cooling degree days, 27% more than the median (908). Six months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,895 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 935 | 0 |
| February | 733 | 0 |
| March | 596 | 1 |
| April | 306 | 15 |
| May | 107 | 88 |
| June | 12 | 231 |
| July | 1 | 338 |
| August | 2 | 308 |
| September | 40 | 151 |
| October | 269 | 22 |
| November | 584 | 1 |
| December | 825 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,407 | 1,156 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00150381. 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.
Has Barbourville been warmer than normal lately?
Over 34 complete years from 1951 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 1.4°F per century (+0.08°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Barbourville's climate compare?
Barbourville is warmer than 33 of the other 67 places with their own NOAA record in Kentucky, and wetter than 52. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 56.0°F is warmer than 64%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Barbourville is Cfa: temperate, 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 Barbourville share this climate record?
3 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.
- Flat Lick, KY711 people · 7 mi SE
- Artemus, KY587 people · 4 mi SE
- Arjay, KY19 people · 14 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 Barbourville's climate
What is the coldest month in Barbourville?
January, with a normal high of 45°F and a normal low of 25°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 65°F at night).
Does it snow in Barbourville?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Barbourville's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Williamsburg (18 miles away), records 11 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Barbourville?
July, with 5.77 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is October with 3.13 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Barbourville in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Barbourville in zone 7a in ZIP code 40906, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come in Barbourville?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 19; in one year in ten it comes after May 6. Waiting until May 6 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Kentucky climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- London, KY18 miles from this station, 56.9°F a year
- Williamsburg, KY18 miles from this station, 55.6°F a year
- Manchester, KY19 miles from this station, 55.3°F a year
- Newcomb, TN28 miles from this station, 56.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made